Republicanism - Ideas and politics Flashcards
(31 cards)
1
Q
How did republicans view the ‘Povo’ in terms of national development?
A
- The collective base of society - end to individual progression
- Needed to be led by the cult of the ‘patria’ rather than God
- Povo needs to ‘republicanize itself’ - importance of literacy and citizenship to serve the fatherland
2
Q
How did republicanism construct patriotism?
A
- Creation of national customs and symbols
- Focus on mass nationalisation, a singular national narrative, to end the hold of rural areas on national culture
3
Q
How did the repiblican flag embody its message?
A
- Green symbolised future and hope
- Red symbolised blood and bravery
- In line with Comte’s positivist doctrine
4
Q
Why was positivism adopted by many republican politicians?
A
- Education was upheld as means of social transformation
- Central goal to create an informed citizenry
5
Q
Why was masonic culture central to the development of republicanism?
A
- Focus on humanity instead of the divine - reinforced anti-clerical backbone of the republic
- The ‘land’ seen as a utopic ideal - focus on development of the people rather than the divine
- Focus on scientific culture instead of faith
6
Q
How did republicanism develop from the 1860s onwards?
A
- Began to spread among popular and middle urban classes
- Accompanied by ‘street mobilization’ - creation of civic political culture and intermittent allies with new socialist movement
- New political discussion through newspapers, lectures and educational projects
- Mobilised by new class of trained professionals - ‘machine minders’
- Greater radicalization through Masonry and Carbonaria
- New antagonism towards monarchy, aligned with new demands of trade unions
7
Q
What key events preceded the Republican Revolution of 1910?
A
- 1880 - republicans gain seat in parliament and create O Trabalho newspaper
- 1889 Brazilian republican revolution - new framework
- 1891 Porto Revolution - crushed by monarchists but first Republican expression of leadership
- 1908 - regicide of King Carlos I and later his heir by the Carbonaria
- 1908 - Partido Republicano gains majority in Lisbon, values interiorized among political classes.
8
Q
Why were the carbonaria a key component of emergence of Republicanism?
A
- Reinforced anti-clerical backbone of the republican movement
- Conspiratorial and revolutionary society - key to stirring up resistance
- Mainly lower class but involved some members of the elitie
- Responsible for 1908 regicide and instrumental to 1910 revolution (Carbonaria cells int he navy)
9
Q
How were the streets ‘mobilized’ in the build up to the revolution?
A
- Circulation of weapontry and conspiracies between shopkeepers and workers
- Organized strikes throughout 1910
- Revolution was a populist mobilization, fuelled by anti-british nationalism and political impotence of urban middle classes
- Greater militancy of Lisbon’s large industrial zone.
10
Q
What were the main political parties in the first republican parliament?
A
- Democratic - led by Afonso Costa, base of urban, petit-bourgeois and key provincial notables
- Union/Evolutionist parties - created by conservative dissidents but only featured groups of notables. Advocated electoral reform and moderation of church-state relations
11
Q
Why was the political climate unstable in the first years of republicanism?
A
- Frequent falls of governments (ongoing trend)
- Wave of Union strikes continued
- Increasing affirmation of radical sectors in government
- Insurgencies in 1911 and 1912
- New resistance from rightist sectors - cartists, monarchists - basis of fascism
12
Q
Why did social unrest remain after Republicans took power?
A
- Unrest in the streets after new mobilization - underrepresented povo had new demands
- Multiple disputes with syndicates
- Economic growth was mainly industrial and public debt continued
- Universal suffrage not realized due to pretext of monarchical revolts in Spain
13
Q
Why did the Republic struggle to expand representation in its early stages?
A
- Inability to introduce universal suffrage
- Weak pressure from below in the rural world - still employed in subsistence agriculture
- ‘Active minorities’ in the cities such as workers were anti-participatory and sought disruption
- Governmentalization of local admin had counter-effect of district governors sustaining clienetelistic packs
14
Q
Why was the army disillusioned at the start of the 19th century?
A
- Lack of conditions and resources
- Disorganization and low pay
- Career paths were unstable
14
Q
Why did military disillusionment fuel republican sentiment?
A
- Regime change seen as increasingly necessary
- Marines under strong republican influence - role of carbonaria cells in 1910 revolution
- Junior officers led revolution itself
15
Q
What were the key social causes of republicanism?
A
- Civilize the povo through education
- Support feminism even if a vote was never given to women
- Socialist objectives - despite it being gradually removed from regime
- Anti-clericalism/anti-jesuitism - end to religious monopoly over education
- Underpinning new strong urban movement
16
Q
Why was the rise of republicanism in Portugal ambiguous, and potentially paradoxical
A
- Emerged as a child of the lower-middle classes, but adopted by upper middle class who used anti-clericalism as a battle cry
17
Q
How did Republicanism manage to begin erosion of privielge?
A
- Focus on social mobilization was successful and even caused conservatives to regroup
- Women given a new status in terms of opportunities
- Wage-earning men, underpinned by union development, were able to obtain 8-hour working days
- Freedom of thought replaced moral restrictions
- Greater reduction of illiteracy and wider access to education
17
Q
How did Republicanism manage to begin erosion of privilege?
A
- Focus on social mobilization was successful and even caused conservatives to regroup
- Women given a new status in terms of opportunities
- Wage-earning men, underpinned by union development, were able to obtain 8-hour working days
- Freedom of thought replaced moral restrictions
- Greater reduction of illiteracy and wider access to education
18
Q
Why was secularization of dominant preoccupation of the new republic?
A
- Key aim of upper middle classes who felt greater impotence due to their servility to priests
- Links with freemasons gave basis for antagonism towards church - also enrolled many of the elite, some who served as prime minister
- Key battleground for the ‘soul of the citizen’
19
Q
What key changes did the Lei de Separacao of 1911 establish?
A
- New republican culture of religious freedom + a ‘broad liberty of consciousness’
- Roman catholicism no longer official religion of the state
- No one can be persecuted for reasons of relgion
20
Q
How was education impacted by new laicism?
A
- Teaching seen as a form of emancipation rather than enlightenment
- Teaching of history identified republic with the fatherland
- Professors the ‘non-religious’ priests of the ‘civic church’ - aimed to replace influence of organized religion
- Creation of human perfectibility and end to confessionalism
- New routes for scientific and positivist culture
21
Q
How else was Portugal secularized during the early stages of the republic?
A
- Education in control of the state
- Advocation of divorce law as an attack on Catholic sacraments
- All religious rites in court, universities and armed forces abolished
- Second dissolution of the monasteries
- Banning of clerical death outside churches
22
Q
How else was education developed in the early stages of republicanism?
A
- Opening of mass literacy classes and greater primary education
- Sponsoring of seminars and debates
- New publications encouraged, circulation of literature for working men, namely Das Kapital
23
Why did the circulation of Das Kapital have a contradictory effect on new national visions?
- Provoked political right into seeing mass education as detrimental for national wellbeing
- Led to founding of Seara Nova - democratic socialist movement opposing liberal concepts of progress
24
Why was the economic and fiscal policy of the republic surprisingly conservative?
- Ironic image of street republican leaders defending commercial banks from looters during revolution
- Focused on defence of conventional values - pre-keynesian era, budget balancing
- Aim to prevent enlargement of debt, which was possible until the outbreak of war
- Involved in many financial swindles - hidden deal with British printing firm led to over printing, loss of confidence in currency, savings had to take refuge abroad
25
What socio-political cleavages remained after teh revolution?
- Right and conservative factions were increasingly radicalised - new demands of clergy and large landowners
- New catholic movement emerging - founding of CCP which had corporatist and authoritarian tendencies
- Interest groups increasingly powerful in the cortes
- Strong nuclei of monarchists not connected with liberal
- Creation of Integralismo Lusitano
26
Why did Costa fail to meet expectations of the new mobilized proletariat?
- Economy crisis ridden and weak - lack of public spending
- Popularity weakened by continued ties with England - used to protect colonies
- Financially ruinous decision of war brought Costa's government to an end
27
Why did Costa fail to improve agriculture?
- Agrarian immobility and stagnant production prevented development
- Republican links with large landowners meant wasteful latifundias remained, as well as the fragmentations of plots
- High levels of illiteracy common and many rural dwellers emigrated for better opportunities
28
What were the key socio-political questions at the end of the 19th century?
- Elite political class had no social roots and was increasingly detached from citizens
- Dual society remained - rural illiterate poor v urban middle class
- Emergence of messianic and authoritarian politics
- Need for representation of the povo to reignite patrimony
- Continued external dependence and internal blockades - bankruptcy of 1892
- Continued state burden due to imbalance between fiscal revenue and public spending
- Falling popularity of the monarchy and new repiblican values
29
Why was republicanism both a legal and illegal movement?
- Visible presence within liberal system - key politicians within monarchic politics (Afonso Costa, Bernardino Machado, Brito Camacho)
- Outside of the liberal system - circulation of arms and conspiracies, particularly among shopowners and workers
