Analyze social, political and economic causes of the Spanish Civil War

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Nicholas Pratte

IBH1 European History

Ms. Gifford

Analyze the political, social and economic causes of the Spanish Civil War

        It has been said by many foreign observers that the Spanish Civil War was a part of a bigger struggle between fascism and socialism in Europe at the time. During 1931, King Alphonso XIII was leading Spain through dictatorial means. Spaniards of various social classes grew to despise the monarchy for their own reasons. As a result, the monarchy collapsed on the same year and the 2nd republic was elected to lead the new government. The republic was filled with liberals and left wing coalitions, which angered the right wing nationalists, as the new policies did not benefit them. The root causes of the Spanish Civil War can be seen though the political, economic and social stance of Spain during 1931 to 1936. Firstly, the political problems presented ideological differences, which angered many political parties in Spain. Secondly, the economical condition of Spain forced to impose unreliable land reforms resulting in public dissatisfaction. Lastly, the social condition, one in which the church and the army had caused problems for the government, presented difficulties for the new republic.

        As the 2nd republic was born, the right, which consisted of mainly conservatives, Falange (Fascists), Ceda (Church Party), Carlists and the army were unhappy with the new government, which was led by the left wing, which consisted of liberals, socialists, communists and anarchists. Once the left realized the power of the church, anti-clericalism was implemented, which moreover angered the right wing as the church was being divided from society in which it supported. The new government burned down convents in Madrid in 1931, which caused civil unrest from the wealthy Spaniards as they looked up to the church. The army was also dissatisfied with the new government as its role was lessened in politics and army costs were cut. The army was used to being in power during King Alphonso XIII’s time due to the army’s leading role in the dictatorship. This caused an army uprising in 1932 to show the new government the distaste the army had for the republic. However, an important factor was the different ideologies present during the rise of the 2nd republic. The right had different ideals for Spain, which the left did not meet and only provoked. Therefore, the actions made by the left winged government were disapproved by the right wing due to their differences in opinion and beliefs.

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        The poor economy of Spain was also a factor that caused the Spanish Civil War as the new government failed to appeal to peasants and landlords, which furthermore increased the gap between rich and poor. Firstly, just like any other European country, Spain was suffering from an economical crisis from an underdeveloped industrial sector. To worsen things, The Wall street Crash of 1929 furthermore worsened the economical crisis for Spain. Many of the peasants noticed the increasing gap between the rich and the poor. Spain was suffering from agricultural poverty, as peasants weren’t granted any land by landowners who benefitted ...

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