Root Causes of the Spanish Civil War

The Origins of the Spanish Civil War

The Spanish Civil War is frequently recognized as a significant and pivotal crossroads throughout the history of the Spanish people. To understand how millions of people were killed during this war, it must be asked why the Spanish Civil War broke out in the first place. Actually, there are five fundamental reasons or causes which simultaneously led to the civil war in Spain in 1936.

Before the Spanish Civil War, Spain was governed by the King, but due to the Great Depression that drove the nation into a financial breakdown and massive unemployment, the King was forced to abdicate on April 14, 1931, and Spain became a republic.

The Rise of the Second Republic

The new republic emerged and quickly faced various serious issues due to the prevailing conditions:

• Regional Independence: Two significant regions in Spain, Catalonia and the Basque region, sought independence. Had their requests been successful, it would have led to the breakup of Spain.
• Religious Conflict: The Roman Catholic Church was hostile to the republic, and the republic was equally threatening to the highly influential Church.
• Military Influence: The administration believed that the military had too much say in political affairs and was determined to reduce its impact.
• Agrarian Crisis: Spain was essentially an agrarian country, and the 1930s depression had hit crop prices. Primary exports, such as olive oil and wine, fell in value, and previously utilized farmland fell into neglect.
• Industrial Decline: The small industry that Spain possessed was also hit by the Depression. Iron and steel were particularly affected as no one had the money to pay for the products.

Economic Hardship and Social Unrest

Iron production fell by a third and steel by half. Unemployment in both agriculture and industry rose, and those in work had to put up with a cut in wages as the economy struggled to survive the Depression. The Republic faced losing the support of the working class—the very people whose help it desperately needed. While there are several versions of the story of the Spanish Civil War, this analysis focuses on the causes and how these factors led to the conflict.

The Failure of Social Revolution

Unlike most other countries of Western Europe at that time, Spain had never completed its revolution. Significant economic and social sectors of the country remained under the control of the feudal classes. On the other hand, the weak and vacillating bourgeoisie was unsuccessful in taking effective measures to ensure social and economic progress, while the economic and political privileges of the dominant classes were left intact.

As a result, the progress and development of some sectors were suppressed during the 19th century until the situation reached a breaking point in 1931. On April 13, 1931, unsolvable contradictions between the financial, landowning, and popular forces reached the point of rupture, and the King was forced to abdicate, giving way to the Second Republic.