Citizen militias in the European liberal revolutions: the case of first Spanish liberalism

Abstract

The military mobilization of society fostered by the liberal revolution included the promotion of the idea of the entire citizenship committing to the new order. They were not only to enjoy political rights alone, but also the right to bear arms. Consequently, a series of citizen militias, usually dependent on the municipalities and with a strong class component, were formed, heirs to a large extent of those existing in the Modern Age, but with the particularity of having much greater political implications and significance. The need to defend their own interests, together with the importance of them achieving strategic positions in the new scenario opened by the revolution, shook the local bourgeoisies from their usual aversion to enlistment and led them to get involved in these new armed militias. However, as the Old Regime was defeated and the revolution was revised towards a more moderate stance the militias became a problem: On the one hand, because of internal struggles for their control, and on the other, due to them becoming a focus of opposition to the central power, especially when the position was occupied by the political enemy.