The initiative came from the Catalan anarcho-syndicalist group led by Josep Llunas i Pujals, Rafael Farga Pellicer, Antoni Pellicer i Paraire and Eudald Canivell i Masbernat who, tried taking advantage of the opportunity offered by the new liberal government chaired by Práxedes Mateo Sagasta that had promised the recognition of freedom of association —which would put an end to the period of secrecy—, they proposed to change the policy of the Federal Commission, which "had moved away from the idea of large labor movements, in favor of secret groups, supporters of direct action.

[22] The press, both in Cádiz and in Madrid, dealt with the matter without questioning the existence of the Black Hand and creating an atmosphere of fear based on sensational articles on the "abominable association", "abortion of dementia and crime.

On December 4, two days after the first wave of arrests ordered by Captain Oliver, a couple of innkeepers were assassinated on the road to Trebujena, near Jerez de la Frontera.

Two months later, on February 4, the corpse, buried in the open field, of a young peasant named Bartolomé Gago, better known as "El Blanco de Benaocaz", who later became known to have been assassinated the same day as the innkeepers.

At that time, it transpired that the death of the young ranch guard named Fernando Olivera, which occurred in August 1882, had not been an accident, but had been caused by the strong blows he had received in the belly.

[26] The government supported by the owners and by the press - although there were exceptions such as the newspaper El Liberal - identified the Black Hand with the FTRE with a dual purpose, according to Clara Lida: "firstly, to drastically stop the growing force of the International in Spain.

It also condemned illegalism again, thus deepening "even more the differences between the Catalan anarcho-syndicalist nucleus and the Andalusian illegalists, as well as those who were beginning to be born in and around Barcelona, especially in Gràcia, also prone to direct action".

This is not an obstacle to the existence of small "maffias" (groups influenced by anarcho-communism), on the frontiers of secular rebellion and common crime that, skillfully exploited by the organs of Power, served to justify a repression and a campaign that, despite their protests, would in some way break the FTRE.

"[33] According to Avilés Farré, "the regulations of the Black Hand and the People's Court were understood by some Civil Guard commanders as proof of a vast clandestine conspiracy, which would be behind all the acts of violence that had been taking place in the fields of western Andalusia.

The ominous name of the Black Hand came to specify in something specific a diffuse fear and had an undoubted journalistic appeal, although ultimately in no process was any activity attributable to that mysterious organization ever proven.

The angry response of the Andalusian federations was immediate, opening an ever larger and insurmountable gap within the FTRE that led to the gradual decrease in the number of affiliates and its dissolution five years later.

[40] However, according to Josep Termes, was rather contrary to societarism, as the following statement would prove: "Understand well, we are talking about spontaneous and natural resistance, not that which presupposes a universal, patient and calculated organization, to get a few more cents in wages or an hour less work...

[44] According to historian Carlos Dardé, the FTRE was dissolved in 1888 when the anarchist sector prevailed, which criticized the existence of a public, legal organization with a union dimension and which, on the contrary, defended the "spontaneism" — since any type of organization limited individual autonomy and could "distract" its components from the basic objective, the revolution, in addition to promoting their "gentrification" - and the "insurrectionalist" path - the workers' uprising would put an end to capitalist society.

Faced with it, the "trade unionist" tendency advocated the strengthening of the organization so that, through strikes and other forms of struggle, it could wrest improvements in wages and working conditions from the employers.

[45] Although the anarchist movement continued to be present through publications and educational initiatives, with the dissolution of the FRTE, "the way was opened for the predominance of individual actions of a terrorist character, for the propaganda of the deed that would proliferate in the following decade.