Franco's Rise to Power
Circa 1930, an anti-monarchial movement developed in Spain . This pro-republic group consisted of liberals and socialists who were tired of the monarchy. In 1931, Spain's leader, Alfonso, called for elections throughout the country. There was unprecedented support for the republicans, therefore, Alfonso fled. Consequently, the republicans, also known as the loyalists, took control. They developed a democratic constitution and elected a president. However, although there was widespread support for the new government, Spain still had many who were pro-monarchy; furthermore, under the republicans, Spain lacked unification, and consequently, groups of right wing supporters grew. Eventually, there was so much political turmoil and opposition, that Spaniards stationed in Morocco declared civil war on the Republic. This nationalist force was headed by a prominent military leader, General Francisco Franco . It was through the civil war, which was caused by the numerous errors made by the republicans, that Francisco Franco and the nationalists achieved control of Spain. After holding parliamentary elections, the republicans elected the republic's first president, Niceto Zamora, and divided itself into twenty parties rangin
These actions of the Red Biennium greatly angered the conservatives who supported the church, and who were supported by the army. Therefore, when the government called for an election in 1933, the conservatives formed the CEDA (Spanish Confederation of Autonomous Rightist Parties). The CEDA was elected into office and they took power that summer. Most of the time CEDA was in power, they spent it undoing all the changes made by the republic . There then came a point where they, "...declared themselves against the existing institutions of the country." In response to the internal havoc of the CEDA, the Leftists revolted, and what ensued was a period of political turmoil. The gap between both sides widened. The president at the time, Alcala, tried to unite Spain, which was in shambles. He formed the Popular Front made of Leftists. At this point, there were constant violent attacks by both sides, and political assassinations became routine . The predominately Left government then looked to reform Spanish society from the ways of its previous monarch. They struck first with the Red Biennium, which reformed Catholicism in Spain, the military, and gave autonomy to Catolina . The government first went after the Roman Catholic Church by shutting down Christian schools, forbidding religion to be taught in class, and disallowing religious funerals. This caused an uproar throughout Spain. Orthodox Christians and those who seldom practiced it were furious. The government then moved on to the army, looking to reduce the numb
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Approximate Word count = 1038
Approximate Pages = 4 (250 words per page double spaced)
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