Práxedes Mariano Mateo Sagasta y Escolar (21 July 1825 – 5 January 1903) was a Spanish civil engineer and politician who served as Prime Minister on eight occasions between 1870 and 1902—always in charge of the Liberal Party—as part of the turno pacifico, alternating with the Conservative leader Antonio Cánovas. He was known as an excellent orator.
Biography[edit]Mateo Sagasta was born on 21 July 1825 at Torrecilla en Cameros, province of Logroño, Spain. As a member of the Progressive Party while a student at the Civil Engineering School of Madrid in 1848, Sagasta was the only one in the school who refused to sign a letter supporting Queen Isabel II.
After his studies, he took an active role in government. Sagasta served in the Spanish Cortes between 1854–1857 and 1858–1863. In 1866 he went into exile in France after a failed coup. After the Spanish Revolution of 1868, he returned to Spain to take part in the newly created provisional government.
In 1880, Sagasta founded the Liberal Fusionist Party, which in 1881 formed a government lasting until 1883. During this administration, the government enacted a law guaranteeing freedom of the press without prior censorship and granted a general amnesty to Republicans. In 1885, the Liberal Fusionists merged with the Izquierda Dinástica (“Dynastic Left”) to create the Liberal Party.[1][2]
During Sagasta’s premiership from 1885 to 1890, his government implemented a series of major reforms, including the abolition of slery in Cuba in 1886, the Law of Associations in 1887, the promulgation of a new Civil Code in 1889, and the introduction of universal male suffrage in 1890.[3]
He served as Prime Minister of Spain during the Spanish–American War of 1898 when Spain lost its remaining colonies. Mateo Sagasta agreed to an autonomous constitution for both Cuba and Puerto Rico. Mateo Sagasta's political opponents saw his action as a betrayal of Spain and blamed him for the country's defeat in the war and the loss of its island territories in the Treaty of Paris of 1898. He continued to be active in politics for another four years.
Mateo Sagasta's ministry lost a vote in the Cortes on 2 December 1902, he handed in his resignation to the King on the following day, and formally resigned on 10 December 1902.[4]
Mateo Sagasta died in Madrid at the age of 77 on 5 January 1903, just a month after his last resignation.[5]
See also[edit] Regency of Maria Christina of Austria Reign of Alfonso XIII References[edit] ^ Darde, 1996, p. 70 ^ Darde, 2021, pp. 179-180 ^ "Gobierno Sagasta 1885-1890". Nueva Tribuna. Retrieved 2025-08-15. ^ "Latest intelligence - Resignation of Señor Sagasta". The Times. No. 36942. London. 4 December 1902. p. 5. ^ "Obituary. Señor Práxedes Mateo Sagasta". Annual Register for 1903. Longmans, Green, and Co. 1904. p. 113. External links[edit] U.S. Library of Congress Profile Political offices Preceded byLuis González Bro Minister of Government 1868-1870 Succeeded byNicolás María Rivero Preceded byJuan de Zala y de la Puente Prime Minister of Spain 1874 Succeeded byAntonio Cánovas del Castillo Preceded byAntonio Cánovas del Castillo Prime Minister of Spain 1881-1883 Succeeded byJosé Posada Herrera Preceded byAntonio Cánovas del Castillo Prime Minister of Spain 1885-1890 Succeeded byAntonio Cánovas del Castillo Preceded byAntonio Cánovas del Castillo Prime Minister of Spain 1892-1895 Succeeded byAntonio Cánovas del Castillo Preceded byMarcelo Azcárraga Prime Minister of Spain 1897-1899 Succeeded byFrancisco Silvela Preceded byMarcelo Azcárraga Prime Minister of Spain 1901-1902 Succeeded byFrancisco Silvela Party political offices Preceded byParty created Leader of the Liberal Party 1876–1902 Succeeded byEugenio Montero Ríos vtePrime ministers of SpainActing prime ministers shown in italics.Queen Isabella II(1833–1868) Martínez de la Rosa Toreno Ála Álvarez Mendizábal Istúriz Calatra Espartero Bardají Heredia-Spínola Frías Alaix Pérez de Castro A. González Ferraz Cortázar Sancho Espartero Ferrer A. González Rodil J. M. López Gómez Becerra Olózaga González Bro Narváez Miraflores Narváez Sotomayor Pacheco Salamanca García Goyena Narváez Clonard Bro Murillo Roncali Lersundi Sartorius Mendigorría Rivas Espartero O'Donnell Narváez Armero Istúriz O'Donnell Arrazola Mon Narváez O'Donnell Narváez González Bro Hana Democratic Sexennium(1868–1874) Madoz Serrano Prim Topete Serrano Ruiz Zorrilla Malcampo Sagasta Topete Serrano Mendigorría Ruiz Zorrilla Figueras Pi Salmerón Castelar Serrano Sierra Bullones Sagasta The Restoration(1874–1931) Cánovas Jovellar Martínez Campos Sagasta Posada Azcárraga Silvela Fernández-Villerde Maura Montero Moret López Domínguez Vega de Armijo Canalejas García Prieto Romanones Dato Maura Sánchez de Toca Bugallal Sánchez-Guerra Primo de Rivera Berenguer Aznar-Cabañas Second Republic(1931–1939) Alcalá-Zamora Azaña Lerroux Martínez Barrio Samper Chapaprieta Portela Barcía Casares Martínez Barrio Giral Largo Negrín Spain under Franco(1936–1975) Franco Carrero Blanco Fernández-Miranda Arias Since 1975 Arias Santiago Suárez Calvo-Sotelo F. González Aznar Zapatero Rajoy Sánchez Authority control databases InternationalISNIVIAFGNDFASTWorldCatNationalUnited StatesFranceBnF dataSpainNetherlandsVaticanCataloniaPeopleDeutsche BiographieDDBOtherIdRefSNACYale LUX