Gabrielism

Gabrielists (Spanish: Gabrielistas), also known as Legitimists (Spanish: Legitimistas), are royalists who adhere to the rights of dynastic succession to the Mejican crown of the descendants of Gabriel II of New Spain, who was ousted in a coup by Agustín I and María Carlota in 1825. They advocate for the restoration of the Gabrieline branch of the House of Bourbon, and the establishment of a constitutional social monarchy. Opposed to the Iturbidists, Gabrielists do not believe in dual legitimacy, believing solely in popular sovereignty.

Throughout its history, the Gabrielist movement has faced challenges and setbacks. Following the deposition of the young King Gabriel II, his supporters experienced a decline in political influence and were marginalized by the ascendancy of Iturbidist forces, who were supported by powerful landowners, the Church, and the Army. Meanwhile, the Gabrielists were mostly supported by the Indigenous peoples and reformists. Lacking the backing of the most influential factions in the country, the Gabrielists had to adapt their political ambitions and approach. Prince Gabriel was exiled to Portugal with his mother, and would not return to Mejico until 1866.

Shortly after the return of Gabriel, the leaders of the Liberal Insurgency of 1868 co-opted Gabrielists into their movement, but the prince discouraged his loyalists from taking violent action in an attempt to reinstate him to the throne and condemned the insurgents. In 1873, after the revolutionaries were defeated, Agustín II granted him the title of Duke of Cadereyta in recognition of his restraint and the potential unifying role his family could play in the future. In the following decades, Gabrielists would rise again in a short rebellion during the early stages of the Mejican Civil War, now as a Social Monarchist faction, in support of pretender Gabriel "IV". The rebellion was quickly put down by General Felipe Ángeles in 1912, causing Gabriel "IV" to be exiled to Oregon and stripped of his title. The title was passed to his cousin, José, and then to his son, Gabriel "V", who competed with the Traditionalists, Margarines, and Otumbists during the 1952-1954 succession crisis.

Over time, the Gabrielist movement has undergone ideological transformations, incorporating liberal and socialist elements. Social monarchism emerged as a key tenet, blending traditional monarchical principles with modern ideas of Christian socialism. The Christian socialist thinker Moisés Vallejo was instrumental in the evolution of this ideology during the 1970s. Vallejo argued for a just society guided by Christian values under the Gabrielist branch, as opposed to the totalitarian state imposed by Emperor Fernando II during the Absolutist Octennium.

The Gabrielist Party, founded in 1904, has seen successes and failures throughout the decades. Today, it advocates for neo-progressivism, decentralization, constitutionalism, civil liberties, social justice, egalitarianism, and the protection of Indigenous lands and rights. For most of the 20th century, the party suffered setbacks due to the splintering of the Third International and the expulsion of social monarchist movements from the organization, causing it to lose valuable international support and resources. The Party then gained some leeway as it aligned with the Pact of Unity and Collaboration, of which Mejico was a member, somewhat softening the hard stance of the Vasconcelist government against them. Despite the Iturbidist alignment of the government and the close collaboration between President and Monarch that continued after the Proclamation of Empire in 1958, the Gabrielists became an acceptable opposition force within the political landscape.

The party is represented in the provincial congresses of seven provinces, and has 19 representatives sitting in the General Congress as of the 2024 extraordinary elections. The current pretender is María Cecilia, Duchess of Cadereyta, a great-great-granddaughter of Gabriel II. She was first elected as the main pretender by popular vote in the Gabrielist Summit of 1970, and has remained so ever since.