Spanish Civil War

The Spanish Civil War was fought from 1936 to 1939 between the Republican government and Nationalist forces led by Francisco Franco. Nationalist victory established Franco’s dictatorship.

Spanish coup of July 1936: A military uprising against Spain’s Second Republic that began in July 1936 and developed into civil war. The failed coup split the armed forces and triggered the conflict.
Second Spanish Republic: Spain’s republican political system from 1931 until the Nationalist victory in 1939. Its institutions and governments were the political order the rebels sought to overthrow.
Francisco Franco: Spanish general who led the Nationalist victory and ruled Spain as dictator from 1939 to 1975. He unified the Nationalist command and became the postwar ruler.
Siege of the Alcázar: A 1936 siege in which Nationalist forces relieved a rebel garrison at the Alcázar of Toledo. Its relief became a celebrated Nationalist victory and strengthened Franco’s standing.
Francoist Spain: The authoritarian Spanish state ruled by Francisco Franco from 1939 until his death in 1975. It institutionalized Nationalist victory and dismantled the Republic.
Republican faction: The coalition that defended Spain’s Second Republic during the civil war. Its competing political groups and military forces formed one side of the conflict.
Spanish Constitution of 1931: The constitution that established a democratic republic and secular state in Spain in 1931. Its reforms and limits became contested during the Republic’s short life.
Manuel Azaña: Spanish writer and politician who served as president of the Second Republic during much of the civil war. As the Republic’s president, he embodied its civilian leadership amid military collapse.
Battle of Madrid: A series of battles for Madrid beginning in November 1936, when Republican forces stopped the Nationalist advance. The capital’s survival prevented a rapid Nationalist victory.
Spanish Republican exile: The displacement of hundreds of thousands of Spaniards who fled or were driven abroad after the Nationalist victory. The defeat sent Republican soldiers and civilians across the border, especially into France.

Linked from 139 pages