UNIT 5: SPAIN 1902-1939
1. The end of the Restoration
1.1. Main problems
a) The 1898 disaster
b) The beginning of Nationalism and Regionalism
c) The working-class movement
d) The Morocco crisis
1.2.Alfonso XIII
2. The Second Republic
2.1.Introduction
2.2.Political stages of the Second Republic
a) 1931 Constitution
b) Left-wing reforms (1931-1933)
c) The Conservative government and miners’ uprising (1933-35)
d) The 1936 Elections
e) The last Stage
3. The Civil War
The two Armies
3.1.1 Republicans
3.1.2 Nationalists (Bando Nacional)
3.2
Periods of the War:
3.2.1 August, 1936 – March, 1937
3.2.2 March, 1937 – June, 1938
3.2.3 June, 1938 –April, 1939
KEY WORDS:
To trigger off
To depart
Blow
Badge
To surrender
To strip
To plead
Regardless
To release
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1. The end of the Restoration
TASK 1. Can you guess who all these people are?
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1. 1. Main problems of the Restoration
a) The 1898 Disaster
TASK 2
Working in groups try to fill in the gaps with the following words:
Words: empire, uprisings, blown up, disaster.
In 1898 the Spanish army was defeated in Cuba by the USA army. As a
consequence Spain lost its remaining imperial colonies: Puerto Rico, Cuba and the
Philippines.
The Americans had helped previous ----------- in Cuba. An American army ship,
the Maine, was ---------- in La Habana and the war between Spain and the USA
started. It was a ---------- for Spain: in the Peace of Paris everything that
Fernando VII had retained was lost.
Dejection spread among the intellectuals and politicians. Spanish influence was
replaced by that of less powerful countries. This humiliation triggered off some
soul researching: why had Spain lost its --------, when other European countries
were building theirs? Thus arose the literary renaissance of the “Generación de
1898” (Galdós, Clarín, Baroja)…
This movement was very critical of the Restoration Monarchy. Intellectuals
wanted a modernization of the Spanish economy and society, and political reform.
b) The beginning of Nationalism and Regionalism
TASK 3.
Do you remember what nationalism means?
Working in pairs, look at the picture and try to complete the text:
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1898: LLIGA REGIONALISTA
CAMBÓ
PRAT DE LA RIBA
REXURDIMENTO:
ROSALÍA
CURROS
PONDAL
REXIONALISMO:
BRAÑAS
MURGUÍA
1905: SOLIDARITAT
CATALANA
SABINO ARANA,
PNV
CATALONIAAfter ---------, the first Catalonian party, the L------- R---------,
was founded by ----- and ----- -- -- -----. They wanted autonomy within the Spanish
state. In ---- a new bigger party, S------ C-----, was created, and it had a great
success in the elections. The two-party system (progressive and moderate) was now
in crisis.
BASQUE COUNTRY
---------------, was the founder of the P--------- N---------- V-------- a Catholic
conservative party that started with strong racist principles.
GALICIA
Here, two different movements existed:
- ------------, a cultural movement linked to Romanticism (-------, --------, ----)
- --------------, a political movement that wanted a decentralized Spanish state
(M-------, B---------…)
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TASK 4
c) The working-class movement
Can you remember the meaning of the following words?
Socialism
Anarchism
Trade Union
Political Party
Working in pairs, read the text and complete the chart in your notebook.
Vocabulary: Strongholds (main places), open-cast (mines in the open air),
inflation (price rises).
The PSOE was founded in 1879 and its trade union, the UGT, in 1880, both
were inspired by Pablo Iglesias. The strongholds of socialism were the coal-mining
districts of Asturias, Madrid, and the open-cast iron mines and metallurgical
industries of Bilbao and its surroundings.
The anarchist movement in Spain emerged in the 1860s. At first its main impact
was on peasant communities. By the beginning of the 20th century the Spanish
anarchist movement was the strongest in Europe. Its main supporters came from
the industrial workers in Barcelona and jornaleros, landless casual labourers on the
great estates of Andalucía.
The Anarcho-Syndicalist trade union, the Confederación Nacional de
Trabajadores (CNT), was founded in 1910-11. Some anarchists defended “direct
action”, the idea of transforming society by using violence (bombs and
assassinations). In 1893 an anarchist threw a bomb into the Lyceum theatre in
Barcelona killing 22 people; Cánovas himself was assassinated in 1897. During and
after the Great War, the CNT organized massive strikes in Catalonia, and
Barcelona was the scene of a savage social war between CNT and employers’
pistoleros.
During the Great War of 1914-18 there was a big increase in trade union
membership. Prices were higher and salaries remained low. In the summer of 1917
the UGT abandoned parliamentary tactics by joining the anarchist trade union and
becoming involved in the organization of a general revolutionary strike in the whole
of Spain. The strikers demanded a provisional republican government, elections to a
constituent Cortes and action to deal with inflation. The strike failed.
After 1917, inspired by the Russian Revolution, a wave of strikes and land
occupation occurred in Andalucía
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SOCIALISM
ANARCHISM
Inspired by
P------ I-------
POLITICAL
PARTY:
TRADE UNION:
--------------
-----------------
TRADE UNION:
-----------------
Some of them
defended d--------a-------------
Main places:
Madrid and
Coal mines in
-------------
Iron mines and
metallurgical in
-----------------------
1893:
1897:
-------------
-------------
1917: r--------s---------------
d) The Morocco crisis
TASK 5
Read the following texts and watch carefully the videos. Then write an
outline of the Disaster at Annual reflecting:
Reasons
Development
Consequences
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After having lost the Spanish-American War in 1898, Spain was hoping to make
up for its lost prestige by expanding its influence in Northern Africa. The
Protectorate of Morocco was the area of Morocco under colonial rule by France
and Spain from 1912.
In 1909 the Government called up hundreds of men to go to the war. They had
to depart from the port of Barcelona. Substitutes could be hired if one did not
wish to fight, but this cost 6,000 reales. So, only poor men went to war. Some
Catholic ladies distributed crosses, and this started an outburst of anti-clericalism
against “the church of the rich”. This was called the “Tragic Week”: churches and
convents were burnt, there was a big strike in Barcelona and more than 1000
arrests were made. Five people were sentenced to death and executed (including
the Anarchist teacher Francesc Ferrer Guardia).
videosemana trágica.mp4
In 1921 thousands of Spanish soldiers were massacred by tribesmen near
Annual. This defeat was a big blow to Alfonso XIII’s reign.
abdelkrim.mp4
1.2. Alfonso XIII (1902-1931)
TASK 6.
You are going to listen to a text about Alfonso XIII. Do you know the meaning of
the following words?
To prevent, Avoided, Performed, Defeat, Worse, Coup d’etat, Martial
law, Censorship, Nevertheless, Network, Well-being, Lack, Inflation, To
resign, Agreed, Exile.
Now listen and then try to answer the comprehension questions.
Comprehension questions:
Answer true (T) or false (F) to each question
1. Alfonso XIII ruled Spain according to the Constitution of 1876 and using
the turno pacifico.
2. Alfonso XIII wanted Spain to participate in the WWI.
3. Alfonso XIII was supported by the Spanish politicians.
4. Alfonso XIII was a clever governor, and things got better during his
reign.
5. Primo de Rivera was a dictator.
6. Primo de Rivera's period was one of peace and social well-being.
7. Primo de Rivera left the government when he lost the elections,
8. Alfonso XIII went into exile in 1931.
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2. The Second Spanish Republic
TASK 7
Here you have the badge of Spain as a Republic and as a Monarchy.
You are going to separate them into two groups and try to write all the pros you
can think of for each one of these political organizations.
Spain (Complete).mp3
himno-riego.mp3
2.1. Introduction
The Second Spanish Republic is the name of the regime that existed in Spain
between April 14th, 1931, when King Alfonso XIII left the country, and April 1 st,
1939, when the last of the Republican forces surrendered to Nationalist forces in
the Spanish Civil War.
After the elections of 1931 and the departure of the Royal family, the Republic
was proclaimed enthusiastically. Most of the Nation thought that this was the
beginning of a new age, in which old problems would be solved.
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2.2 Political stages of the Republic
TASK 8
a) 1931 Constitution
You are going to read a text about the first changes the Republic introduced in
Spain. But it is mixed up. Working in groups you will try to put it in the correct
order. The paragraphs speak about the following topics:
- Who (1)
- When (1)
- Changes (2)
- Problems (1)
Then, complete the chart below about the situation in Spain before and after
this constitution.
A. The first action of the provisional government was to call for general elections
in June 1931. The elected representatives should work on a new Republic
Constitution. It was approved on December 9th, 1931. It defined Spain as a
democratic republic of workers. It included freedom of speech and association, the
separation of Church and State, universal suffrage to women, and a right to
divorce. It also stripped nobility of any legal privilege, and opened a legal way to
nationalize public services such as land, banks and railways. As in other European
countries, the first mass political parties appeared.
B. All these changes happened very quickly in a society in which the differences
between rich and poor groups were enormous. The new policies gave great
expectations to the poorest, and aroused suspicions among the most powerful.
C. After the elections which the Socialist won, a provisional government was
created. Niceto Alcalá Zamora, a moderate Republican, became President of the
Republic, but he included socialists (Francisco Largo Caballero and Indalecio
Prieto), center-wing republicans (Azaña, Prime Minister) and Catalonian nationalists
(Olwer) in his cabinet.
D. Overall, in spite of a wide range of liberties, the Constitution failed to agree in
key areas with the conservative right, which was strongly rooted in rural areas, and
the powerful Catholic Church, which was stripped of schools and public subsidies
under the new Constitution.
E. Under the new Constitution, Spanish regions had the right to Autonomy for
the first time in history. Catalonia (1932) and the Basque Country (1936) exercised
this right, with Andalucía, Aragón and Galicia in talks before the breakout of the
Civil War.
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Chart:
Marriage
Women's right to vote
Divorce
Power
of
Catholic
Church
Organisation of the
state
BEFORE
AFTER
TASK 9
Can you think of the differences between right and left-wing parties?
Can you tell any examples on each?
b) Left-wing reforms (1931-1933)
Manuel Azaña, leader of the left-wing party Acción Republicana, led the
Government until 1933, in coalition with the PSOE and other left-wing parties. The
Government started many reforms:
Try to classify these reforms under the following headlines:
Military Reform
Land
Religion Education State Organization
1. They tried to reduce the influence of the Catholic Church in society. Some of
the decrees were: the separation between State and Church, the freedom of
religion, the dissolution of the Compañía de Jesús, and the ban on religious orders
teaching in schools.
2. There was an attempt to introduce agrarian reforms. Some decrees were
passed in order to improve the work conditions of the peasants. They tried to
modernize agriculture, and to increase the area of cultivated lands and their
production. The IRA (Instituto para a Reforma Agraria) expropriated some lands
from the nobility and gave them to the peasants. But the process was slow and
many peasants became disappointed.
3.
They created over 6,500 schools that had to fight the current high
illiteracy level.
4.
One of the main proposals of the Government was the creation of regional
autonomy (e.g. the Catalonia and Basque Country Statutes),
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5. They tried to change the Army into an efficient and modern group, and to
reduce the number of officials.
TASK 10
But these attempts were undermined by a lack of financial resources and strong
opposition from different groups.
Who could be the main opponents to these changes? Choose some of the following
groups and write one sentence to justify your opinion.
- Landowners
- Peasants
- The Church
- Factory workers
- The Armed Forces
- Trade Unions
TASK 11
There were a lot of strikes, church burnings and further disorder. One of
these incidents caused the dissolution of Azaña's government. Thirteen anarchists
fired on the police in the small village of Casas Viejas (Cadiz). The government’s
order was “neither prisoners nor wounded." The police killed all the anarchists, and
the extreme left turned these into martyrs.
Why do you think the peasants from Andalucía fought against the
government?
New elections were called on November 1933.
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c) The Conservative Government and the Miners´ Uprising (19331935)
TASK 12
Read carefully the following text and try to relate it with the picture.
Then, answer the questions below:
In 1931, women didn’t have the right to vote, but they could be elected. There
were three women in the government. During the discussion to extend their right
to active suffrage, the Radical Socialist Victoria Kent confronted the Radical Clara
Campoamor. Kent argued that Spanish women were not yet prepared to vote
because they were too influenced by the Catholic Church. Campoamor however
pleaded for women's rights regardless their opinions. Finally, in the election of
1933, all citizens of either sex over 23 had the right to vote. Both Campoamor and
Kent lost their seats.
Do you agree with Kent or with Campoamor? Was it a good idea to give the vote to
women even if it meant losing the election?
TASK 13
Looking at the chart that shows the result of the elections, and using
the materials you have below, try to write a short account about the period 19331935:
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Parties and alliances. November, 1933.
Seats
Spanish Confederation of the Autonomous Right (Confederación Española de
Derechas Autónomas)
117
Radical Republican Party (Partido Republicano Radical)
104
Other centre-right parties

Agrarian Party (Partido Agrario)

Carlists (Carlistas)

Monarchists (Monárquicos)
90
Spanish Socialist Workers' Party (Partido Socialista Obrero Español)
58
Regionalist League (Lliga Regionalista)
24
Republican Left of Catalonia (Esquerra Republicana de Catalunya)
23
Republican Action (Acción Republicana)
7
Other centre-left parties
Radical-Socialist Party (Partido Radical-Socialista)
3
Federalists (Federalistas)
2
Communist Party of Spain (Partido Comunista de España)
1
CEDA: a coalition of centre-right and right-wing parties ranging from Christian
Democracy to Fascism. They formed a parliamentary alliance with:
Partido Radical Republicano (center-wing) of Lerroux.
Ideas: to abolish the reforms introduced by Azaña and his government
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Reaction:
Your account can use the following guidelines:
In November 1933---------This government------------As a result, in October 1934 ------------But finally--------------The involvement of Lerroux's party in economic scandals deeply weakened the
Centre party and forced the 1936 election.
d) The 1936 Election
TASK 14
Listening:
Fill in the gaps:
On January 7th, 1936, new elections were called. Socialists, Communists, Catalan
and Madrid-based left-wing ------------- decided to work together under the name
Frente Popular. The answer of the right-wing parties was to join the Frente
Nacional (coalition of CEDA, Carlists and Monarchists)
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The Frente Popular won the elections with a wide ---------- (with 263 MPs, where
Frente Nacional had 156 and Centre parties almost disappeared).
Manuel Azaña was named Prime Minister, but in April Alcalá-Zamora, the
moderate President, was ---------------- and Azaña took his position.
The new ------------- restarted the reforms, especially the land one; they also
released all left-wing political prisoners, outlawed the Falange Española -a Fascist
Nationalist party led by José Antonio Primo de Rivera - and granted Catalonia
political and administrative -----------.
But in the following months, violence between left and right-wing extremists
spread. As a result, the Falange Española rose sharply.
On the other hand, an important faction of the Army, commanded by lieutenant
Mola, had been preparing a coup d´etat since the very moment the Frente Popular
won the -------------.
TASK 15: Write T (true) or F (false) after the following sentences:
a) The Frente Popular was composed of different centre-left
wing parties.
b) Alcalá Zamora was named Prime Minister
c) The new government went on with the reforms they had
started in 1931.
d) Falange Española was one of the parties in the Frente
Popular.
e) Last stage of the Republic
TASK 16:
You have some short texts followed by different information (charts and
pictures) about the starting of the war. Working in pairs, use this information to
complete the texts, writing an account about the development of the facts. You
have the first text done as an example:
1. This was a period of increasing struggle. Radicals became more
aggressive, while conservatives turned to paramilitary actions. According
to official sources:
Assassinations
Wounded people
Failed assassinations
General strikes
Religious buildings destroyed
330
1511
213
113
160
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2. Some Army high officers wanted the government to give them the
power:
Military plot
Mola, Franco, Queipo de Llano and
Sanjurjo
Sent to Africa by Azaña
Mola, Franco, Goded
th
th
3. On July 12 and 13 two important murderers happened:
Name
Affiliation
Killed by
José Castillo (Lieutenant)
Guardia de Asalto. Unión Militar Republicana Antifascista
Falangists
Name
Affiliation
Killed by
José Calvo Sotelo
Leader of the right-wing opposition
Castillo’s comrades
4. Three days later (July 17th), the army uprising began in Morocco. It
failed in the main towns:
Town
Reasons
Madrid
workers organizations had weapons provided by the government
Barcelona
Anarchist Trade Unions organized resistance
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The uprising that had began as a pronunciamiento resulted in the outbreak
of a civil war.
Example:
Text 1: This was a period of rising struggle. Radicals became more
aggressive, while conservatives turned to paramilitary actions. According to
official sources, 330 people were assassinated and 1,511 were wounded in
politically-related violence; records show 213 failed assassination attempts, 113
general strikes, and the destruction of 160 religious buildings
TASK 17
Make a timeline of the stages of the 2nd Republic, including at least the following
facts:
1st general elections; new Constitution; the Asturian general strike; Catalonian
autonomy; right-wing governments; 2nd general elections; General Sanjurjo´s coup
d´etat; left-wing governments; Basque Country autonomy; 3rd general elections;
Franco´s uprising.
TASK 18
3. The Spanish Civil War (ppt)
SPANISH CIVIL WAR.ppt
TASK 19
Complete the following chart:
REPUBLICANS
Domestic Areas
Support
Foreign
Support
Social
groups/
political
parties
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NATIONALISTS
TASK 20
Working in pairs, try to match each word with its definition:
International Brigades
Children of the war
Nationalists
Generalísimo
Laicism
Republican
Liberated city
Condor Legion
Followers of the military uprising
German air force supporting the Nationalist Army
Children evacuated from Republican areas to European
and American countries during the war
Teaching with non influence of religious ideologies
Place conquered by enemy forces
Head of the Nationalist Armies
Foreign volunteer forces, communists and socialists,
who came to help the Republican forces
Defender of the legal and democratic government
TASK 21:
Look at the Picasso´s Guernika. Describe it with your own words. Why do you
think it became a symbol of the Civil War?
TASK 22.
Watch the following videos and write a short account explaining your vision of the
Spanish Civil War.
You must take some notes on the videos to organise your ideas.
You can use the following outline:
- Causes
- Important facts
- Important characters
- Conclusion
civilwar1.mp4
civilwar2.mp4
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