SPANISH CIVIL WAR

The Spanish Civil War had started on July 18^th, 1936, when some Sergeants under the control of Francisco Franco had power of one third of the country. An important factor was the negligence of the government accepting the situation and the possession of guns among civilians. Also, Spain was in a state of possible anarchy. The British were afraid of the influence possibly developed by the Communists in a country that was very important in business for them.  On September 29^th, Franco was put in charge of the government, and by October, 1^st, he was calling himself as head of the state. His ambitions were clear. 20,000 died in a massacre ordered to execute by Franco.  Then, the battle for obtaining the heart of Spain began. The Nationalists army moved northwest and southwest Spain, and in half month all the towns within 15 miles were under their control. The insurgents were brave, but their inexperience cost then plenty soldiers and territory.  Dolores, also called La Pasionaria, inspired the people of Madrid to keep fighting. She also said “It is better to die on your feet than to live on your knees”, “They shall not pass!” to keep inspiring the Madrileños and resist in war. The Republican Madrileños transformed their beloved city into a fortress. The next ten days, Germans and Italians were dropping bombs on Madrid, but even that wasn’t enough to end with the will of the Madrileños. They kept resisting, even kids helped in the war by building barricades in the streets. Also, women helped, they grabbed guns and helped the resistance. For the next 4 months, Madrid became the objective in the battle. On June 19^th, Bilbao fell and the Basque language was prohibited.  The nationalists tried to break into Madrid, but they just couldn’t with the tenacious Madrileños defending it. By this time, the Nationalists had two thirds of the country, and it looked that Franco was starting to win the war. The Republicans needed a spectacular achievement to gain moral encouragement. On January 17^th, 1938, The Republican line finally broke, but the fight kept on going for one more month. The Nationalists army was still being covered by the German airplanes. La Pasionaria said that the Republicans did well, they could go home proudly, and they were legends. On January 1939, Barcelona was in possession of Franco and the Republicans shared the graveyard with some Nationalists. By April 1^st, 1939, the Civil War was won by Franco.