ABSTRACT
The precise nature of the territorial form of state in Spain is not defined in the Constitution (SC). The current territorial form of the State is the result of a long and complex construction process in which the model of the 2nd republic and other European regional and federal systems was taken as a reference. From 1939 to 1975, this country lived under a dictatorship until the death of General Franco. The Catalan conflict is not the only nationalist challenge in Spain. There is also the remarkable strength of Basque nationalism, which challenged the central State at the beginning of this century, especially through the so-called ‘Ibarretxe Plan’, devised by the Basque Lehendakari. The 1978 Constitution established that there would be two ways for territories to become self-governing, which would also be reflected in certain requirements concerning the content of their Statute of Autonomy (SAs).
