IV. Fascism’s State of Survival in Spain Francisco Franco’s past reveals much about the ideals behind the little man who led a catastrophic regime change and was responsible for large reforms in Spain, including mass deaths to restricting the institutions of Spain. At only 5’4” Franco was a looming character who gained the respect and fear of the people he led with global uncertain animosity from democratic nations. Franco came from a long line of naval officers, with service, order, and tradition that were traits he deemed essential in life and government. Military leadership was deep-rooted in Franco’s personal background, which fashioned the infamous persona he would become notorious for. Establishing himself early as one the youngest …show more content…
Franco craved tradition and order regardless of the cost or the will of the people it was impacting. His strict application of Spain-exclusive Fascism supported the long sustaining Fascist rule. Peter Preston authored The Spanish Holocaust Inquisition and Extermination in Twentieth-Century Spain in which he notes the atrocities which occurred in Spain were over looked or unknown by many people of the time despite its historical significance. “In quashing democracy and timid agricultural reform, and in restoring the traditional hierarchy of the Roman Catholic Church, the army, big landowners and an authoritarian state, the Spanish version of fascism was very much a fundamentalist movement.”(Hochschild- Process of Extermination) Preston notes although Spanish Fascism did not have the stigmatism of the Holocaust attached to it or the numbers to compare, Spain and Franco’s Fascism should be recognized for its impressive ability to stay operable after the downfall of Fascism in Europe after the War. He attributes this success to Franco as a leader. One of the best explanations of Franco and his intentions is described in the Country Study of Spain commissioned by …show more content…
His pragmatic goal was to maintain power in order to keep what he termed the "anti-Spain" forces from gaining ascendancy.” (Solsen- Spain:The Franco Years) Fascist ideals gradually integrated into Spanish society through intellectual conversations, universities, religious institutions and military circles, which then inspired leaders like Franco to emerge. Fascism did not have the negative twenty-first century connotation and association the ideology now represents. During World War II in Spain, Spaniards were more worried about the devastation of the civil war and economic instability of its nation to realize it was also becoming indoctrinated similarly, as the crumbling German and Italians were. Francisco Franco was an insightful, horrific thinker and leader capable of maintaining power through dictatorship during a tumultuous period in history, when all other leaders of his kind were destroyed. The politicizing of religion is a fascinating theorem with regard to Spanish, because of the undeniable influence of a supreme leader over the mass populous. Catholicism united the Spanish people with Franco’s cause, as a devout catholic for the restoration of Spanish glory with the
These were pivotal times in the annals of world history in the 20th century. Mussolini and Hitler’s rise to power was clearly a threat to the freedoms of the United States and its Allies. Through God’s grace and omnipotence, the US alliance, industrialization and intellectual might, we had the resources required to overcome the fierce and mighty threat of Fascism in the Free World.
Francisco Franco (1892-1975) was a lifelong military leader. He rose through the ranks until the early 1930s, when he found himself, a right-wing monarchist, in the middle of a left-wing republic. He was demoted, but later rose up again, and by 1935 he had been named chief of staff of the Spanish Army, a position he used to get rid of left-wing figures and their military institutions. When the left- wing social and economic structure of Spain began to fall, Franco joined the rebellion. He soon led an uprising and took control of Spain after the Spanish Civil War (1939). From then unti...
In the early 1900’s, one man bested the rival troops and used his intelligence to defeat the oppressive Mexican regime. Doroteo Arango Arámbula, also known as Pancho Villa, was born into a poor family and worked in the fields. Pancho Villa escalated from a peasant outlaw into a well-known revolutionary war strategist and folk hero. Pancho Villa could easily outsmart troops and use his popularity to help his cause for equality. His actions could not atone for any previous transgressions in his life of crime, but his tactics as a revolutionary war commander made him almost unstoppable when it came to fighting for equality.
To understand why Fascism gained such popularity after WWI, it is essential to find a working definition of what Fascism actually is. According to Benito Mussolini and his document What is Fascism, Fascism is “the conception of the state, its character, its duty, and its aim.” It is concerned primarily and totally with the affairs of state rather than those of the individual. The chief duty of a man in a Fascist nation is to do what he can to elevate the state to higher power or assist the state in whatever means necessary in its goals. As is evident to anyone studying this period in history, Fascism “repudiates the doctrine of Pacifism…” meaning that it is most certainly not afraid to use force or war to accomplish its objectives. A Fascist, especially a male Fascist, aspires to be a hero to his country and an ally to the state or nation of which he is a part. A woman ...
Fascism --a political philosophy that exalts nation and often race above the individual-- lays the underpinnings for the Nazi regimen. Ipso facto, it is not unfo...
Fascism is one of the great political ideology in the 20th century. It is a kind of authoritarian government that, according to Wikipedia, “considers the individual subordinate to the interests of the state, party or society as a whole.” Two of the most successful and to be in the vanguard of fascism government is Italian fascism – led by Benito Mussolini, and Nazi Germany – led by Adolf Hitler. Fascism in Italy and Germany, though in many regards very similar - have the same political ideologies, still have many aspects to them that make them different from each other.
In the year 1939 the formidable General Francisco Franco rose to power during a time of government and economic struggle in Spain. He contained an ability that he began to develop and strengthen, allowing him to easily and efficiently take control of a situation, all while growing into a natural, very influential leader. His striking tactics of manipulation and articulate speech were cultivated from a young age, transformed into what would become mechanisms of terror. Due to a life that was submerged into the military and the path taken because of his specific division of the army, Franco developed these characteristics of a dictator, using them to accomplish a complete takeover of Spain’s civilization by whatever means necessary; the country was then plunged into a whirlwind of political, economic, and social struggles but also improvements that would continue to alternate until his death.
The character of Demetrio Macias proves to be quite ironic. One facet of his character reveals his determination to find Pancho Villa’s army, while the other side of his character parallels the extraordinary qualities Pancho Villa had as a hero. People viewed Pancho Villa as a revered hero who pushed out foreign "proprietors" and fought for the common man. On one hand, there is the compassionate man who helped those in need and rescued orphans providing them with food, education, and a home. On the other hand, there was the ferocious general who destroyed villages and killed innocent victims. Villa was generous and helpful to his followers, of which he insisted on loyalty and trust, but to those who violated his trust and authority, he was merciless and cruel. We can clearly see the similarities of these two leaders when we analyze their noble actions. Demetrio’s reluctance to stop ...
Franco quickly climbed the ranks of the Spanish Army. He gained a reputation of being a disciplined, honest, and dedicated soldier who was strictly professional. He was promoted to first lieutenant of an elite regiment when he was only 20 years old. He became the youngest captain in the Spanish Army in 1915 at the unprecedented age of 22. He then became second in command to General Jose Millan Astray of the Spanish Foreign Legion in ...
This paper will attempt to accurately examine the development of the Spanish Inquisition, from the spread of the Inquisition into the Spanish territories through the ultimate upheaval, and the initial dissolvement, of the authority it held over the public who feared it. It will endeavor to show the implications of the Spanish Inquisition and how it was ultimately used as a device in its own undoing. Such an examination helps to explain the use of Church authority in secular governing, and later the separating of the Church from the crown. The paper will also take a closer look at this racial injustice in an attempt helping to see just how this may happen again if not understood and foreseen.
Fascism is defined as, “an authoritarian and nationalistic right-wing system of government and social organization.” Peter Hyland reports that throughout the 1920s and the 1930s, an economic depression was growing and becoming widespread throughout the world. People were losing faith in their democracies and in capitalism. Leaders who gained power supported powerful militarism, nationalism, and initiated the return of an authoritarian rule. J.R. Oppenheimer says that the rise of fascism and totalitarianism in Europe and Russia instigated a “critical step on the path to war.” In 1922, Benito Mussolini held leadership in Italy, promising a proficient and militaristic nationalistic state. During his control as prime minister, he gained a large group of followers, banned the disparagement of government, and used extreme violence against his enemies within the parliament.
In order to understand the effects of the Spanish Civil War, the atmosphere of Spain prior to 1936 needs to be understood as well. Spain, unlike major European powers, never experienced a bourgeois revolution and was therefore still dominated by a significant aristocracy. However, Spain had gone through several civil wars and revolutions making violence one of the most common devices for change. It, also, had undergone several cycles of reform, reaction from the opposition, and reversal by military uprising led by a dictator before 1936 (Preston 18).
It was during the 1920’s to the 1940’s that totalitarian control over the state escalated into full dictatorships, with the wills of the people being manipulated into a set of beliefs that would promote the fascist state and “doctrines”.
The conflict that arose in the 1930s and 40s in Spain can be defined as the struggle between the two ideologies of Spanish society; the traditionalists who wanted to hold on to conservative catholic values and the republicans who sought to embrace the wave of progressive modernism that had already swept through most of the western world. Spain was once the world’s most powerful empire, but due to clashing political beliefs, a broken and ever changing political system, and a destroyed economy, by the late 1800s it had fallen apart into a divided country where chaos ruled. Thousands lived in complete poverty and misery, working jobs that could not support their growing families. Infant mortality skyrocketed as the economy plunged. While the economy went from one crisis to another, the people began to protest the draconian censorship of the government, forcing the militaristic dictator Miguel Primo de Rivera to step down. His resignment resulted in the country’s first real step towards democracy, the Second Spanish Republic. During the municipal elections, new radically ideological politocal parties began to emerge, both on the extreme left and right wings. The right wing parties were supported by the monarchists, upperclass, conservatives, and the catholic church. However, among these parties was the small, yet rapidly growing facist falange party created by Jose Antonio Primo de Rivera, son of the former dictator and a man who would have astounding influence on the lives of thousand of people, even long after his death. The falange sought to restore Spain to its former glory under the rule of one pow...
From the very beginning, the mass of workers of Spain, both in the city and in the country were the decisive elements. When the students rioted before the universities in 1930 it was only when the workers joined them with a vast general strike that the regime of the military dictator, Primo de Rivera, fell and the temporary regime of General Berenguer set up. When General Berenguer tried to hold fake elections without extending the franchise to all, it was another general strike that overthrew the regime, compelled new elections, forced the king to flee and established the republic in April 1931.