Notes, summaries, assignments, exams, and exercises for History for Baccalaureate

Franco's Final Years and the Beginning of the Transition

In 1973, the Franco regime, because of its last gasps, was unable to adapt its structure to the deep political, economic, social, and cultural changes that had occurred in Spain since the 1960s.

On June 8, 1973, Franco left the Presidency of the Government in the hands of Admiral Luis Carrero Blanco, remaining as Head of State. Carrero represented the hard line of the Franco regime, which would follow a policy of continuity and guarantee that Juan Carlos did not deviate from the principles of Francoism.

A defining moment of the final crisis opened with the disappearance of Prime Minister Admiral Luis Carrero Blanco (Doc.1), the victim of an ETA attack in December 1973. The system's reaction...

The Francoist Regime: Features and Foundations

The Francoist regime, established following the Spanish Civil War, was marked by extreme authoritarianism. It abolished the Constitution of 1931, closed Parliament, and banned all political parties and trade unions, though it permitted a single party and a single union.

Characteristics of the Francoist State

• Franco's Accumulation of Power

  Francisco Franco held multiple titles: Caudillo of Spain, Head of State, Prime Minister, Generalissimo, and leader of the national party.

• Centralized, Unitary State

  The regime designed a highly centralized, unitary state. It abolished autonomous statutes and actively discouraged regional identities, particularly those influenced by Catalan, Basque, and Galician nationalism.

The Late Middle Ages: Crisis of the XIV and XV Centuries

The Christian Kingdoms in the Middle Ages: Political Organization

Institutions (Kingdom of Castile and Crown of Aragon)

The Kingdom of Castile was a hereditary monarchy and property, where the nobility opposed the monarchical pretensions. This led, in the fourteenth century, to the civil war between Pedro I and Enrique de Trastámara, who led a rebellion of the nobility. After the war, he established a new dynasty on the throne (Trastámara), and the nobility was rewarded with generous concessions for their support to the new king (mercedes enriqueñas). Still in the Middle Ages, the monarchy was strengthened.

There was the merger of the Cortes de Castilla y León, the birth of the Hearing...

Opposition to Franco's Regime in Spain

Tensions in domestic politics helped to strengthen the Franco regime. Spain risked involvement in a fratricidal struggle and complete isolation from the world stage. The PSOE was torn between calling for a republic or continuing to work with anti-Franco monarchists. Exile led to thousands of workers striking, initiating open resistance from the labor sector.

The regime controlled opposition attacks, both diplomatic offensives from Republican exiles and guerrilla army actions. During the 1950s, confrontation with the regime took four main forms:

• Labor strikes
• University agitation
• The revival of nationalism
• Activity of exiles

By the end of the decade, the opposition presented a picture of effervescence, to which...

The Spanish Civil War

The Siege of Madrid

In the summer and autumn, General Mola attempted to take Madrid from the northeast. However, his forces were detained at the pass by the Republican Army of the Sierra de Guadarrama. There was an attempt to retake the capital in the Battle of Jarama, but after thousands of deaths, the Nationalist Army was defeated in its objectives. In the Battle of Guadalajara, the Nationalist Army was defeated by the Republicans, with thousands of Italian soldiers killed.

The city of Madrid was defended by a defense council led by General Miaja. General Franco, upon receiving permission to take Madrid, diverted his forces to liberate the Alcázar of Toledo. This delayed the advance on Madrid for three years. Finally,...

Spain's Transition to Democracy

Introduction: The transition period in Spain's history began with Franco's death in 1975. The electoral victory of the PSOE marked a move towards a fully democratic society. A key feature of this period was the political groups' commitment to "consensus."

Arias Navarro's Government

Following Franco's rules, Juan Carlos de Borbon swore allegiance to the principles of the National Movement. Arias Carlos Navarro was confirmed as prime minister and appointed a cabinet to give an appearance of openness. However, these months were marked by great conflict. The Arias government responded with harsh repression, while the Platajunta called for amnesty, freedom of political association, general elections, and a constitutional...

Political Parties in the Second Spanish Republic

Following the proclamation of the Republic, a provisional government was formed. It represented all the forces that signed the Pact of San Sebastián:

• Liberal Republican Right: Alcalá Zamora (President), Miguel Maura (Interior)
• Radical Republican Party: Lerroux (State), Martínez Barrio (Communications)
• Republican Action: Azaña (War)
• Radical Socialist Republican Party: Marcelino Domingo (Education), Álvaro Albornoz (Development), Nicolau D'Oliver (Economy), Casares Quiroga (Navy)
• PSOE: Indalecio Prieto (Finance), Fernando de los Rios (Justice), Largo Caballero (Labor)

It was not a revolutionary government. The members were mostly middle-class men aware of the need to modernize the country, but supporters...

Item 8: The February Revolution and the Fall of the Tsarist Regime

On February 23, 1917, a strike at the Putilov arms factory spontaneously ignited a revolution in Petrograd. On February 26, there was a bloody crackdown by the army, just one day after troops of the Petrograd garrison, sent to quell demonstrations, joined the strikers. On March 2, Nicholas II abdicated, and the next day a provisional government was formed, chaired by Prince Lvov, whose members came mostly from the party of cadets. Kerensky, a socialist revolutionary, also participated.

From March to October: The Provisional Government

Between March and October, two parallel powers existed in Russia: the interim government and the Soviets. The interim government implemented a series...

Paris Peace Conference

In January 1918, U.S. President Wilson stated in the U.S. Congress his Fourteen Points, which he believed should govern a just and lasting peace. Its objectives were:

• Abolition of secret diplomacy.
• Freedom of navigation and international trade.
• Breakup of old empires.
• Creation of a Society of Nations.

But these principles were not fully respected, as the European Allies were more concerned with defending their own interests.

The Paris Peace Conference (1919-1920) produced five treaties stipulating the conditions of peace and new boundaries between the victors and the vanquished.

The Post-War Treaties

• Treaty of Versailles

  Signed on 28 June 1919 between the Allies and Germany. Germany's empire was split in two by the Polish Corridor.

Key Concepts of the Russian Revolution and Soviet History

Political Factions and Ideologies

Mensheviks

A faction of the Russian Social Democratic Labour Party (RSDLP) opposed to Tsarist rule. This group argued that Russia must first undergo a bourgeois revolution and develop a capitalist economy before achieving a socialist state. They conceived of the revolution as a mass organization open to militants and sympathizers.

Bolsheviks

A faction of the Russian Social Democratic Labour Party (RSDLP). Their goal was the defeat of Tsarism and the establishment of a "revolutionary democratic dictatorship of the proletariat and the peasantry." They conceived of the party as a tightly disciplined organization whose militants had to follow the program and...