After years of decline and loss of its colonies and influence, Spain was divided in the early 20th century between those wanting to open up the country and those wanting to keep it closed. Francisco Franco pursued a military career during this turbulent time. The rise of fascist groups like Falange Española led to civil war in 1936 between republicans and nationalists. Franco emerged as the leader of the nationalist forces and defeated the republicans by 1939, beginning a 40-year dictatorship characterized by Catholic nationalism, repression, and isolation from the West. Though Spain experienced economic growth later on, social unrest increased as Franco sought continuity for his regime until his death in 1975.

1. TotalitarianRegimes:TowardsGodthroughEmpire (Franco’sSpain)Juan Manuel Acero3rd. FormEnglishCeRP del Sur – October 2011

2. After a steady, three-centurylong decline, Spain hit rock bottom in the 19th Century…Francisco de Goya (1746-1828), TheFamily of Charles IV

3. … a time full of trouble, bothdomestic and foreign… Internally:Externally:Loss of American Colonies (1810-1820)Loss of Predominance in European and WorldAffairsSpanish-American War of 1898Napoleon’sInvasion (1808)ThreeDinastic Civil Wars (CarlistWars) Change of Regime (FirstRepublic , 1873-1874) and subsequentrestoration

4. … resulting in a country divided in twomajorfactions…… thosewhowantedto open SpainouttotheWorld…… and thosewhowantedtokeepitclosedintoitself.

5. Francisco Franco wasonlysixyearsoldwhen …… Spainwassoundlydefeatedbythe USA both at theCaribbean and thePacific.1898: a Winter of Discontent

6. Thedawn of the 20th Centurywill show thatSpain’sdownfallisnotto stop soon…1921’s Disaster of Annual:over 10000 Spanishsoldierskilled in Morocco.1929’s World Crisis hits Spainevenharder.1912: current Head of Government José Canalejas killedbyanallegedanarchist.

7. … and radical ways are proposedtoavoiddecay.1923: King Alfonso XIII appoints Miguel Primo de Rivera as dictator.1933: creationof Falange Española,thefirstopenlyFascistparty inSpain.Theplatform of Falange EspañolaSpainmustremainone. Separatismis“a crimewewillnotforgive”. The 1931 Constitution, as it condones separatism, mustdisappear.SpainisentitledtoanEmpire of itsown, withpreponderanceoverLatinAmerica and a privileged place in Europeanaffairs.TheStatewillbe a “totalitarianinstrument at theservice of nationalintegrity”. Politicalparties, Parliament and elections are tobeabolished.A “rigorous discipline” willfalluponthosewho try to “poison, createdivisionsamongSpaniardsormovethemawayagainsttheDestiny of theirMotherland”José Antonio Primo de Rivera, founder of Falange Española

8. Meanwhile….Francisco Franco pursues a succesfulmilitarycarreer, and seemstostayawayfrompoliticalturmoil.

9. In fiveyears, from 1931 to 1936, Spainslidesdowntowards Civil War1931: Proclamation of theSecondRepublic1931 - 1933: ruledby a coalition of Center-LefttoLeftparties, the new Republicpasses a Constitution, new laws of PublicEducation, AgrarianReformation, Vote forwomen. 1932: General Sanjurjo and otherhigh-rankofficersattempt acoupd’étatknown as “Sanjurjada”.1933 -1936: CEDA (SpanishConfederation of AutonomousRights): the Black / SterileBiennial. 1934: Anarchist and CommunistUnionsunleashthefailed “Red October” revolution in Asturias (North-Western Spain). Catalonia declares itself “sovereignstatewithintheRepublic”

10. OnJuly 18th 1936, tensionsbetween radical left and extreme right lead up torebellionfromConservativeArmyofficers.

11. Franco seemstobedisconnectedfromtheheads of therising, but…... by June 1937 thetwo top insurrectionistofficershavedied, both at planecrashes.

12. The “Movement” leads to a warthatwilllastforthreehard, bloodyyears.November 1936February 1939November 1938October 1937July 1936

13. Bothsideshaveexternalhelp

14. Bothsideshaveexternalhelp

15. April 1st 1939: Warisover, says FrancoAftertheWar, Franco leadershipwillbeuncontestedforthefollowing 40 years...

16. Themaintraits of FrancoismRejection of Parliamentarism, Division of Powers, Civil Liberties.

17. Anti-Communism, Anti-Semitism

18. CatholicNationalism, Centralism, Traditionalism, Militarism

19. Single-Partysystem, Vertical Syndicalism

20. Repression: 50000 deadduringwar, 200000 in 1939-1943

21. Press and peopleunderstrict control.

22. Personalitycult: Franco “Leader of Spainbythe Grace of God”Hitler madehismoveto try togetFranco’sSpainintothewar.WorldWar II broke up fivemonthsaftertheSpanish Civil Warhadended.

23. … Franco didnotenterthewar, buthissupport of the Axis … … increasedSpain’sisolationfromthe Western World.In 1941, Spainsentthe “Blue Squadron” and “Blue Division”, volunteerpilots and soldierswhofoughtagainst Stalin in theRussian Front.

24. The post-warscenariodidnothavemuchtooffertoFranco’sSpain: 1940’s: post-CivilWarhardships, addedtotheinternationalsituation, bringfamine, shortages and rationing.1946: thenewlyborn UN putsSpain in quarantine. Hugecrowdssupport Franco at Madrid’s Plaza de Oriente.1946-52: theyears of autarchybring a slighteconomicrecovery,based in the re-building of Spanishinfrastructure.

25. 1953: Pacts of Madrid paveSpain’sway back totheinternationalcommunity. Economicrestrictionsslowlygive in.As thealliancewiththe USA growsstronger, politicalchangesfollow:… and a boomingeconomywillgiverisetothe so-called “SpanishMiracle”.Farewell “OldShirts” Hello “Technocrats”Throughoutthe 1960’s a new, generation of younger, college-educatedtechnicians and politicianswillinjectfreshbloodintoFrancoism….

26. But, in spite of the “miracle”, social and politicalunrest set in…

27. TheagedGeneralisimoseeksforcontinuity of hispoliticalregime...19691973