 The Catholic Church in Spain, upholding and upheld by the State and with the Inquisition enforcing religious orthodoxy, was much more important as a unifying factor.The power of the Church began to wane during the 18th century as the Bourbon monarchy sought a more centralised State.The 19th-century liberal governments continued the centralising process, but encountered increasing resistance in the regions and failed to "invent tradition" as a new focus for national feeling