"The Spanish Civil War: An Overview" Topic
9 Posts
All members in good standing are free to post here. Opinions expressed here are solely those of the posters, and have not been cleared with nor are they endorsed by The Miniatures Page.
Please use the Complaint button (!) to report problems on the forums.
For more information, see the TMP FAQ.
Back to the Spanish Civil War Message Board
Areas of InterestWorld War Two on the Land
Featured Hobby News Article
Featured Link
Top-Rated Ruleset
Featured Showcase ArticleHow does coverbinding work?
Featured Profile Article
Featured Book Review
Featured Movie Review
|
Please sign in to your membership account, or, if you are not yet a member, please sign up for your free membership account.
Tango01 | 09 Feb 2017 3:10 p.m. PST |
|
Tango01 | 09 Feb 2017 3:12 p.m. PST |
"In a longer historical perspective the Spanish Civil War amounts to the opening battle of World War II, perhaps the only time in living memory when the world confronted—in fascism and Nazism—something like unqualified evil. The men and women who understood this early on and who chose of their own free will to stand against fascism have thus earned a special status in history. Viewed internally, on the other hand, the Spanish Civil War was the culmination of a prolonged period of national political unrest—unrest in a country that was increasingly polarized and repeatedly unable to ameliorate the conditions of terrible poverty in which millions of its citizens lived. Spain was a country in which landless peasants cobbled together a bare subsistence living by following the harvests on vast, wealthy agricultural estates. The hierarchy of the Catholic Church, identifying more with wealthy landowners than with the Spanish people, was in full control of secondary education; education for women seemed to them unnecessary and universal literacy a danger rather than a goal. Divorce was illegal. The military, meanwhile, had come to see itself, rather melodramatically, as the only bulwark against civil disorder and as the ultimate guarantor of the core values of Spanish society. When a progressive Popular Front government was elected in February 1936, with the promise of realistic land reform one of its key planks, conservative forces immediately gathered to plan resistance. The Spanish Left, meanwhile, celebrated the elections in a way that made conservative capitalists, military officers, and churchmen worried that much broader reform might begin. Rumors of plotting for a military coup led leaders of the Republic to transfer several high-ranking military officers to remote postings, the aim being to make communication and coordination between them more difficult. But it was not enough. The planning for a military rising continued. The military rebellion took place on July 18, with the officers who organized it expecting a quick victory and a rapid takeover of the entire country. What the military did not anticipate was the determination of the Spanish people, who broke into barracks, took up arms, and crushed the rebellion in key areas like the cities of Madrid and Barcelona. It was at that point that the character of the struggle changed, for the military realized they were not going to win by fiat. Instead they faced a prolonged struggle against their own people and an uncertain outcome. They appealed to fascist dictatorships in Italy, Germany, and Portugal for assistance, and they soon began receiving both men and supplies from Benito Mussolini, Adolf Hitler, and Antonio Salazar…" Main page link Amicalement Armand |
Blutarski | 10 Feb 2017 9:14 p.m. PST |
I suggest gaining a perspective on the ideological point of view of author, Professor Cary Nelson, before too closely embracing this essay as a piece of sober objective history. B |
goragrad | 11 Feb 2017 12:27 p.m. PST |
I would say that ideological point of view of Professor Cary Nelson is fully apparent in - In a longer historical perspective the Spanish Civil War amounts to the opening battle of World War II, perhaps the only time in living memory when the world confronted—in fascism and Nazism—something like unqualified evil. I am sure some other examples come readily to mind to those on this forum… |
maciek72 | 14 Feb 2017 7:12 a.m. PST |
Even from this excerpt I can judge the work biased. It sounds like teaching I received in my primary school (with Poles fighting for Spanish Republic in International Brigades as patrons), under communist regime, back in 1970's. |
Chouan | 15 Feb 2017 1:30 p.m. PST |
"In a longer historical perspective the Spanish Civil War amounts to the opening battle of World War II, perhaps the only time in living memory when the world confronted—in fascism and Nazism—something like unqualified evil." Quite. What is wrong with the statement? |
Chouan | 15 Feb 2017 1:32 p.m. PST |
Having read the article; again, what is wrong with it? There is nothing in it that Hugh Thomas and Antony Beevor haven't already argued. |
Chouan | 16 Feb 2017 1:06 p.m. PST |
It is also revealing that there seems to be more direct criticism of the author than of what he has written, which rather suggests that the poster/posters are more concerned about the author's political viewpoint than they have about the accuracy of the article. |
Chouan | 17 Feb 2017 5:01 a.m. PST |
On the other hand, it isn't really surprising. There are many who still believe that what was done by the right in Spain was somehow justified. How dare a democratically elected government carry out the social and land reforms that they promised to do if elected! How dare the poor of Spain expect that their lot should be improved! Having been defeated in a legitimate election, of course the Army and their backers were fully justified in launching a bloody coup, murdering thousands before the government even had time to react! How dare the Popular Front imagine that winning a democratic election gave them the right to govern! Some people, even now, still seem to think that authoritarian military rule and the crushing and intimidation of workers and liberals through mass murder was, somehow, a good thing. |
|