Alternative History
Register
Advertisement
Republic of Spain and the Western Sahara
República de España y del Sáhara Occidental
Timeline: 1983: Doomsday

OTL equivalent: Spanish provinces of Almería, Granada, Andalusia, Albacete, Alicante and Murcia; Canary Islands; Balearic Islands and Western Sahara
Flag Coat of Arms
Flag Coat of Arms
Location of Spain-Sahara
Location of Spain-Sahara
Motto
Plus Ultra
("Further Beyond")
Anthem "Himno de Riego"
Capital Palma de Mallorca
Largest city Las Palmas de Gran Canaria
Other cities Torrevieja, Ibiza, Ciutadella,
Language
  official
 
Spanish, Arabic, Catalan
  others Valencian, French, Italian, Andalusian
Demonym Spanish
Government Mixed-system federal republic,
  Legislature General Cortes
Prime Minister Francina Armengol
Opposition Leader Bahia Mahmud Awah
Area 472,848 km²
Population 3,698,598 
Independence 2010
Currency Spanish peseta
Organizations League of Nations, Atlantic Defense Community

The Republic of Spain and the Western Sahara (República de España y del Sáhara Occidental) commonly referred to as Spain-Sahara or Spain, is a European and North African nation formed after the unification of the Western Sahara, Canary Islands and Balearic Islands with their mainland mandate over the defunct Spanish National Republic after the Second Sicily War.

History[]

For the history prior to 2011 please see the pages onWestern Sahara and the defunct Spanish National Republic.

Genesis of the Modern Republic[]

Western sahara

Map of the Saharan territories of the Republic

The Republic of Spain was founded after the War of the Alboran Sea. Pais del Oro had attempted to take over the dictatorial Spanish Republic, but had done such with little success, however after LoN intervention, they succeeded, with a transitional government being placed into effect.

After the Spanish Republic was occupied by the ADC and LoN, a referendum was set up on June 21st, 2010 for entrance into union with the Pais del Oro. After an overwhelming majority voted to join the new Union, the Republic of Spain was declared. Due to complications, elections were postponed until October, with officials from PdOr being placed temporarily.

2012-2022: La Reconquista Nueva[]

Sucesor states 2011

The situation on the Iberian peninsula in 2011.

Fresh off of three victories in 10 years, the Spanish and Sahwari military brigades founds themselves rich in experience in a short time. By the beginning of 2012, the Spanish Navy had returned home in full, besides those relegated to peacekeeping duties in former Libya and Tunisia. The decision was made to occupy the coasts of Andalusia, in order to begin a full-scale reclamation of the province. The surviving city of Granada, the last of the cities of al-Andalus to fall, would be the first to rise as a member of the new Republic. Along with Tarife, Granada would serve as a forward operating base for the Andalusian Expeditionary Force.


The unification process has been arduous, and in some cases even bloody. There is still the process of incorporating the institutions of previous polities under the new state, and the adaptation of existing laws on the peninsula to the laws in use in overseas.

Spain & Portgal's Future Capitals[]

Spain's work to reclaim Andalusia has been ongoing for more than 13 years, and much work has gone into preparing Grenada for role as a future capital on the mainland, in conjunction with similar efforts on the sides of the Portuguese to build a new mainland capital in their southern peninsular bastion of Portimão, only a short distance to the west along the coast.

Iberian Dilemma[]

One of the more problematic actors on the Iberian Peninsula, the Iberian Confederation would loom over the young Republic's new frontiers, a consequence of expanding deeper into old Spain. With the Basque Country and Iberia finding themselves broiled in constant conflict, it is not surprise that many conservative voices call for intervention in the matter. For Spain's part, they have avoided overt participation by 2023, although the sale of arms, even exports or imports by vendors is to the two parties is prohibited by law.

Present Day[]

The unification process has been arduous, and in some cases even bloody. There is still the process of incorporating the institutions of previous polities under the new state, and the adaptation of existing laws on the peninsula to the laws in use in overseas. Spain's work to reclaim Andalusia has been ongoing for more than 13 years, and much work has gone into preparing the Alhambra of Granada for role as a future capital complex on the mainland, in conjunction with similar efforts on the sides of the Portuguese to build a new mainland capital in their southern peninsular bastion of Portimão, only a short distance to the west along the coast.

Spain was given, along with the Rif Republic, mandate over Tunisia and the Libyan coast formerly occupied by Sicily following the Second Sicily War. This occupation lasted in true only 2 years, but the final auxiliary missions (academics, charity workers, medical aid workers) ended throughout 2015 and 2016, in conjunction with the formation of the Mediterranean Union. At the close of its decade-long military offensive, the People's Action Party was ousted from power in a landslide election, losing the majority of its parliamentary seats. Unable to form a coalition, the incumbent Prime Minister Valpuesta resigned. In the coalition that followed, Spain would elect its first female Prime Minister - Francina Armengol.

Alhambra83DD

The Alhambra - future capital of Spain, with the Parliament and High Court in a single complex. Repairs are scheduled to be completed during 2023-2024

Economy[]

Spain's economy draws on the situation of a double economic system inherited from the merger of the two states, one with an economy geared to autarky and another with an economy heavily dependent on imports, with state control of strategic sectors and market protected.

Spain's chief exports consist of agriculture, textiles, fishing, artisanal works, refinement of raw goods such as oil, metals and lumber. Many Spaniards work throughout other ADC countries, either in the merchant navy or in various roles throughout the regional economy. In regards to mineral resources, these reserves consist mainly of iron, platinum, and phosphate in the Sahara and silver, lead and iron in the Union Mining District near Cartagena. Marble and limestone also make up an important part of material used in contemporary construction, with concrete being reserved for more pressing projects.

The textiles industry is another important sector of the economy, along with shipbuilding, steel works on the Empresa Nacional Bazán and industrial chemicals plants in Cartagena (and the oil refinery of Escombreras, near Cartagena).

Shipbuilding[]

Shipbuilding has been Spain's most financially advantageous trade in recent years. With numerous ship yards in Tenerif, Cartagena, and other parts of the Republic.

LasPalmasShipyards

A small vessel at sea in the Canary Islands, with the shipyards of Las Palmas, some of the largest surviving in Europe, seen in the back

Agriculture[]

Valencia is the capital of the Spanish orange and citrus industry. The Moors introduced the cultivation of palm trees into this area, and the city of Elche, near Alicante, boasts Europe's only extensive palm groves.

Produce such as olives, vineyards and citrus are grown throughout the country, with the Almeria province being a chief exporter. Other widely grown products are melons, lettuces, potatoes, lemons and almonds.

Culture[]

Modern Spain's culture is a curiosity to many - the blend between the standing influence of Pais del Oro's military men, the defiant spirit of Spaniards who rebelled against the juntas, the Valencian and Catalan dominated east now two generations free of Castillian influence, and the increasing presence of Sahwari enlistedmen and their families in Andalusia has led to a curious blend on the mainland of Spain. In contrast, the Spanish in contact with the Saharawi have taken many of their customs, such as clothing, the use of turbans and headscarves and beards grown. The Arab influence is also seen other aesthetic aspects such as architecture, music, food and furniture.Today, one must know both Spanish and Arabic in many parts of the interior "frontera", whose long abandoned towns and cities are being resettled by Canary Islanders, Baelerics, Sahwaris, Berbers, Moroccans, and even Latin American settlers all in confluence.

The Balearic Islands are an exception and have not taken part in these changes. By contrast, the Catalonian language and culture were imposed after the arrival of refugees from Catalonia and Valencia in the first days after Doomsday.

Language[]

Due to the geographic and demographics of the territory under the Republic of Spain's control, Castillian shares being the main language with Catalan, which is barely below Castillian in terms of number of native speakers. Castillian Spanish is spoken by 42% of the population primarily in the Canary Islands and in Murcia. Catalan is spoken by roughly 30-35% of the population on a daily basis, primarily in the Balearic Islands and most of eastern Spain. Arabic, Portuguese, Valencian, Leonese and other smaller dialects make up roughly one third of the spoken languages, with Arabic being 25% alone.

In Western Sahara, the main languages are split between Hassaniya and Standard Arabic, which are spoken by the majority of the population. Amazigh makes up a significant minority of the spoken language as well.

The population of Andalusia is roughly at half a million people and constantly increasing - as one of the stipulations for 10 years of service is a subsidized land grant to veterans, Andalusia has remained the most popular choice for the last decade. The census on Almería province show a change from 411 000 inhabitants on 1981 to 362 000 on 2015. It is likely that it has dropped even further, as many of the poorer residents make way for the "empty quarter" deeper into the interior.

Religion[]

The partnership between the Spanish and the Saharawi has resulted in one of the most original society of the post-nuclear world. Saharawi Muslims have quickly risen to prominence in Spain, with many military heroes being crucial to saving the fragile state during the Alboran War and the Second Sicily War, not to mention the Reconquista of the Peninsula

SanJuanCanaries

San Juan Cathedral in Las Palmas, completed only 6 years before Doomsday and now one of the most visited churches in Spain

Backed by the religious freedom and the crisis of conscience after doomsday, Islam - now the world's largest religion - has spread among the Spanish settlers in the Sahara and Melilla, and even among the islands. Conversions to Christianity among the Saharawi by contrast are poor, despite the establishment of the archbishopric of Laayoune, which is the only city which has seen considerable converstions to Christianity by the Sahwari.

LaayouneMosque

The Grand Mosque of Laayoune/El Aaiùn, Islam is the second most practiced religion in Spain and Sahara, at over 30%. In most of Western Sahara, this is at roughly 95%.

Government[]

Constitution[]

According to the unified arrangements for the October 31, 2010, Spain has scheduled legislative elections for the formation of a Constituent Assembly to draft a new constitution. So far this current Transitional Constitution of the overseas territories keeps the basic points of the Constitution of 1978 but introduces several amendments and clarifications about the powers of the institutions mentioned in the original constitution (it is significant that the constitution itself makes explicit its temporary nature).

The Constitution of 2011, itself a modified version of the 1978 Constitution, stipulates in its first article that "Spain is established as a social and democratic State, subject to the rule of law, which advocates as the highest values of its legal order the following: liberty, justice, equality and political pluralism. Article 1.2 refers to national sovereignty, which is vested in the Spanish and Saharan people, "from whom the powers of the State emanate". Article 1.3 establishes parliamentary monarchy as the "political form of the Spanish state", a decision made in the 2010 unification to avoid a deal-breaking withdrawal of certain parties although the seat has remained vacant since its inception.

Structure[]

The Republic of Spain and Sahara is defined as the union of two states: The Spanish State and the Sahrawi State.

The Republic of Spain is defined as the union of the Spanish and Sahwari nations. It is established as a monarchy, but the throne has been vacant since 1983, many people question the usefulness of the "monarchical fiction" after 40 years of virtual republic; the republican movement represented by the Federalista Party, the Spanish Workers Party, the Sahwari Democratic People's Party, and the populist People's Action Party had been gaining power, and according to rumor are already planning on calling for a new Constituent Assembly. For now, the head of state is exercised for years by a tripartite regency. Catalan and Sahrawi separatists remain as an influential political force in Valencia, the Balearic Islands and West Sahara, respectively.

Saharan State[]

The الجمهورية الصحراوية (Saharan Republic) is the body divided into 3 provinces subject strongly to Laayoune, (Spanish: El Aaiùn). The city of Melila, previously of pre-war Spain, is now under the jurisdiction of the Sahrawi sub-state. Sahrawi legislative is unicameral.

Director general 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

José Segura Clavell, the current President of the Republic of Spain. He served as an engineer and energy minister before being elected as the president on 2018

Spanish State[]

The territorial organization of the Estado Español (Spanish State) is divided broadly on the pattern inherited from the Constitution of 1978. The Spanish State is comprised of its six Autonomous Communities: These are the Canary Islands, themselves subdivided into cabildos, the Balearic Islands or Illes Balears, subdivided into Island Councils, the Autonomous Community of the Canton of Cartagena, the Autonomous Community of Murcia, the Autonomous Community of Almeria and the Mayor-Presidency of the Autonomous City of Melilla. Rate military bases in Tarifa and Huelva and other territories in the process of incorporation are defined as territories subject to the government's Ministry of Defense and Reconquest. In the Spanish Government, the legislative power is primarily vested in a bicameral legislature, and secondarily in the autonomous parliaments and the island councils. The Houses of Parliament are called Congreso de los Diputados (Congress) and Senado (Senate).

SSHospital

Spanish-Saharan women await care at a hospital, with both official languages in display

Castellon Free Trade Zone[]

Independent from the two states exists the Castellon Free Trade Zone, Zona Franca Castelló, which as the name suggest is not taxed by the Spanish (with the noted exception of fertilizer and petroleum imports, which are levied as a good entering the Spanish state as a whole, and so as to not destabilize the national industries).

Today, Castellón (Valencian/Catalan: Castelló) is a rapidly developing port; on the coast of the Distribution Centre, jetties and trading docks are common. Although it has become an important international hub on the Iberian Peninsula, its success has been limited due of its small population, and competition from Cartagena in mainland Spain, and the still more-popular destination of the Balearic Islands. Much to the chagrin of the Valencian/Catalan speaking populace, Castillian Spanish remains co-official, and thus the city has been inundated with Spanish speakers and media at all junctures. Some argue that the Free Trade Zone exists to take pressure off of secessionist movements in the other parts of Catalanophone Spain.

Military[]

The combined military of the Republic of Spain is known currently as the Spanish Armed Forces. The force was created in November 2010 from the combination of the Spanish Republic and Pais de Oro armies, and it numbers about 40,000. It is divided into three branches. The military remains an extremely influential factor in the Republic's life, although political pressure from the Parliament in Palma de Mallorca and substantial control over the budget by parliament treasurers has prevented fears that had befallen the mainland Republic.

  • Spanish Sahwari Republican Force - 15,063
  • "National Flotilla" - naval forces - 14,100
  • Spanish Air Force - 9,700

The military forces of Spain and Sahara are party to the Atlantic Defense Community. In addition to the ADC, the Republican Army participates in operations with Leon-Castille and Asturias in land reclamation on the mainland. Military service and training is compulsory for males aged 19-22, with women encouraged to take military functions courses.

The mainland army units come from the remnants of the Third Military Region, and consists of infantry regiments, mechanized regiments, and some artillery units.

Based on Lorca, Almería and Cartagena, the reestablished units are those:

  • Batallón de Infantería Mecanizada Bailén IV
  • Regimiento de Infantería «Mallorca» n.° 13
  • Batallón de Infantería III Extremadura

On the Spanish Navy, most of the mainland navy is based on few corvettes, a submarine and patrol boats, captured to the Spanish National Republic. The more important ones are the Descubierta-class corvettes (after joining the 5 corvettes that were divided since Doomsday)

  • Descubierta (F-31)
  • Diana (F-32)
  • González de Ubieta formerly Infanta Cristina and Topete (F-34)
  • Cazadora (F-35)
  • Vencedora (F-36)

The main patrolled routes use the Conejera-class patrol boats Conejera (P-31) and Dragonera (P-32), and the Galerna (S-71) submarine is used to avoid attacks and irradiated zones.

Main aircrafts of the Air Force are CASA C-101, Eurocopter AS 332 Super Puma, located at the Aeródromo Militar de Alcantarilla (Murcia), Gando Air Base (Canary Islands), and Armilla Air Base (Granada Province)

Territory[]

Listed below are the de jure territories of the Republic of Spain and the Western Sahara.

Autonomous Communities Capital Population Accession Date Juristiction Notes Flags
Western Sahara

(Sáhara Occidental/الصحراء الغربية, As-Ṣaḥrā' al-Ġarbīyya)

El Aaiún 850,000 2010 Western Sahara, southern buffer on Moroccan border, Melila The Sahwari State, one of the two component countries of the new Republic
Flag of Pais del Oro
Canary Islands

(Islas Canarias)

Las Palmas de Gran Canaria 1,000,000 2010 Canary Islands
Canary
Balearic Islands

(Islas Baleares/Illes Balears)

Palma de Mallorca 550,000 2010 Balearic Islands
Flag of the Balearic Islands
Murcia and La Mancha

(Región de Murcia)

Cartagena 325,000 2010 Murcia Murcia Province secured fully in 2020.
Flag of the Region of Murcia
Valencian Country

(País Valenciano/País Valencià)

Alicante 779,000 2010 Valencia Province
Senyera valenciana de l'Estatut de Benicàssim
Andalusia

(Andalucía/الأندلس)

Granada 500,000 2020 Andalusia Reconquest of Andalusia complete in 2020
83DDAndalusia
Cazorla

(Cazorla)

Cazorla 80,000 2022 Cazorla, North-central Andalusia Frontier Republic found centered around city of same name
Cazorla flag Doomsday1983

International Relations[]

After the unification in late June of 2010, the Republic of Spain assumed the legal responsibilities of the successor to the former Spanish state. The country is a part of the League of Nations and the Atlantic Defense Community.

Relations between the Spanish Republic and much of the Iberian Peninsula remained touch and go until relatively recently. Perhaps its closest allies in the region are Galicia and Portugal. Relations with Asturias and the Basque Country were normalized via Atlantic diplomatic circles. Given the Galician and Republican membership in the ADC, it can be assumed that Spain has dropped all claims to the region and recognized the nationhood of the Galician's in full and as equals. Iberian Confederation and the Republica Unida de Castilla y Leon. It has made increasing overtures to the Leon-Castillians regarding re-unification, although there is a berth in the demands between the two parties that has yet to be settled. Talks remain underway as of 2022. Likewise, relations with the Andorrans remain frosty, although the Pyrenees confederation which has formed around Andorra have tried to make overtures of cordiality received coldly by the Republic's lingering irredentist sentiments.

The Nordic Union has used the former Norwegian Consulate-General of Palma de Mallorca as their main Embassy on Spain to use it as their diplomatic mission. The mission lent a hand to refuge-seeking citizens during various periods of unrest in accordance with the Helsinki Treaty. There remains a small but vibrant population of Spanish expats in Norway and Sweden as a result.

Reunification[]

Although the Republic of Spain is recognized as the legitimate successor state to the Kingdom of Spain, geopolitical analysts have debated on the future of the Iberian peninsula, and prospects of unity. 2023 circles are in consensus that it is "next to impossible" that Spain will ever grow to its full, former borders. For one, peace with Galicia, Asturias and the Basque Country was a non-negotiable condition of normalizing relations with the Portuguese during the foundation of the ADC, meaning that Spain will never again touch the Cantabrian Sea. Spain is in position to retake the ruins of Madrid, however, although the Iberian Confederation also has settlements throughout Castille La Mancha. Analysts also curiously predict that Galicia will unite with Portugal over Spain in the far future, as it has drifted far more into the Lusophone sphere since the shattering of Iberia.

Unification with Leon and Castille is a possibility that can go in either direction, according to analysts. With a "near-certainty" that the Basque Country and the Iberian Confederation will have further outbreaks of war in the 21st century, some have postulated the Confederation may shatter, with some of its members being absorbed by the Republic of Spain, bringing it up to the Pyrennes. In Aragon, there is a strong majority against uniting with the "Moors" in the south, as many distastefully refer to the Spanish and Saharan state.

Likewise, Andorra's meager gains are no longer protested, following a series of informal talks. The WCRB predicts that by 2100, Spain will go no further north than the Leon-Zaragoza line, with the Cantabrian and Galician coasts forever lost to it, as well as the Pyrenees.

Externals[]

Sahara Occidental: Del abandono colonial a la construcción de un estado. (2019) - a book published by various academics and political figures, including Bahia Mahmud Awah, the current leader of Spain-Sahara in TTL.



Advertisement