Collective memory and national identity in the Spanish democracy: The legacies of francoism and the civil war

History and Memory

Volumn 14, Issue 1-2, 2002, Pages 121-164

  Aguilar, Paloma ^a   Humlebæk, Carsten ^a  

^a NONE

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[No Author keywords available]

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EID: 84908084177     PISSN: 0935560X     EISSN: 15271994     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1353/ham.2002.0001     Document Type: Review

References (68)

1. José Álvarez Junco, Mater dolorosa: La idea de España en el siglo XIX (Madrid, 2001).
2. See also his article in this volume, "The Formation of Spanish Identity and Its Adaptation to the Age of Nations," 13-36 above.
3. Paloma Aguilar, "Franquismo y nacionalismo," in Andrés de Blas, ed., Enciclopedia del nacionalismo (Madrid, 1997), 275-82.
4. Elizabeth Jelin and Susana G. Kaufman, "Layers of Memories: Twenty Years after in Argentina," in T. G. Ashplant, Graham Dawson and Michael Roper, eds., The Politics of War, Memory and Commemoration (London, 2001), 89-110.
5. This statement needs of course to be qualified with regards to the regions in which the nationalist discourse is stronger. For instance, while in the whole of Spain the attachment to Spanish national identity scores a mean of 8.23 (on a scale from 0 to 10), this same question scores a mean of 7.34 in Catalonia, 7.38 in Galicia and only 5.74 in the Basque Country. Félix Moral, Identidad regional y nacionalismo en el Estado de las Autonomías (Madrid, 1998), 16.
6. "Decreto 15 de julio 1937," Boletín Oficial del Estado (BOE) 16 July 1937
7. "Orden de 18 de marzo de 1940. Días de Fiesta. Es fiesta oficial la del Día de la Victoria," BOE, no. 79/1940: 1913.
8. See "Orden de 9 de marzo de 1940" on the calendar of holidays, BOE, no.73/1940: 1767.
9. The legitimization discourse of Francoism began to change in the mid- 1950s. During the 1960s and 1970s the political emphasis moved from emotional attachment to the victory in the Civil War to instrumental support for the performance of the regime. For the evolution of Francoist discourse regarding the Civil War, see Paloma Aguilar, Memoria y olvido de la guerra civil española (Madrid, 1996).
10. Rafael Tranche and Vicente Sánchez-Biosca, No-Do: El tiempo y la memoria (Madrid, 2000), 203.
11. See also Rafael García Serrano, "No queda nada," El Alcázar, 1 April 1975, 31.
12. Source: Boletín Oficial de las Cortes Españolas. See Aguilar, Memoria y olvido, 115.
13. "Real Decreto 1135/1977, de 27 de mayo, sobre indulto a personal de las Fuerzas Armadas," BOE, no. 127/1977: 11814.
14. "Real Decreto 996/1978, de 12 de mayo, por el que se establece el 'Día de las Fuerzas Armadas'," BOE, no. 114/1978: 11418.
15. In 1987 the celebration of Armed Forces Day was extended to the entire country, thus enabling the military to hold parades in different parts of Spain simultaneously. In 1997, after the Partido Popular (PP) gained power, the "most significant events" of Armed Forces Day were transferred to 12 October, the Day of the National Holiday, thus restoring the link between the National Holiday and large-scale military parades. "Real Decreto 530/1987, de 10 de abril, por el que se regula la celebración anual del Día de las Fuerzas Armadas," BOE, no. 92/1987: 11428
16. "Real Decreto 862/1997, de 6 de junio, por el que se regulan los actos conmemorativos del Día de la Fiesta Nacional de España, en el ámbito del Ministerio de Defensa," BOE, no. 151/1997: 19591.
17. "Real Decreto 1358/1976, de 11 de junio, sobre fiestas civiles," BOE, no. 149/1976: 12104
18. "Real Decreto 1728/1977, de 11 de julio, sobre fiestas civiles", BOE, no. 166/1977: 15724.
19. Aguilar, Memoria y olvido, 283-84.
20. Antonio Izquierdo, "El momumento y la reconciliación," El Alcázar (the main organ of the extreme right, whose name evoked the memory of the Civil War), 24 Nov. 1985, 3.
21. El País did not comment on the inauguration at editorial level but merely reported it as a news item: "El Rey inaugura el monumento a los caídos por España en presencia de ex combatientes de los dos bandos," El País, 23 Nov. 1985, 13. Such reports also appeared in the other newspapers.
22. "Una España de todos," Ya (editorial), 23 Nov. 1985, 9.
23. On the occasion of the 20-N event in 1985 and 1986 El Alcázar was filled with hopeful reports about the increasingly dominant position of the youth within the movement. Antonio Izquierdo (editor of El Alcázar), "Los dirigentes del año 2000," El Alcázar, 26 Nov. 1985, 3;
24. "Tomen nota, señores," El Alcázar, 25 Nov. 1986, 3.
25. "Día de los Caídos por la Patria," Ya, 20 Nov. 1981, 9.
26. All survey results, if not otherwise specified, are based on data from Centro de Investigaciones Sociológicas (CIS) drawn from the following studies (the year appears in parentheses): 1441 (1984), 1495 (1985), 1558 (1986), 1715 (1987), 1764 (1988), 1851 (1989), 1908 (1990), 2124 (1994), 2201 (1995), 2309 (1998) and 2401 (2000).
27. For the most interesting of these debates, see Diario de Sesiones del Congreso de los Diputados (DSC), no. 743/1999: 21851-59; no. 59/2001: 2818-28; no. 166/2001: 4809-12; no. 82/2001: 4146-150; no. 272/2001: 8231-35.
28. See, for example, DSC, no. 59/2001: 2818-28; no. 166/2001: 4809-12; no. 82/2001: 4146-50; no. 272/2001: 8231-35.
29. DSC, no. 139/2002: 7045-54.
30. For some of these features of Spanish political culture, see José Ramón Montero, Richard Gunther and Mariano Torcal, "Actitudes hacia la democracia en España: Legitimidad, descontento y desafección," Revista Española de Investigaciones Sociológicas, no. 83 (1998): 9-49.
31. For an exhaustive study of the extreme right in Spain, see Xavier Casals, La tentación neofascista en España (Barcelona, 1999).
32. The "Diada" celebrated on 11 September commemorates the final defeat of the Catalans by the Spanish troops on 11 September 1714. The 1980 law declaring the holiday seeks to combine the "painful loss of liberties ... an attitude of vindication and active resistance against the oppression [and] the hope of total national recuperation," and thus consecrates a victimist symbolism. "Ley de 12 de junio de 1980 por la que se declara fiesta nacional de Cataluña la jornada del 11 de septiembre," BOE, no. 239/1980: 22087.
33. The Day of "Aberri Eguna" celebrated on Easter Sunday was officially declared the "National Holiday of the Institutions of the Autonomous Basque Region" on 29 April 1981, but it had been celebrated on and off since 1932 even though it was illegal under Francoism. The original proclamation by the Basque Nationalist Party (PNV) in 1932 was filled with religious symbolism equating the Christians' redemption through the crucifixion of Christ with the resurrection of the Basque people through the death of the founder of PNV, Sabino Arana: "The Day of the Resurrection of our Lord. Day of the Basque Fatherland. One single day in which two beloved memories merge: the Resurrection of our Lord, who by triumphing through his own death gives us the clearest possible proof of his divinity; the resurrection of the Basque race, saved through the death of Sabino." The reestablishment of the holiday in 1981 avoided religious references but retained the celebration on Easter Sunday, justifying this by invoking the historical legitimacy derived from almost 50 years of celebration on that day. "Declaración del Aberri-Eguna como Día Oficial de las Instituciones de la Comunidad Autónoma Vasca," Boletín Oficial del País Vasco, no. C24.1 (1981): 1.
34. 2 May was first celebrated in 1812 and 1813 by decision of the Cádiz parliament, which also decided to build a monument to commemorate the uprising. But Fernando VII abolished the celebration in 1814, and it was not until his death in 1833 that the Liberals celebrated it timidly again. During the governance of Espartero, 1840-1843, it was launched again with pomp, and in 1840 the monument was finally constructed. Álvarez Junco, Mater dolorosa, 31-35, 119-39, 183.
35. Antonio Machado, the famous writer who actively supported the Republican side during the war, wrote an article comparing one of the emblematic episodes of the war in Madrid, "the capture of the Mountain Barrack," with the 1808 War of Independence. Cited in Paloma Aguilar, "Guerra civil y nacionalismo," in Andrés de Blas, ed., Enciclopedia del nacionalismo (Madrid, 1997).
36. In the Order of 9 March 1940 on the calendar of holidays, 2 May is included among the "merely official national holidays," whereas both 18 July and 12 October are included among the "absolute national holidays." BOE, no.73/1940: 1767.
37. Citation from 1950. Cited in Josep Fontana, "Reflexiones sobre la naturaleza y las consecuencias del franquismo," in Josep Fontana, ed., España bajo el franquismo (Barcelona, 1986), 15.
38. As described in one textbook: "The people rushed at the French: the soldiers were attacked with fists, with pocketknives, with scissors and needles for sewing mattresses," Manual de la Historia de España: Segundo Grado (Santander, 1939), 219. Nevertheless, the fact that this event was also associated with the Spanish Liberals and the progressive Constitución de Cádiz, explains the Francoist regime's cautious approach to the commemoration of that period.
39. The only "sites of memory" devoted to 2 May in Madrid are two small commemorative plaques, both of which were inaugurated by the Madrid city council. See Fernández Delgado et al., La memoria impuesta: Estudio y catálogo de los monumentos conmemorativos de Madrid (1939-1980) (Madrid, 1982), 282, 300.
40. In the "No-Do" (newsreels and documentaries), one of the main socialization instruments of the dictatorship, 2 May occupies a very secondary place. After being instrumentalized by the two opposing sides in the Civil War, as mentioned above, this uprising was only commemorated at a national level at the beginning of the dictatorship and on its 150th anniversary in 1958. The regime tried to link its idea of patriotism with the idea of the heroic defenders of the Spanish Patria against the French enemy. Tranche and Sánchez-Biosca, No-Do, 465.
41. A single editorial of El País in 1981, more than attempting to recuperate, related the sad trajectory of the commemoration to the "failure of the entire 19th century." "El fracaso del Dos de Mayo," El País, 2 May 1981, 8.
42. During the only two parliamentary debates that have dealt with the issue of choosing a national holiday for Spain, the date of 2 May was suggested only once by a Conservative MP. DSC, no. 169/1981: 10262-69; and no. 61/1987: 3617-28. Some of the main reasons (though never made explicit) for discarding this event as a national date were probably the aggressive anti-French overtones and the memories of conflict among Spaniards underlying the mythified idea of the War of Independence.
43. Even if the law exalts the decisive role of Madrid in "the defense of the Spanish Nation" on 2 May 1808, its commemoration is to become a "symbol of the right to self-government." "Ley de 25 de abril de 1984 por la que se declara fiesta de la Comunidad de Madrid la jornada del 2 de mayo de cada año," BOE, no. 155/1984: 19184.
44. "Real Decreto 3217/1981, de 27 de noviembre, por el que se establecen normas para la celebración del 12 de octubre, Fiesta Nacional de España y Día de la Hispanidad," BOE, no. 1/1982: 3.
45. In October 1981 both the Law on the National Flag (Ley 39/1981) and the Law on the Coat of Arms of Spain (Ley 33/1981) were passed. BOE, no. 250/1981: 24477, and no. 271/1981: 26494.
46. "Ha sido deseo de la Generalitat que se restableciera la celebración de la Hispanidad," La Vanguardia, 12 Oct. 1981, 23.
47. See, for example, "La celebración del 12 de octubre, deslucido por incidentes aislados de grupos radicales," La Vanguardia, 13 Oct. 1986, 19.
48. "Ley 18/1987, de 7 de octubre, que establece el Día de la Fiesta Nacional de España en el 12 de octubre." BOE, no. 241/1987: 30149.
49. The best source for tracing the different designs of the Spanish currency, peseta, and their symbolic meanings, from its birth in 1868 to its death in 2002, both in coins and bills, is Miguel Martorell, Historia de la Peseta: La España contemporánea a través de su moneda (Barcelona, 2001).
50. Real Decreto 862/1997, see note 15 above.
51. Andrés de Blas makes the same argument regarding the transitional period. According to him, support of the right to self-determination by most of the left-wing parties between 1974 and 1976 "did not respond to a real demand by Spanish society ... nor to the eventual voters of the leftist parties. In 1975 ... only 13.2% of Spaniards were in favor of the right to self-determination." Andrés de Blas, "La izquierda española y el nacionalismo: El caso de la transición," Leviatán, no. 31: 78.
52. The "islands" show higher values: the respective scores of Ireland, Iceland and Great Britain are 95.6%, 93.7% and 89.7%. Outside of Europe, Canada (94.6%) and USA (97.5%) are the proudest countries (data taken from the WVS database: http://wvs.isr. umich.edu/).
53. For a more detailed and recent study on national pride that focuses on which specific achievements make people feel proud of belonging to their country (whether technological, cultural, sportive, etc.), see Tom W. Smith and Lars Jarkko, "National Pride in Cross-National Perspective," unpublished paper of the National Opinion Research Center, University of Chicago (2001). The results are very similar, although much more detailed and complex, than the ones of the WVS.
54. The last assertion can be tested through the various Eurobarometers that have dealt with this question in the last two decades (see http://europa.eu.int/ comm/public- opinion/).
55. It is well known that Franco tried to deny the national character of his ideological adversaries. A good example is the case of the first president of the Second Republic, Niceto Alcalá-Zamora. Like many other Spaniards he went into exile during the last stages of the Civil War. The National Court of Politi cal Responsibilities, especially created to purge and confiscate the property of those who had lost the war, sentenced him to a fine of 50 million pesetas and confiscation of all his properties. The Court also recommended that the government deprive him of his Spanish citizenship. It seems that this recommendation was not carried out, as in 1999 the Spanish government spokesman publicly confirmed that "Alcalá-Zamora was Spanish." The question was raised during the commemoration of the 50th anniversary of his death, when his family protested against the withdrawal of his citizenship although they did not claim the confiscated properties. El País, 20 Feb. 1999, 16.
56. See Álvarez Junco, Mater dolorosa;
57. Eugen Weber, Peasants into Frenchmen: The Modernization of Rural France, 1870-1914 (Stanford, 1976).
58. Other countries have found it particularly difficult to find a proper way of dealing with "patriotism" after a traumatic and divisive dictatorial experience. Apart from Germany, we can point to the South African case, where "Mandela's repeated calls for a new patriotism sought to rally both 'nervous whites' and 'impatient blacks' into a common nation-building project." See Anthony Giddens, Sociology, 4th ed. (Cambridge, 2001), 244. It is interesting to observe how in this case, as in the Spanish one, the idea of a negotiated Constitution, where "all" sectors of society would be represented, reflected the desire to reunify a previously divided nation.
59. The question was: "As you probably know, this year, as every other year, there are two bank holidays during the first week of December that coincide with working days, the anniversary of the Constitution (Tuesday the 6th) and of the Immaculate Conception (Thursday the 8th). Would you support or oppose the idea of moving the celebration of one of these dates to avoid, in the coming years, an excessive loss of working days?" CIS, study no. 2127.
60. See Álvarez Junco, Mater dolorosa.
61. "Proposición de ley de declaración de Fiesta Nacional a todos los efectos del día 6 de diciembre," Boletín Oficial de las Cortes Generales, no. B-116-I: 429.
62. Similar proposals were also made by other institutions; see "Piden al Gobierno que el día 6 de diciembre sea considerado fiesta nacional," El País 7 Dec. 1980, 15.
63. For the parliamentary debate, see DSC, no. 169/1981: 10262.
64. See, for example, "Numerosas fiestas, actos políticos y homenajes populares en el tercer aniversario de la aprobación de la Constitución," "Acto de exaltación democrática en Madrid," "Doscientos militares en activo se reunieron en un acto de afirmación de la Constitución," El País, 8 Dec. 1981, 16-17.
65. "Orden de 25 de noviembre de 1982 por la que se dictan instrucciones para la celebración en los centros docentes del cuarto aniversario de la ratificación de la Constitución por el pueblo español," BOE, no. 285/1982: 32694. The Order was repeated in 1983 and 1985 when 6 December became a holiday.
66. "Real Decreto 2964/1983, de 30 de noviembre, por el que se establece el "Día de la Constitución," BOE, no. 287/1983: 32477.
67. "Real Decreto 2403/1985, de 27 de diciembre, por el que se modifica el artículo 45.1 del Real Decreto 2001/1983 ... y se aprueba el calendario laboral, de ámbito nacional, para el año 1986," BOE, no. 312/1985: 40779.
68. The Basque Country is the Spanish region where the people feel least proud about the transition and the 1978 Constitution. See Paloma Aguilar, "The Memory of the Civil War in the Transition to Democracy: The Peculiarity of the Basque Case," West European Politics 21, no. 4 (1998): 5-25.