Creation of CEDA

• • 1931 - major figures on the Spanish right had argued for a new united r/w political movement. The victory of the left in the 1931 elections was due to the rights disorganisation. A new r/w movement would capitalise on the discontent caused by the left's anti-clericism and military reform, and be the best chance of stopping a further l/w victory at the next election.
• Gil-Robles was a predominant figure in the creation of CEDA. He began negotiations to establish a coalition of r/w groups that would contest the 1933 elections as a single unified party. This led to the creation of CEDA in February 1933. The party's declared focus was to defend Catholicism, property rights and the unity of Spain.
• CEDA recieved a significant amount of funding from landowners who felt threatened by Azana's agricultural reforms. Wealthy industries contributed funds to the group as they felt the republic was dominated by l/w groups who supported the workers at the expense of the employers. Both the landowners and industrialists hoped that CEDA would reverse the reforms of the previous government.
• Gil-Robles' ambitions

  l/w politicians viewed Gil-Robles as an enemy of democracy and the republic. He visited Germany and Italy and was impressed with what he considered to be the strength and dynamism of Hitler and Mussolini. He recognised the value of propaganda, which he exploited to gain support in the 1933 elections. The left feared that Gil-Robles was planning to establish an authoritarian government or even dictatorship similar to the one led by Primo De Rivera in the 1920's