FIRST CIVILISM IN PERU: ANTECEDENTS, GOVERNMENT AND PURPOSE - HISTORY - 2025

The first civilism in Peru was the period during which, for the first time, a civilian held the Peruvian presidency. This stage began in 1872, when Manuel Pardo y Lavalle won the elections and became President.

Since independence, all leaders had been military, in what was called First Militarism. The governments of that stage based the Peruvian economy on the sale of guano, but they could not prevent the country from entering a major economic crisis.

Manuel Pardo y Lavalle in 1872 - Source: El Comercio newspaper

On the other hand, a commercial oligarchy began to appear that monopolized economic power. In the 70s of the 19th century, the members of that sector created the Civil Party to try to obtain political power as well.

In 1872, Manuel Pardo became the first non-military president of Peru. Civilism also managed to win in the following elections, held in 1876. However, the beginning of the War of the Pacific caused a series of events that returned power to the military.

Background

The military had taken over all of Peru's governments during the first four decades of the republic's existence.

This stage, which was called First Militarism, was characterized, in addition to military caudillismo, by the lack of development of the internal market and by corruption.

Furthermore, no industry promotion policies were developed, so the economy depended almost entirely on the sale of guano and the participation of European companies.

Government of Colonel José Balta

The last government headed by a military man before the First Civilism was that of José Balta. Although it was still part of the First Militarism, the novelty was that Balta was not part of the military that fought during the war of independence.

Balta tried to modernize part of the structure of the State. To do this, it developed a policy to improve communications that would integrate all the country's territories. Lack of financial means made him have to borrow from House Dreyfus, which controlled the guano trade with Europe.

With the money raised he ordered the construction of several railway lines. In the short term, spending caused a significant increase in debt, aggravating Peru's economic situation.

Civilism

Although the wealth generated by the guano had not reached the majority of the people, it had allowed the creation of an oligarchy made up of the owners of commercial companies, in addition to bankers and estate owners. These were the ones who organized to challenge the military for the country's government.

Civil Party

The first movement of the oligarchy was the creation of the Civil Party. This took place on April 24, 1871, when almost two hundred people participated in a meeting to promote the candidacy of Manuel Pardo y Lavalle, former mayor of Lima, for the country's presidency. The first name of the organization was "Electoral Independence Society."

The commercial, industrial and rural high bourgeoisie that promoted Pardo's candidacy wanted their economic power to also translate into political power. They soon received the support of intellectuals and representatives of the liberal professions of the country.

Similarly, the creation of the Civil Party also had a generational change component. Its founders, for the most part, had not participated in the struggle for independence, so their vision of how the country should be organized was different. For them, militarism had slowed the development of the state.

Elections of 1872

The Civil Party stood in the elections with proposals that sought to democratize the country. Among the measures they proposed were support for education at all levels, developing policies that balance national finances, democratizing the army, and signing alliances with other countries.

Besides, one of the most important points within the Peruvian context was the promise to nationalize the nitrate.

Pardo's candidacy was a success. Voting, with a double system that elected electors first and then the president, took place between October 15, 1871 and April 1872. The result was a clear victory for the Civil Party over its rivals, Manuel Toribio and José Rufino.

Coup attempt

The possible arrival of a civilian to the government was not to the liking of a sector of the army. The reaction was an attempted coup that began on July 22, 1872. That day, the four Gutiérrez brothers, all military, rose up against the government before the transfer of powers took place.

The coup leaders captured the still President Balta and ignored Pardo's victory in the elections. This, faced with the situation, took refuge in a frigate.

Tomás Gutiérrez, who had been Minister of Defense until then, proclaimed himself the Supreme Chief of the country.

It was the popular reaction that ended the attempted coup. One of the brothers died when a crowd attacked him in Lima and Tomás, upon receiving the news, decided to flee to the Santa Catalina barracks. For his part, a third brother gave the order to kill Balta, who remained under arrest.

Balta's execution further exacerbated the spirits of the population. It rose up against the coup plotters between July 22 and 27 and managed to stop the coup.

Government of Manuel Pardo y Lavalle (1872–1876)

Once the coup was stopped, Pardo returned to the capital and was greeted by a large crowd. On August 2, he was sworn in as President of the Republic.

The new President thought that the country should expand its economic base beyond guano and, in addition, he proposed to stop the waste that had been committed with the income obtained up to that moment.

Prado's first objective was to try to improve the economy. To do this, his government launched a plan with the intention of carrying out a fiscal reform, decentralizing the administration, attracting foreign investment and improving the management of natural resources.

In addition, the plan also included measures to modernize education and complete the works on the railways.

Economy

In practice, the economic reform plan resulted in the creation of a Salitre Estanco, which fixed the price of purchases. However, the companies in the sector did not collaborate and the government expropriated that industry in 1875.

That same year the term agreed by the Dreyfus Contract ended. The government tried to find some other commercial house for the distribution of the guano. The result was the creation of Peruvian Guano and the signing of an agreement with Raphael e Hijos.

Through these and other measures, such as reducing the military budget, the government managed to cut debt somewhat. However, it was still very large and the town hardly noticed any improvement.

Internal politics

Pardo created a new security body, the National Guard. The purpose was to prevent further coups from taking place.

On the other hand, the government encountered the emergence of opposition organizations. The most important was headed by Nicolás de Piérola. In 1874, Pardo tried to arrest him, but Piérola managed to escape by boat.

In January 1875, government troops defeated Piérola's supporters in Paucarpata and he was forced into exile in Chile.

Domestic policy

Since the early 1970s, Peru and Bolivia had been on the lookout for Chilean movements on the northern border. There were part of the saltpeter deposits and guano reserves.

Faced with the threat that both countries felt, their governments negotiated an alliance that culminated in the signing of a mutual defense treaty.

End of government

The next elections were scheduled for 1876. The Civil Party elected José Simeón Tejeda as its candidate, but his death before starting the campaign forced a search for a replacement.

Within the party there were several currents that were unable to reach an agreement. Faced with this blockade, he proposed to present General Mariano Ignacio Prado, a hero of the war against Spain in 1866.

Prado's rival in the elections was Lizardo Montero, who ran as an independent. The winner was the civilista candidate.

End of first

The new President took office on August 2, 1876. The following year legislative elections were held, which ended with an important victory for the Civil Party.

A hard blow for the party came in 1878, when its leader, Manuel Pardo y Lavalle, was assassinated. However, the government maintained significant support among the population and everything suggested that it would win the 1880 elections again.

The beginning of the War of the Pacific, in 1879, was the event that transformed the national political scene.

Return of militarism

The end of the war, in 1883, plunged Peru into a serious political, economic and social crisis. The so-called stage of National Reconstruction then began, with governments led, again, by the military.

References

1. Educared. El civilismo, Obtained from educared.fundaciontelefonica.com.pe
2. Pedagogical Folder. The first civilism of Manuel Pardo y Lavalle (1872 - 1876). Obtained from historiadelperu.carpetapedagogica.com
3. History of Peru. Manuel Pardo and Lavalle. Obtained from historiaperuana.pe
4. The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica. Civilist. Retrieved from britannica.com
5. Encyclopedia of Latin American History and Culture. Civilista Party. Retrieved from encyclopedia.com
6. Prabook. Manuel Pardo and Lavalle. Retrieved from prabook.com
7. Revolvy. Civilista Party. Retrieved from revolvy.com