... Spanish Civil War pitted brother against brother
THE LONG-STANDING confrontation of conservative-traditionalist and liberal-progressist forces ruined our country, causing Spain to lag behind a more progressive and developed Northern Europe.
The last chapter of this confrontation was the Spanish Civil War in 1936-1939, a blood bath of Spaniards, brother against brother, which historians have also seen as the first struggle of fascism against democratic and proletarian forces – a true prelude to World War II.
In fact, during the Spanish Civil War Hitler tested his deadly tactics, carrying out the bombings of civilians in the Basque city of Guernica, horror and massacre depicted by Picasso in his masterpiece ‘Guernica’.
The rebellion led by General Franco finally swept the second Spanish Republic putting an end to its modernisation and democratisation attempts. More than 500,000 persons escaped Franco’s repression, and many settled in Latin America. Spain lost many of its intellectuals, artists and writers, entering a long period of cultural darkness. 2019 will be of significance to Spain, too, since next year, on the 80th anniversary of the war, we will honour the hundreds of thousands of Spaniards forced into exile .
In fact, during the Spanish Civil War Hitler tested his deadly tactics, carrying out the bombings of civilians in the Basque city of Guernica, horror and massacre depicted by Picasso in his masterpiece ‘Guernica’.