Contesting Spain? The Dynamics of Nationalist Movements in Catalonia and the Basque Country

by Richard Gillespie (Editor), Caroline Gray (Editor)

Overview

Contesting Spain? The Dynamics of Nationalist Movements in Catalonia and the Basque Country offers an exploration of the dynamics behind contemporary shifts in the orientation of nationalist parties and movements with reference to Catalonia and the Basque country in Spain. The chapters were originally papers presented at a workshop held at the Barcelona Centre for International Affairs (CIDOB) in September 2014 as part of a research project on ‘The Dynamics of Nationalist Evolution in Contemporary Spain’, whose purpose was to gain a better understanding of why regionally-based nationalist movements have experienced shifting relationships with the Spanish state over time, in some periods appearing content with accommodation between central and regional government and at other times pushing to go beyond autonomist demands to seek sovereignty or even attain full independence.

The volume is one of the first to focus comparatively on the rise of pro-sovereignty politics in mainstream nationalist parties, whose evolution has also featured more traditional impulses towards territorial accommodation within the wider state. Using the exceptionally rich laboratory provided by Spain, the book explores the dynamics behind shifts in the orientation of nationalist parties and movements once they have established themselves as electorally successful at regional level. Dimensions to the analysis include: the interaction of nationalist parties with central government; pressures from their support bases; competition between parties within the home region; and international influences.

This title is innovative in bringing together experts with a range of disciplinary approaches: primarily political scientists but also historians and scholars located at the cusp between social sciences and humanities.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781857438062
Publisher:	Taylor & Francis
Publication date:	07/14/2015
Series:	Europa Country Perspectives
Pages:	160
Product dimensions:	6.12(w) x 9.19(h) x (d)

About the Author

Richard Gillespie is Professor of Politics at the University of Liverpool where he co-directs the Europe and the World Centre. Before taking up the Chair at Liverpool, he held posts at the universities of Newcastle-upon-Tyne, Portsmouth, Warwick and Oxford. His current research interests involve the comparative study of nationalist movements in Europe, as reflected in a major project on Catalan and Basque nationalist parties funded by the Economic and Social Research Council of the UK (ES/J007854/1).

Caroline Gray is a PhD candidate in politics at the University of Liverpool. Her research, funded by the Economic and Social Research Council of the UK, investigates the impact of the regional financing models in Spain on Basque and Catalan territorial politics.

Table of Contents

Between Accommodation and Contestation: The Political Evolution of Basque and Catalan Nationalism Richard Gillespie When do Countries Re-centralize? Ideology and Party Politics in the Age of Austerity Diego Muro Nationalist Politics at the Crossroads: The Basque Nationalist Party and the Challenge of Sovereignty (1998-2014) Ludger Mees A Fiscal Path to Sovereignty? The Basque Economic Agreement and Nationalist Politics Caroline Gray Catalan Independence and the Challenge of Credibility: The Causes and Consequences of Catalan Nationalist Parties’ Strategic Behaviour Anwen Elias Political Power and Civil Counterpower: The Complex Dynamics of the Catalan Nationalist Movement Kathryn Crameri The Evolution of Sub-state Nationalist Parties as Statewide Parliamentary Actors: CiU and PNV in Spain Bonnie N. Field

Editorial Reviews

"This interesting, authoritative, and thought-provoking book endeavors—and successfully so—to attain a better understanding of the dynamics undergirding nationalist parties’behavior in Spain...The research sheds fresh light on a range of dynamics and the authors, engaging and coherent in their argumentation,contribute significantly to our understanding of nationalist politics and political parties in Spain." - Paul Anderson, Canterbury Christ Church University, Publius

From the Publisher