The Spanish Civil War: A Brief Overview
The Spanish Civil War
The National Area
The death of General Sanjurjo on July 20, 1936, while flying from Portugal to Spain, left the insurrection without a clear leader. On July 24, a general meeting of insurgents was held in Burgos. They agreed to establish the National Defense Board, which was configured as a provisional government of the Nationalist area.
Drastic measures were adopted: the establishment of a state of war throughout the country, the suppression of all liberties, and the disbanding of all political parties except the Falange and the Carlist Requetés.
Nationalist propaganda at that time set the justification for the military coup against a democratically elected government. The military uprising was presented as a National Uprising against a “Marxist” and “anti-Spanish” Republic. The Catholic Church, harshly persecuted in the Republican zone, helped configure the theory that justified the killing: the war was a crusade to rid Spain of atheism. Thus, in 1937, the National Grain Service was created to control the bread supply.
The need for a unified command was apparent to some military officers educated in discipline and hierarchy. So, on October 1, 1936, Franco was appointed Chief of the Spanish government. His military successes, being at the head of the powerful army in Africa, and the support of Germany, with which he had direct contact, explain Franco’s rise.
Thereafter, the Leader, as he began to be called by the Nationalist propaganda machine, established a personal dictatorship based on a military regime. A State Technical Board, consisting of military personnel, was formed as an advisory body to the dictator.
In April 1937, the Decree of Unification was approved. The Carlists and Falangists were unified in the Traditionalist Spanish Falange de las JONS, known as the National Movement. The single-party model of Italian Fascism and German National Socialism was imposed in Franco’s Spain.
The Central Administration Law of the State focused executive, legislative, and judicial power on the figure of Franco. The press law imposed censorship on all publications, and the Labor Law ended freedom of association, established state control of national employers’ organizations, and established a new regime for workers.
The new regime established a confessional state. The state subsidy of the Church was reinstated, divorce and civil marriage were abolished, and much of education returned to the hands of the clergy. This established what came to be known as National-Catholicism.
Finally, legislation was created that institutionalized repression against the vanquished. In February 1939, the Law of Political Responsibilities was passed, which designated as “rebels” all who had opposed the National Movement.
The Development of the Civil War
The Political Disintegration After the Coup and the Repression
The coup and the outbreak of war caused the Destrucción No state structures of the Second Repub blica.En the national side, power remained in the hands of a group of generals who, following the proposals of Mola, and established an authoritarian state militarizado.En the Republican side the government of the Republic Republic lost control of the situació ny real power remained in the hands of workmen s committee organized by parties and unions which were not subjected to ningú n centralizado.En kind of power the first moments the war led to a huge suppression n on both sides. The executions and murder spread like a nightmare all over the coun s.La repressive n in the national area essentially went against militant workers and peasants, but some intellectuals, such as Federico Garcia Lorca, were also ctime n saw the horror . The suppression n was quite organized and controlled by military authorities. This did not stopor uncontrolled gunmen staged Falangists tipo.En excesses of all the Republican groups who suffered the violence were essentially the priests and the wealthy classes. Jose Antonio Primo de Rivera, a prisoner in Alicante at the outbreak of war, was tried and executed. After the initial chaos in which there were serious abuses, the government was gradually controlling situació n n and the suppression was attenuated. The nationalist progress during the first months of guerra.Un key to understanding the final victory of the national was the “bridge ae reo” organized by German and Italian planes that allowed the transfer of Axis rá ask frica rcito of nsula.Los legionnaires to the Pen and regular professional forces that easily exceeded the unorganized worker and peasant militias, began ask a ra progress towards Madrid. Along the way, the commanding general Yagu columns and decided to divert to Badajoz. The city fell and began a brutal suppression n that shocked the world and produced a large num ber of ctimas.Las saw troops continued their advance towards Madrid and before reaching Madrid, Franco again decided to divert troops to liberate guarnició n Alca zar besieged in Toledo. The “No FTAA liberaci czar” was a big win for propagandí stico Franco.Mientras, Mola took Iru n San Sebastián Basque isolating the Paí s border with France.