A War Without Mercy

More than eighty-five years after it ended in defeat for the Republicans and victory for the Nationalists headed by General Francisco Franco, the Spanish Civil War remains a subject of debate and contention. We live in a time of political polarization, with opposing sides holding entrenched and unalterable positions and A Short History of the Spanish Civil War sheds light on the consequences of such circumstances. It also presents a detailed but concise picture of this turbulent and pivotal moment in European history.

The Spanish Civil War was a war of firsts: the first in which civilians were targeted, through the bombing of cities. It was also the first 'photogenic' war in history, the growth in photojournalism bringing images of the fighting and of the huge number of refugees that were created by the conflict to the newspapers and newsreels of other European countries. New weapons, technologies and strategies were tried out, rehearsing for the increasingly inevitable war on European soil.

A Short History of the Spanish War examines the origins of this deadly conflagration which date back to the nineteenth century and which finds its causes in the issues of mass suffrage, social welfare reform, and land reform, as well as in the increasing tensions between urbanism and rural tradition. The course of the war is laid out, including descriptions of the major battles and incidents, incorporating details of the bombing of major cities, most harrowingly, of course, the bombing of civilians at Guernica, famously depicted in Pablo Picasso's painting of the atrocity. The reaction of the other nations of Europe is also examined – the 'non-intervention' promulgated by Great Britain and France, and the direct intervention of the fascist nations, Germany and Italy, in support of the Nationalist cause, support that took the form of troops, planes and armaments.