End of the First Carlist War: Convention of Vergara
- When
- 1839
- Where
- Vergara, Gipuzkoa; Cuartel General of Vergara
- Episodes
- 2
The Convention of Vergara, signed on 31 August 1839, ended major fighting in Spain's First Carlist War. General Baldomero Espartero, representing the Isabelines, and General Rafael Maroto, representing the Carlists, negotiated the treaty in Bergara, Gipuzkoa. This agreement concluded the conflict in the Basque districts, though fighting continued in eastern regions until 1840.
Episodes
- Signing of the Convention
General Espartero and General Maroto signed the treaty ending major fighting in the First Carlist War on 31 August 1839 in Bergara.
- Post-Convention Address
Espartero addressed the Basque and Navarrese people in Vergara on 1 September 1839, notifying them of the peace reached.
Background and detail
Background. The First Carlist War was a civil conflict in Spain from 1833 to 1840. It involved conservative Carlists supporting Carlos de Borbón and progressive Liberals supporting the regent Maria Christina. After the death of Zumalacárregui in 1835, Liberals regained the initiative in the Basque districts. Negotiations began in 1838, leading to the Convention of Vergara in 1839, which ended the war in the Basque Country.
Negotiations. General Espartero carefully began negotiations with Maroto and principal Carlist chiefs in 1839. The moderate Jose Antonio Muñagorri had previously negotiated a treaty in Madrid in 1838, known as 'Peace and Fueros'. This agreement was ratified by Basque moderate liberals and disaffected Carlists, setting the stage for the formal convention at Vergara.
Aftermath. The Convention ended major fighting, but General Cabrera continued fighting in the east until his defeat in May 1840. Espartero became premier and regent in 1840. The Basques retained reduced home rule in exchange for incorporation into Spain, but this was suppressed by decree in September 1841 following Espartero's uprising.
People involved
- Baldomero Espartero · General for the Isabelines
- Rafael Maroto · General for the Carlists
Sources
- Convention of Vergara Wikipedia, revision of 2026-07-21
- First Carlist War Wikipedia, revision of 2026-09-11
- Baldomero Espartero Wikipedia, revision of 2026-07-17
- Rafael Maroto Wikipedia, revision of 2026-09-10
Machine-drafted from the cited Wikipedia passages and checked by a reviewing model, not by a human editor. Every passage cites the revision it was written from; dates and places follow those passages.