Neo Westphalian Europe Part 23: Iberian Peninsula

The Iberian Peninsula is another region that is similar to the United Kingdom, with regards to its devolutionary process. It has a longer history of this process however. When the revolutionary waves of the 19^th Century swept the region there were numerous peasant movements, in various parts of the peninsula, which periodically threw off the yoke of the Monarchy. This is one of the reasons that Spain ended up as one of the great ideological heartlands of global Anarchism. 

This tension culminated in the Spanish Civil War on the eve of the Second World War. The Monarchists were able to win the day in that conflict and seized the region once again. In the late 1970’s the heavily centralised, Fascist version of this structure was eased, following the death of Franco.  A program of devolution once again began in this territory. 

This left a number of highly autonomous states under the unifying Crown of Spain. It seems that now these states will seek full independence, as the forces of decentralisation reach their peak. The Catalonian independence movement is the strongest one in the region currently. Indeed it is likely the Catalonians successful declaration of independence that will set off the other secessions in this region.

Go To Part 24