In James Wood’s 2010 book on Latin American history, one reads “Liberalism, in theory, meant the legal equality of all citizens (though it did not work that way in practice). Republicanism meant a form of constitutional government with representatives elected by the people (though, again, in practice this right did not apply to all of the population). Nationalism meant a sense of shared history and common identity.”

Which bring us to Spain’s Constitution of 1812 mostly written by anti-French liberals… According to Jaime Vives in a 1967 book on history of Spain, with the liberals in power, the constitutional government had lost favor with Spanish landowners, nobility, and middle class as well as businessmen when the first attempt at organized labor uprising was experienced in Spanish history…

With the return of Fernando VII to Spain, dozens of royalists signed a petition in 1814 that became known as the so-called Manifiesto de los Persas ("Manifesto of the Persians")… the authors of the manifesto such as Marquis de Mataflorida were also nicknamed “the Persians”…

The reference to the Persians and the manifesto were based on its opening paragraph in describing how ancient Persians had suffered anarchy after the death of their King and as such the “Spanish Persians” now ask their king (Fernando VII) to appeal the “Liberal Constitution”… the opening paragraph of the manifesto is roughly translated as:

"1. It was customary in ancient Persians spend five days in anarchy after the death of their king, so that the experience of the murders, thefts and other misfortunes oblige them to be loyal to his successor…”

The manifesto resulted at the time in the exile of the Liberals and their loss of power in Spanish political arena… politics is power… political science is the study of transfer of power… history observes and records transfer of power which is misinterpreted as history repeating itself …

[pic source :  Manifiesto de los Persas ("Manifesto of the Persians") dated 1814… for educational purposes only]