Law of political responsabilities(1939)
1. INTRODUCTION
TYPE OF TEXT: Primary source. As a regards the form, as it is a law; it is a legal text. It is a part of a law made by the head of the State. In the content it is political text.
AUTHOR: Francisco Franco Bahamonde. (1892-1975)Almost all his military career was conducted in Morocco in a fairly ascending manner. He was chief of the armed forces and director of the military academy of Zaragoza. After the military coup of July 18, 1936 took all the powers of the state for 40 years.
ADDRESSEE: to all Spaniards, but especially to all those opposed to the National Movement, therefore, it is a public text.
OBJECTIVE: Impose responsibilities on the “enemies of Spain” and punish them, assuming this law for it a legal means of Franco’s repression.
LOCATION AND DATE: Approved on February 9, 1939 in Burgos (capital of the insurgents) and on the 13th of the same month published in the Official Gazette. The law was published in the last phase of the civil war (during the campaign of Catalonia) about to end the war.
2. CONTENT
Main idea: Need to clean up against all those who were against the National Movement.
1st PAR. Objective of the law; In Franco's opinion, the time has come to request political and criminal responsibility against all those who contributed in their time to the red uprising. The set of enemies is broad; "those who contributed with serious acts or omissions to forge red subversion”.
2nd PAR. Composition of the courts that will be in charge of imposing the punishments: members of the Army, the Magistracy and the Traditionalist Falange (FE-JONS).
3. ARTICLES. Resolution of the law: specifying who the enemies are and specifying the punishments to which they will be subjected.
- Enemies: all the people involved since 1934 and until the national uprising of July 18, 1936 (Article 1) “both legal and physical”, therefore, associations, political parties, unions … and as a consequence of that article therefore, retroactively, the Popular Front and those who collaborated with it (article 2).
- Imposed penalties: as far as the Popular Front is concerned, it would be outlawed (Article 2). The fact that a party or association would be outside the law would mean the loss of all their rights and property (article 3).
3. CONTEXT
The historical context of this text leads us to the emergence of the Francoist state, to the first stage of Francoism (authoritarianism and cruel repression)
Precedents
The victory of the national side opened the way to the Franco regime.
The victory of Franco meant the elimination of democratic institutions and the establishment of the Franco regime (based on a fascist model), where the national unity of Spain prevailed, around the figure of a head of state with absolute powers, Franco, the importance of symbols, state confession (Catholicism), prohibition of political parties and trade unions, etc.
One of the main characteristics, which would have direct connection with the law we are dealing with, would be repression: it would be a structural, continuous and planned element of the Franco regime; on the other hand, the institutional apparatus (the Army, the Civil Guard and the Falange), and all of this led by a series of laws.
- Ideological repression: in a strict sense, social control and national-Catholicism.
- Political repression: executions, mass incarceration, concentration camps and torture, expropriations … For this legal means were used: law of repression of freemasonry and communism, law of state security, and the law that we are analyzing political responsibilities.
Present moment
Explain the law of political responsibilities
Characteristics: In origin the law consists of 89 articles, 8 transitory provisions, and a final disposition, gathered in 4 titles, published in the Official State Gazette.
Importance: Main legal object of repression.
Argument to impose the law: it was necessary a law that would allow Spain to cleanse rebels and traitors who were against the National Movement, because they were part of the “antiespaña”.
Consequences of those who suffered the law: both physical and legal persons (associations, political parties, unions …) that were prohibited, as well as their activity, especially the Popular Front, and all those who collaborated with them, losing their property and all your rights
Application of the law: would be imposed a punishment would be as the aforementioned loss of property and rights, which would be imposed by courts in the hands of the pillars of the Franco regime, the political apparatus (Falange), the military (the army and the Civil Guard) and religion (the Catholic Church) apart from the Magistracy.
This law would apply until 1945 (from 1945 Franco began to soften a bit its application to appear more “democratic” to the foreign allies, although some processes would last until 1966)
Consequences
In this context the life of the vanquished was difficult, during the time that was known as “the years of fear” or “the dark years“.
The cruelty and violence suffered during these years was enormous, executions, expropriations, fines, forced exiles, prohibition to hold public office, and were common punishments.
On the other hand, when applying the law, for the proper functioning of the regime, the involvement of the population was essential, and the spirit of scavenging and revenge of the people was increased. There would be many cases of false allegations and many took advantage of the law for these types of complaints.
As a result of the political situation the time would be enormously difficult, economic crisis (misery and reasoning) that would be aggravated.
4. CONCLUSION/IMPORTANTE OF THE TEXT
This document must be understood as a fundamental element of repression of the Francoist regime used during the postwar period, which in order to be used legally repressive will be converted into law.
We must also mention the retroactive nature of the law, since all the people who were amnestied in the Popular Front era, for having collaborated with them, could be judged again.
It is also a text that shows the militarist model of the time and the regime, applied by the Falange of Primo de Rivera and taken to the extreme by the Franco regime, meaning the manipulative language of the dictatorship.
1. INTRODUCTION
TYPE OF TEXT: Primary source. As a regards the form, as it is a law; it is a legal text. It is a part of a law made by the head of the State. In the content it is political text.
AUTHOR: Francisco Franco Bahamonde. (1892-1975)Almost all his military career was conducted in Morocco in a fairly ascending manner. He was chief of the armed forces and director of the military academy of Zaragoza. After the military coup of July 18, 1936 took all the powers of the state for 40 years.
ADDRESSEE: to all Spaniards, but especially to all those opposed to the National Movement, therefore, it is a public text.
OBJECTIVE: Impose responsibilities on the “enemies of Spain” and punish them, assuming this law for it a legal means of Franco’s repression.
LOCATION AND DATE: Approved on February 9, 1939 in Burgos (capital of the insurgents) and on the 13th of the same month published in the Official Gazette. The law was published in the last phase of the civil war (during the campaign of Catalonia) about to end the war.
2. CONTENT
Main idea: Need to clean up against all those who were against the National Movement.
1st PAR. Objective of the law; In Franco's opinion, the time has come to request political and criminal responsibility against all those who contributed in their time to the red uprising. The set of enemies is broad; "those who contributed with serious acts or omissions to forge red subversion”.
2nd PAR. Composition of the courts that will be in charge of imposing the punishments: members of the Army, the Magistracy and the Traditionalist Falange (FE-JONS).
3. ARTICLES. Resolution of the law: specifying who the enemies are and specifying the punishments to which they will be subjected.
- Enemies: all the people involved since 1934 and until the national uprising of July 18, 1936 (Article 1) “both legal and physical”, therefore, associations, political parties, unions … and as a consequence of that article therefore, retroactively, the Popular Front and those who collaborated with it (article 2).
- Imposed penalties: as far as the Popular Front is concerned, it would be outlawed (Article 2). The fact that a party or association would be outside the law would mean the loss of all their rights and property (article 3).
3. CONTEXT
The historical context of this text leads us to the emergence of the Francoist state, to the first stage of Francoism (authoritarianism and cruel repression)
Precedents
The victory of the national side opened the way to the Franco regime.
The victory of Franco meant the elimination of democratic institutions and the establishment of the Franco regime (based on a fascist model), where the national unity of Spain prevailed, around the figure of a head of state with absolute powers, Franco, the importance of symbols, state confession (Catholicism), prohibition of political parties and trade unions, etc.
One of the main characteristics, which would have direct connection with the law we are dealing with, would be repression: it would be a structural, continuous and planned element of the Franco regime; on the other hand, the institutional apparatus (the Army, the Civil Guard and the Falange), and all of this led by a series of laws.
- Ideological repression: in a strict sense, social control and national-Catholicism.
- Political repression: executions, mass incarceration, concentration camps and torture, expropriations … For this legal means were used: law of repression of freemasonry and communism, law of state security, and the law that we are analyzing political responsibilities.
Present moment
Explain the law of political responsibilities
Characteristics: In origin the law consists of 89 articles, 8 transitory provisions, and a final disposition, gathered in 4 titles, published in the Official State Gazette.
Importance: Main legal object of repression.
Argument to impose the law: it was necessary a law that would allow Spain to cleanse rebels and traitors who were against the National Movement, because they were part of the “antiespaña”.
Consequences of those who suffered the law: both physical and legal persons (associations, political parties, unions …) that were prohibited, as well as their activity, especially the Popular Front, and all those who collaborated with them, losing their property and all your rights
Application of the law: would be imposed a punishment would be as the aforementioned loss of property and rights, which would be imposed by courts in the hands of the pillars of the Franco regime, the political apparatus (Falange), the military (the army and the Civil Guard) and religion (the Catholic Church) apart from the Magistracy.
This law would apply until 1945 (from 1945 Franco began to soften a bit its application to appear more “democratic” to the foreign allies, although some processes would last until 1966)
Consequences
In this context the life of the vanquished was difficult, during the time that was known as “the years of fear” or “the dark years“.
The cruelty and violence suffered during these years was enormous, executions, expropriations, fines, forced exiles, prohibition to hold public office, and were common punishments.
On the other hand, when applying the law, for the proper functioning of the regime, the involvement of the population was essential, and the spirit of scavenging and revenge of the people was increased. There would be many cases of false allegations and many took advantage of the law for these types of complaints.
As a result of the political situation the time would be enormously difficult, economic crisis (misery and reasoning) that would be aggravated.
4. CONCLUSION/IMPORTANTE OF THE TEXT
This document must be understood as a fundamental element of repression of the Francoist regime used during the postwar period, which in order to be used legally repressive will be converted into law.
We must also mention the retroactive nature of the law, since all the people who were amnestied in the Popular Front era, for having collaborated with them, could be judged again.
It is also a text that shows the militarist model of the time and the regime, applied by the Falange of Primo de Rivera and taken to the extreme by the Franco regime, meaning the manipulative language of the dictatorship.