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====Background====Spain was a very divided, unstable and weak country in the 19th century. Once a great power, Spain lost almost the last of its colonies after it its defeat in the Spanish-American war.<ref>Vincent, Mary (2007). ''[https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0198731590/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0198731590&linkCode=as2&tag=dailyh0c-20&linkId=ffee06581c91b4c78b72eef90c3e858f Spain, 1833–2002]''. Oxford, UK; New York: Oxford University Press</ref> It was technically a monarchy, but power had frequently been in the hands of military dictators. The country was bitterly divided. The acute poverty of the Spanish people meant that many were drawn to Communism, Anarchism , and Socialism. <ref>Beevor, Antony (2006). ''[https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/014303765X/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=014303765X&linkCode=as2&tag=dailyh0c-20&linkId=b54b43da8965b066ed125b18696e983b The Battle for Spain: The Spanish Civil War 1936–1939]''. London, UK: Weidenfield and Nicolson</ref> These ideologies call for popular governments and the re-distribution of resources, such as land and wealth.
Spanish anarchists, socialists , and communists were secular and wanted to remove the influence of the Catholic Church from Spanish society. The elite and the middle class were especially conservative. They dominated the economy and feared that the Communists would confiscate their property. This is typified in the fact that much of the best land in Spain was owned by a relatively small proportion of the population. Furthermore, the wealthy and the middle class, especially in rural society was Catholics and resisted any idea that there should be a separation of Church in State in Spain.<ref>Lannon, Frances (1987). ''[https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0198219237/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0198219237&linkCode=as2&tag=dailyh0c-20&linkId=5cd638cac74ee91552e49fa7893cba18 Privilege, Persecution, and Prophecy: The Catholic Church in Spain, 1875–1975]''. Oxford, UK: Clarendon Press</ref> The elite and the rich landowners, the ‘agrarian oligarchy’ were terrified of communism, especially after the Russian Revolution in 1917.
By 1930, Spain was bitterly divided on into social and ideological lines. Spain was and is a diverse society.<ref>Beevor, ''[https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/014303765X/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=014303765X&linkCode=as2&tag=dailyh0c-20&linkId=b54b43da8965b066ed125b18696e983b The Battle for Spain: The Spanish Civil War 1936–1939]''</ref> There are many areas of the country with strong regional or national identities. Many of the regions in Spain, such as the Catalans, demanded more autonomy or even outright independence from Madrid, such as the Basques. The tensions between the regions and the central government meant that the country was inherently unstable, as a compromise was impossiblyimpossible, between the parties.{{Mediawiki:TabletAd1}}====The Failure of Spanish Government====Spain had been neutral during the First World War. However, this had not made the country peaceful or prosperous. In the wake of the ending of the WWI, there was a major economic slump.<ref>Beevor, ''[https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/014303765X/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=014303765X&linkCode=as2&tag=dailyh0c-20&linkId=b54b43da8965b066ed125b18696e983b The Battle for Spain: The Spanish Civil War 1936–1939]''</ref> The working class and the rural poor suffered greatly at this time and they began to organize themselves and Communists and Anarchists often led them. At this time the Trade Unions in Spain became very strong, and there were widespread strikes. In the countryside, impoverished peasants began to seize land.
“They eyed with mounting alarm the red flags and banners and portraits of Lenin, Stalin and Largo Caballero on huge placards, and listened to the chanting of the demonstrators, demanding the formation of a proletarian government and a people’s army’’.<ref> Beevor, 124.</ref>
==Conclusion==Countdown to Civil War====<dh-ad/>It was clear by 1936 that Spain was on the edge of a major confrontation between the left and the right and between the regions. There began a series of political assassinations. The right openly called for the military to stage a coup to oust the left-wing government, which some saw as only the puppets of the Soviet Union. Much of the Spanish Army was stationed in the country’s last colonies in Morocco.<ref>Beevor, ''Battle for Spain''</ref>
The Spanish Civil War left-wing government believed that the military was caused by many factors, including major socio-economic problems, such as poverty and inequality. However, too far away from Spain because the main cause government was all sides’ failure to compromise losing control of the situation and to respect there was fighting between the rights Falange militia and opinions the police on the streets of othersseveral cities, resulting in many deaths. This meant that Then the Second RepublicSpanish Army Generals, could never provide led by General Franco, launched a coup, they managed to fly their forces, with the assistance of the German government that could bring stability and prosperity to Spain. The arrival of regular Spanish units from Morocco on the country. Political violence became endemic in Spanish mainland was the country as trigger for an all-out war that was to ‘leave half-a consequence and it escalated until it became a full scale civil war-million people dead. ’<ref>Preston</ref>
=References===Conclusion====The Spanish Civil War was caused by many factors, including major socio-economic problems, such as poverty and inequality. However, the on of the main causes was all sides’ failure to compromise and to respect the rights and opinions of others. This failure meant that the Second Republic could never provide a government that could bring stability and prosperity to the country. Political violence became endemic in the country as a consequence, and it escalated until it became a full-scale civil war. {{MediaWiki:AmNative}} ====Related DailyHistory.org Articles====*[[What were the goals of the Axis powers and the Soviet Union during World War Two?]]*[[How Did the German Military Develop Blitzkrieg?]]*[[Causes of World War II Top Ten Booklist]]*[[How did Winston Churchill become Prime Minister of the United Kingdom in World War Two?]]<references/>*[[How did Mussolini become Prime Minister of Italy?]]
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[[Category:Spanish History]] [[Category:Military History]][[Category:European History]] [[Category:20th Century History]]
====References====
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Update January 15, 2019
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