Lucas Alamán y la constitución

Abstract

Few authors have evinced such extraordinary insightfulness as Lucas Alamán in his book, However, this work has been frequently misinterpreted due to ideological bias -Alamán is traditionally viewed as a staunch conservative and as an enemy of liberal values. This article shows that this bias does not withstand a close examination of Alamán's text. First, Alemán's discussion on the separation of powers, emergency powers, congressional attributions, suffrage and the need for a strong government are analyzed in detail. It is demonstrated that the basis of his ideas in the text corresponds with liberal constitutional theory rather than with conservatism. Second, the influence of British conservative Edmund Burke on Alamán is brought into question. Finally, it is suggested that Alamán in his early stage as statesman was a conservative liberal.