... at the beginning of the century had been.1 Therefore there was acute concern in Spain amongst the politicians, the military and the intelligentsia. A common sentiment was evoked that there was something wrong with Spain and that 'regeneration' was needed. This essay aims to examine to what the various leading groups in Spain attributed the Disaster. Although it would appear that the final loss of Spain's empire did produce widespread consternation in the country, Brenan2 points out that there was so little reflection as to its causes and so little change of heart that Silvela, the Conservative Prime Minister remarked with despair that he could 'scarcely feel the pulse of Spain'. What there were however, were many conflicting recriminations amongst the ruling elites and the military. If we examine the military after the 1898 disaster, we can see they were at their lowest prestige, shamefully humiliated in their naval battles with ...

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