Spanish Civil War EA2

20th Century Wars

Long Term Causes

Regionalism

Division in Political Ideologies

Explain the Regional Divisions in Spain

Cultural Divisions: Opposite industrial and agricultural production methods throughout the country

Economic: Agriculture dominated by small, peasant landholders vs by vast estates

People more loyal to their respective regions rather than the country as a whole → division

How were political ideologies split up in Spain?

Right Wing (conservatives)

Left Wing (liberal)

Which groups made up the right wing?

Land owners

• concentrated in a few families

• ½ of spanish land owned by 50 000 individuals

Catholic Church

• Held a lot of influence, especially in education

Which groups made up the left wing?

Anarcho-syndicalism

• Barcelona & Catalonia

• Decentralized, worker controlled factories

• stock and trade of unions

• shorter working weeks

• higher wages

• better working conditions

Rural anarchism

• Strong in poor, rural areas like Andalusia

• Vague combo of redistribution

• decentralized authority

• freedom from taxes

Marxism

• Struggling for support since late 19th century

• Fractured, Stalinists feuded with trotskyites

• Socialists argued with trade unionists

So many sides, that it was difficult to organize, cooperate, compromise

• Couldn’t work together, couldn’t create a successful platform

Short Term Cause

Failure of the Second Republic

How did the second republic first come to power?

1931-Monarchy is over → new government (second republic under leftists president Azana)

Azana’s reforms: agriculture, labour, anticlerical legislation

• protected tenants from eviction

• encouraged collectives and cooperatives

• split church and state officially

• recognize civil marriages and divorces

• forcibly retire officers to reduce army influence

Why was the second republic unpopular?

Alienated the right

left most ordinary, working class people upset as it didn’t do much to help poverty in rural pain

angered military generals → led to general’s uprising

What happened because of the unpopularity of Azana?

1933 → elections shifted politics back to the right (unstable political environment)

How did citizens react to the shift back to the right after Azana?

Passionate strikes and disturbances

short-lived declaration of autonomy from Catalonia

Serious revolts in Asturias region (stopped by experienced Moroccan Spanish troops)

how did the criticism/problems of the second republic create a situation where Civil War was likely?

Nobody trusted opposing political parties to respect democracy or constitution → it was likely that any party would take things into their own hands without trusting the system they set in place (situation perfect for chaos and lack of rule)

During a time when Nazi Germany & Hitler were coming to power (perfect opportunity for them to exploit to spread fascism)

What was the political situation in Spain like before the Spanish civil war?

extremely divided

no two groups would unite to work with eachother

unstable government and scattered votes of civilians

Immediate Cause

Popular Front

General’s Uprising

Popular Front

1936 → politics shifted back to the left & Azana came back to power b/c of the strategy of the Popular Front

Goal: electoral cooperation between left-wing parties to avoid a split vote and loss against more unified right-wing parties

Able to get center and left political parties to work together in an organized way to go against what they all collectively didn’t want to happen (unite against the greater enemy of the right wing)

Why was the popular front eventually ineffective?

just a short term solution

still significant political and ideological differences that kept them from cooperating further than just electoral tactics (like anarcho-syndialists and Marxists would typically disagree on everything)

General’s uprising

Response to the Popular Front short term success by the right (military)

Generals Moda, Goded, and Franco plotted and organized military rising

sought support from the right after Azana tried to divide and isolate them the first time around

Why was the army convinced that “drastic action was required” during the General’s uprising?

Azana’s government was not able to bring civil peace and stability in times of labour strikes and street fighting between rival parties

Azana had lacking support

took things into their own hands

What was the immediate effect of the General’s Uprising?

Spanish Civil War!

Who were the two opposing sides in the Spanish Civil War?

Republicans

Nationalists

Who did the republicans (loyalists) represent in the SCW?

Spanish republic

Liberals

Left wing parties

military still loyal to the government

working-class militias

communists (influenced by comintern and moscow)

stalinist marxists

soviet officers serving as advisors and conduits of stalinism

Who did the nationalists (rebels) represent in the SCW?

Right wing

going against the Azana/leftist government

Catholic church

wealthy landowners

fascists

rebel military units

fighting against Soviet-dominated communism

To what extent was the general’s uprising successful?

exploited manpower and leadership weaknesses of republic

took over some cities (however that happened by luck

Who supported the republicans internationally?

USSR

• comintern

• moscow

• soviet officers

• set up weapon factories

• tanks

• fastest aircraft

• international brigades

Western democracy civilians (US, BR, FR, Can)

• 30 000 people smuggle themselves to Spain to fight in international brigades

What were the strengths of the republicans?

better training, skill, weapons

USSR supplied rifles, machine guns, artillery

more powerful tanks than nationalists

had control of manufacturing facilities for awhile → rifles produced

what were the weaknesses of the republicans?

Volunteer militias lacked leadership

difficult coordination between militias b/c ideological, political, strategic differences (exploited by nationalists)

command was chaotic and fragmented → hard to gain consensus locally (impossible nationally)

• rival committees always developing contradictory plans → always negotiating, never acting

• some prioritized regional independence rather than victory over nationalists

Infighting between PSUC and POUM

• led to 500 militia members dead

• POUM leadership depleted

• distraction from fighting nationalists; unified and effective action was impossible

worser aircraft than nationalists, no air force

who supported the nationalists internationally?

Germany

• 20 transport planes

• carried troops mainland

• artillery

• small arms

• tanks

• vehicles

• publicly stated desire to stop spread of communism

• benefitted from Spanish instability (b/c french border access, natural resources)

Italy

• Financial support

• militia volunteers

• regular army units

• aircraft

• tanks

USA and Br. governments (fear of communism, unofficial support, non-intervention policies b/c isolationists)

what were the nationalists strengths?

outnumbered republicans within 18 months of war

more uniform fighting ability (changed when conscription introduced)

uniformed command (strengthened as war progressesd)

weapons supplied by germany and italy

• better aircraft than republicans

what were the nationalists weaknesses?

worser training, skills, weapons

early versions of panzers (supplied by germ.) outgunned by soviet BT series in republicans

less international support (no international brigade)

non-intervention policies prevented governments from supporting them

why did western democracies decide not to intervene in SCW?

avoid confrontation with italy

not provoke resurgent germany

limit german and italian aid to nationalists

severely damaged republican war effort but did not affect nationalist forces

how did the lack of western democracy aid to SCW conflict with public opinion?

civilians wanted to support the side fighting against far-right fascist ideologies (nationalists)

people wanted to fight so they smuggled themselves out into international brigade → decisive in some battles but not really the whole war

Significant Operation

Bilbao & the North

Guernica

Madrid

Jarama

Guadalajara

Ebro Offensive

Goal of Bilbao & the North

Nationalists → capture weakly commanded and defended city to take advantage of major industrial center

outcome of bilbao & the North

defensees collapes and defenders abandoned the city to nationalists

goal of Geurnica

Nationalists → potentially gain military advantageous city

also target civilians, breaking their will to resistance and creating terror

outcome of guernica

hundred of civilians killed and propaganda to blame destruction on Basque citizens themselves

nationalists gain access to armament factory and important bridge out of the city

goal of madrid

dislodge republicans from the capital

outcome of madrid

republicans forces rallied

international brigades and anarchist forces and republican army join together

nationalists laid siege to city

goal of jaram

cut madrid off from republican control

outcome of jarama

republicans counter-attacks

stopped nationalists

nationalists didnt meet goals but were able to get acorss jarama river and stay there

both sides lost 1 000s of men

goal of guadalajara

meant to support jarama but ended up becoming independent battle

also meant to cut off madrid from republicans

outcome of guadalajara

republicans coutner-attack

destory italian troops who “volunteered”

italians left equipment and thousands of casualities for republicans after fleeing

ebro offensive goals

republicans → reach city of gandesa

outcome of ebro offensive

fierce fighitng and steep losses

popular army and international brigade were unable to occupy city

turned into war of attrition and depleted popular army

cost both sides 10s of 1000s casualities

nationalists able to weather losses

republicans could not weather losses

How did the spanish CW end? and when

Republican defeat (surrender) in april 1939

what factors contributed to republican surrender

lack of connected and controleld territory

Br. & Fr. recognized Franco’s rule as legitimate

list 5 reasons why the republicans lost

lack of effective central command and control

political infighting

insufficient arms and materials

forced defensive posture as a result of military weakness

republicans struggled and lost a lot before gaining experiences necessary; already too far losing

immediate effects of SCW

500 000 people dead (non-combatant majority)

political effects of SCW

500 000 republican supporters fled to avoid ideological purge

weakened western democracies in region

economic effects of SCW

physical destruction hard to recover from (especially with having WWII right after)

SCW impact on WWII

practice for WWII

• Carpet bombings of civilians

• violent ideological reprisals linked to military operations & air power

• armor and infantry

• brought attention to the rising threat of spreading fascism

Br. position at Gibraltar & Med. threatened by German and italian ally

france cornered by two fascist states

germany gained mining rights in spain

spanish troops fought for axis side on eastern front