ABSTRACT
Basque socialism, both as a political party and as a union, developed into a strong and influential social movement that in 1894 began to publish its own weekly and in 1900 created the Socialist Federation of Biscay as an organizational umbrella for all local party groups in the province. Scholarly research on Basque nationalism has revealed the existence of the several elements in Sabino Arana’s discourse and, after the founder’s early death in 1903, in the Partido Nacionalista Vasco political practice. Basque fin de siecle nationalism was grounded in a peculiar ideological blend of different ingredients. The spectacular rise towards the formation of a popular inter-class social movement was, among others, a consequence of an important strategic decision adopted by the party’s leadership. Basque nationalism needed to overcome its status as a semi-clandestine, persecuted party of a radical minority by constitutionalizing nationalist politics and reducing or eliminating the external pressure on its followers.
