From Civil Conflict to Crusade: Mobilisation and National Identity in the Spanish Civil War

What is it about?

This articles explores how making use of historical memory of the crusades helped the rebel army mobilise support at home and abroad during the Spanish Civil War. The piece looks at the usefulness of religious rhetoric in conflict, in terms of assisting with logistical challenges, recruitment, establishing political legitimation, and harnessing international support. The article explains why appealing to the memory of the crusades made sense as well in the international context of the 1930s. The use of the term crusade as a way to refer to the Spanish Civil War was not exclusive to the Francoist army, already ongoing anti-Communist campaigns originating at the Vatican and Nazi Germany made use of language that equated the fight against communism with a crusade in defence of Christian civilisation. The interactions of these campaigns with the Spanish Civil War help understand why making use of the term crusade was so useful for Franco and his supporters.

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