Franco Fascism Analysis

Fascism can be defined as a governmental system led by a dictator having complete power, forcibly suppression opposition and criticism, regimenting all industry commerce and emphasising an aggressive nationalism and often racism (Idaho). Francisco Franco was the dictator of Spain for over 36 years which was made possible by the Spanish Civil War. Even though he had some of the characteristics of a fascist he was not a true fascist. He was a pragmatist, nationalist and anti-communist who did not desire the expansion of War. In order to be a fascist leader you need to have three vital characteristics; an organized political party, a direct ideology and a movement that develops organically. These aspects were not present in Spain under Franco.
However, they were present through Italy under Mussolini and in Germany under Hitler, where racism also took place. Franco can be sometimes be classified as semi-fascist, as he believed in having control of the state. However, he differed from that of Mussolini and Hitler as he was a dedicated Catholic which made him believe that Spain was the God’s chosen land. Franco was able to turn Spain's economy around and it began to prosper as he industrialized Spain and brought it out of great depression. He was known not as a Fascist but as a Falangist, the difference being he wanted more nationalism in Spain, much more religion, and had a far less interest in what happened outside Spain.
Franco was certainly a nationalist and an anti-communist as ideologies and political theories were not the primary influences in what Franco had in mind when developing Spain, he deliberately kept Spain out of WWII and was successful about it. He was a benevolent dictator and wanted complete control of Spain but he was not a ruthless leader which allowed Spain to return to democracy after his death. Although, his regime had several characteristics that the fascist regimes of Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy had, it also lacked a great deal of them and even though he received significant help from Germany and Italy in order to put him in power. Nevertheless, it is clear that Franco was a nationalist but his nationalism was not as radical or extreme as Mussolini's or Hitler. Also unlike Hilter and Mussolini he did not want the development of war. He believed that Spain belonged to the people of Spain, thus rejecting the idea of expansionism (Michigan). The people he led were certainly various degrees of fascists but Franco was not very interested in the political aspects of leadership himself, he tend to pick a side with the most pragmatic causes because it gave him an increased likelihood of success for his aspiration to regenerate an authoritarian order and to satisfy his ambition. His pragmatic goal was to maintain power in order to keep what he termed the "anti-Spain" forces from gaining power.
The Spanish Civil War has been called one of the most symbolic and misunderstood wars of the twentieth century (Observer). Spain was once the world’s most powerful country but by the 20th century it was a poor and digressive country where corruption was prevalent. It had lost nearly all of its overseas possessions to Latin America and Asia and great extremes of wealth and poverty caused severe social tensions. The 1930’s the Republican government brought in a series of anti-clerical actions as the Church and State were separated, civil marriage was introduced and divorce was permitted. It also allowed Catalan independence and the government failed to introduce any serious measure of land reform and this weakened its support in the countryside (Cliff). Spain was then divided as there were the Nationalists who were supported by the Church, property-owners, and industrialists, who included middle-class and the Catholic peasantry and then there was the Liberals, Socialists, Communists and Anarchists who supported the Republican government.
The Spanish Civil war began in 1936 as a coup 'etat.
The war was between the left democratic Republicans who were liberal, socialist, internationalist, democratic and anti-Fascist, and the right Nationalist who were known as, conservative, religious, and anti-democratic led by Francisco Franco. It began when Francisco Franco and the Spanish army in Morocco stood up against Manuel Azana and his democratic republican government. The right wing groups campaigned in Spain, and the army officers led most of their forces into the Nationalist camp. Franco and his Nationalists forces overthrew the democratically elected Second Republic, with the help of Germany and Italy. This resulted in Franco rising to power and Franco adopted the title of “El Caudillo”, the leader. According to his coins, Franco ruled Spain as "Caudillo by the grace of God” (Eric Stolsen). Franco known to be a fierce and at times violent leader was known to torture political opponents, inhibited the culture and language of Spain’s Basque and Catalan regions, monitored the media and otherwise exerted absolute control over the country. As Franco got older his boundaries gradually lessened and eventually after his death Spain became a
democracy.
The Spanish Civil war increased tensions in the lead-up to World War II and was largely seen as a possible war by substitution between the Communist Soviet Union Fascist Italy and Nazi Germany (Wikipedia).
Like other civil wars, the Spanish Civil War often pitted family members and trusted neighbours and friends against each other. Apart from the soldiers, many civilians were killed for their political or religious views by both sides, and after the war ended in 1939, Republicans were at times persecuted by the victorious Nationalists. Since Spanish government was in disarray during its civil war so Hitler and Mussolini saw this as an opportunity to help and get the Fascist and Nazi ideals into the Spanish government. However, Franco himself was not a Fascist he was just accepting the help him and his government required. This resulted in strengthening the war because Hitler's move into Spain revealed rebel forces trying to remove the Spanish officials, such as the King and his government officials but the rebel movement never gained enough popularity at the time. In 1936 the military hoped to capture Spain quickly but they failed, and nearly half of the army remained loyal to the government and the rebellion failed in Madrid, Valencia, Barcelona and the Basque country which resulted in workers and peasant soldiers were formed to defend the government. Nevertheless, in the beginning of 1939 the Republic collapsed and the Nationalists occupied Barcelona and in a few months
afterwards they captured Madrid which effectively marked the end of the war. On April 1st 1939, Franco declared the ending of the Spanish Civil War. About a half a million people were killed in the war with hundreds of thousands dying in atrocities committed by both sides. Most were killed by the Nationalists who were ruthless in establishing control in the areas they captured (Lorca).
The Spanish Civil War played a significant role during the troublesome Europe in the 1930s. Even though it did not make World War II inevitable, it increased the likelihood of a general war as half of Europe was supporting the Republicans and the other was supporting the Nationalists. The Spanish Civil war had an incredible impact on Spain itself, leaving much of the state's economic and social infrastructure in disorder and leaving thousands of people dead. However, the war also saw involvement from other European states as both sides of the conflict, the right wing Nationalists and the left wing Republicans requested and received foreign aid not only in terms of financial assets, but also in terms of war material and troops. Adolf Hitler's Germany was one of the foreign countries most involved in the conflict, contributing economic finances as well as several thousand troops to the Nationalist party.
However, the ramifications of the Spanish war for the rest of Europe were great in other ways. The Spanish Civil War was a major contributor to strengthening of the division between the democracies of Britain and France and the dictatorships of Italy and Germany. Germany also gained the valuable resources from Spain that it needed for eastern expansion and the accompanying possibility of war. The Spanish Civil War also undermined British and French credibility to Hitler, encouraging him to make more dramatic eastern expansion moves. Furthermore, the war helped drive the Soviet Union away from Britain and France and was one of the reasons why Stalin reluctantly concluded that an accommodation with Hitler was necessary. In all these ways then, the Spanish Civil War was a major step toward World War II. If it wasn’t for Francisco’s Franco's uprising Spain would have surely turned into yet another Soviet union. Even though that many saw his dictatorship was harsh there were benefits to it. There's also some truth to the argument that if western powers of England and France had united to the defense of Republican Spain, Hitler's Germany might not had reached the military might that it did (Grimsely). Finally, there has been no proof to show that Franco had any belief system to lead Spain on an inevitable course to war.
Therefore it can affirmably be said, that Franco did up behold significant and important qualities and characteristics to show that he was a fascist leader. Without question, he had a few number of fascist qualities, but true fascism was incomplete. Just like Franco, Fascism in Spain was partial; Franco’s involvement in the Spanish Civil War was consistent with a larger Nazi foreign policy aimed at diverting British and French attention from Central and Eastern Europe so that he would be unhindered in his plans for eastern expansion. Spain during Franco’s leadership accentuated nationalism, corporatism, traditionalism and conservatism, which transpired to harsh punishments for crimes, and the criminalization of certain political ideologies (Woodley). Franco’s Spain is at times categorized by being a fascist state which is primarily due to his authoritative dictatorship style.
As we know Franco’s government was reinforced Mussolini’s Fascist Italy and Hitler’s Nazi Germany but the way he led were not all that similar. Franco supported his Republican’s and wanted Spain to prosper. However, it did have its resemblances to Germany and Italy as organized labour and political parties that went against them were prohibited. Nationalism was also encouraged, and external cultural influence was severely discouraged (Michigan). The Spanish native language and cultural uniformity was imperative to Franco as he wanted homogeneity throughout the country. Nevertheless, there were multiple traits that differentiated Franco from Hitler and Mussolini’s Fascist government as Franco was an avid Christians and he constantly defended the Catholicism. Franco was pragmatist and traditionalist which is one of the reasons why the Spanish people adored him until his death in 1975. Notably, during Civil War, Franco chose to open Spanish borders, which was made a law abiding by him, to Jewish refugees where they could stay for safety, which shows that he was not pro-war and was welcoming to other nations despite his relationship with Germany.
Without question, the primary reason why Spain and Franco can be seen as Fascists is because of Franco's dictatorial leadership style. As reveals him we know Franco's life as a very religious and patriotic person which is why he was such a passionate nationalist. Franco being a patriot of Spain started when he was young and was made by his family to join the Spanish military. Franco shared a good deal of principles with those of fascism, but also separated himself with many others. For example, he had nationalistic tendencies, engaged in a glorification of the past, and forced participation in his style of government by suppressing opposition (Michigan). However, being true to himself he did not cultivate a Spanish regime of military expansion. Spain was for specifically Spaniards, and he did not desire to be put in any situation where he had to battle other countries. Franco wanted Spain to be the best country possible, which shows that he was a true nationalist.
Despite Franco’s regime having strong degree of control, he did not pursue totalitarian domination of all social, cultural, and religious organizations, or of the economy as a whole. The Franco regime also lacked the philosophical characteristic of a totalitarian government. Furthermore, for those willing to work within the system, there was a limited form of pluralism. Thus, Franco leadership over Spain has been categorized more as an authoritative rather than totalitarian but after the Spanish Civil War Franco moved to weaken the Falangist and fascist party, as he introduced more conservative and traditional political forces with the National movement (Michigan). Franco’s government which he chose to focus on the Roman Catholic Church as well as international developed helped confirm that he was not a true fascist. Even though there were characteristics of fascism during Franco’s regime, the majority of historians can concluded that Franco would be classified as a semi-fascist.