Religion and Dictatorship in Francoist Spain

In Spain, is Christian nationalism flourishing from the seeds Franco Planted?

This essay was written by Elias Castro: a student from New York

In the aftermath of the Spanish Civil War, Francisco Franco devoted his life to a deeply conservative vision of Spain. He joined a military coup, fought immensely, and emerged as the dictator of Spain. General Francisco Franco set out to create a unified, nationalist Spain by aligning his regime with catholicism. In return, the church approved his reign and contributed to the development of the official ideology, which gave his dictatorship the appearance of moral legitimacy. The Franco Dictatorship in various ways shows how the Franco Regime used Catholic iconography, institutions, and propaganda- backed by censorship and repression. The result was to stifle dissent, repress women and give the impression of moral unity.

Franco’s government purposefully combined Catholic imagery with nationalist beliefs in order to sanctify political power and emotionally unite the Spanish Populace. Similar to how festivals function as occasions for symbolic exaltation and communal identification, religious art during the Spanish Civil war functioned in a similar emotional register, transforming religious devotion into political loyalty. His ideology- often Called nacionalcatolicismo (National Catholicism)- Politicized and elevated religious tradition to the center of national Identity. Franco Portrayed himself as God’s chosen leader fighting a “National Crusade.” As one commentator points out, “Paintings of the crucifixion, of the Virgin Mary, of Saint Teresa de Avila, or any saint imaginable can go far beyond the field of religious devotion; they are pillars of a regime itself.” Franco glorified and associated religious leaders with the nationalist cause turning Symbols of Catholic faith into symbols of state authority. Franco’s power was established in a divine and historical heritage, this sacralization did more than just elevate it to a merely visual level. As another scholar explains, “For Franco, the solution was to utilize the history of the Spanish Catholic Monarchy, specifically the reign of King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella, as a common cultural unifier that all Spanish citizens could identify with. By utilizing the actions of the Catholic Monarchy as a precedent on which to base his policies, Franco created a sense of legitimacy around his regime and was able to garner the support of the disunified Spanish populace. “ Franco positioned himself as the spiritual heir to the Catholic monarchs, using religious iconography and ritual to disguise dictator authority in the language of national salvation. The catholic monarchs were praised for uniting Spain under both monarchy and the Church. Franco used Catholic imagery to cleanse Spain rather than just adorning it. As Scholars, Claudio Hernández Burgos and César Rina argue, “Festivities are moments of emotional exaltation and identity, which have the capacity to symbolize and sacralize political ideas in popular contexts, not strictly institutional ones.” In these emotionally charged settings - paintings, parades, and religious processions - Franco-ist ideology became honored. This was symbolic; thus legitimizing Franco’s reign by tying it to the tradition of the Spanish Catholic Monarchy. This Franco presented his reign as a supernatural continuation of Spain’s holy history. Thus continuing religious ceremony and Catholic imagery, this not only supported, but also legitimzed Franco’s power.

National Catholicism was Spain’s Ideological backbone during Franco’s reign, merging the catholic Church and the state into a single dictator's power. This merger provided the Church with unmatched power over Spanish culture, as Franco presented his rule as a spiritual “reconquista.” This reconquista was aimed to restore catholic dominance and moral order after the perceived chaos of the Republic. The privileged status of the Church was granted immediately following the Civil War. A little later –in June 1941– its rights were outlined in an Agreement between the Vatican and the Franco government, and finally formalised in a Concordat signed in August, 1953.

Amongst the provisions were:

1. recognition of Catholicism as the official religion of the country;
2. mandatory religious instruction at all educational levels in conformity with Catholic dogma;
3. financial support of the church by the state (paying the salary of priests and contributing to the (re)construction of church buildings);
4. guaranteed representation in both press and radio. To ensure that the Church hierarchy consisted of supportive members, Franco was granted the right to participate in the selection of bishops. The Concordat remained in effect until December 1979, a year following the implementation of a new democratic Constitution whose provisions rendered the Concordat anachronistic.

This highlights that under Franco, the union of Church and State was not symbolic, but institutionalized through legal and financial systems that ingrained catholicism in every layer of Spanish society. By declaring Catholicism the official state religion and mandating its teachings in school, the regime goal was the continuation of promoting catholicism not only domestically but internationally, thereby eradicating secular or dissident viewpoints. The church's cultural domination was strengthened by state funding and media control, which allowed religious dogma to impact both public opinion and private belief. From 1939 until 1975, Spain was a Catholic state under the dictator Gen. Francisco Franco. The Catholic Herald, one of Britain’s main Catholic news outlets, wrote, “Under General Franco’s 40-year dictatorship, church and state were intimately linked. Life was so strictly regimented that missing mass was frowned upon, while the dictatorship was openly supported by the church, which held a uniquely privileged position” (June 2, 2006). This evidence shows how Franco’s administration combined religious devotion with political obedience, making catholicism a tool for state control. Participation in religious life was required and socially enforced, transforming spiritual ritual into political action. The Church, being in a position of cultural and institutional domination, became critical to a justifying dictatorship. Through this integration, Franco created a culture in which religious compliance strengthened authoritarian control, and deviating from catholic ideals became synonymous with hostility to the country.

Franco’s usage of propaganda backed by censorship and repression enabled Franco to stifle dissent and promote catholic morality throughout the spanish nation. “Allied with Benito Mussolini of Italy and Adolf Hitler of Germany (among others), Franco quickly made the Kingdom of Spain his own toy to manipulate, exploit, and censor. His atrocities are numerous, including orders of mass executions and assassinations, repressing regional cultures and languages, and maintaining a tight grip on the press and cultural media for his propaganda.” This highlights Franco’s violent repression and how he manipulated his position of power in order to control the Spanish nation, through media, concentration camps, and repressing regional cultures and language to influence his agenda of catholic nationalism. “Censorship under Franco was imposed on literature, radio, film and television, music and public performances. The great majority of books submitted to the censor for approval were banned. The Falange and the Church had direct control of the process, acceptance being subject to conformity with Franco’s political ideology and with Catholic morality. At the end of the Civil War, most of the intellectuals and artists who had defended the Republic – those who had not been imprisoned or killed – had gone into exile.” Franco’s agenda along with the impact of the catholic church eliminated diversity in thought and religion working towards establishing a nation-state of citizens that conformed with the ideals and morals of Franco catholic promotion and practices; being backed by the catholic church. Lastly, “Francoism professed a strong devotion to militarism, hyper-masculinity, and the traditional role of women in society. A woman was to be loving to her parents and brothers and faithful to her husband, and reside with her family. Official propaganda confined women’s roles to family care and motherhood. Most progressive laws passed by the Second Republic were declared void. Women could not become judges, testify in trial, or become university professors.” Franco’s use of repression was not only used to create a nation-state but also to purify Spain and hyper emphasize masculinity to establish gender roles and not putting women in a place of power. Further, propaganda was used to force that narrative of traditional gender roles and illusion the women that were a part of the Spanish nation.

Franco’s dictatorship demonstrates how religion, particularly catholicism, can be weaponized to legitimize dictatorial rule, stile resistance, and create a unified national identity. Franco’s idea of national Catholicism united church and state, elevating religious tradition to the level of political responsibility. Catholic rituals, images and instruction were converted into tools for moral discipline and social control, resulting in a political culture in which loyalty to the Caudillo became synonymous with religious devotion. Franco’s disguised dictatorship used moral restoration by portraying himself as the spiritual successor of Spain's catholic kings and instilling supernatural purpose in his rule. The Church, in turn, garnered institutional benefits while contributing to the regime's moral exterior, stifling opposition in favor of a religious and controlled society. Propaganda and censorship, combined with brutality and persecution, ensure that catholic morality dominates all aspects of public and private life, from cultural expression to gender norms. The Franco administration not only desired unity, but also required uniformity, elimination of regional, ideological, and gender variation in favor of a sanitized, catholic-nationalist vision of Spain. Finally, the dictatorship was a theological endeavor, utilizing the holy to sanctify authority and create a society in which defying Franco meant defying faith itself.

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