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110-521: At the start of November 1936 the rebel armies led by General Francisco Franco approached Madrid, brushing aside the untrained and ill-equipped militias they encountered. The government of the Second Spanish Republic under Francisco Largo Caballero had done nothing to prepare the capital's defenses for fear of alarming the population. The government fled from Madrid to Valencia on 6 November 1936, leaving General José Miaja to govern

220-598: A major scandal in parliament , and eliminated Alejandro Lerroux , the head of the Radical Republican Party, from the premiership. Subsequently, Alcalá-Zamora vetoed the logical replacement, a majority centre-right coalition, led by the CEDA, which would reflect the composition of the parliament. He then arbitrarily appointed an interim prime minister and after a short period announced the dissolution of parliament and new elections. Two wide coalitions formed:

330-546: A "possible caudillo for a military uprising". Disenchantment with Azaña's rule continued to grow and was dramatically voiced by Miguel de Unamuno , a republican and one of Spain's most respected intellectuals, who in June 1936 told a reporter who published his statement in El Adelanto that President Manuel Azaña should "...debiera suicidarse como acto patriótico" ("commit suicide as a patriotic act"). In June 1936, Franco

440-572: A continuance of the war and in the keeping up of the tension in the Mediterranean." Hitler distrusted Franco; according to the comments he made at the conference he wanted the war to continue, but he did not want Franco to achieve total victory. He felt that with Franco in undisputed control of Spain, the possibility of Italy intervening further or of its continuing to occupy the Balearic Islands would be prevented. By February 1937

550-515: A daughter, María del Carmen . Franco would have a close relationship with his daughter and was a proud parent, though his traditionalist attitudes and increasing responsibilities meant he left much of the child-rearing to his wife. In 1928 Franco was appointed director of the newly created General Military Academy of Zaragoza, a new college for all Spanish army cadets , replacing the former separate institutions for young men seeking to become officers in infantry, cavalry, artillery, and other branches of

660-463: A dichotomous choice between "communism" or a markedly totalitarian "National" State, and setting the mood of the masses for a military rebellion. The diffusion of the myth about an alleged Communist coup d'état as well a pretended state of "social chaos" became pretexts for a coup. Franco himself along with General Emilio Mola had stirred an anti-Communist campaign in Morocco. On 23 February, Franco

770-821: A dictator, assuming the title Caudillo . This period in Spanish history, from the Nationalist victory to Franco's death, is commonly known as Francoist Spain or as the Francoist dictatorship. Born in Ferrol, Galicia , into an upper-class military family, Franco served in the Spanish Army as a cadet in the Toledo Infantry Academy from 1907 to 1910. While serving in Morocco , he rose through

880-432: A fellow africanista , General Gonzalo Queipo de Llano , on 21 September 1924 to propose that Queip de Llano organize a coup d'état against Primo. In the end, Franco complied with General Primo's orders, taking part in the retreat of Spanish soldiers from Xaouen in late 1924, and thus earning a promotion to colonel. Franco led the first wave of troops ashore at Al Hoceima (Spanish: Alhucemas ) in 1925. This landing in

990-605: A manifesto and left for Africa, where he arrived the next day to take command. A week later the rebels, who soon called themselves the Nationalists , controlled a third of Spain; most naval units remained under control of the Republican loyalist forces, which left Franco isolated. The coup had failed in the attempt to bring a swift victory, but the Spanish Civil War had begun. Franco rose to power during

1100-625: A monarchical officer. Disappointed with the plans by Spain's Prime Minister, Lieutenant General Miguel Primo de Rivera , for a strategic retreat from the interior to the African coastline, Colonel Franco wrote in the April 1924 issue of Revista de Tropas Coloniales ( Colonial Troops Magazine ) that he would disobey orders of retreat given by a superior. As a result, Franco had a tense meeting with Primo de Rivera in July. Lieutenant Colonel Franco visited

1210-485: A new constitution, it should have arranged for regular parliamentary elections and adjourned, according to historian Carlton J. H. Hayes . Fearing the increasing popular opposition, the Radical and Socialist majority postponed the regular elections, thereby prolonging their stay in power for two more years. This way the republican government of Manuel Azaña initiated numerous reforms to what in their view would "modernize"

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1320-617: A people's court. Due to the severity of his wounds, Yagüe was relieved as a member of the Council and replaced by Luis Nieto de la Fuente, his deputy. The Madrid Defense Council was dissolved on 23 April 1937. In May 1937 Yagüe was discharged and went on to serve in the Bakers union. In March 1939 Segismundo Casado launched an anti-communist uprising in Madrid supported by the militant anarchist Cipriano Mera . After Casado succeeded, Yagüe

1430-743: A professional squadron from the Luftwaffe (2JG/88) with about 24 planes. All these planes had the Nationalist Spanish insignia painted on them, but were flown by Italian and German nationals. The backbone of Franco's air force in those days was the Italian SM.79 and SM.81 bombers, the biplane Fiat CR.32 fighter and the German Junkers Ju 52 cargo-bomber and the Heinkel He 51 biplane fighter. On 21 September, with

1540-417: A reassignment and ultimately abandoned his family, marrying another woman. While Franco did not suffer any great abuse by his father's hand, he would never overcome his antipathy for his father and largely ignored him for the rest of his life. Years after becoming dictator, under the pseudonym Jaime de Andrade, Franco wrote a brief novel called Raza , whose protagonist is believed by Stanley Payne to represent

1650-514: A three-day forced march led by Franco. In 1923, now a lieutenant colonel , he was made commander of the Legion. On 22 October 1923, Franco married María del Carmen Polo y Martínez-Valdès (11 June 1900 – 6 February 1988). Following his honeymoon Franco was summoned to Madrid to be presented to King Alfonso XIII . This and other occasions of royal attention would mark him during the Republic as

1760-461: Is the author of a sharp critical reflection against the participation of the left in the revolt: "The uprising of 1934 is unforgivable. The argument that Mr Gil Robles tried to destroy the Constitution to establish fascism was, at once, hypocritical and false. With the rebellion of 1934, the Spanish left lost even the shadow of moral authority to condemn the rebellion of 1936." At the start of

1870-687: The Movimiento Nacional . Three years later the Nationalists declared victory, which extended Franco's dictatorship over Spain through a period of repression of political opponents . His dictatorship's use of forced labour , concentration camps and executions led to between 30,000 and 50,000 deaths. Combined with wartime killings, this brings the death toll of the White Terror to between 100,000 and 200,000. During World War II , he maintained Spanish neutrality , but supported

1980-568: The Axis —in recompense to Italy and Germany for their support during the Civil War— damaging the country's international reputation in various ways. During the start of the Cold War , Franco lifted Spain out of its mid-20th century economic depression through technocratic and economically liberal policies, presiding over a period of accelerated growth known as the " Spanish miracle ". At

2090-597: The Communist Party of Spain ( Partido Comunista de España , PCE) along with other union leaders such as Isidoro Diéguez and Luis Cabo Giorla. He was arrested several times: in 1931 (accused of trying to poison the water supply of Madrid) and in 1933 and 1935 (for belonging to the Madrid Provincial Committee of the PCE). In early 1936 he was the secretary of this committee. In November 1936,

2200-624: The French Foreign Legion . Franco became the Legion's second-in-command and returned to Africa. In the Rif War , the poorly commanded and overextended Spanish Army was defeated by the Republic of the Rif under the leadership of the Abd el-Krim brothers, who crushed a Spanish offensive on 24 July 1921, at Annual . The Legion and supporting units relieved the Spanish city of Melilla after

2310-607: The Popular Front on the left, ranging from the Republican Union to the communists , and the Frente Nacional on the right, ranging from the centre radicals to the conservative Carlists . On 16 February 1936 the elections ended in a virtual draw, but in the evening leftist mobs started to interfere in the balloting and in the registration of votes, distorting the results. Stanley G. Payne claims that

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2420-525: The Second Melillan campaign in 1909 against native Moroccans, the first of several Riffian rebellions. Their tactics resulted in heavy losses among Spanish military officers , and also provided an opportunity to earn promotion through merit on the battlefield. It was said that officers would receive either la caja o la faja (a coffin or a general's sash). Franco quickly gained a reputation as an effective officer. In 1913, Franco transferred into

2530-487: The Spanish Army of Africa . The first days of the insurgency were marked by an imperative need to secure control over the Spanish Moroccan Protectorate . On one side, Franco had to win the support of the native Moroccan population and their (nominal) authorities, and, on the other, he had to ensure his control over the army. His method was the summary execution of some 200 senior officers loyal to

2640-691: The Spanish transition to democracy . The legacy of Franco in Spanish history remains controversial, as the nature of his dictatorship changed over time . His reign was marked by both brutal repression, with tens of thousands killed, and economic prosperity, which greatly improved the quality of life in Spain. His dictatorial style proved adaptable enough to allow social and economic reform , but still centred on highly centralised government , authoritarianism , nationalism , national Catholicism , anti-freemasonry and anti-communism . Francisco Franco Bahamonde

2750-462: The province of Cuenca programmed for 3 May 1936, after the results of the February 1936 election were annulled in the constituency. But Primo de Rivera refused to run alongside a military officer (Franco in particular) and Franco himself ultimately desisted on 26 April, one day before the decision of the election authority. By that time, PSOE politician Indalecio Prieto had already deemed Franco as

2860-465: The 1960s. In 1973, Franco resigned as prime minister —separated from the office of head of state since 1967 —due to his advanced age and illness. Nevertheless, he remained in power as the head of state and as commander-in-chief. Franco died in 1975, aged 82, and was entombed in the Valle de los Caídos . He restored the monarchy in his final years, being succeeded by Juan Carlos , King of Spain , who led

2970-661: The Catalan population. Similarly, both Italian and German planes bombed the Basque town of Guernica at Franco's request. The Republican opposition was supported by communists, socialists, and anarchists within Spain as well as the Soviet Union and volunteers who fought in the International Brigades . Following the pronunciamiento of 18 July 1936, Franco assumed the leadership of the 30,000 soldiers of

3080-596: The Civil War, López Ochoa was assassinated; his head was severed and paraded around the streets on a pole, with a card reading, 'This is the butcher of Asturias'. Sometime after these events, Franco was briefly commander-in-chief of the Army of Africa (from 15 February onwards), and from 19 May 1935, on, Chief of the General Staff . At the end of 1935, President Alcalá-Zamora manipulated a petty-corruption issue into

3190-558: The Defense Council reconvened with Miaja as chairman. Various changes took place in the weeks that followed. On 12 December 1936 newspapers reported that the council had decided that the militia groups would be organized into regular army units, and only these units would be eligible for pay and provisions. On 23 December 1936 Yagüe was stopped at a roadblock on the Zaragoza road manned by anarchists. When he tried to drive on, he

3300-515: The Government and which contribute their effort to the struggle taking place at the gates of Madrid. The Defense Council was desperately short of men and munitions. However, Franco's forces were over-extended, with only 3,000 men available to push into the city, and Franco was naturally cautious. The first units of the International Brigades reached the city on 8 November 1936 and were immediately thrown into action. As more units came into action

3410-557: The Libertarian Atheneum. They were preventing passage of those who did not carry a pass validated by the Confederación Nacional del Trabajo (CNT). According to the anarchists, Yagüe refused to stay at the roadblock after the guards decided he did not have proper documentation. When the car drove on, the guards fired at it and Yagüe was seriously injured by a bullet in the back. The Communists said it

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3520-765: The Navy, but as a result of the Spanish–American War the country lost much of its navy as well as most of its colonies. Not needing any more officers, the Naval Academy admitted no new entrants from 1906 to 1913. To his father's chagrin, Francisco decided to try the Spanish Army . In 1907, he entered the Infantry Academy in Toledo . At the age of fourteen, Franco was one of the youngest members of his class, with most boys being between sixteen and eighteen. He

3630-541: The POUM radio station in Madrid and its newspaper El Combatiente Rojo should be seized, since he claimed they had been devoted "solely and exclusively to combating the government and the Popular Front." The measure was approved unanimously. José Cazorla then declared that he would take over all the POUM's buildings and vehicles, since it was now "illegal". This was also passed without opposition. The communist press said

3740-578: The Republic (one of them his own cousin). His loyal bodyguard was shot by Manuel Blanco. Franco's first problem was how to move his troops to the Iberian Peninsula , since most units of the Navy had remained in control of the Republic and were blocking the Strait of Gibraltar . He requested help from Benito Mussolini , who responded with an offer of arms and planes. In Germany Wilhelm Canaris ,

3850-648: The Republic. Hitler's policy for Spain was shrewd and pragmatic. The minutes of a conference with his foreign minister and army chiefs at the Reich Chancellery in Berlin on 10 November 1937 summarised his views on foreign policy regarding the Spanish Civil War: "On the other hand, a 100 percent victory for Franco was not desirable either, from the German point of view; rather were we interested in

3960-668: The Republican government. The Catalan Bloc Obrer i Camperol (BOC) advocated the need to form a broad workers' front and took the lead in forming a new and more encompassing Alianza Obrera , which included the Catalan UGT and the Catalan sector of the PSOE, with the goal of defeating fascism and advancing the socialist revolution. The Alianza Obrera declared a general strike "against fascism" in Catalonia in 1934. A Catalan state

4070-771: The Soviet Union's military help started to taper off, to be replaced by limited economic aid. The designated leader of the uprising, General José Sanjurjo , died on 20 July 1936 in a plane crash. In the nationalist zone, "political life ceased". Initially, only military command mattered: this was divided into regional commands ( Emilio Mola in the North, Gonzalo Queipo de Llano in Seville commanding Andalucia , Franco with an independent command, and Miguel Cabanellas in Zaragoza commanding Aragon ). The Spanish Army of Morocco

4180-519: The Spanish Civil War, which began in July 1936 and officially ended with the victory of his Nationalist forces in April 1939. Although it is impossible to calculate precise statistics concerning the Spanish Civil War and its aftermath, Payne writes that if civilian fatalities above the norm are added to the total number of deaths for victims of violence, the number of deaths attributable to the civil war would reach approximately 344,000. During

4290-461: The Spanish Civil War. During the war, he commanded Spain's African colonial army and later, following the deaths of much of the rebel leadership, became his faction's only leader, being appointed generalissimo and head of state in 1936. He consolidated all nationalist parties into the FET y de las JONS (creating a one-party state ) and developed a cult of personality around his rule by founding

4400-492: The Spanish Republicans, the operation was put in place with remarkable speed and energy. The first load of arms and tanks arrived as early as 26 September and was secretly unloaded at night. Advisers accompanied the armaments. Soviet officers were in effective charge of military operations on the Madrid front. Kennan believes that this operation was originally conducted in good faith with no other purpose than saving

4510-793: The UGT and Carrillo the Unified Socialist Youth . His first action was to impose controls that limited shoppers to buying food at one store. If supplies there were exhausted they could try other stores in the same district. As the siege took effect, he had to deal with upward pressure on prices. The Defense Council was restructured and renamed the Junta Delegada de Defensa de Madrid , or the Delegate Defense Council of Madrid, to comply with an order of 25 November 1936 by President Francisco Largo Caballero . This

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4620-557: The army. Franco was removed as Director of the Zaragoza Military Academy in 1931; when the Civil War began, the colonels, majors, and captains of the Spanish Army who had attended the academy when he was its director displayed unconditional loyalty to him as Caudillo . The municipal elections of 12 April 1931 were largely seen as a plebiscite on the monarchy. The Republican-Socialist alliance failed to win

4730-426: The blockade, successfully deploying a convoy of fishing boats and merchant ships carrying some 3,000 soldiers; between 29 July and 15 August about 15,000 more men were moved. On 26 July, just eight days after the revolt had started, foreign allies of the Republican government convened an international communist conference at Prague to arrange plans to help the Popular Front forces in Spain. Communist parties throughout

4840-485: The cabinet presided over by Portela Valladares resigned, with a new cabinet being quickly set up, composed chiefly of members of the Republican Left and the Republican Union and presided over by Manuel Azaña . José Calvo Sotelo , who made anti-communism the focus of his parliamentary speeches, began spreading violent propaganda—advocating for a military coup d'état, formulating a catastrophist discourse of

4950-511: The campaign in Asturias, had been seen as a left-leaning officer) emerged as officers prepared to use "troops against Spanish civilians as if they were a foreign enemy". Franco described the rebellion to a journalist in Oviedo as, "a frontier war and its fronts are socialism, communism and whatever attacks civilisation to replace it with barbarism." Though the colonial units sent to the north by

5060-430: The cargo came Soviet agents, technicians, instructors and propagandists. The Communist International immediately started to organise the International Brigades , volunteer military units which included the Garibaldi Brigade from Italy and the Lincoln Battalion from the United States. The International Brigades were usually deployed as shock troops , and as a result they suffered high casualties. In early August,

5170-456: The city and mobilize civilians for defense. Miaja was told to defend the capital "at all costs", an apparently hopeless assignment. In sealed orders, which Miaja opened after the politicians had left, he was given authority to create a Defense Council. The international press reported that Madrid would not be defended, and General Franco declared prematurely that the city had been liberated. Radio Lisbon even reported Franco's victorious entry into

5280-428: The city. On 7 November the first troops of Franco's Army of Africa reached the Casa de Campo on the edge of the city. Formation of the Madrid Defense Council was announced that day, By mandate of the political and trade union organizations, and in accordance with the order of the Government of the Republic, there has been constituted in Madrid a Junta of Defense. It is made up of all the organizations which form part of

5390-459: The clandestine structure of the party. However, he was arrested again, along with his girlfriend and her parents. He was admitted again to the Porlier prison. He and fourteen other people were tried in April 1943. They were accused of having tried to reorganize Communist Party groups and cells, of sabotage and attacks, and of various war crimes. Yagüe, with eleven of the accused, was sentenced to death and shot by firing squad on 19 May 1943 against

5500-428: The communist Security Delegate José Cazorla. The Defense Council was replaced by a new city council. The council members were: Francisco Franco Francisco Franco Bahamonde (4 December 1892 – 20 November 1975) was a Spanish military general who led the Nationalist forces in overthrowing the Second Spanish Republic during the Spanish Civil War and thereafter ruled over Spain from 1939 to 1975 as

5610-451: The congress, was finally successful in forcing the acceptance of three ministries. The entrance of CEDA in the government, despite being normal in a parliamentary democracy, was not well accepted by the left. The Socialists triggered an insurrection that they had been preparing for nine months. The leftist Republican parties did not directly join the insurrection, but their leadership issued statements that they were "breaking all relations" with

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5720-437: The council's decision to close the paper was proof that the POUM was fascist. After the fall of Málaga in February 1937 the junta launched a campaign to purge the army of appointees by Largo Caballero who resisted its authority. By April 1937 there was increasing tension between the CNT and the communists, and it seemed that the Socialists, Anarchists and Republicans were starting to form an anti-communist front. Largo Caballero

5830-421: The council. The anarcho-syndicalist CNT also readily joined the council, declaring "Long live Madrid without government!" The anti-Stalinist POUM ( Partido Obrero de Unificación Marxista , Workers' Party of Marxist Unification) was excluded from the council at the insistence of the communists. The POUM paper La Batalla claimed that the Soviet ambassador had intervened to have POUM excluded. Because most of

5940-402: The council. Miaja had been instructed that membership should include all parties "in proportion to their representation in the government." The communists gained more seats in the council than they should have on that basis. The PCE and the affiliated Unified Socialist Youth (JSU: Juventudes Socialistas Unificadas ) were the best organized groups with the most effective propaganda, and dominated

6050-403: The country. Franco was a subscriber to the journal of Acción Española , a monarchist organisation, and a firm believer in a supposed Jewish-Masonic-Bolshevik conspiracy, or contubernio (conspiracy). The conspiracy suggested that Jews, Freemasons, Communists, and other leftists alike sought the destruction of Christian Europe, with Spain being the principal target. On 5 February 1932, Franco

6160-442: The dictatorship of General Miguel Primo de Rivera and were therefore discredited in some nationalist circles, and Falangist leader José Antonio Primo de Rivera was in prison in Alicante (he would be executed a few months later). The desire to keep a place open for him prevented any other Falangist leader from emerging as a possible head of state. Franco's previous aloofness from politics meant that he had few active enemies in any of

6270-405: The discontent in the Spanish Republican Army , but received no reply. The other rebels were determined to go ahead con Paquito o sin Paquito (with Paquito or without Paquito ; Paquito being a diminutive of Paco , which in turn is short for Francisco ), as it was put by José Sanjurjo , the honorary leader of the military uprising. After various postponements, 18 July was fixed as the date of

6380-509: The end of the monarchy, he did not object, nor did he challenge the legitimacy of the republic. The closing of the academy in June by the provisional War Minister Manuel Azaña however was a major setback for Franco and provoked his first clash with the Spanish Republic . Azaña found Franco's farewell speech to the cadets insulting. In his speech Franco stressed the Republic's need for discipline and respect. Azaña entered an official reprimand into Franco's personnel file and for six months Franco

6490-446: The factions that needed to be placated, and he had also cooperated in recent months with both Germany and Italy. Pablo Yag%C3%BCe Pablo Yagüe Estebaranz ( c.  1909 – 19 May 1943) was a Spanish trade union leader and communist politician. During the Spanish Civil War (1936–39) he was briefly in charge of Supplies for the Madrid Defense Council , before being shot and badly wounded at an Anarchist roadblock. After

6600-415: The field. After two weeks of heavy fighting (and a death toll estimated between 1,200 and 2,000), the rebellion was suppressed. The insurgency in Asturias in October 1934 sparked a new era of violent anti-Christian persecutions with the massacre of 34 priests, initiating the practice of atrocities against the clergy, and sharpened the antagonism between Left and Right. Franco and López Ochoa (who, prior to

6710-520: The government at Franco's recommendation consisted of the Spanish Foreign Legion and the Moroccan Regulares Indigenas, the right-wing press portrayed the Asturian rebels as lackeys of a foreign Jewish-Bolshevik conspiracy. With this rebellion against legitimate established political authority, the socialists also repudiated the representative institutional system as the anarchists had done. The Spanish historian Salvador de Madariaga , an Azaña supporter, and an exiled vocal opponent of Francisco Franco

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6820-481: The government evacuated to Valencia . The Political Bureau of the PCE remained in Madrid, unlike the leaders of the other parties. Pedro Checa and Antonio Mije negotiated with General José Miaja for participation of the Communists in Madrid Defense Council ( Junta de Defensa de Madrid ). The communists were given three ministries, War, Supplies and Public Order, which were to be led by Antonio Mije, Pablo Yagüe and Santiago Carrillo , respectively. Yagüe represented

6930-401: The head of the Abwehr military intelligence service, persuaded Hitler to support the Nationalists; Hitler sent 20 Ju 52 transport aircraft and six Heinkel biplane fighters, on the condition that they were not to be used in hostilities unless the Republicans attacked first. Mussolini sent 12 Savoia-Marchetti SM.81 transport/bombers, and a few fighter aircraft. From 20 July onward Franco

7040-409: The head of the column at the town of Maqueda (some 80 km away from Madrid), Franco ordered a detour to free the besieged garrison at the Alcázar of Toledo , which was achieved on 27 September. This controversial decision gave the Popular Front time to strengthen its defences in Madrid and hold the city that year, but with Soviet support. Kennan alleges that once Stalin had decided to assist

7150-406: The heartland of Abd el-Krim's tribe, combined with the French invasion from the south, spelled the beginning of the end for the short-lived Republic of the Rif . Franco was eventually recognised for his leadership, and he was promoted to brigadier general on 3 February 1926, making him the youngest general in Europe at age 33, according to Payne and Palacios. On 14 September 1926, Franco and Polo had

7260-412: The idealised man Franco wished his father had been. Conversely, Franco strongly identified with his mother (who always wore widow's black once she realised her husband had abandoned her) and learned from her moderation, austerity, self-control, family solidarity and respect for Catholicism, though he would also inherit his father's harshness, coldness and implacability. Francisco followed his father into

7370-524: The importance of the primary goal of defending the "democratic republic" and defeating the rebels, and attacked revolutionaries who wanted radical social and political changes. They wanted a centralized military force, and expected women to leave the front and replace men in the farms and factories. This was counter to the beliefs of some parts of the CNT and of the Trotskyist POUM, who demanded changes such as collective ownership of all means of production. On 29 January 1937 Isidoro Diéguez Dueñas proposed that

7480-430: The important posts, and were strong in the Propaganda and Press department. The German communist Kurt Hager , alias Félix Albin, was head of the official Radio Madrid . The communists gained prestige and influence from the contribution of the International Brigades and the supply of tanks, airplanes and advisers that began to be delivered from the Soviet Union . The council became the de facto government of Madrid. It

7590-413: The king, who reversed it. Franco also received the Cross of Maria Cristina, First Class . With that he was promoted to major at the end of February 1917 at age 24. This made him the youngest major in the Spanish army. From 1917 to 1920, he served in Spain. In 1920, Lieutenant Colonel José Millán Astray , a histrionic but charismatic officer, founded the Spanish Foreign Legion , along similar lines as

7700-558: The leading politicians had left the city, the members of the council were, as Vicente Rojo Lluch wrote, mostly "young men who had voluntarily decided to remain in the city ready to participate actively in its defense." According to a group of parliamentarians from Britain who visited Madrid early in the struggle, "The Civil Government seems to be largely in the hands of young men, sometimes barely of age. They are enthusiastic working-class lads mostly, who appear to be honestly and energetically trying to do their best." The communists held most of

7810-426: The main planner of the attempted coup that had now degenerated into a civil war, and was strongly identified with the Carlist monarchists and not at all with the Falange , a party with Fascist leanings and connections ("phalanx", a far-right Spanish political party founded by José Antonio Primo de Rivera ), nor did he have good relations with Germany. Queipo de Llano and Cabanellas had both previously rebelled against

7920-427: The majority of the municipalities in Spain but had a landslide victory in all the large cities and in almost all the provincial capitals. The monarchists and the army deserted Alfonso XIII and consequently the king decided to leave the country and go into exile, giving way to the Second Spanish Republic . Although Franco believed that the majority of the Spanish people still supported the crown, and although he regretted

8030-422: The newly formed regulares : Moroccan colonial troops with Spanish officers, who acted as elite shock troops . In 1916, aged 23 with the rank of captain, Franco was shot in the abdomen by guerrilla gunfire during an assault on Moroccan positions at El Biutz , in the hills near Ceuta; this was the only time he was wounded in ten years of fighting. The wound was serious, and he was not expected to live. His recovery

8140-516: The process was blatant electoral fraud, with widespread violation of the laws and the constitution. In line with Payne's point of view, in 2017 two Spanish scholars, Manuel Álvarez Tardío and Roberto Villa García published the result of a major research work in which they concluded that the 1936 elections were rigged, a view disputed by Paul Preston, and other scholars such as Iker Itoiz Ciáurriz, who denounces their conclusions as revisionist "classic Francoist anti-republican tropes". On 19 February,

8250-626: The ranks to become a brigadier general in 1926 at age 33. Two years later, Franco became the director of the General Military Academy in Zaragoza . As a conservative and monarchist , Franco regretted the abolition of the monarchy and the establishment of the Second Republic in 1931, and was devastated by the closing of his academy; nevertheless, he continued his service in the Republican Army . His career

8360-538: The rebel advance was halted. By 23 November a stalemate had been reached, with both sides exhausted. Miaja, a conservative but also a republican loyalist, was very close to the Spanish Communist Party ( Partido Comunista Español , PCE), whose propaganda made him a symbol of Madrid's resistance to Fascism. Many later claimed that Miaja was himself a PCE member. Pedro Checa and Antonio Mije arranged with Miaja for strong representation of Communists in

8470-596: The revolutionaries in Mieres and Sama , 58 religious buildings including churches, convents and part of the university at Oviedo were burned and destroyed, and over 100 priests were killed in the diocese. Franco, already General of Division and aide to the war minister, Diego Hidalgo , was put in command of the operations directed to suppress the violent insurgency. Troops of the Spanish Army of Africa carried this out, with General Eduardo López Ochoa as commander in

8580-466: The same district. As the siege took effect, he had to deal with upward pressure on prices. The Defense Council was restructured and renamed the Junta Delegada de Defensa de Madrid , or the Delegate Defense Council of Madrid, to comply with an order of 25 November 1936 by Largo Caballero. This was to affirm that the council was subordinate to the government. After the change of name the members were called Delegates rather than Councillors. On 2 December 1936

8690-542: The same time, his regime transitioned from a totalitarian state to an authoritarian one with limited pluralism . He became a leader in the anti-communist movement, garnering support from the West , particularly the United States . As the dictatorship relaxed its hard-line policies, Luis Carrero Blanco became Franco's éminence grise , whose role expanded after Franco began struggling with Parkinson's disease in

8800-596: The situation in western Andalucia was stable enough to allow Franco to organise a column (some 15,000 men at its height), under the command of then Lieutenant-Colonel Juan Yagüe , which would march through Extremadura towards Madrid. On 11 August Mérida was taken , and on 15 August Badajoz , thus joining both nationalist-controlled areas. Additionally, Mussolini ordered a voluntary army, the Corpo Truppe Volontarie (CTV) of fully motorised units (some 12,000 Italians), to Seville, and Hitler added to them

8910-411: The time civil war began, Franco had already become a major general and would soon be a generalissimo , while none of his higher-ranking fellow cadets had managed to get beyond the rank of lieutenant-colonel. Franco was promoted to the rank of first lieutenant in June 1912 at age 19. Two years later, he obtained a commission to Morocco. Spanish efforts to occupy the new African protectorate provoked

9020-540: The uprising. The situation reached a point of no return and as presented to Franco by Mola, the coup was unavoidable, and he had to choose a side. He decided to join the rebels and was given the task of commanding the Army of Africa . A privately owned DH 89 De Havilland Dragon Rapide , flown by two British pilots, Cecil Bebb and Hugh Pollard , was chartered in England on 11 July to take Franco to Africa. The coup underway

9130-620: The war he lived in hiding in Spain for some time, then was arrested, tried and executed. Pablo Yagüe Estebaranz was born in Condado de Castilnovo in 1909 or 1910. He moved to Madrid in search of work and found employment delivering bread. In 1925 he joined the Bakery union affiliated with the Unión General de Trabajadores (UGT, General Union of Workers), in which he reached managerial positions between 1933 and 1935. In 1930 he joined

9240-642: The war, rape , torture , and summary executions committed by soldiers under Franco's command were used as a means of retaliation and to repress political dissent. The war was marked by foreign intervention on behalf of both sides. Franco's Nationalists were supported by Fascist Italy , which sent the Corpo Truppe Volontarie and by Nazi Germany , which sent the Condor Legion . Italian aircraft stationed on Majorca bombed Barcelona 13 times, dropping 44 tons of bombs aimed at civilians. These attacks were requested by General Franco as retribution against

9350-694: The world quickly launched a full scale propaganda campaign in support of the Popular Front. The Communist International (Comintern) immediately reinforced its activity, sending to Spain its Secretary-General, the Bulgarian Georgi Dimitrov , and the Italian Palmiro Togliatti , chief of the Communist Party of Italy . From August onward, aid from the Soviet Union began; by February 1937 two ships per day arrived at Spain's Mediterranean ports carrying munitions, rifles, machine guns, hand grenades, artillery, and trucks. With

9460-446: Was a naval officer and diplomat who married María Isabel Pascual del Pobil. Ramón was an internationally known aviator and a Freemason , originally with leftist political leanings. He was also the second sibling to die, killed in an air accident on a military mission in 1938. Franco's father was a naval officer who reached the rank of vice admiral ( intendente general ). When Franco was fourteen, his father moved to Madrid following

9570-458: Was a premeditated attack, caused by the hostility of the anarchists, who had interfered in the distribution of food in collectivized establishments. The incident led to fighting and retaliatory actions in Madrid between communists and anarcho-syndicalists that took the life of several militants on both sides. Those involved, who were arrested after the incident by forces of Santiago Carrillo's Delegation of Public Order, were eventually acquitted by

9680-459: Was able, with this small squadron of aircraft, to initiate an air bridge that carried 1,500 soldiers of the Army of Africa to Seville , where these troops helped to ensure rebel control of the city. He successfully negotiated with Germany, and Italy for more military support, and above all for more aircraft. On 25 July aircraft began to arrive in Tetouan and on 5 August Franco was able to break

9790-465: Was above his rank, but Franco was still unhappy that he was stuck in a position he disliked. The prime minister wrote in his diary that it was probably more prudent to have Franco away from Madrid. In 1932, the Jesuits, who were in charge of many schools throughout the country, were banned and had all their property confiscated. The army was further reduced, and landowners were expropriated. Home rule

9900-478: Was arrested and interned in Porlier prison. Yagüe was in Porlier prison when Madrid fell into the hands of General Francisco Franco 's troops, resulting in the end of the civil war. However, he was released on 23 September 1941 without being brought to trial. He hid in the house of Alicia Martinez, whom he had known during the civil war and with whom he had a relationship, without getting involved in rebuilding

10010-528: Was based in the War Ministry. Santiago Carrillo , Councillor of Public Order, appointed five of his closest associates to the key positions in his department. All were communist party members, or would join soon after. The communists soon had full control of the police. Pablo Yagüe 's first action as Councillor of Supplies was to impose controls that limited shoppers to buying food at one store. If supplies there were exhausted they could try other stores in

10120-488: Was boosted after the right-wing CEDA and PRR won the 1933 election , empowering him to lead the suppression of the 1934 uprising in Asturias . Franco was briefly elevated to Chief of Army Staff before the 1936 election moved the leftist Popular Front into power, relegating him to the Canary Islands . Initially reluctant, he joined the July 1936 military coup , which, after failing to take Spain, sparked

10230-885: Was born on 4 December 1892 in the Calle Frutos Saavedra in Ferrol , Galicia, into a seafaring family. He was baptised thirteen days later at the military church of San Francisco, with the baptismal name Francisco Paulino Hermenegildo Teódulo. After relocating to Galicia , the Franco family was involved in the Spanish Navy , and over the span of two centuries produced naval officers for six uninterrupted generations (including several admirals), down to Franco's father Nicolás Franco Salgado-Araújo  [ es ] (22 November 1855 – 22 February 1942). His mother, María del Pilar Bahamonde y Pardo de Andrade  [ gl ] (15 October 1865 – 28 February 1934),

10340-560: Was contacted, and a secret meeting was held within La Esperanza forest on Tenerife to discuss starting a military coup. An obelisk (which has subsequently been removed) commemorating this historic meeting was erected at the site in a clearing at Las Raíces in Tenerife. Outwardly, Franco maintained an ambiguous attitude until nearly July. On 23 June 1936, he wrote to the head of the government, Casares Quiroga , offering to quell

10450-439: Was decided that Franco was to be commander-in-chief (this unified command was opposed only by Cabanellas), and, after some discussion, with no more than a lukewarm agreement from Queipo de Llano and from Mola, also head of government. He was, doubtlessly, helped to this primacy by the fact that, in late July, Hitler had decided that all of Germany's aid to the Nationalists would go to Franco. Mola had been somewhat discredited as

10560-656: Was feeling increasingly isolated, and resented the public acclaim of Miaja's success. He dissolved the council on 23 April 1937. The pretext was an article in the CNT journal Solidaridad Obera that disclosed that the JSU, which was responsible for public order, had closed an anarchist paper in which Melchor Rodríguez García , Director of Prisons in Madrid, had revealed that the Communists were operating secret prisons. Rodríguez had published details of torture in these prisons, and blamed

10670-569: Was from an upper-middle-class Roman Catholic family. Her father, Ladislao Bahamonde Ortega, was the commissar of naval equipment at the Port of El Ferrol . Franco's parents married in 1890 in the Church of San Francisco in El Ferrol. The young Franco spent much of his childhood with his two brothers, Nicolás and Ramón , and his two sisters, María del Pilar and María de la Paz. His brother Nicolás

10780-599: Was given a command in A Coruña . Franco avoided involvement in José Sanjurjo 's attempted coup that year, and even wrote a hostile letter to Sanjurjo expressing his anger over the attempt. As a result of Azaña's military reform , in January 1933 Franco was relegated from first to 24th in the list of brigadiers. The same year, on 17 February he was given the military command of the Balearic Islands . The post

10890-455: Was granted to Catalonia, with a local parliament and a president of its own. In June 1933 Pope Pius XI issued the encyclical Dilectissima Nobis (Our Dearly Beloved), "On Oppression of the Church of Spain", in which he criticised the anti-clericalism of the Republican government. The elections held in October 1933 resulted in a centre-right majority. The political party with the most votes

11000-492: Was issued to disarm militiamen who did not have a permit from the Public Order Delegate, but the Council rejected the decree. On 16 January 1937 the Council reorganized its propaganda department to give it greater control over censorship, exhibitions and posters. Most of the posters were produced by the UGT's Sindicato de Dibujantes Profesionales (Union of Professional Draftsmen). The council's posters stressed

11110-488: Was itself split into two columns, one commanded by General Juan Yagüe and the other commanded by Colonel José Varela . From 24 July a coordinating junta , the National Defence Junta , was established, based at Burgos . Nominally led by Cabanellas, as the most senior general, it initially included Mola, three other generals, and two colonels; Franco was later added in early August. On 21 September it

11220-413: Was precipitated by the assassination of the right-wing opposition leader Calvo Sotelo in retaliation for the murder of assault guard José Castillo , which had been committed by a group headed by a civil guard and composed of assault guards and members of the socialist militias. On 17 July, one day earlier than planned, the Army of Africa rebelled, detaining their commanders. On 18 July, Franco published

11330-691: Was proclaimed by Catalan nationalist leader Lluis Companys , but it lasted just ten hours. Despite an attempt at a general stoppage in Madrid , other strikes did not endure. This left the striking Asturian miners to fight alone. In several mining towns in Asturias, local unions gathered small arms and were determined to see the strike through. It began on the evening of 4 October, with the miners occupying several towns, attacking and seizing local Civil and Assault Guard barracks. Thirty-four priests, six young seminarists with ages between 18 and 21, and several businessmen and civil guards were summarily executed by

11440-406: Was seen by his Moroccan troops as a spiritual event – they believed Franco to be blessed with baraka or protected by God. He was recommended for promotion to major and to receive Spain's highest honour for gallantry, the coveted Cruz Laureada de San Fernando . Both proposals were denied, with the 23-year-old Franco's young age being given as the reason for denial. Franco appealed the decision to

11550-513: Was sent to the Canary Islands to serve as the islands' military commander, an appointment perceived by him as a destierro (banishment). Meanwhile, a conspiracy led by General Mola was taking shape. Interested in the parliamentary immunity granted by a seat at the Cortes, Franco intended to stand as candidate of the Right Bloc alongside José Antonio Primo de Rivera for the by-election in

11660-408: Was short and was bullied for his small size. His grades were average; though his good memory meant he seldom struggled academically, his small stature was a hindrance in physical tests. He graduated in July 1910 as a second lieutenant, standing 251st out of 312 cadets in his class, though this might have had less to do with his grades than with his small size and young age. Stanley Payne observes that by

11770-460: Was shot in the back. Due to the severity of his wounds, Yagüe was relieved as a member of the Council and replaced by Luis Nieto de la Fuente, his deputy. On 24 December General Miaja proclaimed that militias should withdraw from all checkpoints around and within the city, to be replaced by Security and Assault Guards. There were various incidents where CNT or PCE members were found dead in the streets with their membership cards in their mouths. A decree

11880-550: Was the Confederación Español de Derechas Autónomas ("CEDA"), but president Alcalá-Zamora declined to invite the leader of the CEDA, Gil Robles, to form a government. Instead, he invited the Radical Republican Party 's Alejandro Lerroux to do so. Despite receiving the most votes, CEDA was denied cabinet positions for nearly a year. After a year of intense pressure, CEDA, the largest party in

11990-419: Was to affirm that the council was subordinate to the government. On 2 December 1936 the Defense Council reconvened with Miaja as chairman. Isidoro Diéguez was now Militias delegate, Yagüe retained Supplies and Carrillo retained Public Order. On 23 December 1936 Yagüe was stopped at three in the afternoon at a roadblock while traveling out of Madrid on official business. The block was run by anarchists guarding

12100-478: Was without a post and under surveillance. In December 1931, a new reformist, liberal, and democratic constitution was declared. It included strong provisions enforcing a broad secularisation of the Catholic country, which included the abolishing of Catholic schools and charities, which many moderate committed Catholics opposed. At this point, once the constituent assembly had fulfilled its mandate of approving

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