El liberalismo, las mujeres y la Guerra de la Independencia

Abstract

Liberalism, women and the War of Independence

In parallel with the birth of the contemporary Spanish society, marked by liberal revolutions, liberalism encouraged the emergence of a polarized notion of gender roles. It can therefore be argued that the ultimate intention of liberalism was to have our women accept a subordinate role in society and in politics and relegate them to the home domain, a space traditionally reserved to them. The aim of this article is first of all to show that political liberalism in Spain — at least in the 1808 to 1814 war setting — did not necessarily involve a dramatic limitation in the public presence of women. Secondly, the research illustrates how this new ideological approach of liberalism based on the division of society into two spheres of influence — the public domain for men and the private domain for women — did not directly influence society, at least in the 1808-1814 war period in Spain.

Received:  06-11-2005