Julio César Guanche macrocephaly of Havana as the capital and the forced rural proletarianisation of large portions of the population. “Caciquismo” as a political relationship was structured on the basis of the concentration of property, the polarisation of income and the rural proletarianisation of the population. The fundamental political concept with which it operated was the exchange of favours for loyalty, a dynamic opposed to that of citizenship, focused, at least, on the exchange of duties and rights within a political community. Within the framework of liberal constitutionalism, the constitutional body of 1901 defended the secularity of the state, with the separation of the state and the church, religious freedom, freedom to profess all religions, and the prohibition for the State to fund any cult. Although its text still retained the mention of “in favour of God” and the limitation of the “respect due to Christian morality and public order” 13. However, in the field of social rights, it regulated very little content, which was nonetheless fought: the compulsory and free nature of primary education and arts and crafts. Both were left to the State, and experienced advances with respect to their previous histories. The state was also in charge of second and higher education (if the municipalities or the provinces could not sustain them), and freedom of teaching and learning was recognised, although the State reserved the right to demand special degrees —and their expedition— for the management of some professions. The absence of social rights and the provision of public services and resources pressured citizenship downward, to the point of reducing it to the sole condition of a status for immense social majorities. From the point of view of citizenship as a status, the Magna Carta of 1901 established that citizenship could be acquired by birth or naturalisation. The first case comprised those born inside or outside the territory of the Republic to Cuban parents; those born on the territory of the Republic to foreign parents, if they claimed their status as Cubans in the corresponding Registry, upon reaching maturity; and those born abroad to Cuban parents who had lost their Cuban nationality with the same requirements of majority of age and registration. Foreigners who had belonged to the Liberation Army and who claimed Cuban nationality in the six months following the promulgation of the constitution were naturalised; as well as foreigners who, established their domicile in Cuba before the 1st of January, 1899,; foreigners who, after five years of residence on the territory of the Republic —and within no less than two since they declared their intention of acquiring Cuban citizenship— obtained a naturalisation card; the Spaniards residing on Cuban territory on the 11th of April 1899, who had not registered as Spanish in the corresponding Registries until the same month and day of 1900; Africans who had been enslaved in Cuba, and emancipated included in Article 13 of the Treaty between Spain and England of the 28th of June. Cuban nationality was lost in the following cases: when a foreign citizenship was acquired, or following employment by or honours from another government without the consent of the Senate; taking arms with a foreign nation without the same consent, in the case of naturalised Cubans, for living five consecutive years in their country of birth, unless for reasons of employment or commission on behalf of the government of the Republic. Voluntary renunciation of citizenship was possible, too, and the law also provided for 13 It is not until the 1930s that “afro-Cuban” beliefs begin to be considered by some as “religions”, with the privilege this granted to the exclusivist dimension of “white” nationalism. However, the Constituent Convention of 1939-40, in discussing what morality could be demanded from the citizenry, “Cristian morality” as a synonym of “public morality” continued to prosper. Within this logic, for the vast majority of conveners there was no doubt about the “universality” of Christian morality. The only “religions” that were mentioned in the debate were (sic) “Spiritism” and “masonry” (Diario de Sesiones de la Convención Constituyente. Vol. II. No. 62. 31.05.1940, 25-39). RSCAS/GLOBALCIT-CR 2020/3 - © 2020 Author(s) 9

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