The third government of José Canalejas was formed on 3 April 1911, following the latter's appointment as prime minister of Spain by King Alfonso XIII and his swearing-in that same day, as a result of his own resignation from the post on 1 April over the parliamentary proceedings on the Ferrer case. It succeeded the second Canalejas government and was the government of Spain from 3 April 1911 to 14 November 1912, a total of days, or .
The cabinet comprised members of the Liberal Party and two military officers. It was disestablished as a consequence of Canalejas's assassination on 12 November 1912, with the Marquis of Alhucemas serving as prime minister in interim capacity and the rest of the cabinet ministers remaining in place until the next government was sworn in.
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 On 1 April 1911, José Canalejas raised a matter of confidence to King Alfonso XIII by submitting his resignation and that of his government over the issue of the "Ferrer case": an attempt by republican parties to posthumously rehabilitate anarchist activist Francisco Ferrer by having the Congress of Deputies review the military ruling that ordered his execution, causing differences between several cabinet ministers regarding how to proceed.
ConsultationsKing of Spain Date Consultee Office/position Party 2 April 1911 José Canalejas Prime MinisterLeader of the Liberal Party Liberal Nominations Outcome → Sources
The King reaffirmed his confidence in Canalejas on 2 April without any further consultation, on the condition that he could still muster a parliamentary majority in the and defend the position of the Spanish Army:
The new cabinet—sworn in the next day—comprised members of the Liberal Party as well as two military officers, and saw changes in the Grace and Justice, War, Navy, Finance, Governance and Public Instruction ministries.
Cabinet changes Canalejas's third government saw a number of cabinet changes during its tenure: On 20 May 1911, Trinitario Ruiz Valarino resigned as governance minister citing "weakness in the state of his spirit", though rumours suggested internal disagreements or discontent. Nonetheless, Valarino's resignation was not formalized until 29 June, with Minister of Grace and Justice Antonio Barroso y Castillo taking on the ordinary discharge of duties in the meantime. Barroso ended up being appointed as Valarino's replacement at the helm of the Governance ministry, with Canalejas himself directly assuming the vacancy in the ministry of Grace and Justice. On 12 March 1912, Canalejas conducted a major cabinet reshuffle that affected four ministries: Grace and Justice, which was separated again from the position of prime minister and went to Diego Arias de Miranda; Finance, which saw the exit of Tirso Rodrigáñez over divergences in economic matters and his replacement by Juan Navarro Reverter; Instruction and Fine Arts, which saw Santiago Alba replacing Amalio Gimeno; and the exit of Rafael Gasset from the Development portfolio out of his wish to avoid becoming a target of Conservative criticism, being replaced by Miguel Villanueva at the helm of the ministry.
Council of Ministers The Council of Ministers was structured into the office for the prime minister and eight ministries.
← Canalejas III Government →(3 April 1911 – 14 November 1912) Portfolio Name Party Took office Left office Prime Minister José Canalejas Liberal 3 April 1911 29 June 1911 Minister of State Marquis of Alhucemas Liberal 3 April 1911 31 December 1912 Minister of Grace and Justice Antonio Barroso y Castillo Liberal 3 April 1911 29 June 1911 Minister of War Agustín de Luque Military 3 April 1911 31 December 1912 Minister of the Navy José Pidal Rebollo Military 3 April 1911 31 December 1912 Minister of Finance Tirso Rodrigáñez Liberal 3 April 1911 12 March 1912 Minister of Governance Trinitario Ruiz Valarino Liberal 3 April 1911 23 May 1911 Minister of Public Instruction and Fine Arts Amalio Gimeno Liberal 3 April 1911 12 March 1912 Minister of Development Rafael Gasset Liberal 3 April 1911 12 March 1912 Changes May 1911 Portfolio Name Party Took office Left office Minister of Governance Changes June 1911 Portfolio Name Party Took office Left office Prime MinisterMinister of Grace and Justice José Canalejas Liberal 29 June 1911 12 March 1912 Minister of Governance Antonio Barroso y Castillo Liberal 29 June 1911 31 December 1912 Changes March 1912 Portfolio Name Party Took office Left office Prime Minister José Canalejas Liberal 12 March 1912 12 November 1912† Minister of Grace and Justice Diego Arias de Miranda Liberal 12 March 1912 31 December 1912 Minister of Finance Juan Navarro Reverter Liberal 12 March 1912 31 December 1912 Minister of Public Instruction and Fine Arts Santiago Alba Liberal 12 March 1912 31 December 1912 Minister of Development Miguel Villanueva Liberal 12 March 1912 31 December 1912 Changes November 1912 Portfolio Name Party Took office Left office Prime Minister
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Bibliography
External links The governments of the third period of the Liberal Party (1909–1913) (under Alfonso XIII). Lluís Belenes i Rodríguez History Page (in Spanish).