These circumstances raise anew the question of exactly who was Francisco Franco and what exactly was his historical record. The literature about him is enormous, greater than that concerning anyone else in Spanish history, but is strongly divided between encomia and denunciation. The present biography seeks to open a new inquiry that is more balanced and objective, or at least less subject to the influence of polemics than its predecessors, based on a broad base of key primary and secondary sources.
It seeks to provide deeper understanding of a key historical personality, and also of the dynamic evolution of Spain during the twentieth century. Stanley G. Your email address will not be published.
In Franco became army chief of staff. When a leftist coalition won the next round of elections in February , he and other military leaders began discussing a coup. Banished to a remote post in the Canary Islands, Franco initially hesitated in his support of the military conspiracy. On July 18, , military officers launched a multipronged uprising that put them in control of most of the western half of the country. He also made contacts with Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy, securing arms and other assistance that would continue throughout the duration of what became known as the Spanish Civil War He unified a base of support by securing the backing of the Catholic Church, combining the fascist and monarchist political parties, and dissolving all other political parties.
Meanwhile, on the way north, his men—who included fascist militia groups—machine-gunned hundreds or perhaps thousands of Republicans in the town of Badajoz.
An additional tens of thousands of political prisoners would be executed by Nationalists later on in the fighting. The internally divided Republicans, who murdered their own share of political opponents, could not stop the slow Nationalist advance despite support from the Soviet Union and International Brigades. German and Italian bombardments helped the Nationalists conquer Basque lands and Asturias in Barcelona, the heart of Republican resistance, fell in January , and Madrid surrendered that March, effectively ending the conflict.
Many Republican figures fled the country in the wake of the civil war, and military tribunals were set up to try those who remained. These tribunals sent thousands more Spaniards to their death, and Franco himself admitted in the mids that he had 26, political prisoners under lock and key. The Franco regime also essentially made Catholicism the only tolerated religion, banned the Catalan and Basque languages outside the home, forbade Catalan and Basque names for newborns, barred labor unions, promoted economic self-sufficiency policies and created a vast secret police network to spy on citizens.
Though he sympathized with the Axis powers, Franco largely stayed out of World War II but did send nearly 50, volunteers to fight alongside the Germans on the Soviet front.
Franco also opened his ports to German submarines and invaded the internationally administered city of Tangier in Morocco. Following the war, Spain faced diplomatic and economic isolation, but that began to thaw as the Cold War heated up. In Spain allowed the United States to construct three air bases and a naval base on its soil in return for military and economic aid. As Franco aged, he increasingly avoided daily political affairs, preferring instead to hunt and fish. At the same time, police controls and press censorship began to relax, strikes and protests became more commonplace, some free-market reforms were introduced, tourism increased and Morocco gained its independence.
Franco died on November 20, , after suffering a series of heart attacks. At his funeral, many mourners raised their arm in a fascist salute. Though Juan Carlos had spent a good deal of time alongside Franco and publicly supported the regime, he pressed for change immediately upon taking the throne, including the legalization of political parties.
In a posthumous message, he sought forgiveness from all Spaniards. I believe that I had no enemies other than the enemies of Spain. In an effort to ease the transition to democracy after his death, Spain passed a pact pardoning political crimes committed during the conflict and his dictatorship. In , the Socialist government passed a historical memory law that seeks to recognize those who suffered under Franco.
As the country barrels towards national elections in November, the exhumation has highlighted deep splits in parliament. In , just lawmakers voted in favor of moving him. By Reuters Staff 6 Min Read.
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