The first government of Eugenio Montero Ríos was formed on 23 June 1905, following the latter's appointment as prime minister of Spain by King Alfonso XIII on 21 June and his swearing-in two days later, as a result of Raimundo Fernández-Villaverde's resignation from the post following his defeat in a vote of confidence on 20 June 1905. It succeeded the second Villaverde government and was the government of Spain from 23 June to 31 October 1905, a total of days, or .
The cabinet comprised members of the Liberal–Democratic alliance, a number of independents and one military officer. Upon the re-opening of the in October 1905 following that year's general election, the requests from several ministries to increase their budgets were turned down by the prime minister and the finance minister, who were wary of budget deficit. A government crisis was triggered later in the month, over growing mistrusts between the various Liberal factions and Montero Ríos's desire to have a cabinet that could count with their support; this prompted Montero Ríos's resignation on 27 October to undertake a cabinet reshuffle, with the second Montero Ríos government being formed four days later.
Formation Overview The Spanish Constitution of 1876 enshrined Spain as a semi-constitutional monarchy during the Restoration period, awarding the monarch—under the royal prerogative—the power to appoint government members (including the prime minister); the ability to grant or deny the decree of dissolution of the , or the adjournment of legislative sessions, to the incumbent or aspiring government that requested it; and the capacity to inform, inspect and ultimately control executive acts by granting or denying the signature of royal decrees; among others..
The monarch would play a key role in the system by appointing and dismissing governments, which would then organize elections to provide themselves with a parliamentary majority. As a result, governments during this period were dependent on royal confidence, which was frequently secured or lost based on the leaders' ability to guarantee the internal unity and parliamentary cohesion of their parties.: "... according to the political practice of the Restoration, since voters did not determine majorities due to electoral manipulation, the requirement demanded of any leader to retain power was to guarantee the unity of the Party. []" In practice, the royal prerogative was not exercised freely by the monarch, but was carried out through the opening of a round of consultations—with the presidents of the chambers, the leaders of the main parties, the potential candidates and other notable figures—prior to government formation, or when prime ministers raised a matter of confidence to the monarch.
Cabinet crisis King Alfonso XIII held a round of consultations on 21 June 1905 to determine a solution to the political crisis arising from Villaverde's resignation.
ConsultationsKing of Spain Date Consultee Office/position Party 21 June 1905 2nd Marquis of Pidal President of the Senate Conservative Francisco Romero Robledo President of the Congress of Deputies Romerist Antonio Maura Leader of the Conservative PartyPrime Minister (former) Conservative Marcelo Azcárraga Prime Minister (former)President of the Senate (former) Military Eugenio Montero Ríos Leader of the Liberal Democratic PartyPresident of the Senate (former) Lib–Dem/Dem Marquis of Vega de Armijo President of the Congress of Deputies (former) Lib–Dem/Dem Segismundo Moret Leader of the Liberal Party Lib–Dem/Lib Raimundo Fernández-Villaverde Prime Minister Villaverdist Nominations Outcome → Sources
The outcome of the consultations led Alfonso XIII to entrust the formation of a new government to Eugenio Montero Ríos, who accepted the nomination on the condition that the Conservative Party granted its parliamentary support to extend the 1904 budget for one quarter.
Cabinet changes Montero Ríos's first government saw one cabinet change during its tenure: A public dispute with the public works minister (the Count of Romanones) over the urgent granting of an extraordinary loan—intended to alleviate the effects of an agrarian crisis in Andalusia by promoting public works that had been left paralyzed—led to the resignation on 14 July 1905 of Finance Minister Ángel Urzaiz, who opposed the extraordinary loan and its urgency (considering it part of a clientelism strategy by Romanones). He was replaced in the post by José Echegaray on 18 July.
Council of Ministers The Council of Ministers was structured into the office for the prime minister and eight ministries.
← Montero Ríos I Government →(23 June – 31 October 1905) Portfolio Name Party Took office Left office Prime Minister Eugenio Montero Ríos Lib–Dem/Dem 23 June 1905 31 October 1905 Minister of State Felipe Sánchez Román Lib–Dem/Dem 23 June 1905 31 October 1905 Minister of Grace and Justice Joaquín González de la Peña Independent 23 June 1905 31 October 1905 Minister of War Valeriano Weyler Military 23 June 1905 31 October 1905 Minister of the Navy Miguel Villanueva Lib–Dem/Dem 23 June 1905 31 October 1905 Minister of Finance Ángel Urzaiz Lib–Dem/Dem 23 June 1905 18 July 1905 Minister of Governance Manuel García Prieto Lib–Dem/Dem 23 June 1905 31 October 1905 Minister of Public Instruction and Fine Arts Andrés Mellado Lib–Dem/Dem 23 June 1905 31 October 1905 Minister of Agriculture, Industry, Trade and Public Works Count of Romanones Lib–Dem/Lib 23 June 1905 31 October 1905 Changes July 1905 Portfolio Name Party Took office Left office Minister of Finance José Echegaray Independent 18 July 1905 31 October 1905
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External links The governments of the second period of the Liberal Party (1905–1907) (under Alfonso XIII). Lluís Belenes i Rodríguez History Page (in Spanish).