On This Day - 1939, Franco takes Madrid; Spanish Civil War ends.

[Dennis the 'Bloody Peasant']

On 28 March 1939, Madrid finally fell to Franco's forces.

During 1938, the siege of Madrid tightened and its population suffered increasingly from a lack of food, warm clothes, arms and ammunition. However, Franco had given up on the idea of another frontal assault on the city and instead was happy to gradually constrict the siege, while keeping up a bombardment of the city.
By the spring of 1939, after the collapse of the Republican forces on other fronts, it was clear that the Republican cause in Madrid was doomed.

In spite of Casado's efforts at negotiation, many of the Republican defenders of Madrid were among the up to 200,000 people who were executed or died during imprisonment between 1939 and 1943.
Franco's rule would last until 1975.

(Wiki and BBC History)

[AConfusedSocialDemocrat]

A las barricadas!

[CyM]

The criminal role played by both the Stalinist and the Anarchist leadership in betraying this revolution shall never be forgotten.

Durruti was the one leader who carried out a consistent revolutionary policy, but unfortunately, he never built a political party which could dislodge the CNT traitors and lead the revolution forward.

[RedAnarchist]

A dark day to remember, one that would lead to decades of terror and oppression for the people of Spain, especially the working class.

[garrus]

The criminal role played by both the Stalinist and the Anarchist leadership in betraying this revolution shall never be forgotten.

Wat.How did CNT betray the revolution exactly?
Or would it be "more revolutionary" to refuse to participate, and condemn catalonia to an arms and supplies embargo from the rest of the country, as promised by the republican government?

IMO, the point of no return was when the government didn't arm the trade unions from the start, and even then when the order was eventually given, the local officials refused to do so.

Also, despite the SU and NKVD fucking paranoia, even it had never happened, the republicans were essentially fighting the nationalists who had german,italian,american and religious abundant support,
while they were backed by a hesitant SU, and restricted unfairly by the non intervention pact.

Not a very equal struggle if you ask me.

[MP5]

There is more then enough blame to be passed around on all the republican factions in the Spanish civil war. The Stalinists for being so paranoic as to have perfectly good anti-fascists rounded up as traitors, The Trots for refusing to work with either the Anarchists or Stalinists at various times and the Anarchists for letting anti-Stalinist ideology get in the way of the bigger fight which was against the fascists not the fucking Stalinists.

The Spanish civil war should remind serve as a lesson to any future revolutionaries who run up against fascists. For one stomp them out in anyway possible don't just dismiss them. 2. Don't let fighting within the Communists over differences in tendencies get in the way of fighting the much bigger evil which is fascism.

Britain didn't help matters either by more or less blockading republican Spain. You can't fight a war without weapons that atleast match the enemies and the republic and the Communist party refused to help the Anarchists at all in this regard.

[Brutus]

Didn't the CNT overthrow the 'communist' government in a coup and attempt to compromise with Franco?

[MP5]

Didn't the CNT overthrow the 'communist' government in a coup and attempt to compromise with Franco?

No the CNT where pretty much crushed by the combined forces of the fascists and Stalinists towards the end of it. The Anarchists where labelled as fascists after the may day's of Barcelona by the Stalinists even though they had no intention of dealing with any fascists.

[Brutus]

From wiki


In March 1939, with the war nearly over, CNT leaders participated in the National Defense Council's coup overthrowing the government of the Socialist Juan Negrín.[48] Those involved included the CNT's Eduardo Val and José Manuel González Marín serving on the council, while Cipriano Mera's 70th Division provided military support, and Melechor Rodríquez became mayor of Madrid.[49] The Council attempted to negotiate a peace with Franco, though he granted virtually none of their demands.

[DDR]

Didn't the CNT overthrow the 'communist' government in a coup and attempt to compromise with Franco?

The coup was given mainly by Casado and military close to the PSOE, but yes some cenetistas took part in it, like Melchor Rodriguez. IIRC the PCE where the only ones who fought against this coup, and some PSOE people close to Negrín.

[Jimmie Higgins]

The anarchists and (more accutately) the POUM were called "trotskyites" and Trotsky was a fascist according to the USSR I guess. But what they were really saying was the these anarchists and marxists were revolutionaries which was a threat to the USSR gaining support from England and France against Germany.


The coup was given mainly by Casado and military close to the PSOE, but yes some cenetistas took part in it, like Melchor Rodriguez. IIRC the PCE where the only ones who fought against this coup, and some PSOE people close to Negrín.The revolutionary period and possibilities were long-over by then. The CNT's more disasterous collaboration as far as revolution goes was working with the Popular Front (and CP) Republic and subbordinating the movement for this "unity" even though the workers and peasnats connected with the revolutionaries were actually the real power in the Republic and had the best chance of rallying the people themselves against Franco (rather than the CP's attempts to rally, not the people, but the non-fascist European powers).