Franco’s Regime: Genesis, Nature, and Ideological Roots
**Genesis, Nature, and Ideological Foundations of the Franco Regime**
The Franco regime was a political dictatorship led by General Francisco Franco. He was the ruler with the most power in the history of Spain. He held the three political powers, but he was the most executive.
His idea of Spain was homogeneous, identified solely with Spanish identity, while any other nationality was to be combated to eradicate separatist tendencies. He thought this way based on drive, hierarchy, and authority, three basic military concepts. This justifies his maximum goal, with the excuse of saving the country and straightening it.
The most characteristic features of the Franco regime were: personal dictatorship over groups and classes; single-party rule, rejecting any kind of political and trade union pluralism; and the imposition of a permanent division of the country between winners and losers. It was the construction of a new, undemocratic, and totalitarian state. It was characterized by submission to a leader, total repression of opposing sectors, denial of basic freedoms, the practice of legal arbitrariness, anticapitalist and anticlassical pseudo-revolutionary rhetoric, and the organization of mass movements.
The dictatorship had some clear supporters: the army, the Church, the Falange, the traditionalists, and the more conservative right. Franco gave them political power. The military was the most resolute and faithful supporter of the dictatorship. They reached high positions within the state. Much of the ecclesiastical hierarchy and the clergy legitimized the power. Traditionalists almost always occupied the Ministry of Justice and the presidency of the Cortes. The dictatorship also had the support of landowners, financiers, entrepreneurs, small and medium farm owners, and the urban middle class in rural areas.
**The Main Stages of Franco’s Policies**
*Totalitarian Phase (1939-1959)*
This phase was characterized by economic recession, involution, and the harshness of ideological repression. After the Civil War, Spain was conditioned by the international situation. Although Franco initially declared neutrality at the outbreak of World War II, he received aid from Germany and Italy. Their triumphs in the war changed Spain’s position, leading to the sending of the Blue Division to Germany. This situation led to a multiplication of symbols identifying Francoism with fascism.
During this period, two new institutions were created: the Cortes (1943) and the Fuero of the Spanish (1945). The Cortes were only a consultative body; they did not control the government’s actions and were not democratically elected. The Fuero of the Spanish was a false constitution where the main rights of Spaniards were exposed, stressing that any kind of more democratic rights could not be used to attack the spiritual, national, and social unity of Spain. After the world war, Spain entered a phase of international isolation. Spain was identified with fascism, so the UN did not accept the regime and suggested that countries withdraw their ambassadors. In view of this isolation, the louder symbols were dropped, and the Law of Succession (1947) was promulgated with the intention of distancing the regime from an image of fascism. The Law of Succession established that Spain was a kingdom but that Franco remained the chief, with the power to appoint a successor. If he died before, the Regency and Kingdom Councils would be in charge of appointing one. Juan de Borbón, son of Alfonso XIII, agreed that his son would be educated in Spain and could be the successor.
After 1950, the situation of isolation changed. Spain joined UNESCO from 1952 to 1953, and the Pact of Madrid was signed. This agreement established that Spain ceded part of its territory for the construction of military bases in exchange for financial support. The same year, the Vatican signed the Concordat with Spain. In 1955, Spain entered the UN as a full member. In 1958, the Law on Fundamental Principles of the National Movement was drafted, which maintained the validity of some Falangist principles, according to which the family, the municipality, and the union were the only systems of political participation.