Movimiento Nacional
Encyclopedia
Corporatism
Corporatism, also known as corporativism, is a system of economic, political, or social organization that involves association of the people of society into corporate groups, such as agricultural, business, ethnic, labor, military, patronage, or scientific affiliations, on the basis of common...
in which only so-called "natural entities" could express themselves: families, municipalities and unions.
Composition
The Movimiento Nacional was primarily composed of:- the single-party stateSingle-party stateA single-party state, one-party system or single-party system is a type of party system government in which a single political party forms the government and no other parties are permitted to run candidates for election...
, named Falange Española Tradicionalista y de las Juntas de Ofensiva Nacional SindicalistaFalangeThe Spanish Phalanx of the Assemblies of the National Syndicalist Offensive , known simply as the Falange, is the name assigned to several political movements and parties dating from the 1930s, most particularly the original fascist movement in Spain. The word means phalanx formation in Spanish....
(known as Falange Española, acronym: FET y de las JONS) which had been created at the beginning of the Spanish Civil WarSpanish Civil WarThe Spanish Civil WarAlso known as The Crusade among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War among Carlists, and The Rebellion or Uprising among Republicans. was a major conflict fought in Spain from 17 July 1936 to 1 April 1939...
. Other parties were prohibited (the sole name of "partyPolitical partyA political party is a political organization that typically seeks to influence government policy, usually by nominating their own candidates and trying to seat them in political office. Parties participate in electoral campaigns, educational outreach or protest actions...
" was prohibited to design any type of organization). - the trade unionTrade unionA trade union, trades union or labor union is an organization of workers that have banded together to achieve common goals such as better working conditions. The trade union, through its leadership, bargains with the employer on behalf of union members and negotiates labour contracts with...
organization, called Sindicato VerticalSpanish Trade Union OrganisationThe Spanish Trade Union Organisation , commonly known as Vertical Syndicate , was the only legal trade union organisation in Francoist Spain , and a main component of the Movimiento Nacional Francoist apparatus...
, composed of corporativist organizations which gathered employers and workers, in opposition to Marxism's class warfare. - All civil servants and any holder of some sort of public office was requested to swear an oath to the Principios del Movimiento Nacional (Principles of the National Movement)
Leadership
The National Movement was led by the caudilloCaudillo
Caudillo is a Spanish word for "leader" and usually describes a political-military leader at the head of an authoritarian power. The term translates into English as leader or chief, or more pejoratively as warlord, dictator or strongman. Caudillo was the term used to refer to the charismatic...
Francisco Franco
Francisco Franco
Francisco Franco y Bahamonde was a Spanish general, dictator and head of state of Spain from October 1936 , and de facto regent of the nominally restored Kingdom of Spain from 1947 until his death in November, 1975...
, titled "Jefe del Movimiento (Chief of the Movement), assisted by a "Minister Secretary General of the Movement". The hierarchy extended itself to all of the country, with a "local chief of the movement" named in each village.
Ideology
People who strongly identified with the Movimiento Nacional were colloquially known as FalangistasFalange
The Spanish Phalanx of the Assemblies of the National Syndicalist Offensive , known simply as the Falange, is the name assigned to several political movements and parties dating from the 1930s, most particularly the original fascist movement in Spain. The word means phalanx formation in Spanish....
or Azules (Blue), from the colour of the shirts worn by José Primo de Rivera's fascist organization created during the Second Republic. Camisas viejas (Old shirts) enjoyed the honour of being historical members of the Falange, compared to Camisas nuevas (New shirts), who could be accused of opportunism
Opportunism
-General definition:Opportunism is the conscious policy and practice of taking selfish advantage of circumstances, with little regard for principles. Opportunist actions are expedient actions guided primarily by self-interested motives. The term can be applied to individuals, groups,...
.
The ideology of the Movimiento Nacional was resumed by the slogan
Slogan
A slogan is a memorable motto or phrase used in a political, commercial, religious and other context as a repetitive expression of an idea or purpose. The word slogan is derived from slogorn which was an Anglicisation of the Scottish Gaelic sluagh-ghairm . Slogans vary from the written and the...
¡Una, Grande y Libre!, which stood for the indivisibility of the Spanish state and the refusal of any regionalism
Regionalism (politics)
Regionalism is a term used in international relations. Regionalism also constitutes one of the three constituents of the international commercial system...
or decentralization
Decentralization
__FORCETOC__Decentralization or decentralisation is the process of dispersing decision-making governance closer to the people and/or citizens. It includes the dispersal of administration or governance in sectors or areas like engineering, management science, political science, political economy,...
, its imperial character, both past (the defunct Spanish Empire
Spanish Empire
The Spanish Empire comprised territories and colonies administered directly by Spain in Europe, in America, Africa, Asia and Oceania. It originated during the Age of Exploration and was therefore one of the first global empires. At the time of Habsburgs, Spain reached the peak of its world power....
in the Americas
Spanish colonization of the Americas
Colonial expansion under the Spanish Empire was initiated by the Spanish conquistadores and developed by the Monarchy of Spain through its administrators and missionaries. The motivations for colonial expansion were trade and the spread of the Christian faith through indigenous conversions...
, and foreseen in Africa), and its independence towards the purported "Judeo-masonic-Marxist international conspiracy" (a personal obsession of Franco), materialized by the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
, the European democracies, the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
(until the Pact of Madrid
Pact of Madrid
The Pact of Madrid, signed in 1953 by Spain and the United States, ended a period of virtual isolation for Spain, although the other victorious allies of World War II and much of the rest of the world remained hostile to what they regarded as a fascist regime sympathetic to the Nazi cause and...
of 1953) or the "exterior enemy" which could threatened the nation at any time, as well as towards the long list of "internal enemies", like "anti-Spanish", "reds", "separatist", "liberals", "Jews" and "Freemasons, among others, coining expressions like "judeomarxistas".
Francoist "families"
Since single-party rule was enforced in Francoist Spain, the only way of pluralism consisted in internal "families" (Familias del Regimen, i.e., different groups of pressure) competing together inside the National Movement. These included the Catholic "family" (which brought the Roman Catholic ChurchRoman Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...
's support and the national Catholicism
National Catholicism
National Catholicism was part of the ideological identity of Francoism, the dictatorial regime with which Francisco Franco governed Spain between 1936 and 1975...
ideology), the monarchist "family" (or conservative right, composed of many former members of the Spanish Confederation of the Autonomous Right
Spanish Confederation of the Autonomous Right
The Spanish Confederation of the Autonomous Right was a Spanish political party in the Second Spanish Republic. A Catholic conservative force, it was the political heir to Angel Herrera Oria's Acción Popular and defined itself in terms of the 'affirmation and defence of the principles of Christian...
), the traditionalist "family" (issued from Carlism
Carlism
Carlism is a traditionalist and legitimist political movement in Spain seeking the establishment of a separate line of the Bourbon family on the Spanish throne. This line descended from Infante Carlos, Count of Molina , and was founded due to dispute over the succession laws and widespread...
), the military tendency (figures close to Franco himself, including the so-called africanistas) and the Azules themselves or national syndicalist
National syndicalism
National syndicalism is a nationalist variant of syndicalism.- Founding of national syndicalism in France :National syndicalism was founded in France by the fusion of Maurrassian integral nationalism with Sorelian syndicalism. Interest in Sorelian thought arose in the French political right,...
s, who controlled the bureaucracy of the so-called Movement: Falange, Sindicato and many others organizations, such as the veterans' national grouping (Agrupación Nacional de Excombatientes), the women's section (Sección Femenina), etc.
Franco held his power by balancing these internal rivalries, cautious not to show any favoritism to any of them nor compromise himself too much to anyone. Thus, all were united by a common interest, the continuation of Franco's defense of traditional Spanish society. The relative plurality of Francoism, inside the official frame of the Movimiento Nacional, has compelled historians such as Juan Linz
Juan Linz
Juan José Linz is a Spanish sociologist and political scientist. He is Sterling Professor Emeritus of Political Science at Yale University and an honorary member of the Scientific Council at the Juan March Institute...
to classify Francoism as an authoritarian
Authoritarianism
Authoritarianism is a form of social organization characterized by submission to authority. It is usually opposed to individualism and democracy...
, rather than totalitarian
Totalitarianism
Totalitarianism is a political system where the state recognizes no limits to its authority and strives to regulate every aspect of public and private life wherever feasible...
, political system.
Ministers Secretaries General of the Movement
- Raimundo Fernández-Cuesta y MereloRaimundo Fernández-CuestaRaimundo Fernández-Cuesta y Merelo was a leading Spanish politician with both the Falange and its successor movement the Spanish Traditionalist Phalanx of the Assemblies of National-Syndicalist Offensive....
(January 30, 1938 - August 9, 1939) (1st time) - Agustín Muñoz GrandesAgustín Muñoz GrandesAgustín Muñoz Grandes was a Spanish general, and politician, vice-president of the Spanish Government and minister with Francisco Franco several times; also known as the commander of the Blue Division between 1941 and 1943.-Biography:Born to a humble family in Madrid, Muñoz Grandes enrolled at the...
(August 9, 1939 - 1940) - José Luis Arrese MagraJosé Luis de ArreseJosé Luis de Arrese y Marga was a leading Spanish politician with both the Falange and its successor movement the Spanish Traditionalist Phalanx of the Assemblies of National-Syndicalist Offensive.-Early career and Nazism:...
(May 19, 1941 - July 20, 1945) (1st time) - Raimundo Fernández-Cuesta y MereloRaimundo Fernández-CuestaRaimundo Fernández-Cuesta y Merelo was a leading Spanish politician with both the Falange and its successor movement the Spanish Traditionalist Phalanx of the Assemblies of National-Syndicalist Offensive....
(November 5, 1948 - February 15, 1956) (2nd time) - José Luis Arrese MagraJosé Luis de ArreseJosé Luis de Arrese y Marga was a leading Spanish politician with both the Falange and its successor movement the Spanish Traditionalist Phalanx of the Assemblies of National-Syndicalist Offensive.-Early career and Nazism:...
(February 15, 1956 - February 25, 1957) (2nd time) - José Solís Ruiz (February 25, 1957 - 1969) (1st time)
- Torcuato Fernández-MirandaTorcuato Fernández-MirandaDon Torcuato Fernández Miranda y Hevia, 1st Duke of Fernandez-Miranda, Grandee of Spain, KOGF was a Spanish lawyer and politician who played important roles in both the dictatorship of Francisco Franco and in the Spanish transition to democracy.Fernández Miranda was born in Gijón, Asturias, on...
(1969 - January 1974) - José Utrera Molina (January 1974 - March 4, 1975)
- Fernando Herrero Tejedor (March 4, 1975 - June 12, 1975)
- José Solís Ruiz (June 1975 - December 12, 1975) (2nd time)
- Adolfo Suárez González (December 12, 1975 - July 6, 1976)
- Ignacio García López (July 7, 1976 - April 13, 1977)