Spanish Civil War Practicing for WW II

IB Questions… Paper 2 Topic 1 What were the most frequent causes of 20 th century wars? Specific evidence from at least three wars should be used (2003) Examine the impact of foreign intervention on either the Chinese Civil War or the Spanish Civil War (2005) Assess the social and economic causes of one 20 th Century war (2005) Compare & contrast the causes of two 20 th Century Civil Wars (2009) Analyse the reasons for, and the results of, either the Spanish Civil War ( ) or the Chinese Civil War ( ) (2010)

Spain before 1930 Large estates owned by the wealthy—latifundia who dominated society Spanish-American War King Alphonso XIII ( ) General Miguel Primo de Rivera in charge of government as a dictator ; his government collapsed due to the Great Depression

General Miguel Primo de Rivera Poor peasants wanted land reform Workers formed socialist labor unions Anarchists wanted to overthrow the government… were the strongest among the poor Separatist movements in Basque area and Catalonia Rivera came to power in a coup—king then made him Prime Minister

Rivera ruled by martial law, strict censorship, banned all political parties, but gave women the right to vote In 1920s built and improved highways, railroad and hydroelectric projects Used public works projects to reduce unemployment; financed by loans; led to high inflation Lost support of the army and forced to step down in 1930

1931… Republicans won local elections King Alphonso went to France into exile Spain became a Republic led by socialists & liberals Jesuits were dissolved; separation of Church & State Poor peasants promised land On one hand, Church, army, landowners upset with reforms On the other hand, anarchists said reforms did not go far enough

Republican Spain Land surveyed in anticipation of land reform Reforms of military to cut costs and because military was seen as opposing reforms Army had huge number of officers… 1 of every 6 men were officers; about 566 generals Government offered voluntary retirement with full pay Army upset because did not want civilian interference in running the army

1930s Elections Anarchists organized violent strikes and riots; burned Churches People began not to support the Republican government 1934… right-wing government came into power; coal miners went on strike; government sent army led by Franco to put down the strike, which the army did very savagely… 1000 killed, 3000 wounded The violence created sympathy for the Left

1936 socialists took power in a Popular Front government Government included republicans, socialists, communists and anarchists They were called Republicans or Loyalists Church leaders, army & landowners came together against the Government. Rivera’s son created Spain’s fascist party… Falange in 1933 They were also called Nationalists

Francisco Franco Born 1892 Father was naval officer Mother from upper-middle class conservative Catholic family At age 14 entered the Infantry Academy Was successful leader in the army Was not a Fascist, but used Falange to help gain power

When the Republican government adopted an anti-military policy in 1931, Franco’s career came to a halt He was placed on the inactive list but was back in the army in 1933 The 1936 Popular Front government was unable to solve social & economic problems The anarchy convinced Franco to ask the government to declare a state of emergency The government refused and sent Franco to the Canary Islands, to an obscure military post

Civil War Franco decided to join a rebellion against the government The air force and navy stayed loyal to the Popular Front government Franco went to Morocco first and gained control there Then he went to mainland Spain, with the help of Mussolini, and marched to Madrid Just before attacking Madrid, the military chose Franco to be Generalissimo & to head the Nationalist government

Franco was chosen by the military because Had exemplary military record & ability No involvement in the political fighting or conspiracies of the 1930s Franco had the ability to gain aid from Hitler and Mussolini Was supported by anti-left middle classes

Hitler Chance to test tactics and equipment Tested the first Stukas; German air force in Spain was called the Condor Legion German pilots and technicians rotated out every 6 months 20,000 fought as Germans and paid by Germany, not by Franco After Franco gained areas of Spain containing iron and copper ores in 1937, he traded those items for aid Continued war kept France & Britain’s attention off of German rearmament

Guernica (1937) by Pablo Picasso

Mussolini Italian air force provided cover for Franco to get from Morocco to Spain and continued to help throughout the war Submarines attacked neutral or Russian ships bringing aid to the Republican government 80,000 troops and Blackshirts fought as their own separate units… Corpo Truppe Volontaire (CTV)… separate from the Spanish

Other volunteers Franco insisted there were few foreigners who came to help other than Germany, Italy & Portugal He portrayed his side as Spanish nationalists fighting against “Red Europe & Moscow”; that his army were Spanish nationalists fighting against foreigners Franco blamed Republican resistance on influences from Communists and Bolsheviks Groups that did help Franco were small in number (est ) and played a minor military role

A major problem for groups attempting to help Franco was language differences and cultural differences. Groups who came to help Franco… White Russians Romanians Irish French and Belgian Catholics Felt professional respect for German military skills, but did not want give any credit for victories Franco did not really want and did not seek volunteer help

USSR Sent aid to the Republican government; Rep government paid for aid using gold supplies Tested tanks and air craft Stalin did not want to be very involved in the Civil War, but needed to show support for the Republican government for ideological reasons Did not want Franco to win… would free German troops for possible attack on Russia Spanish Civil War weakened France’s government, so that Hitler did not need to have a lot of troops on his western border

USSR & Mexico only two countries to sell weapons to Republican Spain International Brigades helped the Republican government Abraham Lincoln Brigade… 2,800 American volunteers; fought Eventually 35,000 to 40,000 people from approx. 55 countries helped the Republic; approx. 100 aviators from the USSR

Britain British workers supported the Republican govt Officially, the British government was neutral Many in the government privately supported Franco The government was afraid the Civil War would lead to a European wide war

France Like Republican Spain, France also had a Popular Front government. At the very beginning, France provided some planes to the Republicans, but then determined to follow a policy of Non-intervention. France did not want to lose Britain’s support. Catholics in France upset by reports of Spanish Republican government destroying monasteries and killing nuns.

Non-Intervention Committee Sept Set up Sept. 1936, led by Great Britain & France 25 countries joined Instituted policy to prevent foreign intervention in the Spanish Civil War Goal was to isolate the war to only the Iberian Pen. Made the LoN look even more ineffective because the Committee took leadership role away from the League

A war of “firsts”… Considered by some to be the first stand against Fascism First saturation bombing… at Guernica First time western powers tolerated a dictator in the cause of fighting communism First use of “carpet bombing”… created by Germany

Early Stages of the war

1936 Barcelona 1936 Defense of Madrid

Republican troops at battle west of Madrid 1937 Tanks are Russian, car is 1937 Ford

Why did Franco & the Nationalists win? Resistance of Spanish people was strong… had hoped to capture Madrid quickly, but took three years But, Franco had… Help from Germany & Italy… controlled the skies Non-intervention of western democracies—USA, Britain, France After capture of Guernica and Bilbao in the Basque country, gained possession of rich industrial resources

Results of the Spanish Civil War More than 700,000 lost in battle 30,000 executed, assassinated, murdered 15,000 killed in air raids

Franco’s government With fall of Madrid in 1939, Franco finally in charge of Spain Set up an authoritarian state based on a military model; conservative caudillo Officially out of WW II Troops fought with Germany in Russia As ruler, defended privileges of the army, landowners & church. Favored businessmen As ruler, support based on anti-left middle class

SOURCES Keene, Judith. Fighting for Franco—International Volunteers in Nationalist Spain During the Spanish Civil War, Leicester Univ. Press: London, 2001.