THE 100 MOST INFLUENTIAL WORLD LEADERS OF ALL TIME

7 The 100 Most Influential World Leaders of All Time 7

Franco’s Military Rebellion

At dawn on July 18, 1936, Franco’s manifesto acclaiming
the military rebellion was broadcast from the Canary
Islands, and the same morning the rising began on the
mainland. The following day he flew to Morocco and
within 24 hours was firmly in control of the protectorate
and the Spanish army garrisoning it. After landing in Spain,
Franco and his army marched toward Madrid, which was
held by the government. When the Nationalist advance
came to a halt on the outskirts of the city, the military
leaders—in preparation of what they believed was the
final assault that would deliver Madrid and the country
into their hands—decided to choose a commander in
chief, or generalissimo, who would also head the rebel
Nationalist government in opposition to the republic. In
part because he was not a typical Spanish “political gen-
eral,” Franco was chosen as the head of state of the new
Nationalist regime on Oct. 1, 1936. The rebel government
did not, however, gain complete control of the country for
more than three years.
Franco presided over a government that was basically
a military dictatorship, but he realized that it needed a
regular civil structure to broaden its support. On April 19,
1937, he fused the Falange (the Spanish Fascist party) with
the Carlists and created the rebel regime’s official political
movement. He became its head and assumed the title El
Caudillo (“The Leader”)
As commander in chief during the Civil War, Franco
was a careful and systematic leader. Because of the relatively
superior military quality of his army and the continuation
of heavy German and Italian assistance, Franco won a
complete and unconditional victory on April 1, 1939.
The Civil War had been largely a ruthless struggle of
attrition, marked by atrocities on both sides. The tens of