HISTORY OF EUROPE 



215 



supplying and arranging what, 

 frora the urgency of the moment 

 and the intricacy of present cir- 

 cumstances, cannot be comprised 

 in the present decree." 



The meeting of the Cortes, 

 which, from delays incident to all 

 transactions, and especially those of 

 the Spaniards, had been postponed 

 Irom time to time, at length took 

 place on the 2ith of September. 

 At nine in the morning tlic depu- 

 ties of the Cortes met in the Con- 

 sistorial Hall, from whence, ac- 

 companied by the Regency, they 

 proceeded to the cathedral, amidst 

 unceasing acclamations of Gorf save 

 the nation — Viva la nacion On 

 their arrival at the church, mass 

 was celebrated by the cardinal of 

 Bourbon, and a sermon preached 

 by the bishop of Orense. The de- 

 puties then took the proscribed 

 oath, and proceeded to the hall 

 allotted for tlie sittings of the 

 Cortes. The Council of Regency 

 being seated on the throne, under 

 which was placed the portrait of 

 Ferdinand VII. the president de- 

 livered a speech, in which, among 

 other things, lie reminded the 

 assembly of the melancholy situa- 

 tion of Spain when the Regcnc)' 

 took the government, and exhort- 

 ed the deputies to a faithful dis- 

 charge of their important duties. 

 The assembly nominated a presi- 

 dent and secretary. A declara- 

 tion was then drawn up, that the 

 general and extraordinary Cortes 

 of the nation were legally assem- 

 bled, and that the sovereign power 

 resided in them. The}' then 

 acknowledged, proclaimed, and 

 «wore fealty to Ferdinand VII. 

 and declared the renunciations of 

 Bayonne to be null and void, as 

 they were unjust and violent, and 



chiefly on account of their having 

 been made without the consent of 

 the nation. Of the three powers 

 in the state, the legislative, the 

 executive, and the judicial, the as- 

 sembly reserved to themselves the 

 legislative, but continued the au- 

 thority of the Regency as the exe- 

 cutive power, jno tempore, until 

 the establishment of a permanent 

 government, on condition that the 

 Regency should come to the hall, 

 and take the path of allegiance to 

 the Cortes. With this order the 

 Regency complied. The conti- 

 nuation of the civil and railittuy 

 authorities was decreed. It was 

 decreed, that the llegency should 

 reside wherever the Cortes were, 

 and that none of its members had 

 power to remove themselves to the 

 distance of more than a league, 

 without permission of the Cortes. 



An act was passed for raising a 

 new levy of 150,000 men, and 

 for the equipment and subsistence 

 of all the patriotic armies. While 

 Ferdinand VII. was acknowledged 

 king of Spain, and all his posses- 

 sions beyond the seas declared to 

 be integral parts of the Spanish 

 monarchy, it was decreed that 

 concessions should be made to the 

 transmarine provinces. It was 

 also established us a fundamental 

 law, that the inhabitants of Old 

 Spain had a right to the redress of 

 their grievances. The established 

 religion was retained, to the ex- 

 clusion of all others. The mar- 

 riage of a king of Spain not to he 

 valid without the consent of the 

 nation ; nor his abdication of the 

 throne , nor his alienation of pro- 

 perty. 



It was resolved that the Cortes 

 should have the title of Majesty ; 

 the Regency and executive autlio- 



