Spanish freemasonry in the early XXth Century: political cultures and identities

di Luis P. Martin
in Memoria e Ricerca n.s. 4 (1999), p. 25

The political commitment of Spanish masonry, already clear in the late xixth Century, grew particularly strong in the early xxth Century, when most masonic groups took sides with the republican parties. This essay examines the ideal bases of freemasons’ loyalty to the republican doctrine and the influence of European political cultures, among which that of the French democratic left wing during the Third Republic was particularly important. More in detail, it deals with the impact of secularization on Spanish society in the early xxth Century, and with anti-clericalism and its role as chief common constituent of all Latin masonic groups and informing force of their commitment in civil society and in the political contest.