“Manifest of the Persians”, o the loyalists between traditionalism and reformism

Abstract

At the beginning of the 19th century, the transition from the Ancient Order to the New as liberal-bourgeois one in Spain first began to be carried out in the Cadiz Cortes by two political forces: revolutionary-minded liberals and moderate liberals (future “moderados”). The end of the War of Independence in 1814 and the return of the traditionalist-minded king Fernando VII created a “bifurcation point” from the resolution of which depended the further development of Spain for the medium term: either continuation of reforms or restoration of the Ancient Order. At the same time, the reformist impulse of Cadiz Cortes was so strong that even representatives of the initially traditionalist “servile party” formulated the so-called “Manifesto of the Persians”, which along with loyal feelings for the king offer a number of moderate political and institutional reforms. Despite the crushing failure of this project, Spanish historiography assessed the Manifesto as epochal and generally constructive: while left-wing historians always saw in it only a manifestation of an anti-revolutionary reaction, traditionalist historians, on the contrary, starting from the middle of the 19th century emphasized its pro-reformist intentions.

Keywords

• “manifesto of the persians”
• “servile party”
• traditionalism
• reformism
• xixth century spain