Reaching back 1918

• the Iberian peninsula had been home to much strife in the not so distant past
• the land had been torn apart by the Carlist wars of succession in which the monarchist,
traditionalist Carlists battled the forces of liberalism
• in 1874 the monarchy was restored
• this Restoration Period witnessed numerous military interventions
• the next few decades were also characterized by electoral fraud that ensured the liberal
and conservative parties in turns ruled the nation
• a small number of aristocratic families controlled the land
• on large estates (latifundia) owners kept landless labourers poor, and relied on the Civil
Guard (Guardia Civil) and army to keep order and crush protests
• the Spanish economy was underdeveloped
• its society was dominated by a number of powerful groups,
including the army which occupied a position of privilege
• its ranks were top-heavy with officers, many of whom came from
wealthy families (and crushed strikes with considerable brutality)
• members of the army well remembered that, even as recently as
the 1890s, Spain had been a world power with a, now lost, empire

“God,
Country, and
King”
 Forces of tradition and revolution 1900

• the Church was the other great body in Spanish society with power and privilege
• conservative in nature, it was closely connected to the wealthy classes and the army
• the Church controlled the nation’s education and fought against all “anti-clerical”
ideologies and groups, including liberalism and socialism (growing in popularity with
industrial workers), and also atheism and anarchism (so attractive to the peasantry)
• this traditional establishment (army, monarchy and church) faced a number of
revolutionary challengers
• among these were the socialists, a group that, while slow to emerge in the largely
agricultural nation, had managed to establish a political party (the Spanish Socialist
Workers’ Party, or PSOE, in 1879) and a national trade union (the UGT)
• also rocking the boat were anarchists who became heavily involved in strike activity and
as a result met regularly with police repression
• another revolutionary left-wing movement that attracted police attention was that of
anarcho-syndicalism
• for these radicals it was the strike, not the individual act of terror, that would usher in
the revolution
• they opposed the Church and supported separatist (nationalist) movements, which
were particularly strong in the Basque and Catalan regions
 Tragic Week 1909

• this backdrop of competing forces culminated in a week of turmoil and repression that
sadly served as a harbinger of things to come for Spain
• it all started with labour strife in Barcelona, in the restive Catalan region
• this unrest was soon combined with troubles emanating from Spain’s colonial ventures
• having been granted a portion of Morocco, Spain found itself embroiled in a messy fight
(the Rif War)
• when in desperation Madrid introduced conscription, the poor workers chosen to have
the honour of winning colonial glory objected
• their opposition to the forced military service came in the form of a general strike
• in Catalan cities the UGT and assorted anarchists walked off the job
• violence, martial law and repression ensued, unions were banned and newspapers
closed, as the army clashed with Barcelona’s workers
• as a result, the anarchists decided to create their own national trade union, the CNT, a
rival to the UGT
• Spain clearly was burdened by its underlying problems

“We want
liberty”
 World War One 1914

• the Great War marked a turning point for Spain despite its neutrality
• during the conflict Spain enjoyed an economic boom, supplying both sides
• this soon ground to a halt with the armistice, as unemployment rose and wages fell,
particularly hard hit was Catalonia
• under the weight of various problems, the old pre-war parliamentary system,
dominated by elite liberalism, fell by the wayside during the transition of parliamentary
rule from oligarchy to democracy
• in the face of strikes and military failure in Spanish Morocco, things began to grind to a
halt
• some Spanish workers, drawn to the Russian Revolution, began to support socialism in
greater numbers (the Spanish Communist Party was formed in 1920)
• in the face of such rising radicalism, the army stepped forward as the nation’s saviour

“Our comrades in
Moscow will
show us the way”

Ibarruri
Wartime troubles 1917
• to the army generals patria, or fatherland, was all that mattered
• the army had been busy in recent years securing the nation’s protectorate in Morocco
• there junior army officers had proven their worth and demanded promotion
• when this was opposed by the government (and their senior officers), the bands of
junior officers (juntas) put pressure on the government, which they said was in need of
reform (and responsible for the shameful loss of Spanish colonies in the
Spanish-American War)
• the ‘juntas’ were able to force the ruling Liberal government out of office
• this year of crisis also included a general strike (by the UGT and CNT) that arose in
response to wartime inflation
• the army, junteros included, backed the leaders in Madrid in crushing the labour unrest

“Ride, Rough “This government

Riders, and drive repression is
unacceptable”
out the Spanish
colonial rulers” Lerroux
 World War One and beyond 1918

• the years after the Great War brought numerous short-lived governments but little
stability, with the country often ruled by decree
• industrial unrest had continued with the CNT the main beneficiary
• in Barcelona and Andalucia the anarcho-syndicalism movement was strongest
• by 1923, with a Liberal coalition promising reform, things came crashing down
• General Primo de Rivera took power in a coup (the pronciamento)
• the General convinced the king to appoint him prime minister, and launched a large
public works program, inspired by Italy’s corporatism
• Primo de Rivera called out for “nation, Church and king”
• one of his supporters was General Francisco Franco Bahamonde

“Yes your majesty,

commander Franco is
making quite a name
for himself”

Primo de Rivera
 Introducing Franco 1918

• Francisco Franco, the son of a naval postmaster, graduated from the Toledo Military
Academy in 1910
• three years later, commissioned into the 8th Regiment, he was posted to Morocco
• although physically small he proved to be a courageous officer and won rapid promotion
commanding Moroccan colonial troops in the Rif War
• by 1917 Franco had reached the rank of major and at that time, back in Spain, played a
prominent role in suppressing the Asturian miners’ strike
• by 1920 Lieutenant Colonel Millan Astray had appointed him second in command of the
Spanish Foreign Legion (Tercio de Extranjeros), Franco returned to Africa, spending four
years with the elite Foreign Legion
• his success was based on the brutal terrorism of the local civilian population
• a monarchist, Franco believed in the Jewish-Masonic-Bolshevik conspiracy, or
contubernio, which it was alleged sought the destruction of
Christian Europe, Spain included

“Morocco, a coffin
or a general’s
sash”
 Millan Astray and the Legion 1920

• the first volunteers of the Legion arrived in Ceuta (Africa) in

October of that year
• their commander, Millan Astray, told his new recruits:

“you have lifted yourselves from among the dead - for

don't forget that you were dead, that your lives were
over. You have come here to live a new life for which you
must pay with death…
You have come here to die. Since you crossed the Straits,
you have no mother, no girlfriend, no family; from today
all that will be provided by the Legion.
Death in combat is the greatest honour. You die only
once. Death arrives without pain and is not so terrible as
it seems. The most horrible thing is to live as a coward”
 Across the straits 1923

• the Tercio de Extranjeros quickly developed a reputation for brutality

• Astray and Franco encouraged the killing and mutilation of prisoners
• come 1923 Franco replaced Millan Astray as commander of the Tercio de Extranjeros
and over the next few years he gained a reputation as a brilliant strategist and
administrator
• that same year Franco married Carmen Polo, a member of a wealthy merchant family
• Franco’s growing reputation in the armed forces was recognized when Alfonso XIII sent a
representative to the wedding
• later, his success will be reflected in his appointment as director of the nation’s Military
Academy
“When it attacked, the Tercio knew no limits to its vengeance. When
it left a village, nothing remained but fires and the corpses of men,
women and children”
 A coup 1923

• the Rivera coup was supported by Spain’s elites, who wanted a strong leader to deal with
the many years of past protests and strikes
• the king, who never liked a constitutional monarchy, failed to back the prime minister and
handed power to the general (who vowed not to honour either the constitution or the
parliament)
• the army and church rallied to the new dictator and his overthrow of parliamentary
democracy
• the former suppresses protests, the two earn the lasting enmity of the lower classes
• the general starts a state of emergency that lasts two years, with the army firmly in
control
• the nation’s elites back him for bringing order, they in turn will prosper under Rivera
• the king is also a supporter (the two will visit kindred spirit Mussolini), he refuses to
reconvene the Cortes (parliament)
• censorship abounds, and those who protest find their way to military courts that try
crimes against the “Fatherland”
• anarchist organizations are banned and CNT leaders arrested
• order comes abroad as well, in 1925 Morocco is secured

Rivera
Mussolini
Alfonso
 The Rivera years 1923-30
• by 1924 Rivera’s dictatorship is firmly established and he keeps ultimate control
• he embraces his own version of corporatism, supporting business monopolies
• as military governors hold power, civil rights are non-existent and strikes are prevented
• the economy is modernized under the guidance of finance minister Jose Calvo Sotelo
• the nation enjoys industrial growth and a high employment rate
• communist groups are repressed (membership numbers drop)
• anarchists oppose Rivera’s rule but the Guardia Civil keeps them in check
• students too object to the dictatorship, launching protests for a democratic republic
• as for the republicans, they too will stir toward the end of the decade
• figures like Alejandro Lerroux and the anti-clerical Manuel Azana form the Alianza
Republican, attempting an uprising that fails in 1929
• they then meet in San Sebastian, agreeing to a pact to overthrow the king and establish
a republic
• it is however the Great Depression that trips up the dictator, flooring his country
• the number of strikes increased, as did the level of repression, soon even the
landowners had withdrawn their support

“Country, Religion,
Sotelo Monarchy”
 A republic 1931

• General Primo de Rivera’s time in office would come to an end in 1930 when he was
forced to resign, having lost the support of both the monarch and the army
• his successor, another military man, also failed solve Spain’s economic problems
• in 1931 King Alfonso XIII agreed to democratic elections
• it was the first time for nearly sixty years that free elections had been allowed in Spain
• when the Spanish people did vote, they overwhelmingly opted for a republic
• Republicans were swept to power in municipal elections
• the king would abdicate, having been advised that the only way to avoid large-scale
violence was for him to go into exile, crowds rejoice
• the general’s downfall and the monarchy’s collapse provided an opportunity for the left
• Spain then experimented with a provisional government consisting of a moderate
Socialist party and Republican liberals (1931), at a time when elsewhere in Europe the
push toward authoritarian states was under way
• when an election was held two months later, it was the parties of the left that won an
overwhelming victory
• the Socialist Party (PSOE) and middle class liberals won approximately 400 of 457
legislature seats
• the new Republican regime will bring accepted societal norms into question
• workers and peasants were initially jubilant… but not for long
• the new government’s supporters had high expectations and it felt compelled to deliver
social reforms… by so doing it releases pent up forces
 The new regime 1931

• the new prime minister, Niceto Alcala Zamora, was a moderate Republican, but included
in his cabinet were several radical figures, such as Manuel Azaña, Francisco Largo
Caballero and Indalecio Prieto
• soon a centre-left coalition under Azaña took control, with him becoming prime minister
• with the support of the Socialist Party he attempted to introduce agrarian reform and
regional autonomy… control of education was taken from the Church
• the introduction of these social reforms by the new regime provoked much internal
conflict, and the measures were blocked in the Cortes (or parliament)
• matters are not helped when the nation is hit by the Great Depression and drought
simultaneously, causing the worst poverty in Western Europe
• bitter structural problems in Spanish society are laid bare, at the heart of which is an
unfair distribution of wealth and land (one that favours the Church and army)
• the new coalition is fragile, the socialists having only joined in the first place with some
reluctance (their ranks are now split: socialists, communists and the
anarcho-syndicalist trade unionists of the CNT)
• further problems would come from the fact that despite the Left’s
success, the pillars of the old society still
remained untouched “Probably better if you
had control Azana”

Zamora
Azana
 The church ablaze 1931

• squarely in the target crosshairs of the new state and its supporters was the Church
• the state’s ambitious reform program included separating church and state, indeed
anti-clericalism was a principle of the republic
• for many in rural districts, the Church was the ally of the landowner, accomplices in an
age-old effort to continue the impoverishment of the peasant
• as a result, soon after the founding of the Republic anti-church riots occurred, convents
were burned and state police did nothing
• in the schools the attack on the Church continued with the provision of non-religious
state education
• attacking two old foes, the government recognizes civil marriages and, in an effort to
weaken the army, retires many officers
• the priests, the generals and the land owners did not sit idly by, frightened they resisted
as best they could
• this included another major concern, the Republic’s encouragement of regional
autonomy (home rule was granted in Catalonia)
• for an army concerned with threats to national unity, this
in particular was most disturbing

“Love live free “ I heard some of them say,

Catalonia” ‘neither property, nor god,
nor bosses’ ”
 The Second Republic and its rivals 1931-33
• the reform program embarked upon by the new left-wing regime included encouraging
collectives and the Barraca shows
• the intellectuals of the new state would fan out to spread the Republican
enlightenment, a cultural upsurge results
• but opposition to the government was strong, the far right and left of the country are
angry, the former frightened by reforms that the latter considers too cautious
• the ordinary folk remain dissatisfied as their poverty was in no way alleviated
• the pillars of the old society (Church, army, elite class) still stood
• the regime’s reform efforts in fact contribute to a revival of the right
• its anti-clerical measures led to the emergence of a mass Catholic political party (CEDA)
• to the right of this group sat Jose Calvo Sotelo, a pseudo-fascist who was essentially a
traditional monarchist (Accion Espanola)
• also, a rebranded radical monarchist Carlist movement appears
• so too the fascist Falange party, created by Jose Antonio Primo de Rivera, son of the
dictator
Lorca
La Barraca

“The
Gil
republic is
Robles
a travesty”
Sotelo
 Sanjurjo 1931-32

• as the regime pushed on with its reforms, the level of discontent remained high
• anarchists (CNT) and socialists were angered by the government’s failure to enforce
reforms against the old elites, voices on the left called for revolution
• trouble ensued when a telephone workers’ strike (organized by the CNT) attracted the
attention of the Guardia Civil and its commander, General Jose Sanjurjo
• the general’s time fighting in Morocco had left him a no nonsense military man, famous
for the ‘ley de fugas’ (the death of prisoners while in his custody)
• the Civil Guard killed 30 and later in the year another 11 at a socialist strike
• embarrassed by his heavy handedness, the government dismissed him, but it still
received the blame for his repression
• the following year (1932), Sanjurjo leads his paramilitary police force in a
monarchist-military rebellion that was put down with the cooperation of the
anarcho-syndicalist CNT
• the general was sentenced to death, but was granted amnesty and exile in Portugal

“The prisoner was

shot and killed,
while trying to
escape I tell you”
 A coalition dies 1933
• Sanjurjo’s coup attempt only served to prompt further government reform efforts,
which did not, however, please its coalition partners
• the new constitution had called for the redistribution of land to the peasants, but on
this point the government was slow to act
• early in 1933 a disgruntled CNT called for a nationwide strike which was routinely
crushed by the military, the real headline grabber, however, came near Cadiz
• there, in the village of Casas Viejas, farmers angry with reform’s glacial pace tried to
form an anarchist commune
• the uprising was violent (killing a Guardia Civil officer) and the government
moved against it
• yet when 24 impoverished workers are gunned down, it alienates workers and peasants
• blame fell on the Republicans and it cost the Azana government support
• for many it symbolized the government’s failure to solve the problem of the
agrarian poor and helped start the “death of the coalition”
• anarchists intensified their strikes and bomb attacks across the land (and the Radicals
called on the socialists to control the UGT)
• by autumn the socialists had left the coalition, opening the
door for a return of the right
 Right into the dark years 1933-34

• without the support of the Socialists, the Republican government is dismissed by

President Zamora and a new election called for 1933
• an unstable nation turns to the Right which attracts support to an “anti-Marxist
counter-revolutionary front” (at a time of rising European fascism)
• at its heart is CEDA, a right-wing party fronted by Jose Maria Gil Robles whose purpose is
to defend religion, property and national unity through an alliance of the Right
• the fascist Falange party is also formed (under Primo de Rivera’s son Jose Antonio)
• the moves bear fruit and a right-wing coalition is brought to power in the election
• CEDA emerges as the largest party in the Cortes
• yet the president initially asked Radical Republican Alejandro Lerroux to form a minority
government (his efforts to work with CEDA brought complaints from the left, and CNT
strikes in anarchist strongholds like Catalonia)
• the new administration immediately starts to reverse the reforms put in place by a now
deeply divided Left, commencing the so-called bienio negro (two black years)

“What are you

“I am the only complaining
friend of the about?”
Republic”

Gil Robles Lerroux

 Bieno negro 1934-35

• Lerroux’s right-wing government moves to remake the nation

• the “two Black Years” are marked by an attempt to reverse most of the Azana reforms
• laws protecting workers’ rights are repealed
• wages are cut and land redistribution efforts brought to a close
• in Catalonia, the autonomy rights granted back in 1932 are ended
• the response from the Left is swift: the FNTT (the rural wing of the socialist UGT)
embarks on a general strike which is crushed by the Guardia Civil
• in 1934 Gil Robles forces the Lerroux coalition to accept three CEDA ministers
• the Socialists fear Gil Robles, seeing in him a desire for a fascist authoritarian state
• socialist Largo Caballero calls for an uprising to form a people’s democracy
• the response of the Right is swift: a backlash follows, a poorly organized rebellion in
Catalonia is crushed
• more serious trouble will surface next in the Asturias, an industrialized northern region
• mine owners here, in response to the Great Depression, had cut wages and increased
work hours
• 70% of the region’s workers were UGT members and an armed
rebellion begins, overcoming the local Guardia Civil
• as the province falls under the control of the strikers, Lerroux calls in
the army (Moorish troops and Foreign Legionnaires) “You say you want a
• lasting two weeks, the revolt is then crushed revolution”
by a rising star Largo Caballero
 Enter stage right 1934
• as the left struggles, the right is disorganized but Church, landowner and military
interests are implacably opposed to the reforms emanating from Madrid
• on the right sat one Francisco Franco, holding right-wing, monarchist views, the military
man was mistrusted by the republican government
• he had been demoted to a minor post in Corunna
• two years later he was sent even farther afield, to command the army in the Balearics
• in 1934, facing open war with the revolutionary miners, the government called in Franco
and his Moroccan mercenary troops to suppress the Asturian miners' strike
• this action led the left-wing in Spain to identify Franco as one of their main enemies
• the right-wing, however, approved of Franco and in 1935 Jose Maria Gil Robles, the
minister of war, appointed him as his chief of staff
• in this post Franco promoted monarchists and purged the army hierarchy of republicans
• the strike was viewed with contempt by those on the right (seeing it as an attack on the
constitution)
• the Left, however, decided it must act or end up like
their counterparts in Nazi Germany- destroyed by Hitler
 Storm clouds gather 1935

• the forces of the Left contemplate uniting to meet the challenge of CEDA and the rising
fascist threat
• Gil Robles, who has begun to adopt fascist uniforms and salutes, is appointed Minister
of War under Lerroux
• with Franco as his Chief of the General Staff, they begin to purge the army of liberal and
republican officers
• the Left opts for an alliance, led by Azana, and huge public rallies follow
• Caballero (the ‘Spanish Lenin’) signs on when the Spanish Communist Party joins
• having limped along until late in 1935, the Radical-CEDA coalition is brought to its knees
by scandal
• Lerroux is forced to resign, but President Zamora overlooks Gil Robles for the prime
minister’s seat, appointing instead an interim government
• thus setting the stage for a fatal electoral showdown

“Yes Jefe I taught those

miners a lesson”
 The Popular Front 1936

• early in the year, Manuel Azaña helped to establish a coalition of parties on the political
left to fight the national elections due to take place the following month
• this saw the Republican Union Party reunited with the parties of the working class : the
Socialists, Communists (PCE), and the Anarchists
• the Popular Front, as the coalition became known, wanted
• advocated the restoration of Catalan autonomy,
• amnesty for political prisoners,
• agrarian reform,
• an end to political blacklists and
• the payment of damages for property owners who suffered during the 1934 revolt
• the left, therefore, would fight the February election as a united block
• as for those on the right, they formed the National Front, which included the CEDA and
the Carlists
• the Falange Espanola did not officially join but most of its members supported the aims
of the National Front

“We must model

our approach
after the leftist
Falange success in France”
Members
 The forces of tradition 1934-36

• the Catholic church had always been closely linked to the power of the state
• it was also a symbol of nationalism
• prior to the civil war it had not yet suffered the same secular attacks experienced by
Christian churches elsewhere
• yet anti-clericalism was on the rise (as embodied in Spain’s growing anarchism and
socialism)
• the Church would ally itself with the landowners, support Rivera, and oppose the
reform legislation of the Republicans (1931-33)
• the army too felt threatened by the Republican regime
• the Republicans said military tribunals would no longer have authority over civilians and
the military must swear an oath to the state
• it reduced the length of military service and the size of the army (closing the major
military academy)
• the army develops radical elements (the Africanistas) who hate Azana’s reforms

THE ONE SIDE: the Nationalists

• a loose coalition of right-wing groups,
including the Army high command, the
Church, the landowners, monarchists, and the
fascists
 The big vote, big trouble 1936

• despite having entrenched political differences that no democratic

process could seemingly fix, the Spanish people voted on 16th February
• turn out was strong: out of a possible 13.5 million voters, almost
10 million participated in the 1936 general election
• 34% voted for the Popular Front, whereas the National Front came a
close second, obtaining 33% (the centre parties got 5%)
• the Popular Front, therefore, with 263 seats out of the 473 in the Cortes,
formed the new government, the pendulum had swung to the left
• immediately the new regime upset conservatives by releasing all
left-wing political prisoners
• it also ruffled feathers by introducing agrarian reforms that
penalized the landed aristocracy
• other measures included outlawing the Falange Espanola and
granting Catalonia political and administrative autonomy
• afraid of a military uprising, the Azana government transferred
right-wing military leaders to posts outside Spain
• this included Franco, who now saw himself appointed governor
of the Canary Islands
“Long live the
Popular Front”
 An interlude to war 1936
• the Left’s strategy pays dividends, it wins the most seats but the underlying reality is far
less rosy
• the right in truth commands considerable support (especially in Leon, Castille and
Navarre, soon to become the Nationalist heartland in the war)
• the nation was fundamentally split
• industrialists and landowners promptly adopted an aggressive stance towards workers
(who in turn launched protest strikes)
• the Falange grows, attracting from CEDA disaffected Catholic youth
• as for Franco, he has an ambiguous attitude at the time, staying in touch with
conspirators in the military but also interestingly reaching out to the leftist regime
• the general sent a letter to Madrid warning that the army had been alienated and yet a
reconciliation was still possible (was he offering his services as war minister?)
• then the wheels come off the new government when the socialists refuse to join the
coalition, leaving an unstable minority Republican
government
“You just won’t believe
who sent me a letter”

THE OTHER SIDE: the

Republicans
• an even looser coalition of left-wing
groups, including socialists, trade
unionists, communists, anarchists
 A coup d’etat 1936
• numerous military plots were being hatched by right-wing extremists at this stage, but
the army still kept its powder dry (although wanting an end to the Republican regime)
• while junior officers were being drawn to the Falange, most influential generals (Emilio
Mola and Franco) simply wanted order (in a republican or monarchist state)
• the big plan called for the provincial military commanders to declare martial law and
take power, the coup to be backed by the Moroccan Army
• the post-coup regime was to be fronted by General Sanjurjo, he of the failed ‘32 coup,
with Mola the key player (Franco would fill a supporting role and assume responsible for
the Moroccan troops)
• other supporters included Jose Antonio Primo de Rivera and Sotelo
• on the 10th of May the conservative Niceto Alcala Zamora had been ousted as president
and replaced by the left-wing Manuel Azaña
• as a result of the government's economic measures the wealthy took vast sums of
capital out of the country, causing an economic crisis with the declining value of the
peseta damaging trade and tourism
• with prices rising workers demanded higher wages, a series of
strikes followed
• amidst this crisis of confidence nothing would transpire until
Sotelo was murdered in July by Republican Assault Guards

“Count us in”
 Trying to compromise 1936
• the revenge killing of Sotelo sparked the revolt, reinforcing as it did the army’s claim that
it intervened only to restore order (certainly Franco, who had thus far sat on the fence,
was convinced)
• things rapidly fell apart, within days his army was in control of Morocco and the revolt
spreading to garrison towns in Spain
• facing a rebellion, Azaña (commanding elements of the military) appointed Diego
Martinez Barrio as prime minister (18th July) and requested he negotiate with the rebels
• Mola was offered the post of Minister of War in a coalition government
• the general’s refusal made it clear to Azaña that the Nationalists were unwilling to
compromise, Barrio was sacked and replaced by Jose Giral
• to protect the Popular Front government, Giral gave orders for arms to be distributed to
left-wing organizations that opposed the military uprising
• in Navarre on the 19th July, General Mola issued his proclamation of revolt
• the next day the coup gets off to an inauspicious start: Sanjurjo is killed in an air crash

“Death to the ‘Monster’”

“Long live the
Republic”
 Causes of the conflict 1936

• a civil war in which one side sought to preserve Spain’s integrity (the Nationalists), while
the other fought to preserve the Second Republic
• the nation had experienced a long period of decline since its imperial heyday
• furthermore, her empire lost, Spain had made little progress and fallen behind in the
industrialization process
• deep divisions existed in Spanish society, the civil war had Spanish causes
• the tussle between landowners and peasants was matched by that of the church and
budding anti-clerical movements
• likewise conservative and liberals squared off, contributing to the rise of extremist
elements and the absence of a political middle
• Spanish democracy had yet to firmly take root and politics had a long standing tradition
of violence
• what passed for democracy in Spain often meant corrupt governments and electoral
fraud that undermined the very concept of the term
• division between town and countryside also plagued the nation
• the nation’s army also had a problematic tradition of interfering in politics
• regionalism and the desire for autonomy in some circles likewise posed problems
(conservatives seeing it as a threat to the nation)
• anarchism and communism were embraced by many, but not the army which feared the
latter might orchestrate a takeover
• much of the blame however lay with the new government of the Second Republic
 An ideological clash of a very Spanish nature 1936

• on the surface the Spanish Civil War appears to be a clash between fascism and the left,
a dress rehearsal for a global war
• yet Franco was not a Spanish-version of Mussolini, he had no help from a fascist party
• instead, he had support from the Church and of course the army, he was a conservative
• Franco was, however, sympathetic to the ideology of fascism, corporatism for instance,
and his politics and propaganda were influenced by it
• he created a movement, or party, to indoctrinate others with his regime’s ideals
• as for the Republican side, in the early going there was an outburst of revolutionary
enthusiasm (replete with land seizures and factories under worker control)
• as the struggle unfolded, the Spanish Communist Party increasingly adhered to the
dictates of Moscow
• unlike Lenin, the Reds in Spain did not immediately seek out a dictator, instead they
supported a centre-left coalition
• the result was a civil conflict terrible in its
intensity and
proportions
 The war and its characteristics 1936-39
• an extremely brutal conflict which, when viewed from afar as a struggle between right
and left, was soon characterized by widespread foreign intervention
• the Nationalists on the one hand received support from Germany and Italy
• the Republicans obtained aid from the USSR and occasionally from France, as well as
foreign volunteers (the International Brigades)
• the war became an ideological struggle, with two coalitions developing into strongly
idealistic camps, particularly as the conflict deepened and atrocities polarized opinion
• identifying who was the true villain of the piece was difficult, that said the divide
between the foreign supporters was all too clear
• seen as a ‘curtain raiser’ for World War Two, the conflict witnessed the first major use of
air power and the bombing of civilian targets
• foreshadowing the Blitzkrieg, it saw the use of formations of armored vehicles in attack
• at times it resembled a war between professional soldiers and armed workers (although
gradually order and discipline were instituted amongst the Republican camp)
• it was also a war in which propaganda was used to overcome resistance and unite the
populace
 Fallout from a murder most foul 1936
• the rebels hoped for a sudden coup but faced strong opposition in most cities and
industrial regions, about 2/3 of the population was hostile
• their uprising however was a failure in most parts of Spain; Mola's forces were successful
in the Canary Islands, Morocco, Seville and Aragon
• so the assistance afforded Franco (who has now joined the revolt) by Hitler and Mussolini,
providing as they did ships and planes for transport, was essential
• by August the Moroccans had landed in Spain and seized Badajoz (a massacre follows)
• the road to Madrid lay open- but Franco missed his opportunity to conclude matters
• instead he besieges the Republican force in Toledo’s Alcazar fortress
• preoccupied there, the Spanish Communist Party manages to strengthen the capital’s
defences (the Republican government had fled to Barcelona)
• Soviet planes and tanks (plus the arrival of the first International Brigade troops) further
bolster its defences
• the uprising then reaches Madrid and Barcelona, but in these spots it is defeated
• with the Nationalist failure to take Madrid a civil war develops
“Pass me a gun
comrade” “The Alcazar
is ours”
 Revolution and red terror 1936
• the rebellion was fuelled in the early going by what transpired inside Republican territory
once the government decided to arm the people
• in so doing it had armed its most bitter critics, and set in motion a period in which power
was wielded by CNT and POUM militants, and the government’s authority ignored
• locals exploited the power vacuum: anti-fascist militias in Barcelona, for instance, took
control, running everything from cinemas to public transit
• in anarcho-syndicalist towns ties and hats were banned
What to do?
• collective farms were set up forcibly by left-wing militants, and thrust upon small
When the revolt began in July, 2500 rebel soldiers in Madrid barricaded
landowning peasantry by armed columns of urban workers
themselves in their garrison. Government forces were unable to dislodge
• in Aragon ¾ of the land was collectivized, throughout the entire Republic the tally by war’s
end would bethem. It then made the fateful decision to arm the local militias
one-third
• in thosethroughout the land,
early moments so that
the fear the military
that the rebels could
revoltbe opposed.
might succeedByset
so loose
doing,anit
relinquished
unofficial, spontaneousits monopoly
destructiveon weapons.
fury, One immediate
armed bands roamed theproblem seemed
land settling old
solved but
scores, murdering another was
conservatives, created: these
landowners, militias
Falangists andallpolice
pulled in different
• churchesdirections, something
were destroyed that would
and atrocities impair Republican
committed fighting
(7,000 priests, nunsabilities
and monksto died)
• the Republican government finally tookthe control,
conflict’sforming
end. a volunteer army, then
introducing conscription, and using the nation’s gold reserves to buy Soviet weapons
• the CNT was brought into the government to help rein in the revolution and
collectivization of agriculture controlled
• the damage however was done… the violence had provided the Nationalists with new
recruits and much grist for the propaganda mill
 Red infighting and disunity 1936

• the Spanish Communist Party (PCE) emerged as the dominant force in the Republic
• its leaders understood alliances with the middle class groups (and perhaps Britain and
France) were necessary for success
• the wild libertarianism of the anarchists, so fully on display early on, had to be curbed
• the POUM and CNT may have called for the defence of the revolution, the PCE argued
win the war first then carry out revolution
• it, for instance, stopped further collectivization efforts
• the Republic’s socialists (PSOE) were also opposed to the idea of a workers’ revolution,
focusing instead on just winning the civil war first
• Stalin too, the provider of the feast, opposed a revolution in Spain, such talk would
upset Britain and France with whom he may need to ally against Germany
• some however did want a revolution, specifically radicals in Catalonia and Valencia
• Andres Nin was one of these radical revolutionaries
• he had helped Trotsky (Stalin’s arch-foe) and founded the POUM in 1935
• this group far outnumbered the PCE (Spain’s communist party)
• in Barcelona the CNT called for a general strike, and joined with the POUM in forming
revolutionary militias
• these operated on anarchist principles and seized land for collectives
• the Madrid government was hardly pleased with this ‘dual power’ situation
 Civil war or revolution 1936

• many were attracted to these more extreme groups: the POUM counted among its
number an Englishman named George Orwell
• but the divisions in the Republican camp ran deep and deepened with the arrival, and
growing influence, of Soviet experts
• the PCE increased pressure on the government to eliminate the anarcho-syndicalists
and POUM with their differing definitions of revolution
• the May Day riots were the culminating moment in this episode, and marked the defeat
of both POUM and CNT
• when PM Largo Caballero refused to dissolve POUM he was forced out of office
• Juan Negrin, his replacement, had POUM purged and its leader Andres Nin killed

“Shoot, they are of a

different shade of red”
 To tighten up the right 1936

• Franco now began to remove all his main rivals for the Nationalist leadership
• some were forced into exile, for Falange leader José Antonio Primo de Rivera, in
captivity since March, nothing was done to secure his rescue
• yet when the fascist was shot by the Republicans that November, Franco exploited his
death by making him a mythological saint of the fascist movement
• next Franco forced the unification of the Falange Espanola and the Carlists with other
small right-wing parties to form the Falange Española Tradicionalista (FET)
• as the leader of this new organization Franco appointed himself
• imitating Hitler’s tactics in Nazi Germany, giant posters of Franco and the dead José
Antonio were displayed along with slogans promoting the caudillo
• Franco’s success securing internal control over the forces of the right would soon be
mirrored by success on the battlefields of Spain
• the Nationalist Army, with the support of German and Italian troops, gradually began to
take control of the country

“One State! One Country!

One Chief! Franco! Franco!
Franco!”
 White light, white heat, white terror 1936

• the army generals felt that controlling the large numbers of working class Spaniards
necessitated a reign of terror
• the repression of Republican supporters by the Nationalists was known as the “White
Terror”, it reflected the generals’ conviction that only a hard line would destroy the
reforms of the Second Republic
• terrible atrocities were committed by the Africanistas, the ‘column of death’, on their
march from Seville to Madrid
• meanwhile units of the Falange and Carlists were also busy murdering and executing
• after failing to take Madrid, the Nationalists actually slowed down their advance
deliberately in order to wipe out those opposed to traditional Spain
• in early 1937 at Malaga some 3,000 were executed (with the Church saying nothing)
• in charge of the uprising is Franco, to whom the other generals have deferred
• Mola agrees to serve under him and receives, by way of reward, command the Army of
the North

“We must eliminate “without

scruple or hesitation” all of those
opposing the Nationalist beliefs”

Mola
 War at sea 1936

• at the start of the conflict the sailors of the Spanish Navy stayed true to the Republic,
ignoring their officers’ orders to turn against it
• throughout the fleet sailors mutinied and killed most of their officers (who had planned
on joining Franco), leaving the navy’s vessels under the command of crew committees
• initially a blockade was established across the Straight of Gibraltar
• some Nationalist troops would slip through in August but by late September, due to the
presence of Italian and German bombers that aided Franco by driving off the Loyalist
Navy, the waters between Morocco and Spain were lost to Madrid and the remainder of
the Army of Africa made the crossing to Nationalist-held Algeciras
• throughout the conflict Republic received no help from the British in Gibraltar: British oil
was available to ships of the Nationalist fleet but not those of the Republic
• although Republican naval victories, like that at Cape Palos, did occur, the inability of the
Republican fleet to enforce the blockade or stop supplies from arriving from Italy
resulted in it having little bearing on the outcome of the war

“Why do the British

help our foes?”
 Separatist hot spots 1936

• to some extent the army revolt was a reaction to fears that the break-up of the
patchwork quilt that was Spain was more than possible, and possibly imminent
• efforts at centralization had never fully succeeded
• a number of areas, like the Basque region, had strong separatist tendencies and the
language divide between it and the rest of the peninsula was considerable
• only a few years earlier, Catalonia had declared itself a separate republic
• it and the new republic had reached a compromise and in 1932 the region had been
granted autonomy (the whole thing sent shivers up and down conservative spines)
• attempts in this non-conformist corner of Spain to redistribute land likewise met with
resistance from conservative circles on the right
• the uprising, for instance, had initially met with failure in places like Barcelona, where
separatist sentiment was strong
• the leader of the revolt in this city, General Goded, found himself facing determined
resistance (as much ‘Catalan’ in nature as it was ‘republican’)
prior to his capture and execution
“General
Sanjurjo, you will
lead the new
state”
 Battle of Madrid 1936
• initial success the city was held by the Republicans throughout the war
• the Nationalists began their assault on the capital the first November of the war
• their attempts to take the city were foiled largely by the efforts of the International
Brigades, anarchists and the Republican army
• the most determined Nationalist assault lasted until the following January, and was
marked by intense fighting
• when this failed early on in the conflict, the Nationalists were content to lay siege to the
capital and subject it to a sustained aerial bombardment, with German and Italian
bombers doing most of the work
• by holding out, Madrid remained a key Republican rallying point throughout the war

“I will destroy Madrid rather

than leave it to the Marxists”
 Early days in the north 1936-37

• Franco elects to open a second front in the north

• one of his first victories comes at Irun, where the frontier with France is sealed
• German and Italian planes carried out heavy air strikes on the Republican defenders (the
Nationalist rule the northern skies)
• the poorly armed Republican defenders can get no supplies after the French recently
closed their border
• the defenders also faced bombardment from Nationalist ships
• the big prize was the major Basque industrial centre, Bilbao
• the local defenders, so fiercely independent, ignore orders from Madrid and its defence
is poorly coordinated
• an otherwise non-descript target in this campaign was a small town named Guernica
(soon to be famous)

“I hear we move
on Guernica next”
 The art of war 1937

• in the painting that made the war famous, Picasso detailed the incendiary bombing of
this Basque town (destroying 70% of it and killing a couple hundred civilians)
• the town’s destruction led to a very effective global propaganda campaign by the
Republican government (which commissioned the artist to paint it)
• the Spanish government would exhibit the art work at the World’s Fair
• when Franco continued to deny responsibility for the attack, he only played further into
Republican hands
• home to military barracks, a communications centre and a small arms factory, to some
extent the town was a legitimate military target
 Propaganda 1936-39

• convincing people behind the front lines as to the righteousness of the cause and
boosting morale was very important during the long civil war
• both sides had propaganda machines, churning out some 2,000 posters overall
• the Nationalist material stressed unity and Franco himself, and highlighted atrocities,
like the killing of priests (and the ‘execution’ of highly symbolic Christian statues)
• on the Republican side, the bombing of Guernica and other Nationalist crimes were the
subject of impassioned speeches by the likes of Dolores Ibarruri

“They know not what

they do: shooting the
heart of the nation”

Sacred
La Pasionara
Heart
 War it is 1937
• yet the Nationalist cause is still strong, as Morocco, Galicia, Navarre, Old Castile and
Seville soon come under the sway of the rebels
• Franco then attempted to cut off Madrid from the Republican hinterland but failed
miserably at Guadalajara (March)
• by the spring 1937 the future pattern of the war had been set: two zones supplied by
the foreign powers
• the Nationalists get their supplies through Portugal
• Franco elects to attack in the north (the Salazar regime opens the frontier for him to
receive supplies, just as the French government is closing its frontier with Spain)
• that spring the northern campaign brings devastating German air power to the war, as
both Durango and Guernica (in Basque country) are razed, nearby Bilbao falls in June
• by October the mines of the Asturias have been occupied by the Nationalists, the
Republican regime is cut off from the Atlantic ports
• supplies can only reach the Madrid regime through the Mediterranean and are
vulnerable to the Nationalist navy (which has the help of Italian
naval vessels in particular)
• by the end of 1937 the Republican government had lost most of
its steel and coal production and one-third of its industrial capacity

“I can’t thank you enough

for the help, Salazar”
 Battle of Jarama 1937

• marked a key effort by the Nationalists to cut off Madrid (in particular to sever its links
to Valencia on the coast)
• the Nationalist forces include elite Spanish Legionnaires and Moroccan troops
• in February the attack began and the outnumbered Republicans gave ground
• supporting the Nationalists were German forces, including the Condor Legion and tanks
• facing a grave situation, the Republicans rush in reinforcements
• included in this number is the Abe Lincoln Brigade as well as British volunteers
• backed by Soviet tanks and planes these forces counter attack
• by the battle’s end the Nationalists have failed to cut off Madrid but so too have the
Republicans proven themselves unable to throw the rebels back from the Jarama River

“This Soviet T-26

will save us”
 Battle of Guadalajara 1937

• the Nationalist goal in this March battle was to cut off Madrid
• this battle was notable for the presence of many Italian ‘volunteers’
• their effectiveness was greatly reduced due to poor coordination between the troops
and available tanks
• the outnumbered Republicans dropped back until reinforcements arrived
• the Republican counter attack crushes the Italian flank, with many casualties and the
loss of much equipment resulting
• the defeat is a great embarrassment to Mussolini and his fascist regime, with the British
press labelling it the “new Caporetto”
• Franco blamed the Italians for the Nationalist defeat and banned them from operating
henceforth as an independent unit
• conversely the battle was a morale booster for the Republican forces

“ And to think we
were expecting a
show of Italy's ‘iron
military strength’ ”
 Outside help 1936

• the Great Powers truly determined the outcome of the conflict

• Britain and France isolate the civil war, fearing it will escalate into a European conflict
• their non-intervention policy gravely weakened only the Republicans, denying it, the
legitimate government, the right to buy weapons
• only the Soviet Union helps, immediately providing Madrid with foodstuffs, quickly
followed by arms and military equipment
• furthermore, the Comintern would train the International Brigades
• this aid from Moscow came at a price: the Spanish Communist Party (PCE) was taken
over by Soviet officers and waged a civil war within the civil war against the “Trotskyite”
POUM (Catalonia’s Marxist party)
• as for the Nationalists, they got crucial help from Germany and Italy, that began with
the airlift of troops from Africa “My regime is based on bayonets and
blood, not on hypocritical elections”
 A Soviet satellite 1936-39

• the Soviet government had been involved on the peninsula ever since it first
encouraged the nation’s left to follow (successfully) the ‘popular front’ election strategy
• groups, like the communist Partit Socialista Unificat de Catalunya (PSUC), took their
marching orders from the Comintern in Moscow
• Russian officers simultaneously played an important role as advisors and conduits for
Soviet ideology (Soviet diplomats and NKVD agents helped shape Republican politics)
• the Republican government’s weapons arsenal (rifles, machine guns and artillery) was
largely from the Soviet Union, the Soviets set up factories in Spain to assemble weapons
• the Republic’s tanks and aircraft were of Soviet manufacture
• furthermore, the International Brigades, while formed nationally, were nevertheless
coordinated by the Comintern
• they and Soviet diplomats and NKVD agents and succeeded both in advancing the
fortunes of the Spanish Communist Party
• three thousand Spanish war orphans evacuated to the USSR in 1937

“Yes, this ‘Bug’ comes

from Russia with love”
 Fascist friends 1936-39

• while other nations, like the USA, steer clear of the conflict, Hitler sees things differently
and sends troops to help Franco’s fascist insurgency against Spain’s democratically
elected government
• he sends 6,500 men with air support to help out
• Hitler fears a Republican victory will bring about a communist Spain (and positively
influence an already leftist French government)
• his assistance, along with that of Italy, allows Franco’s Army of Africa transport from
Morocco to the mainland
• again acting with the Italians, the Germans help establish Nationalist control over the
Mediterranean and sink the Republican fleet
• while the world’s democracies do nothing, Germany’s Condor Legion, backed by the air
force, makes an impact supporting the Nationalist rebels
• its strafing of civilians, provides an early glimpse of the next war
“Absolutely splendid Adolf”
 International brigades 1936-38

• during the war’s first week, a small number of foreign anarchists joined the CNT militia
• this would mark the beginning of the so-called International Brigades, a key aspect of
the war
• the decision to recruit outsiders originated with the Comintern (in Prague)
• the largest single contributor of volunteers to the war was France
• the mission of the brigades supporting the Republican government was to fight what
they took to be fascism
• at first these units were not fully integrated into the People’s Republican Army, and had
their own training schools and general staff
• the Nationalists too had their foreign helpers: from France came the Jeanne d’Arc
Battalion of right-wing volunteers
• from Ireland, some 700 strong, came the Irish “Blue Shirts” Brigade on a religious
crusade of sorts

“Just point us in the

direction of the
heretics threatening
the Church”

Eoin O'Duffy
 Canada’s International Brigade 1936-39

• most governments, Canada included, refused to become involved

• yet when the Republicans appealed for help some 40,000 people answered the call
• like the U.S.A., Prime Minister King ignores the conflict, sitting on the fence in what was
never a local scrap
• he permits Canada’s Catholics to send money in support of the fascist Franco’s cause
• yet without approval or financial support from King’s government, 1,200 Canadians
joined the Mackenzie-Papineau Battalion to defend the socialist government
• many of these volunteers were vets of the On-to-Ottawa Trek and the Depression-era
relief camps
• Canadian volunteers were first placed in an American battalion but the
Mackenzie-Papineau Battalion came into being in 1937
• Canadians continued to sign up despite the federal government passing a law forbidding
Canadians from joining foreign armies

“Fascism shall
be destroyed”
 The Mac-Paps 1936-39

• the “Mac-Paps” fought against the Fascists alongside other volunteers in the
International Brigades (organized by the Comintern)
• they were led by Edward Cecil-Smith, a labour journalist and adventurer
• by 1937, King makes it a crime, punishable by two years in prison, for Canadians to
volunteer for the Mac-Paps
• King did not wish to anger either Hitler or Mussolini (and feared the men would bring
back revolutionary ideas)
• by the time the war ended approximately 1700 Canadians had joined the fray, with
about one-third of them dying
• the survivors would be ordered out of Spain in 1938 before the conflict’s close
• those that did return were often treated as criminals who had broken Canadian law
 Norman Bethune 1936-39

• Canadian physician, surgeon and humanitarian who was

devoted to the notion of socialized health care
• having visited the Soviet Union for a professional conference, he
returns impressed by the socialist experiment (and politically
awakened)
• seeing it as a battleground between democracy and fascism, he
travels to serve Spain’s Republican government
• there he organized a mobile blood transfusion service which saved many lives
(disillusioned, he returns to Canada)
• when he openly declares himself a Communist, he becomes an outcast
• decides to lend his talents to the socialist struggle in China

“it is in Spain… that

democracy will live or die”
 Trenches full of poets 1936

• the war in defence of the Republican government attracted the support of many from
the literary world
• in Spain, Federico Garcia Lorca was a socialist poet, who had been critical of traditional
Spanish values (challenging, for instance, conventional views about gender roles)
• as a result he became a target and was arrested in the war’s first summer
• he would be executed by a Nationalist militia group linked with CEDA
• American poets, like Langston Hughes, were similarly drawn to the conflict
• having witnessed the injustices perpetrated against his fellow Black Americans, Hughes
went to Spain and was part of a team making radio broadcasts in Madrid during the siege
• in Britain, W.H. Auden rallied to the cause, organizing celebrity fund raising benefits for
the embattled regime in Madrid (along with authors H.G. Wells and Virginia Woolf, and
American singer Paul Robeson)
• for the intelligentsia of the West, the conflict was characterized as one between the evil
forces of repression on the one side and freedom on the other
 Artistic attention 1936

• the Spanish conflict attracted, and has continued to attract, considerable attention
around the world’s attention
• importantly, here in one of its poorest corners, Europe’s ideologies had met in a head-on
collision
• in America, Depression-era singer Woody Guthrie brought
attention to the plight of the Republican government with his
songs
• Paul Robeson was another who supported the cause
• well known authors like Ernest Hemingway did the same
• Guthrie and others spoke to the working classes: the war being
a fight between the landed/industrial interest and the workers
and unions

“Sorry but
we see it
differently”
 Italy’s “armed tourists” 1937

• Mussolini’s intervention, on the peninsula the ancient Romans dubbed Lusitania, was fully
supported by the Catholic Church in Rome but it was not so popular with the people
• the war proved very costly, consuming one-third of the nation’s arms stocks
• just as importantly it exposed Il Duce’s military weakness
• he had hoped for a number of things went he embarked on the venture that, first and
foremost, he did not expect to last all that long
• he hoped to prevent France (now a leftist state) from gaining influence in a left-wing
Spain
• he hoped a grateful Franco might grant him naval bases on the Balearic Islands (a
stepping stone to ruling the waters of the Mediterranean)
• so he sent some 70,000 men to fight – the Corpo Truppe Volontaire (CTV)
• also, Italian submarines attacked supply ships destined for the Republican government
• after a number of humiliations, Mussolini vows the men are staying in Spain until a
victory is achieved

“It’s my pleasure
to help out”
 Beyond the Pyrenees 1937

• over the border in France the socialist Popular Party had come to power
• similar in nature to the Republican government in Madrid, it wanted to support its
Spanish counterpart
• Leon Blum’s government had no interest in seeing a right-wing regime installed next
door (adding to the twin German and Italian threats), yet he feared opposition to any
such move
• furthermore, he knew the British were unlikely to support an intervention
• so the French government proposed a non-intervention policy
• the 16-nation pact will keep France out of its neighbour’s war (and help doom the
Republican regime so admired by its kindred spirits in Paris)
• eventually to contain the Spanish troubles, Paris will close their shared border
(effectively limiting Madrid’s supply intake to a few embattled Mediterranean ports)
• of the 16 signatories three will not honour their pledge, two states (Italy and Germany)
would ignore League policy and provide effective aid to Franco, who in the end actually
benefited from the non-intervention policy

“Yes I’m aware the

Germans are not
honouring the pact”
 No Peninsular War 1937

• over in London, PM Baldwin sought to contain the conflict and opted to back the Gallic
proposal (but with widely different motives)
• the British anticipated a Nationalist victory and did not wish to alienate Franco
• British big business for its part had considerable interests in Spain and saw financial risks
should the Republican government win (they liked Franco’s anti-union stance)
• Baldwin’s Conservatives balked at the prospect of supporting a ‘Red’ regime, a
perception reinforced by Madrid’s receipt of aid from Soviet Russia
• on the contrary his government would ink trade agreements with Franco’s lot, allowing
British firms to deal with the Nationalists
• also British banks were free to provide the rebels with credit, giving the Nationalists a
considerable advantage in the struggle
• as a signatory to the non-intervention accord, Britain would help bring about the defeat
of the Republican government

“On my watch there’ll

be no repeat of the
Peninsular War”

“We should be doing more

Mr. Prime Minister”
 The Republican side 1936

• the government’s armed forces consisted of some loyal military elements and various
militias associated with organizations like the CNT or the Marxist POUM
• the Republic’s militia forces were armed reluctantly by the government and suffered
due to poor training and leadership
• political and ideological differences made coordination difficult
• command was chaotic and fragmented, with committees constantly developing
different plans
• negotiations and compromise bedeviled the Republican army throughout the civil war
• overall goals were clouded by regionalism: for republicans in Asturias and Catalonia
regional independence trumped victory over the nationalists
• towns were run by workers’ committees, with numerous ideological differences
• for instance, the communist PSUC in Catalonia took its direction from the Comintern and
sought to eradicate the anti-Stalin Marxist POUM
• eventually this led to an open fight in Barcelona (1937), which cost lives and
depleted the POUM leadership, all to the benefit of the Nationalists
• localism likewise plagued Republican efforts
• the government tried to reorganize the Republican forces along more
traditional lines but even then political officers had to be assigned to
keep the troops ideologically correct
“Love that outfit. I
wonder if the Army of
Africa will attack today?”
 The Rebel side 1936

• the Nationalist forces consisted of the military units that had rebelled, plus the
volunteers from right-wing organizations like the Falange and Carlists
• Franco’s forces refreshed their military number by introducing conscription in all areas
under their control
• this of course reduced the martial quality of the troops somewhat, but overall the
fighting ability of the Nationalist troops was more uniform than that of their enemies
• in many battles the presence of elite Moroccan troops helped turn the tide, this was
especially true in the Northern campaign
• they had good weapons supplied by fascist Germany and Italy

“These fine men

are proud to fight
for the Catholic
Church in Spain”
 Tell me why, Adolf 1936

• Hitler however placed limits on German involvement in Spain

• the Condor Legion will cause havoc with attacks on civilian centres
• German subs attack Republican ships in the Mediterranean
• Hitler helps the Nationalists in the hope that:
• a friendly government in Spain will supply Germany with mineral resources and
provide bases for German subs
• it is a chance to test his air force, especially on civilian targets
• pose as a European defender against the Red threat
• having a pro-fascist regime in Madrid would prove useful in undermining French
security
• the conflict therefore diverted attention away from his rearmament
program, and also his ambitions in eastern Europe
• the Germans were able to get away with this because no strong anti-fascist alliance
was formed, the war reinforced suspicions
between the British and French on the one hand and
the Soviet Union on the other

• importantly, diplomatically the “Wow, we can

war brought Germany and Italy report to Herr
closer together Hitler it works
like a charm”
 Battle of the Ebro 1938

• the last major military operation of the war, it was also the longest (July to November)
• by 1938 the Republican army was on its last legs after an exhausting winter campaign
• it started with the Republicans, desperate to reconnect their split territorial
possessions, launching an attack
• managing to achieve the element of surprise, its forces initially gaining some ground
• the Ebro front, however, quickly settled into a bloody stalemate
• the Nationalists had the edge due to superior air power and artillery
• the war had become one of attrition, harmful to both sides, but more taxing to the
Republican army which could not afford the losses
• the battle of Ebro marked the death knell of the Republic

“Yes General, we will “Snap”

wear them down”

Negrín
 Nationalists, from unity comes success 1936-39
• the Nationalists won largely due to foreign intervention (including the neutrality of
Britain and France), but also because it was able to forge a united front early on
• this was not going to be easy, what with the aspirations of individual generals and
tensions between groups like the Falange and Carlists
• at first it was Mola who formed a military junta, but Franco proposed a unified command
during the advance on Madrid and he was selected Commander-in-Chief
• the media was instructed to orchestrate a personality cult for the caudillo which was
welcomed by a populace angry at the initial outburst of Republican violence
• the Nationalists too were guilty of terror tactics (their exploits at Seville and Malaga
actually elicited complaints from the Italians)
• but Franco would centralize the terror and executions on the Nationalist side, while still
proceeding in his quest to rid Spain of its left-wing elements
• Franco also built his support system, rewarding the Church and winning its support, while
never losing the upper hand in the relationship
• he quickly subjected all right-wing militia groups to military orders, and formed the FET, a
united right-wing movement that brought Falangists and Carlists under his control (laying
in the process the foundation of a one-party state)
• the FET would wear a party uniform and embrace both the Falange salute and
party symbol
“You can celebrate saints’ days again
and get back into the schools”
 The end and reasons for the Republican defeat 1939

• the failed Ebro offensive highlighted the desperate plight of the Republican side and the
government’s final strongholds began to fall early in 1939
• early in 1939 only Madrid and Valencia remained and Britain and France officially
recognized the Franco regime as Spain’s legitimate government
• Republican-held ‘capitals’ surrendered in April, a defeat arguably destined to come to
pass for a number of reasons
• internecine struggles tore the Republic apart: anarchists fought against communists,
Marxist/Trotskyites and Stalinists did the same
• also, despite Soviet assistance, arms and materials were constantly in short supply
• this left the government of the Second Republic inherently weak militarily and stuck in a
defensive posture
• its offensives were costly and ineffective, its opponents, with their Moroccan troops in
particular, always had an edge

“And now I can enjoy

the fruits of my labour”
 The effects of the war 1939
• the Spanish Civil War resulted in tremendous loss of life (executions, for instance,
continued long after the Nationalist victory)
• all in all it took an estimated 500,000 lives, the vast majority of these lost lives were
non-combatants
• furthermore, half a million Republican supporters fled the ideological purge that
followed the Nationalist triumph, choosing to settle in France or South America
• it brought profound social changes in its wake (especially in Republican held areas)
• it Franco’s regime marked the end of democracy for the next four decades
• the landowners were still in control and agriculture remained backward
• in return for supporting Franco’s regime in its crusade against atheists and Reds, the
Church became more powerful (Franco’s ‘Clerical Laws’ enhanced the Church’s standing
and gave it control over primary education)
• regionalism was suppressed, and the state highly centralized
• censorship was introduced and the high degree of state control led to corruption
• it saw the use of propaganda to overcome resistance and terrify a population
• after the trauma of the war no attempts at reconciliation or reconstruction followed
• cultural life was stifled under Franco’s authoritarian regime

“The ‘Press Law’ allows me to appoint editors,

sack journalists and authorize all publications”
 The aftermath of the dress rehearsal 1939

• the images of the war became commonplace just a few short years after the conflict’s
end: the carpet bombing of civilians, bloody ideological reprisals as part of military
operations, the integrated use of air power, armour and infantry
• the war drew the attention of the international left to the danger posed by
expansionary fascism
• with the civil war won, Franco’s foreign supporters wanted compensation
• the dictator had to provide Germany with much needed resources
• Spain became diplomatically isolated, the western democracies were left strategically
weakened (France was surrounded by fascist states, Britain’s position in the
Mediterranean was less secure)
• although soon to be overshadowed by, the Spanish conflict was one of the principal
opening acts of a global war soon came to overshadow it
• that said, as it turned out the worst case scenario never came to pass, as Franco was
ultimately reluctant to throw his lot in entirely with Hitler… and the Allies
therefore did not have to face Spain as a declared enemy
 Talks with Adolf 1939

• after the firing of the war’s last shot, Hitler got preferential mining rights in Spain
• also, Franco joined the Anti-Comintern Pact in April 1938 but, to Hitler’s chagrin,
declared the neutrality of Spain on the outbreak of the Second World War
• Hitler tried hard to get Franco to change his mind
• in their negotiations Franco demanded that in any postwar settlement he wanted
control of Gibraltar, French Morocco, a portion of Algeria, and parts of Africa
• that said, Franco's main demand was that Germany had to fully compensate Spain for
the cost of any British blockade of the country
• Hitler was in no position to take on this burden and the negotiations came to an end

• Franco did, however, agree to provide logistical and intelligence support and promised
to send a volunteer force, the Spanish Blue Division, to help in the fight against
communism in Europe

“Surely a
volunteer force
would be a
possibility”
 The Blue Legion 1941

• during the war Spain stayed neutral but Franco permitted volunteers to join the
Wehrmacht on the condition they fight only against the Soviets on the Eastern Front
• thus the Germans were repaid for their help during the civil war and the Western Allies
would not take offence since they were not directly under attack
• volunteers flocked to recruiting offices across Spain
• many of the men were civil war veterans or Falange members
• Blue Legion soldiers, over 40,000 in total over the years, fought
against the Russians in such key battles as Leningrad
• this quasi-alliance with Berlin on the Eastern Front lasted until
late in 1943 the Spanish government ordered all Blue
Legionnaires to return to Spain
• in 1944 he maintained a “benevolently neutral” stance, in
response to heightened pressure from the Allies (and to cultivate
better relations with them)

“I like it here, I’m

not going back”
 A fascist falling out 1943

• when France fell, Hitler resumed his courting of Franco

• they met in the south of France, with the German requesting that his troops be allowed
to travel through Spain to link up with an airborne assault on Gibraltar
• Franco, in the belief that Germany would not win a long war, refused, asking instead for
arms for a Spanish capture of Gibraltar
• this left Hitler speechless, and afterwards the two men met no more
• with Britain involved in its war with Germany, Franco did indeed consider invading
Gibraltar but decided against the move when he was informed that should any such
happen, British forces would take the Canary Islands
• convinced that the Axis powers were facing eventual defeat, Franco pulled the Spanish
Blue Division from the Soviet Union late in 1943
• he now began to openly support the Allies in the war with Germany

“That’s it, I would rather visit

the dentist to have my teeth
removed than meet that
Spaniard again”
 Post-World War Two Franco 1945-75

• after the Second World War concluded Franco came under considerable pressure to
restore the monarchy
• in 1947 Franco announced a referendum to establish his position, with the vote
confirming him as lifetime regent
• the following year, Juan Carlos, the future king, began his education at the age of ten
under Franco's supervision
• Franco's strong anti-Communism made him popular with a U.S.A. wrapped up in Cold
War concerns
• in 1950 Spain was allowed to join the United Nations
• three years later an agreement was signed enabling the Americans to establish air and
naval bases on Spanish soil
• in return Franco's regime was protected from foreign invasion by NATO
• Franco was not done with Gibraltar: his main post-war foreign policy objective was to
recover the “Rock”… he also hoped to maintain Spain's colonies in Africa
• on both counts he was unsuccessful, Britain would not be persuaded to give up Gibraltar
and in 1956 he was forced to come to terms with the sultan of Morocco
• Franco announced in 1969 that on his death he would be replaced by Juan Carlos, the
grandson of Spain's last ruling king
• Franco died in 1975 and within two years almost every vestige of his dictatorship had
disappeared
 Fascist Franco, a football fan? 1943
• the El Clasico is the term given to the meeting of Spain’s greatest football clubs: Real
Madrid and Barcelona
• the Madrid side was the team of dictator Franco, who sought to bathe in the borrowed
limelight of the club’s sporting success
• and tremendous successes (especially on the European stage) did indeed characterize
the Madrid team of the 1950s in particular
• Franco used the team’s achievements as a means of advertising, to a watching world,
just how beneficial his rule was for the nation
• the dictator’s first sign of interest in Real Madrid and the beautiful game came in a key
cup match when Franco’s Director of State Security paid a visit to the rival Barcelona
team’s dressing room prior to the opening whistle
• this incredibly powerful and dangerous man not so subtly reminded the Catalans just
how lucky they were to still be a part of the Republic after all that had transpired during
the civil war
• so intimidated was the visiting Barca team that it collapsed in a famous
11-1 loss
“Captain, be sure to say
something good about
your leader in the
post-match interview”