When was franco in power

Although presented as a move toward democratization, it nevertheless retained the basic structure of an authoritarian system. Franco initially derived his authority from his victory in the Civil War. The armed forces gave his regime security; the Roman Catholic Church and the National Movement gave it legitimacy. The National Movement was the only recognized political organization in Franco's Spain.

It was not a political party, and it did not have an overt ideological basis. Its membership included monarchists, Falangists, conservative Catholics, members of the armed forces, as well as business groups with vested interests in continuity , technocrats, and civil servants. Although there was some overlap among these groups, they had distinct, and often contradictory, interests. The force that fused them together was their common loyalty to Franco. Franco was particularly skillful in manipulating each of these "families," giving each a taste of power, but not allowing any group or individual to create an independent base from which to challenge his authority.

Franco's political system was virtually the antithesis of the final government of the republican era--the Popular Front government. In contrast to the anticlericalism of the Popular Front, the Francoist regime established policies that were highly favorable to the Catholic Church, which was restored to its previous status as the official religion of Spain.

In addition to receiving government subsidies, the church regained its dominant position in the education system, and laws conformed to Catholic dogma. Gains in regional autonomy were reversed under Franco, and Spain reverted to being a highly centralized state. The regime abolished regional governmental bodies and enacted measures against the use of the Basque and the Catalan languages. Further contrast between the Popular Front government and the Franco regime was apparent in their bases of support.

Whereas the liberal leftists and the working class elements of society had supported the Popular Front, the conservative upper classes were the mainstay of Franco's government. Above all, Franco endeavored to remove all vestiges of parliamentary democracy, which he perceived to be alien to Spanish political traditions. He outlawed political parties, blaming them for the chaotic conditions that had preceded the Civil War.

He eliminated universal suffrage and severely limited the freedoms of expression and association; he viewed criticism of the regime as treason.

Colonel Antonio Tejero brandished a gun as he tried to take over Spain's parliament. Death of a dictator. November Franco - lies in state at the Pardo Palace in Madrid. General Franco, known as El Caudillo Leader , died on 20 November In his last message to the nation the dictator said: "I ask pardon of all my enemies, as I pardon with all my heart all those who declared themselves my enemy, although I did not consider them to be so" Prince Juan Carlos was sworn in as King of Spain on 22 November This video can not be played To play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser.

Residual support. Pro-Franco nationalists have never attracted much support in Spain since his death. Franco's rule.

Support for Catalan independence has been fuelled by Madrid's perceived neglect of the region. Related Topics. Published 19 November Published 7 July Published 28 September Published 18 December Published 21 October Establishing his base of operations in Seville the following month, Franco began his military campaign, advancing north toward the seat of the Republican government in Madrid.

Anticipating a swift victory, on October 1, , the Nationalist forces declared Franco head of the government and commander-in-chief of the armed forces. However, when their initial assault on Madrid was repelled, the military coup evolved into the protracted conflict known as the Spanish Civil War. Over the next three years, the Nationalist forces — led by Franco and backed by right-wing militias, the Catholic Church.

Germany and Italy — battled the left-wing Republicans, who received aid from the Soviet Union as well as brigades of foreign volunteers. Though the Republicans were able to resist the Nationalist advance for a time, with far-superior military strength, Franco and his forces were able to systematically defeat them, eliminating their opposition region by region. In January , the Republican stronghold of Barcelona fell to the Nationalists, followed two months later by Madrid.

On April 1, , after receiving an unconditional surrender, Franco announced the end of the Spanish Civil War. Sources vary, but many estimate the number of casualties resulting from the war as high as ,, with perhaps as many as , the result of executions perpetrated by Franco and his forces. For nearly four decades following the conflict, Franco — who became known as "El Caudillo" the Leader — would rule Spain through a repressive dictatorship.

Immediately following the war, military tribunals were held that led to tens of thousands more being executed or imprisoned. Franco also outlawed unions and all religions except for Catholicism, as well as banning the Catalan and Basque languages. To enforce his power over Spain, he established a vast network of secret police. In , however, the cash-strapped Spanish government temporarily suspended the admission of cadets into the Naval Academy.

As a result, Franco enrolled at the Infantry Academy in Toledo, graduating three years later with below-average grades. After a brief posting back in El Ferrol, Franco volunteered to fight an insurgency in Spanish-controlled Morocco. He arrived in early and stayed there largely without break until At age 33 Franco became the youngest general in all of Europe.

He was then chosen to direct the newly formed General Military Academy in Zaragoza. A military dictatorship embraced by King Alfonso XIII governed Spain from to , but municipal elections held in April deposed the king and ushered in the so-called Second Republic. In the aftermath of the elections, winning Republican candidates passed measures that reduced the power and influence of the military, the Catholic Church, property-owning elites and other entrenched interests.

Franco, a known authoritarian rightist, was reprimanded for criticizing the actions of those in charge and sent to an out-of-the-way post near El Ferrol. Moreover, his General Military Academy was shut down. Nevertheless, Franco was brought back into the good graces of the government in when a center-right coalition won elections. The following year he deployed troops from Morocco to Asturias in northern Spain to suppress a leftist revolt, an action that left some 4, dead and tens of thousands imprisoned.

Meanwhile, street violence, political killings and general disorder were ramping up on both the right and the left. In Franco became army chief of staff. When a leftist coalition won the next round of elections in February , he and other military leaders began discussing a coup.

Banished to a remote post in the Canary Islands, Franco initially hesitated in his support of the military conspiracy. On July 18, , military officers launched a multipronged uprising that put them in control of most of the western half of the country.