1.2.1 The Provisional Government

• Elections to the Cortes were held in June 1931, in which the PSOE became the largest party with 116 seats
• The final version of the constitution was ratified in December 1931 with protections for individual rights and provisions for regular elections based on universal suffrage
• Constitutional Reforms to the Church:

  1. Article 3 stated that the state had no official religion
  2. Article 26 ensured that the state no longer gave economic aid to churches
  3. Article 27 banned church bells and funeral processions
  4. Article 44 gave the state the right to take away the property of the church
• Government support for anti-clericalism resulted in the resignation of the prime minister, Alcala Zamora. His resignation convinced the right that Spain was heading in a dangerously radical direction
• Opposition to Church Reform:

  1. The Agrarian Minority withdrew from the Cortes in protest
  2. Gil Robles vigorously criticised the reforms in the El Debate newspaper
  3. Gil Robles advocated for accidentalism, the belief that the Constitution should reflect Spain's traditional values
• Azana's Army Reforms:

  1. Officers were made to swear an oath of loyalty to the Republic
  2. Army officers were allowed to take early retirement on full pay (this was taken by 8,000 officers)
  3. Officers involved in criminal activities were arrested and tried
  4. The size of the army was reduced
  5. Service time was reduced to one year
• Whilst several right-wing officers were removed from their posts, some remained, such as Francisco Franco. Right-wing newspapers presented the reforms as an attempt to crush the army