The Two Spains (1936 Onwards): Spain - Coming to Terms with the Past?
The Two Spains (1936 Onwards): Spain - Coming to Terms with the Past?
The Two Spains (1936 Onwards)
-
Background: The metaphor of the “Two Spains” is often used in historiography and popular culture to describe the ideological, political, and geographical divisions in Spain that came to a head during the country’s brutal Civil War (1936-1939).
-
Opposing forces: The “left” Spain consisted of the Republicans, including liberals, socialists, communists, and anarchists who favoured progress, secularism, and regional autonomy. The “right” Spain was represented by the Nationalists, which included the military, fascists, conservatives, and the Catholic Church, who sought centralised power, traditional values, and religious uniformity.
-
Spanish Civil War: The conflict steeped the nation in violence and turmoil, causing hundreds of thousands of deaths and leaving indelible scars on the country.
Spain Coming to Terms with the Past
-
Francoist dictatorship (1939-1975): Following the Civil War, Francisco Franco established a repressive regime. Under his rule, Spain experienced censorship, political repression, and human rights abuses.
-
The Pact of Forgetting (1977): After Franco’s death, as part of Spain’s transition to democracy, major political parties agreed to a “Pact of Forgetting”, an unofficial agreement to avoid confronting past atrocities. This policy of forgetting was seen as a necessity for a peaceful democratic transition and national reconciliation.
-
Historical Memory Laws (2007): In response to increasing demands to address the wounds of the past, the Spanish government enacted the Historical Memory Law. It acknowledges and provides reparations for the victims of Franco’s dictatorship, and seeks to remember, acknowledge, and mourn past atrocities.
-
Ongoing struggles: Despite these efforts, there are still ongoing political and social struggles in Spain concerning the past. These include divisive issues like the exhumation of Franco’s remains, naming of streets after Francoist figures, unmarked mass graves, and the treatment of Catalan and Basque separatism.
-
Intellectual and Artistic Response: Throughout this period, intellectuals and artists have played a crucial role in examining and highlighting these divisions. Works such as Guillermo del Toro’s “Pan’s Labyrinth” and novels by Carlos Ruiz Zafon explore themes of memory, trauma, and reconciliation.
In considering these points, be aware that the idea of ‘coming to terms with the past’ is complex and multifaceted. It encompasses justice, memory, acknowledgment, reparation, and reconciliation, which are all subjects of ongoing debate in contemporary Spain.