Failure to Reform
Another problem which hindered Spain in its attempts to avert a civil war was the failure to reform within the government. Well-meaning Liberal politicians such as the then president Manuel Azaña, were suspended over the gap that divided the rich and poor of Spain, only introducing moderate policies which in turn angered their enemies and made loyal followers impatient for more drastic reforms. Azaña’s government was threatened by Fascists, the generals and the landowners due to their half-hearted response to urgent issues, and wrote a Constitution which stopped payment of priests, suspended religious education and abolished the monastic orders in some cases. The Church became a major enemy of the government. The issue of latifundia still remained in Spain, another problem that was only tackled feebly by the government, and the wages of the labourer were eventually slightly reduced by the government. It can be established that the Spanish Government’s inability to react to and solve many pressing issues in the nation was a major factor in nationalists’ campaign to rebel against the government, ultimately causing a civil war.