1936 - Spanish Civil War
A military coup escalates the tension in a divided nation, pitting Nationalists against Republicans and plunging Spain into a bitter civil war lasting from July 1936 to April 1939
Spanish politics and society during the early 20th Century was riven with discord and strife, and the country was divided along many lines - socio-economic, urban-rural, religion, tradition-modernity and more. There were many opposing forces in Spain, and those with different visions for the country were viewed as irrational and ill-equipped to wield power. Tensions reached boiling point when a new government was voted on in February of 1936.
The incoming government had promised to introduce a host of land reforms which would alter Spain’s land utilization strategies, a policy which appeared to be beneficial for the public. The military wing, however, was not happy with the planned changes and began planning the best course of action to resist them. As the rest of the country celebrated the concluded elections, the military was deeply worried about the oncoming reforms, and carried out a coup on July 18th.
At the outbreak of the revolt, Spanish Morocco, the Canary Islands, Galicia, Navarra and parts of Castille and Aragón immediately sided with the new military rebels. However, due to either lack of communication or division of thought, not all the garrisons and their officers joined.
In Madrid the intervention of the public kept the garrison loyal to the left-wing government. General Goded failed equally in Barcelona and was shot, whilethe leader of the coup, General Sanjurjo, died when his plane crashed on take-off in Portugal. This situation left in the field three very independent leaders, the Generals Franco, Mola and Queipo, who by not winning or losing created a division in Spain's population, forcing it to either support the elected government or the army uprising.
The rebel army now only held five large cities and a quarter of the mainland. The government had the backing of about 75 per cent of the industry and commerce sectors, plus a sizable section from the rest of the army and the important security forces. Fortunately for Franco and his fellow conspirators, the government leaders in Madrid failed to arm its civilian supporters, or maintain a united policy, with each party or Union taking power into their own hands.
Catalonia came under the rule of both the Generalitat and the CNT party; the Basques were as divided as elsewhere, and at the same time considered once again that they were a state independent from Madrid. Confusion led to wild propaganda, with the result that people took to the streets keenly fuelled with horrific stories and half-truths. 500 inhabitants of Ronda in Andalucía were murdered, and hundreds of churches were burnt or ransacked while thousands of clergy were slaughtered. But this was only the beginning of the indiscriminate or mass killings committed by both sides in the Civil War.
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