The Spanish Holocaust: Inquisition and Extermination in Twentieth-Century Spain

The term 'holocaust' is one contentious, reserved solely now for the gravest of atrocities (with hyperbole notwithstanding). Although on a slightly smaller scale, Preston makes the assertion that the killings of the Spanish Civil War, and later the Franco regime, are systemic and deliberate in nature, comparable to Hitler or Stalin.

Spain, currently struggling with economic woes, still has some of the remnants and nightmares of the last Fascist regime in Europe. Only in the last ten years have steps been taken to make restitution to the victims and recognize his crimes. But there are still those who look up to him as a paragon of order, a modern Crusader, a paragon of traditional values. Some still make pilgrimages to his gaudy monument show more of 'reconciliation', Valle de los Caidos, partially built by prisoners and slave labor.

Preston's main thesis is as follows - The Franco regime, during the Civil War and after, knowingly and willingly committed atrocities on a large scale against political opponents, and civilians. More died behind the lines than on the front itself.

As for the leftist Republic of Spain, they are not wholly absolved of responsibility - there was considerable backlash against other elements of society - religious, and conservative alike. However, the left had no real centralized control over large areas of the country, and Preston condemns the Anarchist factions in particular. Although their crimes were done as retribution, or defiance, or more likely sheer desperation, he does not absolve them. The Francoists won, and therefore had more time and power to do as they wished. But the fact remains - the leftists killed 50,000 behind their lines in the civil war, and the rightists 150,000.

This is rather exhausting to read. X army moved to Y village, and massacred the inhabitants, looted, plundered, raped the women. In reprisal, Z army moved to Y village and attacked the X sympathizers in W village before being forced... and so on. Numerous figures are introduced only to die terribly shortly after. 500 pages of this at least. It is almost numbing. But one must continue.

Of course, the most frustrating thing is that Franco continued after this. Mussolini was hung on a hook, Hitler turned to ashes, the rest of the fascists all gone. He became a 'good dictator', an ally in the fight against Communism. Like Mobutu Sese Seko, or Pinochet, or Batista. Or Saddam. The hazards of ideology and intervention. Spain became a police state, and an oddly feudal relic of fascism, with democratization only occurring in the past three decades. Only recently has anything even been said against him.

This is a valuable historical work, an indictment of crimes against humanity, although I'm not sure if I can 'recommend' it. A general history by the author might have been a better place to go first. show less

I've read a number of books on the Spanish Civil War, but this is the first by Paul Preston (to my shame). The book itself is a difficult read, detailing much of the horrors of a conflict that was a defining moment in twentieth century European history. Many of the passages made me feel physically sick, repulsed by the inhumanity of those engaged in the conflict. It is certainly worth keeping this in mind if you intend on reading this book.

Preston details the atrocities committed on both sides. However, he clearly sets out how the atrocities committed by the rebels were part of an overarching strategy. Led by Franco, the rebels were obsessed with eradicating left-wing (Jewish-Marxist as they saw it) influence from Spain, an influence show more they saw as "cancerous". They pursued this strategy with utter ruthlessness, executing anyone who exhibited the tendencies they sought to eradicate from Spain. Families of those executed were impoverished (if not worse) and children removed from families and placed under the care of those sympathetic to the rebels.

This contrasted starkly with the Republicans. Whilst atrocities were committed in their name, they were not part of an overall strategy and, indeed, efforts were made to put a stop to any atrocities committed by Republican forces.

Overall, I would certainly recommend this excellent, thoroughly researched book, but I would advise to be prepared for some very disturbing and upsetting passages. Not since American Psycho have I been so inclined to put a book down and walk away. The difference being, of course, that these events were very real and, consequently, infinitely more disturbing. show less

This is one of those books that angers the reader because of the injustices perpetrated during the Spanish Civil War, some by both sides, but primarily by those allied with Franco. Also, the role of the Catholic church is pretty shocking. One would expect good Christians to oppose cruel treatment of anyone, regardless of their religious beliefs. When priests not only advocate the execution of the opposition but actually do the executing one has to wonder, if there is an afterlife, where those priests are today.
Like all oppressive regimes, Franco and his allies understood early that they had to control people's thoughts. They had a very effective propaganda machine designed to convince the Spanish public and the rest of the world that show more the Spanish Republicans were really the evil ones. In some cases, particularly with the anarchists, that was true. For the most part, though, Franco's forces were much more brutal with innocent people than the Republican forces were.
The biggest problem I had with this book was the repetitive detail. Mr. Preston catalogs pretty much what happened in every town in Spain. There are sections where he tells ad infinitum what the rebel forces did as they marched from town to town, and it is the same in each town--torture and kill the political leaders, teachers, writers, etc., and all their family and friends. The local women seemed to get the same torture everywhere--raped, shaved their heads, made them drink castor oil, marched them in front of the public. After a few of these towns, we get the idea and don't need it repeated endlessly.
Another problem with the book is the plethora of names Mr. Preston gives. There are literally thousands of names in the book, and almost all of them are mentioned only once. There is little need to list the name of a mayor of a small Spanish town, especially when the mayor is quickly executed and plays no other part in the book. Many of these people's names are given and one or two sentences are devoted to them. It seems there should have been an editor for this book, someone to tell Mr. Preston he needs to cut out about a quarter of what he has.
Aside from these two problems, this was an interesting book. Mr. Preston is extremely knowledgeable about his topic. If someone is researching the Spanish Civil War, I would say this book is a must-read. However, if you want a more readable book that gives more of an overview of the war, I would look elsewhere. show less

Hasta pag 169

Der Titel dieses Werkes ist Programm und das ist auch das größte Problem dieser einsicht. Jede Geschichtsschreibung ist ducrh die Auswahl ihrer Grundlagen und Quellen narrative Fiktion, aber doch sollte zumindest der Versuch bestehen, seine eigenen Vorurteile und Überzeugungen hinter sich gelassen. Aber schon Prestons Fragestellung setzt die moralische Überlegenheit der Republik über die nationalistische Rebellion voraus. Dem kann man natürlich zustimmen, immerhin ist die Rebellion der Ursprung eines faschistischen Regimes, aber die Aufgabe des Historikers wäre zumindest, das erst nach der Bearbeitung der Quellen herauszufinden. So ist es nicht Prestons Ergebnis, das kritisch ist, sondern sein Weg zu diesem Ergebnis.

Gleichzeitig show more gerät seine Darstellung zu einer Aufzählung von beispielhaften Eriegnissen, die in keiner Weise kontextualisiert werden. So ist es zwar vielleicht mit einem Interesse für einzelne Erignisse gut zu lesen, aber nicht wirklich als gute Wissenschaftliche Arbeit zu lesen. show less

Por fin llega la obra definitiva de Paul Preston sobre la represión llevada a cabo por ambos bandos durante la guerra civil española y la inmediata posguerra. El holocausto español se remonta a los orígenes ideológicos de la orgía de violencia que se desató en España en julio de 1936 para, con el mejor estilo de los historiadores anglosajones y su extraordinario conocimiento de las fuentes directas e indirectas, reconstruir la atmósfera de la guerra y detalla las masacres cometidas por el ejército franquista en su avance, los desmanes en la retarguarardia republicana y la política deliberada de represión que impuso Franco tras el fin de la guerra, con un número de ejecuciones de proporciones increíbles. Para poder juzgar show more el pasado es fundamental saber qué pasó realmente; en El holocausto español, Preston nos da las claves del periodo más oscuro de la historia de España. show less

EL HOLOCAUSTO ESPAÑOL (DEBATE)

El término "holocausto" es uno contencioso, reservado únicamente ahora para la más grave de las atrocidades (a pesar de la hipérbole). Aunque en una escala un poco más pequeña, Preston hace la afirmación de que los asesinatos de la Guerra Civil Española, y más tarde el régimen de Franco, son de naturaleza sistémica y deliberada, comparables a los de Hitler o Stalin.

España, que actualmente está luchando con problemas económicos, todavía tiene algunos de los restos y pesadillas del último régimen fascista en Europa. Solo en los últimos diez años se han tomado medidas para restituir a las víctimas y reconocer sus crímenes. Pero todavía hay quienes lo admiran como un dechado de orden, un show more cruzado moderno, un modelo de los valores tradicionales. Algunos todavía hacen peregrinajes a su llamativo monumento a la "reconciliación", el Valle de los Caidos, parcialmente construido por prisioneros y esclavos.

La tesis principal de Preston es la siguiente: El régimen de Franco, durante la Guerra Civil y después, cometió a sabiendas y voluntariamente atrocidades a gran escala contra opositores políticos y civiles. Más murió detrás de las líneas que en el frente mismo.

En cuanto a la República de España de izquierda, no están totalmente exentos de responsabilidad -hay reacciones considerables contra otros elementos de la sociedad- tanto religiosos como conservadores. Sin embargo, la izquierda no tenía un control centralizado real sobre grandes áreas del país, y Preston condena las facciones anarquistas en particular. Aunque sus crímenes fueron hechos como retribución, o desafío, o más bien como pura desesperación, él no los absuelve. Los franquistas ganaron y, por lo tanto, tenían más tiempo y poder para hacer lo que deseaban. Pero el hecho permanece: los izquierdistas mataron a 50,000 personas detrás de sus líneas en la guerra civil, y los derechistas a 150,000.

Esto es bastante agotador para leer. X ejército se mudó a la aldea Y y masacró a los habitantes, saqueó, saqueó y violaron a las mujeres. En represalia, el ejército Z se mudó a la aldea Y y atacó a los simpatizantes de X en la aldea W antes de ser forzados ... y así sucesivamente. Numerosas figuras se presentan solo para morir terriblemente poco después. 500 páginas de esto al menos. Es casi insensible. Pero uno debe continuar....

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