104-564: The Ominous Decade (Castilian: Década Ominosa ) is a term for the last ten years of the reign of King Ferdinand VII of Spain , dating from the abolition of the Spanish Constitution of 1812 , on 1 October 1823, to his death on 29 September 1833. Ferdinand VII had become king after the victorious end of the Peninsular War , by which Spain defeated Napoleonic France. He returned to Spain on 24 March 1814 and his first act
208-475: A Basque department, to no avail. The Basque Country has a population of approximately 3 million as of early 2006. The population density, at about 140/km (360/sq mi) is above average for both Spain and France, but the distribution of the population is fairly unequal, concentrated around the main cities. A third of the population is concentrated in the Greater Bilbao metropolitan area, while most of
312-746: A Basque-Navarrese University. Nonetheless, in 1897 the Bilbao Superior Technical School of Engineering (the first modern faculty of engineering in Spain), was founded as a way of providing engineers for the local industry; this faculty is nowadays part of the University of the Basque Country . Almost at the same time, the urgent need for business graduates led to the establishment of the Commercial Faculty by
416-594: A ceremony in Madrid on 10 March 1820. This began the so-called Trienio Liberal ("Liberal Triennium", or Constitutional Triennium), during which Ferdinand had to witness the fall of the main absolutist institutions and privileges, and the increasing shift towards radicalism of the Parliament's majority. Ferdinand, however, had not abandoned his reactionary goals, and appealed to the Holy Alliance established at
520-535: A collection of regions inhabited by the Basque people , known as Euskal Herria in Basque language , and it is first attested as including seven traditional territories in Axular 's literary work Gero (he goes on to suggest that Basque language is spoken "in many other places"), in the early 17th century. Some Basques refer to the seven traditional districts collectively as Zazpiak Bat , meaning "The Seven [are] One",
624-565: A daughter who lived only five months, and a stillborn daughter. On 20 October 1819, in Madrid , Ferdinand married the daughter of his father's first cousin Maximilian, Prince of Saxony and of his mother's first cousin Caroline of Parma , Princess Maria Josepha Amalia of Saxony (1803–1829). They had no children. Lastly, on 27 May 1829, Ferdinand married another niece, Maria Christina of
728-542: A far less hostile stance than Ferdinand VII. Others, instead, were ruthlessly eliminated, such as Del Riego, the main symbol of the revolution, who was hanged on 7 November 1823 in La Cebada Square of Madrid. Harsh censorship was re-established, while an archaic and totally reactionary organization of universities was introduced under the strict control of the Minister of Justice, Francisco Tadeo Calomarde , who
832-527: A few. The situation of the Basque language in the French Basque Country is vulnerable (as rated by Unesco). The pressure of French as a well-established mainstream language and different administrative obstacles to the consolidation of Basque-language schooling make the language's future prospects uncertain. On 14 June 2013, pointing to the 1850 Falloux act and declaring thereafter that French
936-507: A limited self-governing status, as settled by the Spanish Constitution. However, a significant part of Basque society is still attempting higher degrees of self-empowerment (see Basque nationalism ), sometimes by acts of violence ( ETA 's permanent ceasefire in 2010). The French Basque Country, meanwhile, lacks any political or administrative recognition whatsoever, while a majority of local representatives have lobbied to create
1040-718: A motto coined in the late 19th century. The Northern Basque Country , known in Basque as Iparralde (literally, "the northern part"), is the part of the Basque Country that lies entirely within France , specifically as part of the Pyrénées-Atlantiques département of France, and constitutes the Basque Municipal Community . As such it is usually known as French Basque Country ( Pays basque français in French ). In most contemporary sources, it
1144-665: A period of his reign known as "Ominous Decade", due to its marked stress on the suppression of his enemies. Most of the members of the Liberal Party fled abroad, to London (where some received monetary help by the British government for their role in the wars against Napoleon), Paris, Malta, the United States, or to newly proclaimed independent republics of South America, towards which the Spanish liberal government had held
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#17327661872971248-606: A referendum by minority leftist forces and Basque nationalists in Navarre, it has been opposed by mainstream Spanish parties and the Navarrese People's Union , which was the ruling party until 2015. The Union has repeatedly asked for an amendment to the Constitution to remove this clause. In addition to those, two enclaves located outside of the respective autonomous community are often cited as being part of both
1352-592: A swiftly changing array of disbanded party names, new alliances, and re-accommodations (since 1998). During the 2011 Spanish parliamentary elections, the coalition Amaiur (former Batasuna plus Eusko Alkartasuna ) came up first in parliamentary seats (7) and second only to UPN -PP (5 seats) in popular vote in the Southern Basque Country , followed closely by the Spanish Socialist Workers' Party (5 seats). Geroa Bai secured
1456-564: A unicameral body, instead of in three chambers representing the three estates : the clergy, the nobility and the cities.) Ferdinand initially promised to convene a traditional Cortes, but never did so, thereby reasserting the Bourbon doctrine that sovereign authority resided in his person only. Meanwhile, the wars of independence had broken out in the Americas, and although many of the republican rebels were divided and royalist sentiment
1560-550: A very similar climate to nearby Hondarribia on the Spanish side of the border. The values do not apply to San Sebastián , since its weather station is at a higher elevation than the urban core, where temperatures are higher year-round and similar to those in Bilbao and Hondarribia . According to some theories, Basques may be the least assimilated remnant of the Paleolithic inhabitants of Western Europe (specifically those of
1664-407: Is difficult to accurately translate into other languages due to the wide range of meanings of the Basque word herri . It can be translated as nation ; country , land ; people , population and town , village , settlement . The first part, Euskal , is the adjectival form of Euskara "the Basque language". Thus a more literal translation would be "country/nation/people/settlement of
1768-606: Is a single-province autonomous community. Its name refers to the charters, the Fueros of Navarre . The Spanish Constitution of 1978 states that Navarre may become a part of the Autonomous Community of the Basque Country if it is so decided by its people and institutions (the Disposicion transitoria cuarta or "Fourth Transitory Provision"). To date, there has been no implementation of this law. Despite demands for
1872-505: Is defined as covering the arrondissement of Bayonne and the cantons of Mauléon-Licharre and Tardets-Sorholus , but sources disagree on the status of the village of Esquiule . Within these conventions, the area of Northern Basque Country (including the 29 square kilometres (11 square miles) of Esquiule) is 2,995 square kilometres (1,156 square miles). The French Basque Country is traditionally subdivided into three provinces: This summary presentation suggests difficulty in justifying
1976-734: Is frequently known as Spanish Basque Country ( País Vasco español in Spanish ). It is the largest and most populated part of the Basque Country. It includes two main regions : the Basque Autonomous Community ( Vitoria-Gasteiz is the capital) and the Chartered Community of Navarre (capital city Pamplona , Basque : Iruña ). The Basque Autonomous Community (7,234 km²) consists of three provinces , specifically designated "historical territories": The Chartered Community of Navarre (10,391 km²)
2080-602: Is lost, with only Vascones still being accounted for, while extending far beyond their former boundaries, e.g. in the current lands of Álava and most conspicuously around the Pyrenees and Novempopulania . The territory of the Cantabri encompassed probably present-day Biscay , Cantabria , Burgos and at least part of Álava and La Rioja , i.e. to the west of Vascon territory in the Early Middle Ages , but
2184-486: Is neither linguistically nor culturally homogeneous, and certain areas have a majority of people who do not consider themselves Basque, such as the south of Navarre . The concept is still highly controversial, and the Supreme Court of Navarre has upheld a denial of government funding to school books that include the Navarre community within the Basque Country area. The name in Basque is Euskal Herria . The name
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#17327661872972288-491: Is not traditionally spoken). Basque language teaching in the public education network is therefore limited to the Basque speaking north and central regions. In the central region, Basque teaching in the public education network is fairly limited, and part of the existing demand is served via private schools or ikastolak . In southern and some central areas this policy has resulted in schoolchildren having to travel sometimes for hours every day in order to attend education provided in
2392-513: Is signatory has issued a number of recommendations in order to guarantee a real official status for Basque language (2004), e.g. the suppression of the administrative linguistic divides of Navarre for considering it an obstacle to the normal use of Basque and discriminating against Basque speakers, the filing of the case against newspaper Euskaldunon Egunkaria and restitution to its normal operation, as well as guarantees to prisoners of receiving and sending correspondence in Basque, to mention but
2496-848: Is the name given to the home of the Basque people . The Basque Country is located in the western Pyrenees , straddling the border between France and Spain on the coast of the Bay of Biscay . Encompassing the Autonomous Communities of the Basque Country and Navarre in Spain and the Northern Basque Country in France, the region is home to the Basque people ( Basque : Euskaldunak ), their language ( Basque : Euskara ), culture and traditions. The area
2600-675: Is the official language of France, the regional subprefect declared illegal the Hendaye council's subsidies to finance a new building for a Basque-language school. On 6 November 2013, the Basque language school network in the French Basque Country , Seaska, bitterly criticized the French state before UNESCO for not complying with its international commitments and actually failing to accept minorities by violating their linguistic rights. In November 2013, France decided not to ratify
2704-499: The 2nd Spanish Republic in 1931, when a draft statute was drawn up for the Southern Basque Country ( Statute of Estella ), but was discarded in 1932. In 1936 a short-lived statute of autonomy was approved for the Gipuzkoa , Álava and Biscay provinces, but war prevented any progress. After Franco 's dictatorship, a new statute was designed that resulted in the creation of the current Basque Autonomous Community and Navarre, with
2808-767: The British forces on the peninsula , the first Protestant member of the order. During the aftermath of the Mexican War of Independence , the general of the Army of the Three Guarantees , Agustín de Iturbide , and Jefe Superior Juan O'Donojú , signed the Treaty of Córdoba , which concluded the war of independence and established the First Mexican Empire . The imperial constitution contemplated that
2912-553: The Congress of Vienna in 1814, by which the main absolutist monarchies of Europe had agreed to help each other in case one of them had to suffer a democratic revolution. On 7 April 1823, France launched an expedition, by which a military corps, known as the One Hundred Thousand Sons of St. Louis (Los Cien Mil Hijos de San Luis) and led by Louis Antoine, Duke of Angoulême , invaded the Spanish territory. Louis
3016-583: The European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages . The earliest university in the Basque Country was the University of Oñati , founded in 1540 in Hernani and moved to Oñati in 1548. It lasted in various forms until 1901. In 1868, in order to fulfill the need for college graduates for the thriving industry that was flourishing in the Bilbao area, there was an unsuccessful effort to establish
3120-880: The Franco-Cantabrian region known as Azilian ) to the Indo-European migrations. Basque tribes were mentioned by Greek writer Strabo and Roman writer Pliny the Elder , including the Vascones , the Aquitani , and others. There is considerable evidence to show their Basque ethnicity in Roman times in the form of place-names, Caesar's reference to their customs and physical make-up, the so-called Aquitanian inscriptions recording names of people and gods (approx. 1st century, see Aquitanian language ), etc. Geographically,
3224-655: The Hundred Years' War , with Bayonne remaining the last Plantagenet stronghold up to 1453. In Navarre, the civil wars between the Agramont and the Beaumont confederacies paved the way for the Spanish conquest of the bulk of Navarre from 1512 to 1524. The independent Navarre north of the Pyrenees was largely absorbed by France in 1620, despite the fact that King Henry III of Navarre had decreed Navarre's permanent independence from France (31 December 1596). In
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3328-545: The Jesuits upon his return, but now they had become identified with repression and absolutism among the liberals, who attacked them: twenty-five Jesuits were slain in Madrid in 1822. For the rest of the 19th century, liberal political regimes expelled the Jesuits, and authoritarian regimes reinstated them. Ferdinand VII was an ardent opponent of Freemasonry in Spain , seeing it as a vehicle for liberal revolutions, an enemy of
3432-533: The Mondragon University , based in Mondragón and nearby towns. There are numerous other significant Basque cultural institutions in the Basque Country and elsewhere. Most Basque organizations in the United States are affiliated with NABO ( North American Basque Organizations , Inc.). Since the last quarter of the 20th century, there have been very different political views on the significance of
3536-653: The Ominous Decade ) saw the restoration of absolutism, the re-establishment of traditional university programs and the suppression of any opposition, both by the Liberal Party and by the reactionary revolt (known as " War of the Agraviados ") which broke out in 1827 in Catalonia and other regions. In May 1830, Ferdinand VII published the Pragmatic Sanction , again allowing daughters to succeed to
3640-558: The liberal constitution of 1812 . A revolt in 1820 led by Rafael del Riego forced him to restore the constitution, starting the Liberal Triennium , a three-year period of liberal rule. In 1823 the Congress of Verona authorized a successful French intervention , restoring him to absolute power for the second time. He suppressed the liberal press from 1814 to 1833, jailing many of its editors and writers. Under his rule, Spain lost nearly all of its American possessions , and
3744-735: The Basque Autonomous Community and also the Basque Country (greater region). The Basque Country region is dominated by a warm, humid and wet oceanic climate . The coastal area is part of Green Spain and by extension, the climate is similar for Bayonne and Biarritz as well. Inland areas in Navarre and the southern regions of the autonomous community are transitional, with continental Mediterranean climate , with somewhat wider temperature swings between seasons. The list only sources locations in Spain , but Bayonne/Biarritz have
3848-402: The Basque Autonomous Community in the late 19th century and throughout the 20th century, as the region became more and more industrialized and prosperous and additional workers were needed to support the economic growth. Descendants of immigrants from other parts of Spain have since been considered Basque for the most part, at least formally. Over the last 25 years, some 380,000 people have left
3952-438: The Basque Autonomous Community, of which some 230,000 have moved to other parts of Spain. While certainly many of them are people returning to their original homes when starting their retirement, there is also a sizable tract of Basque natives in this group who have moved due to a Basque nationalist political environment (including ETA's killings) which they perceive as overtly hostile. These have been quoted to be as high as 10% of
4056-469: The Basque Country has received an increasing number of immigrants, mostly from Eastern Europe, North Africa, Latin America, Sub-Saharan Africa , South Asia, and China, settling mostly in the major urban areas. Nevertheless, foreign immigrant population is lower in the Basque country than in Madrid and Catalonia, despite having similar GDP per capita and significantly lower levels of unemployment. Currently,
4160-406: The Basque Country received significant immigration from other poorer regions of Spain, due to its higher level of economic development and early industrialization. During the second half of the 20th century, such immigrants were commonly referred to by some Basques as maketos , a derogatory term which is less used today. Since the 1980s, as a consequence of its considerable economic prosperity,
4264-793: The Basque Country was inhabited in Roman times by several tribes: the Vascones , the Varduli , the Caristi , the Autrigones , the Berones , the Tarbelli , and the Sibulates . Some ancient place-names, such as Deba , Butrón, Nervión , Zegama , suggest the presence of non-Basque peoples at some point in protohistory . The ancient tribes are last cited in the 5th century, after which track of them
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4368-443: The Basque Country, with some Basque nationalists aiming to create an independent state including the whole area, and Spanish nationalism denying the very existence of the Basque Country. The dynamics of controversial decisions imposed by Spanish tribunals on Basque nationalist parties ideologically close to ETA left for over a decade a distorted representation of the Basque politics in local councils and regional parliaments, as well as
4472-568: The Basque language", a concept difficult to render into a single word in most other languages. The two earliest references (in various spelling guises) are in Joan Perez de Lazarraga 's manuscript, dated around 1564–1567 as eusquel erria and eusquel erriau and heuscal herrian ('in the Basque Country') and Heuscal-Herrian in Joanes Leizarraga 's Bible translation, published in 1571. The term Basque Country refers to
4576-412: The Basques. Altogether there was a gradual language shift towards Spanish language in the Basque-speaking areas of the Spanish Basque Country, a phenomenon initially restricted to the upper urban classes, but progressively reaching the lower classes. Western Biscay, most of Alava and southern Navarre have been Spanish-speaking (or Romance-speaking) for centuries. But under the regime of Francisco Franco ,
4680-418: The British government acknowledged Ferdinand VII as king of Spain. Five years later after experiencing serious setbacks on many fronts, Napoleon agreed on 11 December 1813 to acknowledge Ferdinand VII as king of Spain, and signed the Treaty of Valençay so that the king could return to Spain. The Spanish people, blaming the policies of the Francophiles ( afrancesados ) for causing the Napoleonic occupation and
4784-405: The Jesuits, and, some time thereafter, the Jesuits expanded their university by formally founding the University of Deusto in Deusto (now a Bilbao neighbourhood) by the turn of the century, a private university where the Commercial Faculty was integrated. The first modern Basque public university was the Basque University, founded 18 November 1936 by the autonomous Basque government in Bilbao in
4888-440: The Masonic Lodges suppressed. Ferdinand blamed Freemasonry for the 1820 coup, the Trienio Liberal , as well as for the loss of Spanish colonies in Latin America , with his return to the throne for the so-called " Ominous Decade ", the Anti-Masonic campaign stepped up and members who would not renounce Freemasonry were hanged. He had his police compile reports on Freemasons and former Freemasons active in Spanish society. In
4992-467: The Mexican throne. The imperial crown was consequently given to Iturbide himself, but the Mexican Empire collapsed and was replaced by the First Mexican Republic a few years later. There were several pronunciamientos , or military uprisings, during the king's second reign. The first came in in September 1814, three months after the end of the Peninsular War , and was led by General Espoz y Mina in Pamplona. Juan Díaz Porlier revolted at La Coruña in
5096-415: The Peninsular War by allying Spain too closely to France, at first welcomed Fernando . Ferdinand soon found that in the intervening years a new world had been born of foreign invasion and domestic revolution. In his name Spain fought for its independence and in his name as well juntas had governed Spanish America. Spain was no longer the absolute monarchy he had relinquished six years earlier. Instead he
5200-404: The Pyrenees, besides the above Kingdom of Pamplona , Gipuzkoa , Álava and Biscay arose in the current lands of the Southern Basque Country from the 9th century onward. These westerly territories pledged intermittent allegiance to Navarre in their early stages, but were annexed to the Kingdom of Castile at the end of the 12th century, so depriving the Kingdom of Navarre of direct access to
5304-401: The School of Mining in Barakaldo (est. 1910s), was seen as a gross handicap for the cultural and economic development of the area, and so, during the late 1960s many formal requests were made to the Francoist government in order to establish a Basque public university that would unite all the public faculties already founded in Bilbao. As a result of that, the University of Bilbao was founded in
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#17327661872975408-677: The South American revolutions. The discontent of the Spanish military was further spurred by the formation of the Royalist Volunteers , a militia created by Ferdinand VII in 1823, a short time after the collapse of the constitutional cabinet, in order to provide the king a direct means of suppression against the liberal opposition. In 1826 the militia amounted to some 200,000 volunteers, half of which included in 486 infantry battalions, 20 artillery companies, 52 cavalry squadrons and some sapper companies. The decade saw an endless series of riots and attempts of revolutions, such as that of Torrijos, funded by English liberals, on 11 December 1831. Aside from
5512-595: The Spanish Basque country, the rest in the French. The Basque education system in Spain has three types of schools differentiated by their linguistic teaching models: A, B and D. Model D, with education entirely in Basque, and Spanish as a compulsory subject, is the most widely chosen model by parents. In Navarre , there is an additional G model, with education entirely in Spanish. The ruling anti-Basque conservative government of Unión del Pueblo Navarro opposes Basque nationalist attempts to provide education in Basque through all Navarre (which would include areas where it
5616-456: The Spanish Crown and the Catholic faith, subordinated to foreign interests (the Grand Orient of France primarily). After reinstating the Spanish Inquisition and the Jesuits, on 4 May 1814 he publicly declared all Spanish freemasons to be traitors. The same year Pope Pius VII issued a decree against Freemasonry, approved by Ferdinand VII and became an edict of the Spanish Inquisition. Freemasons in high places in Spanish society were arrested and
5720-443: The Spanish throne as well as sons. This decree had originally been approved by the Cortes in 1789, but it had never been officially promulgated. On 10 October 1830, Ferdinand's wife gave birth to a daughter, Isabella , who thereupon displaced her uncle, Carlos, in the line of succession. After Ferdinand's death, Carlos revolted and said he was the legitimate king. Needing support, Maria Christina, as regent for her daughter, turned to
5824-460: The Spanish-French border, easing afterwards. In the French Basque Country , its provinces underwent an ever-shrinking self-government status until the French Revolution, when the traditional provinces were reshaped to form the current Basses-Pyrénées department along with Béarn . In the Southern Basque Country , the regional Charters were upheld until the Carlist Wars , when the Basques supported heir-apparent Carlos and his descendants to
5928-436: The Two Sicilies (1806–1878), daughter of his younger sister Maria Isabella of Spain and of their first cousin Francis I of the Two Sicilies , who was also the brother of Ferdinand's first wife. They had two surviving daughters, the older of whom succeeded Ferdinand upon his death. Basque Country (greater region) The Basque Country ( Basque : Euskal Herria ; Spanish : País Vasco ; French : Pays basque )
6032-405: The Two Sicilies , took the regency. Since the other pretender, Don Carlos, was considered a champion of absolutism, Maria Christina decided to seek support from the liberal opposition. Her policy worsened the acrimony among Carlos's supporters. At Ferdinand's death, in 1833, his daughter Isabella II was declared Queen; Carlos opposed this and declared himself the legitimate heir to the throne with
6136-465: The college graduate schools. However, all the public faculties in the Basque Country were organized as local branches of Spanish universities. For instance, the School of Engineering was treated as a part of the University of Valladolid , some 400 kilometres (250 miles) away from Bilbao. Indeed, the lack of a central governing body for the public faculties of the Bilbao area, namely those of Economics in Sarriko, Medicine in Basurto, Engineering in Bilbao and
6240-612: The commonwealth." Ferdinand VII married four times. His first wife died of tuberculosis , the second died in childbirth , and the third died of "a fever". His fourth wife outlived him by 45 years. In 1802, he married his first cousin Princess Maria Antonia of Naples and Sicily (1784–1806), daughter of Ferdinand I of the Two Sicilies and Marie Caroline of Austria . Her two pregnancies in 1804 and 1805 both ended in miscarriages . In 1816, Ferdinand married his niece Maria Isabel of Portugal (1797–1818), daughter of his older sister Carlota Joaquina and John VI of Portugal . They had
6344-430: The country entered into a large-scale civil war upon his death. His political legacy has remained contested since his death; some historians regard him as incompetent, despotic, and short-sighted. Ferdinand was the eldest surviving son of Charles IV of Spain and Maria Luisa of Parma . Ferdinand was born in the palace of El Escorial near Madrid . In his youth Ferdinand occupied the position of an heir apparent who
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#17327661872976448-417: The cry of "God, Fatherland, King" (The Charters were finally abolished in 1876). The ensuing centralized status quo bred dissent and frustration in the region, giving rise to Basque nationalism by the end of the 19th century, influenced by European Romantic nationalism . Since then, attempts were made to find a new framework for self-empowerment. The occasion seemed to have arrived on the proclamation of
6552-405: The current status of Basque. Despite being spoken in a relatively small territory, the rugged features of the Basque countryside and the historically high population density resulted in a heavy dialectal fragmentation throughout history, which increased the value of both Spanish and French respectively as lingua francas . In this regard, the current Standard form of Basque was only introduced in
6656-473: The decades after the Spanish annexation, the Basque Country went through increased religious, ideological and national homogenization , encouraged by new national ideas embraced by the rising Spanish and French absolutist monarchies during the Renaissance . From 1525, witchcraft allegations originating in a number of Pyrenean valleys on the rearguard of the Lower Navarre front and recent theatre of war ( Salazar , Roncal , Burguete , etc.) were followed by
6760-440: The different administrative levels to enforce it—Justice, Health, Administration. It is spoken by approximately a quarter of the total Basque Country, its stronghold being the contiguous area formed by Gipuzkoa, northern Navarre and the Pyrenean French valleys. It is not spoken natively in most of Álava, western Biscay and the southern half of Navarre. Of a total estimation of some 650,000 Basque speakers, approximately 550,000 live in
6864-472: The early 1970s, which has now evolved into the University of the Basque Country with campuses in the western three provinces. In Navarre , Opus Dei manages the University of Navarre with another campus in San Sebastián. Additionally, there is also the Public University of Navarre , with campus in Pamplona and in Tudela, managed by the Navarrese Foral Government . Mondragón Corporación Cooperativa has established its institutions for higher education as
6968-434: The end of the Roman period or early period of the Early Middle Ages , while ethnic Basques inhabited well east into the lands of the Pyrenees ( Pallars , Val d'Aran ) from the 8th to the 11th century. In the Early Middle Ages (up to the 9th century) the territory between the Ebro and Garonne rivers was known as Vasconia , a blurred ethnic area and polity struggling to fend off the Frankish feudal authority from
7072-412: The ethnic nature of this people, often at odds with and finally overcome by the Visigoths , is not certain. The Vascones around Pamplona , after much fighting against Franks and Visigoths, founded the Kingdom of Pamplona (824), inextricably linked to their kinsmen the Banu Qasi . All other tribes in the Iberian Peninsula had been, to a great extent, assimilated by Roman culture and language by
7176-431: The following year. General Luis Lacy led an uprising in Barcelona in 1817, and General Juan Van Halen did the same in Valencia in 1818. In 1820 Rafael del Riego undertook the most successful pronunciamiento , leading to the Trienio Liberal . In 1820 a revolt broke out in favor of the Constitution of 1812 , beginning with a mutiny of the troops under Riego. The king was quickly taken prisoner. Ferdinand had restored
7280-500: The government attempted to suppress Basque nationalism and limit the uses of the Basque language. Even the activities of the Euskaltzaindia (Basque Language Academy) were severely curtailed. In general, during these years, cultural activity in Basque was limited to folkloric issues and the Roman Catholic Church , while a higher, yet still limited degree of tolerance was granted to Basque culture and language in Álava and Navarre , since both areas mostly supported Francoist troops during
7384-475: The historic language of Navarre, largely relying on public subscription (yearly festival Nafarroa Oinez, solidarity from the ikastola network, donations, etc.) or receiving as a result no allowances for school meals. Even in northern Basque or mixed language areas, allegations raised by Basque speaker associations point regularly to a conspicuous disregard for recognised language rights, e.g. virtual non-existence of Basque language medical assistance across areas where
7488-602: The houses of his prime ministers, arrests them, and hands them over to their cruel enemies;" and again, on 14 January 1815, "the king has so debased himself that he has become no more than the leading police agent and prison warden of his country." The king did recognize the efforts of foreign powers on his behalf. As the head of the Spanish Order of the Golden Fleece , Ferdinand made the Duke of Wellington , head of
7592-403: The inclusion of a few communes in the lower Adour region. Jean Goyhenetche suggests it would be more accurate to depict the region as the reunion of five entities: Labourd, Lower Navarre, Soule but also Bayonne and Gramont . The Southern Basque Country , known in Basque as Hegoalde (literally, "the southern part"), is the part of the Basque region that lies completely within Spain . It
7696-404: The interior of the French Basque Country and some areas of Navarre remain sparsely populated: density culminates at about 500/km (1,300/sq mi) for Biscay but falls to 20/km (52/sq mi) in the northern inner provinces of Lower Navarre and Soule . A significant majority of the population of the Basque country live inside the Basque Autonomous Community (about 2,100,000, or 70% of
7800-530: The intervention of newly reformed and recent institutions, such as Spain's central tribunal Inquisition, the (Navarrese) Royal Tribunals, and the Diocesan Tribunal, who organized a series of trials for alleged witchcraft and heretical practices. In the heat of the Wars of Religion and the struggle for Navarre, persecution came to a head in the hysteria of the 1609–1611 Basque witch trials on both sides of
7904-550: The late 1960s, which helped Basque move away from being perceived – even by its own speakers – as a language unfit for educational purposes. While the French Republic has historically attempted to absorb ethnic minority groups – including the French Basques – into a linguistically unified state, Spain in turn has accepted intermittently in its history some degree of linguistic, cultural, and political autonomy to
8008-629: The liberal side, Ferdinand's policies caused discontent also in the conservative party: in 1827 a revolt broke out in Catalonia , and later extended to Valencia , Aragon, the Basque Country and Andalusia , spurred by ultra-reactionaries according to whom Ferdinand's restoration had been too timid, failing in particular to reinstate the Inquisition . In what was called the War of the Agraviados , some 30,000 men controlled most of Catalonia and some of
8112-546: The liberals. She issued a decree of amnesty on 23 October 1833. Liberals who had been in exile returned and dominated Spanish politics for decades, leading to the Carlist Wars . Ferdinand VII's reign is typically criticized by historians, even in his own country. Historian Stanley G. Payne wrote that Ferdinand was "in many ways the basest king in Spanish history. Cowardly, selfish, grasping, suspicious, and vengeful, D. Fernando seemed almost incapable of any perception of
8216-607: The midst of the Spanish Civil War . It operated only briefly before the government's defeat by Francisco Franco 's fascist forces. Several faculties, originally teaching only in Spanish, were founded in the Basque region in the Francisco Franco era. A public faculty of economics was founded in Sarriko (Bilbao) in the 1960s, and a public faculty of medicine was also founded during that decade, thus expanding
8320-536: The monarch would be "a Spanish prince," and Iturbide and O'Donojú intended to offer the Mexican Imperial Crown to Ferdinand VII himself to rule Mexico in personal union with Spain. However, Ferdinand, refusing to recognize Mexican independence or be bound by a constitution, decreed that the Mexican constitution was "void", declined the Mexican crown, and stated that no European prince could accede to
8424-712: The name of Charles V. This was the beginning of the First Carlist War . Ferdinand VII of Spain Ferdinand VII ( Spanish : Fernando VII ; 14 October 1784 – 29 September 1833) was King of Spain during the early 19th century. He reigned briefly in 1808 and then again from 1813 to his death in 1833. Before 1813 he was known as el Deseado (the Desired), and after, as el Rey Felón (the Criminal King). Born in Madrid at El Escorial , Ferdinand
8528-530: The new French king. After the Battle of Bailén proved that the Spanish could resist the French, the Council of Castile reversed itself and declared null and void the abdications of Bayonne on 11 August 1808. On 24 August, Ferdinand VII was proclaimed king of Spain again, and negotiations between the council and the provincial juntas for the establishment of a Supreme Central Junta were completed. On 14 January 1809
8632-540: The north and the pressure of the Iberian Visigoths and Andalusi Cordovans from the south. By the turn of the millennium, a receding Carolingian royal authority and establishing feudalism left Vasconia (to become Gascony ) fragmented into a myriad of counties and viscounties , e.g. Fezensac , Bigorre , Astarac , Béarn , Tartas , Marsan , Soule , Labourd , etc., out of former tribal systems and minor realms ( County of Vasconia ), while south of
8736-477: The northern regions, and even established an autonomous government. Ferdinand intervened personally, moving to Tarragona to quench the revolt: he promised an amnesty, but once the rioters had surrendered, he had their leaders executed and others exiled to France. Further instability came when, on 31 March 1830, Ferdinand issued the Pragmatic Sanction , which had been approved by his father Charles IV as early as 1789, but not published till then. The decree allowed
8840-562: The ocean. In the Late Middle Ages , important families dotting the whole Basque territory came to prominence, often quarreling with each other for power and unleashing the bloody War of the Bands , only stopped by royal intervention and the gradual shift of power from the countryside to the towns by the 16th century. Meanwhile, the viscounties of Labourd and Soule under English suzerainty were finally incorporated to France after
8944-415: The owner of the château, for his lack of interest in Spanish affairs. While the upper echelons of the Spanish government accepted his abdication and Napoleon's choice of his brother Joseph Bonaparte as king of Spain, the Spanish people did not. Uprisings broke out throughout the country, marking the beginning of the Peninsular War . Provincial juntas were established to control regions in opposition to
9048-1075: The population in the Basque Community. Various Romani groups existed in the Basque Country and some still exist as ethnic groups. These were grouped together under the generic terms ijituak (Gypsies) and buhameak ( Bohemians ) by Basque speakers. In the Middle Ages , many Franks settled along the Way of Saint James in Navarre and Gipuzkoa and to a lesser extent in Bizkaia. This process also happened in Northern Castile. They were all collectively called Franks because most of them came from French regions (Normans, Bretons, Burgundians, Aquitanians etc.) but an important minority of them were in fact of German, Dutch, Italian, English and Swiss stock. Some were also from even more distant lands such as Poland or Denmark. Due to this migration, Gascon
9152-525: The population) while about 600,000 live in Navarre (20% of the population) and about 300,000 (roughly 10%) in Northern Basque Country . José Aranda Aznar writes that 30% of the population in the Basque Country Autonomous Community were born in other regions of Spain and that 40% of the people living in that territory do not have a single Basque parent. Most of these peoples of Galician and Castilian stock arrived in
9256-448: The predominant languages in the Spanish and French Basque Countries are Spanish and French, respectively. In the historical process of forging themselves as nation-states , both the Spanish and French governments have tried more or less intensely to discourage the use of Basque and its linguistic identity. The language chosen for public education is the most obvious expression of this phenomenon, something which surely had an effect on
9360-459: The spring of 1823, the restored Bourbon French King Louis XVIII of France invaded Spain , "invoking the God of St. Louis , for the sake of preserving the throne of Spain to a fellow descendant of Henry IV of France , and of reconciling that fine kingdom with Europe." In May 1823 the revolutionary party moved Ferdinand to Cádiz , where he continued to make promises of constitutional amendment until he
9464-514: The succession to the Spanish throne also to female heirs, in case a male one was not available. Ferdinand would have only two children, both daughters, the eldest being the future queen Isabella II , who was born in October 1830. The Sanction excluded from the succession Ferdinand's brother, Carlos, Count of Molina . In his later years, Ferdinand fell severely ill, and he lost the ability to direct his own affairs. His young wife, Maria Christina of
9568-503: The vast majority is Basque speaking, insufficient Basque speaking librarians, no broadcasting permission in the last 20 years (as of 2013) for the only Basque language radio in Pamplona, Spanish monolingual signalization and even removal of bilingual one, etc. Spanish is or can be spoken in Navarre by the entire population, with few exceptions in remote rural areas. The European Commission for Regional or Minority Languages to which Spain
9672-410: The war. Nowadays, the Basque Autonomous Community enjoys some cultural and political autonomy and Basque is an official language along with Spanish. Basque is favoured by a set of language policies sponsored by the Basque regional government which aim at the generalization of its use. However, the actual implementation of this official status is patchy and problematic, relying ultimately on the will of
9776-462: Was heir apparent to the Spanish throne in his youth. Following the 1808 Tumult of Aranjuez , he ascended the throne. That year Napoleon overthrew him; he linked his monarchy to counter-revolution and reactionary policies that produced a deep rift in Spain between his forces on the right and liberals on the left. Back in power in December 1813, he re-established the absolutist monarchy and rejected
9880-574: Was discovered, Ferdinand submitted to his parents. Following a popular riot at Aranjuez Charles IV abdicated in March 1808. Ferdinand ascended the throne and turned to Napoleon for support. He abdicated on 6 May 1808, and thereafter Napoleon kept Ferdinand under guard in France for six years at the Château de Valençay . Historian Charles Oman records that the choice of Valençay was a practical joke by Napoleon on his former foreign minister Talleyrand ,
9984-452: Was encouraged by conservatives and the Church hierarchy to reject the constitution. On 4 May he ordered its abolition, and on 10 May had the liberal leaders responsible for the constitution arrested. Ferdinand justified his actions by claiming that the constitution had been made by a Cortes illegally assembled in his absence, without his consent and without the traditional form. (It had met as
10088-550: Was excluded from any participation in government by his parents and their favourite advisor and Prime Minister, Manuel Godoy . National discontent with the government produced a rebellion in 1805. In October 1807, Ferdinand was arrested for his complicity in the El Escorial Conspiracy in which the rebels aimed at securing foreign support from the French Emperor Napoleon . When the conspiracy
10192-410: Was free. When Ferdinand was freed after the Battle of Trocadero and the fall of Cádiz, reprisals followed. The Duc d'Angoulême made known his protest against Ferdinand's actions by refusing the Spanish decorations Ferdinand offered him for his military services. During his last years, Ferdinand's political appointments became more stable. The last ten years of his reign (sometimes referred to as
10296-536: Was now asked to rule under the liberal Constitution of 1812 . Before being allowed onto Spanish soil, Ferdinand had to guarantee the liberals that he would govern on the basis of the constitution, but only gave lukewarm indications he would do so. On 24 March the French handed him over to the Spanish Army in Girona , and thus began his procession towards Madrid. During this process and in the following months, he
10400-411: Was spoken in the centre of Donostia-San Sebastián , until the beginning of the 20th century. Navarre also held Jewish and Muslim minorities but these were expelled or forced to assimilate after the Spanish conquest in the 16th century. One of the notable members of such minorities was Benjamin of Tudela . Much as has been the case for Spain's two other major economic poles (Madrid and Catalonia),
10504-485: Was strong in many areas, the Spanish treasure fleets – carrying tax revenues from the Spanish Empire – were interrupted. Spain was all but bankrupt. Ferdinand's restored autocracy was guided by a small camarilla of his favorites, although his government seemed unstable. Whimsical and ferocious by turns, he changed his ministers every few months. "The king," wrote Friedrich von Gentz in 1814, "himself enters
10608-539: Was the abolition of the 1812 liberal constitution; this was followed by the dissolution of the two chambers of the Spanish Parliament on 10 May. These were only the first moves towards a severe anti-liberal reaction, which caused a series of military riots, started in January 1820 by General Rafael del Riego . The monarch was forced to reintroduce the Spanish Constitution of 1812 , with a solemn oath during
10712-486: Was the mastermind of the suppression of opposition and of the restoration of former institutions, such as the Jesuits (outlawed by the Bourbons in the late 18th century), monasteries and others. The French corps remained in Spain, with the de facto role of an occupation force: however, its heavy cost of supply caused further damage to the Spanish treasury, which had been depleted under the liberal government, also due to
10816-426: Was welcomed on 24 May in Madrid, after the liberals had abandoned the city and taken refuge in the commercial city of Cádiz, where Ferdinand was kept as prisoner. Here the democratic Cortes met to declare the king's deposition. The French troops besieged the city, until 31 August, when the Battle of Trocadero marked the liberals' defeat and the capitulation of the city. After his restoration, Ferdinand VII started
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