Above: Map during Civil War from 1936 – 1939 (click map to enlarge)

In 1936 the military, supported by conservatives within the country, staged a revolt against the Republican government of Spain. In the beginning the military coup met with failure. Civil war ensued. It was bloody in its ferocity with both sides determined to win at any cost.

Above: American volunteers stretching and raising their riffle

The rebels, called the Nationalists, got help from Fascist Italy and Nazi Germany. On the other hand Soviet Russia extended a helping hand to the Republicans. The latter also got support from International Brigades and numerous volunteers coming in from various parts of Europe and America.

Above: Church severely devastated during the Civil War

One of the main causes of the civil war was the polarization of Spain into two distinct camps as a result of the policies followed during the last few decades. On one side were the Roman Catholic Church and the military, propertied class and business conglomerates. On the opposite side were the urban workers, peasants from rural Spain and the educated middle class. Centred round these views came to be formed firebrand political organizations. The Falange was a Fascist group while on the other end was militant anarchists. In between swerved the monarchists, conservatives as well as small communist groups inspired by Lenin and Trotsky.

Above: Civilians and refugees fleeing from Barcelona

Against this background assassinations and other acts of violence became the order or the day. There was a general strike in 1934 in Valencia and Zaragoza. The streets of Madrid and Barcelona saw bloody fights. In the Asturias the miners rose in violence but was quickly put down by General Franco. One crisis followed another until general elections were held on 16th February 1936. The result was the setting up of the Popular Front government supported by the left and opposed by the right and fragmented centre.

Above: Republican soldier rushing to reach the building to take cover

On July 17th 1936 was staged a well planned out military coup in all the garrison towns of Spain. Within few days the rebels had taken charge of Spanish Morocco, the Canary Islands and the Balearic Islands (except Minorca). The other regions that fell to the military rebels was that part of the country which lay north of the Guadarrama Mountains and the Ebro River (except Asturias and Santander), the Basque country along the northern coast and Catalonia in the north east. On their part the Republicans had put down revolts in other places except in some of the big cities of Andalusia like Seville, Granada and Cordoba. Each side began to get themselves organized and hit out at suspects. In the melee, on both sides nearly 50,000 met a bloody end. The startling figure points to the ferocity of the passions that the civil war had uncorked.

Above: General Francisco Franco waving during the parade of Nationalist Army

In due course General Franco became the leader of the Nationalists as he headed the forces he had brought with him from Morocco. In October 1936 he was officially declared to be the head of the state as a government was set up in Burgos.

Above: Picture of Manuel Azaña

The Republicans selected the socialist Caballero to be their captain in September 1936. In May 1937 another socialist named Negrin succeeded him. Throughout the war he remained at the helm and continued to do so as premier in exile until 1945. Manuel Azaña, a liberal who was opposed to the clergy, remained the President of the Spanish Republic till the end of the war.

Above: Republican soldiers aggressively attacking

Both parties realizing that neither was not strong enough to effect a quick decisive victory, looked outside for help. Germany and Italy came forward with arms and ammunitions in support of the Nationalists. The Soviet Union together with France and Mexico did likewise for the Republicans. Foreigners numbering about 40,000 joined the International Brigades on the side of the Republican. Thousands of others helped in medical and auxiliary divisions.

Above: Battle map during the war in Madrid, November 1936 (click map to enlarge)

The Nationalists besieged Madrid in November 1936 but could not go beyond the University area of the city. In the summer of 1967 they took the Basque Provinces in the north and then captured Asturias. By October they were holding the entire northern coast. Then the Nationalists too the strategic step of moving eastwards through Teruel and sliced the republic into two halves by April 1938. When in December 1938 they moved into Catalonia the Republican civilian and military forces were compelled to retreat into France by the thousands. On March 5th a government in exile was set up in France. In the capital Madrid street fighting broke out on March 7th but by the 28th the Republicans had to surrender and the Nationalists took over complete control.

Above: State of Madrid after being bombarded

Recent calculations estimate that the civil war took a toll of approximately 500,000 victims. This figure excludes those who were maimed, injured or died from diseases related specifically to the curse of war.

Above: Republican troops entrenched aiming their riffle against enemies

The ripples of the war were not confined to the borders of Spain or its neighbours. It came to be internationally looked upon as part of a conflict between tyranny and democracy, between fascism and freedom or between communism and liberalism. For fascist countries of Germany and Italy, Spain was the guinea pig for testing new war machines and technology. For Britain and France tit represented a new threat to balance of power which finally led to the inevitable – the outburst of World War II.

Below: Map of Spain and her neighboring Countries