Synopses & Reviews
General Francisco Franco ruled Spain for nearly forty years, as one of the most powerful and controversial leaders in that nation's long history. He has been the subject of many biographies, several of them more than a thousand pages in length, but all the preceding works have tended toward one extreme of interpretation or the other. This is the first comprehensive scholarly biography of Franco in English that is objective and balanced in its coverage, treating all three major aspects of his lifeand#151;personal, military, and political. The coauthors, both renowned historians of Spain, present a deeply researched account that has made extensive use of the Franco Archive (long inaccessible to historians). They have also conducted in-depth interviews with his only daughter to explain better his family background, personal life, and marital environment, as well as his military and political career.
and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160; Franco: A Personal and Political Biography depicts his early life, explains his career and rise to prominence as an army officer who became Europe's youngest interwar brigadier general in 1926, and then discusses his role in the affairs of the troubled Second Spanish Republic (1931and#150;36). Stanley G. Payne and Jesand#250;s Palacios examine in detail how Franco became dictator and how his leadership led to victory in the Spanish Civil War that consolidated his regime. They also explore Franco's role in the great repression that accompanied the Civil Warand#151;resulting in tens of thousands of executionsand#151;and examine at length his controversial role in World War II. This masterful biography highlights Franco's metamorphoses and adaptations to retain power as politics, culture, and economics shifted in the four decades of his dictatorship.
Review
“[Stanley Payne is] America’s most prolific historian of Spain.” —Paul Preston,
New York Times Book ReviewReview
“Payne’s scope in this book is very impressive. The totality of the political and social struggle during this period is his greatest success—the Second Republic as a process.” —Robert Kern, University of New Mexico
Review
"An intimate portrait of Franco the man, provoking a lively and necessary debate about the nature of the dictator's regime."and#151;Julius Ruiz, author of
Franco's JusticeReview
"Francisco Franco is the only major twentieth-century dictator to die peacefully in his bedand#151;after almost four decades in power. His regime was brutal, despicable, and in many respects ineffectual, yet it did not join the Axis powers in World War II and was a transitional type between traditional military dictatorships and more recent totalitarian regimes. This book, impeccably based on the available sources and displaying sober judgment, could well be the definitive work on the subject."and#151;Walter Laqueur, author of
Fascism: Past, Present, FutureReview
"Masterfully combines research on Franco's life and regime with new and unique sources including Franco's private papers and interviews with Franco's only daughter. It will appeal to a broad readership including anyone interested in the history of twentieth-century Spain, the Spanish civil war, and the Franco regime."and#151;Joan Maria Thomand#224;s, University Rovira-Virgili, Spain
Synopsis
The significance of Spain’s Second Republic has been largely overshadowed by the cataclysmic Civil War that immediately followed it. Stanley Payne brings his immense knowledge of Spanish history to bear on the five-year span of the Second Republic as a historic entity in its own right. In Spain’s First Democracy, he argues that the Republic was one of the major national attempts at political democratization and reform in Europe between the World Wars and represented the most important effort to swim against the tide during Europe’s “era of fascism.”
Payne’s detailed study places the Republic within the historical framework of Spanish liberalism and the rapid modernization of interwar Europe, which was unlike any other period in Spain’s history. Payne discusses the Republicans’ efforts to establish Spain’s first democratic political systems and to institute major reforms within the Republic. In highlighting reforms in politics and government, church-state relations, education and culture, public works, military affairs, and society as a whole, he assesses the successes and failures of these reforms as well as the reasons for their limitations. He also examines the economic and foreign policy issues of the period.
Focusing particularly on political conflict and social cleavage, Payne brilliantly explores the sources and character of the political polarization that developed as a result of the assaults on the Republic from the Left and the Right. He identifies the main political actors in this schism and their role in the eventual breakdown of the Republic. Tracing the progressive collapse of the Republican polity in the first half of 1936, Payne stresses the importance of political violence in the democracy’s downfall.
In restoring perspectives that have been ignored or bypassed, Payne presents a consistent and detailed interpretation of Spain’s Second Republic, demonstrating its striking parallels to the Weimar Republic in Germany.
Synopsis
The first comprehensive scholarly biography of Franco in English, presenting an objective and deeply researched account of the Spanish dictatorand#8217;s personal, professional, and political life.
Description
Includes bibliographical references (p. 389-454) and index.
About the Author
Stanley G. Payne is the Hilldaleand#150;Jaume Vicens Vives Professor of History Emeritus at the University of Wisconsinand#150;Madison and the author of many books, including
A History of Fascism, 1914and#150;1945;
The Franco Regime, 1936and#150;1975; and
Spain: A Unique History. Jesand#250;s Palacios is a noted historian, investigative journalist, and adjunct professor at the University of Madrid.
Table of Contents
List of Illustrationsand#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;
Prefaceand#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;
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1 The Making of a Spanish Officer (1892and#150;1913)and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;
2 The Youngest General in Europe (1913and#150;1926)and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;
3 Director of the General Military Academy (1926and#150;1931)and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;
4 From Ostracism to Chief of Staff (1931and#150;1936)and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;
5 The Destruction of Republican Democracy (1936)and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;
6 Franco Becomes Generalissimo (1936)and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;
7 Forging a Dictatorship (1936and#150;1939)and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;
8 Winning the Civil War (1936and#150;1939)and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;
9 Franco and the Nationalist Repression (1936and#150;1945)and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;
10 From Civil War to World War (1939and#150;1940)and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;
11 The Great Temptation (1940and#150;1941)and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;
12 Surviving World War II (1941and#150;1945)and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;
13 Franco at Bay (1945and#150;1953)and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;
14 Franco at His Zenith (1953and#150;1959)and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;
15 Franco at Homeand#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;
16 Development Dictator (1959and#150;1964)and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;
17 Facing the Future (1964and#150;1969)and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;
18 Franco and the Modernization of Spainand#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;
19 Twilight Years (1969and#150;1974)and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;
20 The Death of Franco (1974and#150;1975)and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;
Conclusion: Franco in the Perspective of Historyand#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;
and#160;
Notesand#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160;
Index