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Carlos IV became King of Spain
Son of Carlos III. His reign coincided with the French revolution and the Napoleonic Empire. -
Period: to
Reign of Carlos IV
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Battle of Trafalgar
The Battle of Trafalgar occurs in the coast of Cape Trafalgar in Los Canos de Meca.
This naval battle is considered one of the most important nineteenth century, where the allies France and Spain faced (led by French Admiral Pierre Villeneuve, under whose command was the Spanish side Lt. Gen. sea Federico Gravina) against British under the command of Vice Admiral Horatio Nelson, who earned the victory. -
Spain and France signed the Treatry of Fontainebleau
this teatry gave French troops permission to pass through Spain on their way to attack Portugal. At the time, Portugal was allied with Great Britain.
The accord proposed the division of the Kingdom of Portugal and all Portuguese dominions. -
The Spanish War of Independence
Began when the people of Madrid rose up against the French occupation.
POLITICAL REVOLUTION:
-Joseph Bonaparte: was the head of French government in Spain. He imposed the Bayonne Constitution, wich inclued enlightenment reforms. Joseph had some Spanish supporters, who were called "afrancesados". Most Spanish people, however, rejected his autority.
- The Central Council: represented the absent Fernando VII, in areas not occupied by French. People had their own elected representatives. -
Period: to
Spanish War of Independence
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Shootings of May 3
On May 2 the invading government decreed the departure of the last members of the royal family. Began therefore the uprising. Many Frenchmen died. And the French army wanted revenge. All looters have been arrested and will be shot the May3. That night in the capital began a relentless pursuit of suspected insurgents. Anyone who carry a knife was arrested and sentenced to death without trial. The executions were carried out at four o'clock in Recoletos, Principe Pio, Puerta del Sol, La Moncloa... -
Joseph Bonaparte, new king of Spain
In the end, the French forces occupied Spain and sent Carlos IV and his son Fernando to Bayonne (in France), and they renounced their rights to the Spanish throne in favour of Napoleon. -
Battle of Bailen
The Battle of Bailén was fought in 1808 by the Spanish Army of Andalusia, led by Generals Francisco Castaños and Theodor von Reding, and the Imperial French Army's. The heaviest fighting took place near, a village by the Guadalquivir river in the Jaén province of southern Spain. The war finished with the victory of the Spanish Army. -
Cortes
The Central Council took refuge in Cádiz, wich had not been taken by the French. In 1810, it was replaced by the Regency Council, wich them called together the "Cortes". -
THE CONSTITUTION
On 19 March 1812, the Cortes of Cadiz, approved the first Spanish constitution (knowed as "La Pepa").
The Constitution established the following principles:
-Constitutional monarchy.
-Popular sovereignty, with limited male sufragge.
-Catholicism as the state religion.
-The separation of powers into three branches: executive (monarch), legislative (monarch and Cortes), and judicial (courts of justice).
-Guaranteed rights and freedoms, includyng equality under the law. -
End of the war
The French were finally defeat in 1813, thanks to support from British forces led by the Duke of Wellington, and groups of Spanish citizens who carried out "guerrilla" attacks on the French forces.
The war continued in France, where finally, Napoleon asked peace. Allied troops had come to Bordeaux, and possibly if they had not been braking, they had entered Paris before the Austrian, Prussian and Russian. Fernando VII was finally able to return to Spain on March 22, 1814.
