The technocrats, many of whom were members of Opus Dei, were a new breed of politicians who replaced the old falangist guard.[1] The implementation of these policies took the form of development plans (Spanish: Planes de desarrollo) and it was largely a success: Spain enjoyed the second highest growth rate in the world, only slightly behind Japan[2] and became the ninth largest economy in the world, just behind Canada. Spain joined the industrialised world, leaving behind the poverty and endemic functional underdevelopment it had experienced following the Napoleonic wars, the loss of most of its imperium in the 1820s and the civil wars of the 19th century because of the dynastic dispute for the crown.