The July Revolution

The July Revolution is the fourth novel in the fourth series of the National Episodes by Benito Pérez Galdós. In this installment return the memories of our hero, the current Marquis of Beramendi, José García Fajardo. The protagonist seems to suffer strong attacks of melancholy and boredom. He has matured and become more skeptical and liberal, possibly as a counterweight to the conservative family to which he has integrated, with his happy marriage despite having been of convenience. Great woman who has touched him, María Ignacia de Emparán, who has become a true companion and accomplice. And in her character the author presents us again with a new case of a strong woman, of a woman who skips all social norms and conventions.
However, the search for an old friend with whom he had flirted as a young man, will lead Fajardo to be, involuntarily, a direct witness of a popular insurrection that will be called the July Revolution and that will tip the balance in favor of O’Donnell, after a military uprising that led the way of so many others. Pepe García Fajardo makes a clear but harsh confession against those of his social condition. It attacks the bourgeoisie at the same time that it exalts the courageous decision of the people to join the revolutionary cause that believes in a Spain of new horizons. Galdós once again demonstrates his mastery in the description of events, and something begins to become evident that will be accentuated in later episodes: a more bitter vision of Spain, which is painted divided into two opposing camps that lead to fratricidal confrontations.