Franco’s Dictatorship in Spain: Ideology, Repression, and Resistance

Posted on Jun 26, 2024 in History

1. What Was Francoism?

Franco’s Dictatorship

A State With No Separation of Powers

Franco assumed all the powers of the state: He was head of state, head of government, and the leading general and commander of Spain.
There was no constitution. The Fundamental Laws were passed to serve the regime.
In 1942, a parliament was put in place, but it was only consultative. It was controlled by Franco.

A One-Party Regime

The Falange Española (FET y de las JONS) was the only legal party. It included the groups that had supported the uprising against the Republic.

Repression and Lack of Liberties

Rights and liberties were abolished.
Dissidents were persecuted: 300,000 people were imprisoned and more than 30,000 were executed.

A Centralist State

The Basque and Catalan Statutes of Autonomy were annulled.

The Ideological Bases

The dictatorship adopted features of fascism, which it adapted according to the international situation:

When the Second World War began, Spain declared itself in favor of the Axis powers. Franco met Hitler in Hendaye (France) in 1940 and Mussolini in Bordighera (Italy) in 1941 to negotiate Spain’s participation in the war.
Finally, Spain declared itself first neutral and then nonbelligerent. Despite this, it sent the División Azul to participate in the invasion of Russia.
After the war, Franco tried to minimize Spain’s past as an ally of Germany and Italy. But Spain was still isolated: the UN General Assembly recommended member countries to withdraw their ambassadors from Madrid. France closed its border with Spain.

Supporters of the Regime

The main supporters of Francoism were:

The army. It was the main basis of the regime. It gave unwavering support to Franco. Many of Franco’s ministers came from the military.
The Catholic Church. It identified with the regime. Catholicism was declared the official state religion. The Church controlled education and told citizens how to behave.
Landowners and business. They used the laws in their favor and benefited from the absence of strikes and employment rights.

Control and Propaganda

The Franco regime controlled society through education, cultural activities, censorship, and propaganda. The Falange played a key role:

Frente de Juventudes

Its goal was to instill a love of the homeland, its imperial past, and religious values in children and young people aged between 7 and 18 years old.
It did this by organizing parades, rallies, cultural events, excursions, camps, etc. in schools and workplaces.

Sección Femenina

Its goal was to prepare women for their role as wives and mothers through compulsory social service. With the support of the Church, women were confined to domestic and family roles.
Women lost their rights and depended on their fathers, brothers, or husbands. They were placed on a lower social scale, with less education and no autonomy, marginalized from public life.

Sindicato Español Universitario

It was the only legal organization of university students.
It controlled student activities, especially those related to politics, and was even involved in acts of repression.

Organización Nacional Sindicalista

It was the only legal trade union. It was made up of business owners and workers from different sectors.
It set wages, working hours, and holidays. Strikes and arbitrary dismissal were banned.

2. The Era of Autarky

Autarky and Interventionism

In 1939, the government imposed an economic policy of interventionism and autarky. The goal was to be self-sufficient with national resources and avoid dependence on foreign countries. The government took several measures to achieve this:

Intervention and Control of All Economic Activities

Foreign trade was regulated because of the scarcity of foreign currency. This brought about shortages of basic products.
The government brought in ration books to address the shortage of basic products. The goal was to regulate foods that were in short supply and control their price. These ration books allowed people to buy the most basic products, but the food was not varied, and it was insufficient to feed the population.
A black market emerged, in which products were sold illegally. On the black market, it was possible to buy, sell or exchange any product, but prices were too high for most people, who had few resources.
Creation of the National Institute of Industry in 1941, which promoted Spanish industry. Companies such as Iberia emerged from this organization. The Compañía Telefónica was nationalized.
The National Wheat Service was founded to control the production and distribution of wheat. The government wanted to solve the wheat shortage that had caused years of hunger. However, the excessive interventionism of the state had a negative effect on agricultural production. The same policy was followed with rice, another basic product.

Consequences of Autarky

The post-war economic policy of autarky failed because:

It delayed Spain’s economic recovery.
Caused restrictions on services and shortages of basic necessities that affected the majority of society.

2. Opposition to the Franco Regime

Groups of republican ex-combatants fled to mountainous parts of Galicia, Asturias… They carried out guerrilla action aimed at fighting Franco’s regime.

They were later joined by guerrilla groups, or maquis.

They entered Spain from France via the Arán Valley and were deployed in several areas of Spain. They wanted to start a popular uprising against Franco with the help of the Allies.
The maquis consisted mainly of men (Marcelino de la Parra, Juan Fernández, Juanín, etc.), but also included some women, such as Remedios Montero, known as Celia; Adelina Delgado, known as la Madre; and Rosario Gutiérrez.
They were mainly active between 1944 and 1948. Public law enforcement repressed their activities and pursued their collaborators.
As no popular uprising occurred, and realizing that the Allies did not intend to overthrow Franco either, the maquis gradually disappeared.