The Second Carlist War, or the War of the Matiners or Madrugadores (Catalan

Catalan language

Catalan is a Romance language, the national and only official language of Andorra and a co-official language in the Spanish autonomous communities of Catalonia, the Balearic Islands and Valencian Community, where it is known as Valencian , as well as in the city of Alghero, on the Italian island...

 and Spanish

Spanish language

Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...

 for "early-risers," so-called from the harassing action that took place at the earliest hours of the morning), was a short civil war

Civil war

A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same nation state or republic, or, less commonly, between two countries created from a formerly-united nation state....

 fought primarily in Catalonia

Catalonia

Catalonia is an autonomous community in northeastern Spain, with the official status of a "nationality" of Spain. Catalonia comprises four provinces: Barcelona, Girona, Lleida, and Tarragona. Its capital and largest city is Barcelona. Catalonia covers an area of 32,114 km² and has an...

 by the Carlists

Carlism

Carlism is a traditionalist and legitimist political movement in Spain seeking the establishment of a separate line of the Bourbon family on the Spanish throne. This line descended from Infante Carlos, Count of Molina , and was founded due to dispute over the succession laws and widespread...

 under General Ramón Cabrera

Ramón Cabrera

Ramon Cabrera y Griñó was a Carlist general of Spain.He was born at Tortosa, province of Tarragona, Spain. As his family had in their gift two chaplaincies, young Cabrera was sent to the seminary of Tortosa, where he made himself conspicuous as an unruly pupil, ever mixed up in disturbances and...

 against the forces of the government of Isabella II

Isabella II of Spain

Isabella II was the only female monarch of Spain in modern times. She came to the throne as an infant, but her succession was disputed by the Carlists, who refused to recognise a female sovereign, leading to the Carlist Wars. After a troubled reign, she was deposed in the Glorious Revolution of...

. The uprising began in September 1846 and continued until May 1849, spreading to Galicia.

Theoretically, the war was fought to facilitate the marriage of Isabella with the Carlist pretender, Carlos, Count of Montemolín, which was supported by the moderate party and by the Carlists. The marriage never took place, as Isabella was wed to Francis, Duke of Cádiz.

The conflict was minor, leading some historians to question even the label "war." It coincided with the democratic Revolutions of 1848

Revolutions of 1848

The European Revolutions of 1848, known in some countries as the Spring of Nations, Springtime of the Peoples or the Year of Revolution, were a series of political upheavals throughout Europe in 1848. It was the first Europe-wide collapse of traditional authority, but within a year reactionary...

, when Maria Christina

Maria Christina of the Two Sicilies

Maria Christina of the Two Sicilies was Queen consort of Spain and Regent of Spain .-Early years and first marriage:...

 revoked the constitution of Ramón María Narváez. Narváez himself led the counterattack against the revolt in Galicia while Fernando Fernández de Córdova

Fernando Fernández de Córdova

Don Fernando Fernández de Córdova y Valcárcel, 2nd Marquis of Mendigorría , was a Spanish military, politician, and Prime minister of Spain for one day....

, captain-general of Catalonia, put down the isolated rebel cells in that region by early 1849. In June of that year, amnesty was granted to the Carlists and those who had fled returned.

The war caused between 3,000 and 10,000 casualties.