The Fueros and the Creation of the Basque Country

Abstract

This chapter examines the processes by which the Concierto Economico, the legal framework that would replace that of the fueros, was created between 1876 and 1936. The analysis focuses on the approaches though which the Concierto Economico was conceived and negotiated in Vascongadas . It is argued that beneath conceptions and legal definitions of what Euskadi is rest traditional political practices and cooperative jurisdictional behaviors. Two opposing dynamics are identified as important in this regard: (1) the variety of existing jurisdictions, their legally recognized powers, and the interest generated around them, which involved a presumption of a degree of unilateralism regarding interests, concepts of social reality, and evaluations of social phenomena; and (2) dynamics of systematic cooperation between jurisdictions, which can be related in part to commonly held values and interests and to a strategy directed to strengthen their position in their negotiations with state authorities.