War and passion in Spain

On July 18, 1936, a conservative army officer in Morocco, Francisco Franco, led a mutiny against the government. The civil war that followed lasted three years and nearly a million people died.

Pablo Picasso 1951

This artwork is the classic man versus man and also some man versus society. The unarmed and naked civilians are about to be brutally killed.

 Several hundred leftist Americans served in the Abraham Lincoln Brigade on the side of the republic. Approximately 2,800 Americans served the Republic during the Spanish Civil War. More than 700 were killed in action or died of wounds or sickness. Most American volunteers returned in December and January 1938. This is the militia that Vic's father "Poncho" was a part of, as a boy of around 15. It is hard for me to fathom that a Mother would let her teenager go to war. But I think that is the passion that Spanish people feel for their country!   

Francisco Franco

Then in 1947, the Spanish people approved a Franco-drafted succession law declaring Spain a monarchy again (in theory only). Franco was the chief of state, and the the King was a just puppet. In 1969, Franco and the Spanish “states” designated Prince Juan Carlos Alfonso Victor María de Borbón to become king of Spain when the Fascist government of Franco ended. Franco died on Nov. 20, 1975, and Juan Carlos was proclaimed king on Nov. 22 1975.
The transition back to the Monarchy began in 1975. The transition relied on  support both inside and outside of Spain. Western governments, i.e. the United States, favored a Spanish constitutional monarchy, as did many Spanish.

The period from 1975 to now has been a time of tremendous change for Spain. It has been an exciting time but there have been growing pains as well. The diversity and creativity that was squashed by Franco, has come to the forefront and resulted in turmoil and tensions in Spain.

A fellow blogger described it this way  "one Spain is heavily Catholic, reactionary, and centrist, the other a secular (anti-clerical), progressive, modern and in this sense more 
post-Enlightenment European Spain" .

From what I have learned, this resulted in a

rich pluralism of Spain's many cultures and people today. 

"We must be willing to let go of the life we planned.....so as to have the life that is waiting for us.” -Joseph Campbell