La formació de funcionaris públics de la Diputació de Barcelona a la Mancomunitat de Catalunya i la Generalitat de Catalunya (1912-1939)

Abstract

The establishment of a Catalan civil service, reporting to the various institutions of the Catalan government, was an issue that drew the attention of Catalan nationalism at the turn of the 20th century. It did so from the arenas where Catalan nationalism had some degree of distinguished political impetus, i.e., some level of political authority: initially within the Barcelona Provincial Council; subsequently within the Commonwealth of Catalonia (an institution which grouped the four provincial councils of Catalonia, 1914-1925); and, lastly, within the Autonomous Government of Catalonia. This paper examines the topic on the basis of the regulations approved by Barcelona Provincial Council in 1912, framing the process on the context of cultural regenerationism and Catalan regionalism. The School of Administration was one of the pioneering institutions of its kind, regardless of its being specifically influenced by a similar institution in Düsseldorf. Although when it was practically implemented the School failed to fully reach its institutional goals, this in no way diminishes the virtue shown by Catalan institutions in their concern for the professional training of those who wish to serve the community by taking up civil service.