Second Spanish Civil War
| Second Spanish Civil War | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of the Spanish transition to democracy | ||||||||||
| ||||||||||
| Belligerents | ||||||||||
|
• Spanish Armed Forces (Loyalists) • Civil Guard (Majority) • National Police Corps • CESID • • • • International Volunteers • • Supported By:
 United Commonwealth (indirectly) |
• Spanish Armed Forces (Rebels and Defectors) • Civil Guard (Minority) • • • •
Supported by:
 CIA (alleged, denied) |
Supported by:
 FARC | ||||||||
| Commanders and leaders | ||||||||||
|
 Gerardo Iglesias |
.svg){kind=small} Blas Piñar | No centralized leadership | ||||||||
.svg){kind=small}
.svg){kind=small}
.svg){kind=small}
.svg){kind=small}
The Second Spanish Civil War (Spanish: Segunda Guerra Civil Española)[Note 1] was a civil war fought in Spain between a broad coalition of reformists, known colloquially as the Loyalists, and several Francoist, neo-fascist and some Carlist rebels, commonly referred to as the Nationalists or simply the rebels, as well as several local independence movements.
Background
Since the end of the first Spanish Civil War, Spain was governed by a one-party authoritarian dictatorship[Note 2] headed by Generalissimo[Note 3] Francisco Franco. The 1947 Law of Succession nominally restored the Spanish Monarchy, though the monarch would have to be chosen by Franco. After decades without a monarch, shortly before his death, Franco proclaimed Juan Carlos to be his successor, bypassing his father, Infante Juan, Count of Barcelona. Despite pressure from the so called Búnker, a group of far-right and some openly fascist anti-reformists, Carlos acceded to the throne in 1975, beginning a transition to democracy that would culminate in the coup of 1981 sparking the civil war.
General Summary
Sparked from a semi-successful coup attempt in February 1981, several garrisons (most notably in Valencia) mobilized and seized cities on the Mediterranean, with hastily formed Carlist Requetés engaging loyalists and ETA members, seizing positions in the northwest, primarily in the Basque country. Despite urges from King Juan Carlos and general popular support for the loyalists, many units remained loyal to their commanding officers over the central government, resulting in a lopsided yet brutal struggle. After getting word of other revolts, hoping to secure Madrid, the Spanish Army assaulted the occupied Congress of Deputies. resulting in the rebels executing prime minister Adolfo Suárez and injuring PM elect Leopoldo Calvo-Sotelo, these actions would in turn result in the deaths of two major coup leaders. Lieutenant-Colonel Antonio Tejero being killed in the subsequent firefight and Alfonso Armada being killed after attempting to flee Madrid. After the death and incapacitation of the elected Prime Ministers, Director of State Security Francisco Laína and de-facto head of the Spanish government during the initial coup was selected to head the Spanish government until the end of the emergency.
The Nationalists initially marched from Valencia, with the Requetés defending several strongholds in the north and pro-nationalist guerillas launching attacks across Spain, primarily in the west, with one group launching an attack into neighboring Portugal, resulting in a defeat and an international incident. Despite being overwhelmingly outnumbered, the nationalists managed to advance as far west as Cuenca and as far north as to see the city of Tarragona on the horizon. After a successful counterattack by Loyalist forces in the north, resulting in the Carlists to go underground, the Loyalists pushed the Nationalists back to Valencia by 7 May, with a month long siege resulting in the surrender of the Nationalists.
After the collapse of the rebellion, Provisional Head of Government Laína stepped down on the 15th of June, and after a 57 hour debate the Spanish government voted to abolish the Spanish monarchy, confirmed by a referendum held a month later. Begrudgingly, King Juan Carlos agreed to abdicate provided he was allowed to remain in the country, officially ending centuries of Bourbon[Note 4] rule in Spain
Foreign involvement
- ↑ Also known as The Defense or The Reclamation among Nationalists, the Fifth Carlist War among Carlists, The Rebellion among Loyalists and occasionally The Finality by republicans and some communists.
- ↑ Initially fully flirting with fascism, the state transitioned into a (comparatively) more moderate dictatorship aligning itself with the United States during the Cold War.
- ↑ Also styled Caudillo or simply Head of State.
- ↑ Interrupted from 1808-1813 under Napoleonic rule, 1870-1873 under the House of Savoy, 1873-74 under the First Republic, 1931-1939 under the Second Republic, and 1936/39-1975 under the Francoist Regime, though Francoist Spain was a de jure Kingdom after 1947 Law of Succession but had no reigning monarch.