Franco before the civil war and the memory of Francoism in contemporary Spain

The second event in the series will feature two lectures by renowned Hispanists: Sebastian Balfour from the London School of Economics, and Alison Ribeiro de Menezes from the University of Warwick. 

Following the presentations, the roundtable discussion will be chaired by Sara Wright, Director of the Association of Hispanists of Great Britain and Ireland. 

The topics of the lectures are: 

Franco and the Forging of an Interventionist Army by Sebastian Balfour This lecture analyses the formative years of Franco’s military career during the colonial war in Morocco, marked in 1926 by his promotion to general. It examines the influence of that war on his identity, particularly his relationship with indigenous mercenary troops and the Spanish Foreign Legion, as well as his role in shaping the army that would intervene to overthrow the Second Republic. The characteristics of the front-line troops of the Nationalist army in the Civil War were derived from the experience of the colonial war, in which brutal tools of warfare were used against civilians and fighters for the independence of the Rif Republic (including chemical weapons). 

The Legacies of Francoism and Memory in Contemporary Spain by Alison Ribeiro de Menezes 

This presentation will address the legacies of the Franco dictatorship into the 21st century, exploring recent memory debates and initiatives to confront them, especially in cultural terms, while also considering their limitations and unresolved issues.