Spanish Civil War: Military Uprising, Battles, and Outcome
a) The Spanish Civil War: Military Uprising and War Outbreak
On the evening of July 17, the uprising began in the garrison at Melilla. It was followed in Ceuta and Tetuan. Almost everyone who tried to oppose was shot. Franco flew from the Canary Islands and arrived in Tetuan on the 19th, where he took command of the Army of Africa. The Head of Government, Casares Quiroga, did not grasp the gravity of the situation and lost considerable time in the early hours. The military uprising on July 18, 1936, succeeded in some areas of Castilla, Leon, Navarre, and Galicia but failed to take over major cities like Valencia, Barcelona, and, above all, Madrid. On the 19th, in Barcelona, the CNT (National Confederation of Labour) mobilized workers to the streets and seized weapons to confront the coup. With the collaboration of the Assault Guard and the Civil Guard, they laid siege to the rebels. The coup’s success or failure depended on two conditions: the speed and coordination of its protagonists and the resilience of popular forces. Except in Pamplona and Burgos, the coup did not receive widespread support.
Geographical, Economic, and Military Aspects
From a geographical point of view, the area controlled by rebel soldiers occupied two large areas: south and north of the peninsula, as well as North Africa, the Canary Islands, and the Balearic Islands. The Republican zone was split in two. The Republicans controlled the output through the Pyrenees, and the rebels through Portugal.
From an economic point of view, the Republic controlled the industrial and wheat stocks of La Mancha and Levantine crops (rice). The rebels had reserves of grain and livestock from the Northern Plateau and Galicia. The Republic had the gold reserves of the Bank of Spain.
From a military standpoint, the majority of Army officers had risen, and therefore the Government had to rebuild their armies. The rebels had intact units from Castile, Galicia, and Andalusia, and the Army of Africa, the best trained and equipped. This was not the case for the Air Force and Navy. In the Navy, the sailors rebelled against the coup, and the majority of aircraft were in the hands of both sides of the Republic. There was an absence of organized civil power in the Republic. On the Nationalist side, authority was in the hands of a group of generals who followed instructions from Mola, establishing militarized authoritarian regimes without civil liberties. On the Republican side, the real power remained in the hands of workers’ committees organized by political parties and unions, as in Catalonia, where the Anti-Fascist Militia Committee of the CNT directed and dictated early war trade measures.
Extreme Violence and Repression
The first weeks of war were of extreme violence: summary trials without warrants led to thousands of people being shot. On the Nationalist side, shootings were the usual response. In Granada, Federico García Lorca was shot; in this area, the repression was much more organized and directed than on the other side. On the Republican side, the repression was spontaneous and uneven. In November, José Antonio Primo de Rivera was sentenced and executed. However, by late 1936, the repression attenuated, and the authorities began to control the situation.
The War in the North
Unable to take Madrid, Franco changed his strategy and focused on the war in the north, where an army, poorly organized by the Nationalists, concentrated their best troops. Mola launched a crackdown in Vizcaya in March 1937, and during this campaign came the brutal bombing of Guernica by German aircraft, one of the darkest episodes of the war. Bilbao fell in July with its industry intact, and without support, the entire northern front crumbled: Cantabria and the mining area also fell into Franco’s hands. On the other hand, a new attempt to storm Madrid from Guadalajara was halted while the Republicans tried, unsuccessfully, to stop the advance northward in the battles of Brunete and Belchite.
The Battle of the Ebro and the End of the War
Although weakened, the Republican government under Negrín insisted on continuing to fight, hoping that European tensions would lead to a war that would mobilize aid from the continent’s democracies. However, in early 1938, Franco turned to the Mediterranean, and after the battle of Teruel, his troops reached Castellón, halving the Republican territory. While Yagüe’s troops crossed the Ebro, Franco ordered a halt to the advance into Catalonia, fearing French intervention. However, the Republican General Rojo decided to trigger a battle to decide the course of the war. He crossed the Ebro and entered Nationalist territory, leading to the Battle of the Ebro, which over four months wore down both armies but completely destroyed the best of the Republican forces. This defeat left the way open to Catalonia, which fell in February 1939 after the withdrawal of the International Brigades. At Negrín’s insistence, Colonel Casado resisted a coup against the Republican government but ultimately accepted the unconditional surrender posed by Franco. On March 28, Nationalist forces entered Madrid, and on April 1, 1939, Franco signed the last part of the war, declaring its end.