Falange

'' This article is about the Spanish political party. For the Lebanese Phalange, see the Kataeb Party.

The Falange (or Phalange) is the name assigned to several political movements and parties dating from the 1930s, most particularly the original movement in Spain.

In Spain, the Falange was an authoritarian political organization founded by José Antonio Primo de Rivera in 1933 in opposition to the Second Spanish Republic. Primo de Rivera was a Madrid lawyer, son of General Miguel Primo de Rivera, who had controlled the government of Spain as a dictatorial Prime Minister, with the acquiescence of King Alfonso XIII, in the 1920's. The elder Primo de Rivera believed in state planning and government intervention in the economy, while being opposed philosophically to socialism. His son and the Phalangists he led expressed regret for the demise of the elder Primo de Rivera's regime, and proposed to revive his policies and strengthen the Spanish nation through a program of national-syndicalist social organization.

During the Spanish Civil War the Falange became a leading force on the Nationalist side. During the war, the Falange was combined by decree (Unification Decree) with the Carlist party, under the sole command of Generalísimo Franco, forming the core of the sole official political organization in Spain, the Falange Española Tradicionalista y de las Juntas de Ofensiva Nacional-Sindicalista, or "Spanish Traditionalist Phalanx of the Assemblies of National-Syndicalist Offensive" (FET y de las JONS). This organization, also known as the National Movement (Movimiento Nacional) after 1945, continued until Franco's death in 1975.

Members of the party were called Falangists (Spanish: Falangistas).

Ideology

National Syndicalism (nacionalsindicalismo) was the official ideology of the State.
- Corporate state in which class struggle would be superseded by the Vertical Trade Union, joining workers and owners.
- Roman Catholicism
- Attention to the Castilian farmers
- Nationalist pride in the history of the Spanish Empire
- Anti-communism and anti-anarchism

Symbols

El yugo y las flechas (the yoke and arrows), the symbol of the Reyes Católicos.
The blue shirt, a symbol of industrial workers.
Cara al Sol, "Facing the sun", its anthem.
The red beret of Carlism (after the unification).
A flag with red, black and red vertical stripes.
The Swan as a symbol of Cardenal Cisneros (Frente de Juventudes branch).

Early history

The year after its founding, the Falange united with the Juntas de Ofensiva Nacional-Sindicalista of Onésimo Redondo, Ramiro Ledesma Ramos, and others, becoming Falange Española de las Juntas de Ofensiva Nacional-Sindicalista.

During the Second Spanish Republic, its members became involved in many street shootings with leftist revolutionaries.

After the electoral victory of the Popular Front, the party suffered some official persecution and Primo de Rivera was arrested on (6 July 1936). As a result, the Falange joined the conspiracy to overthrow the Republic. On 17 July, the African army led by Franco rebelled. The next day right-wing forces in mainland Spain, including Primo de Rivera's party, followed suit.

Spanish Civil War

During the Spanish Civil War, the Falangists fought on the Nationalist side against the Left-led Republic, being the fastest growing party on their side (from a few thousands to some hundred thousand members before the Unification). The command of the party rested upon Manuel Hedilla, as many of the first generation leaders were dead or incarcerated by the Republicans. Among them was Primo de Rivera, incarcerated in Alicante As a result, he was referred to among the leadership as el Ausente, (the Absent One). On 20 November 1936 (a date since known as 20-N in Spain), Primo de Rivera was executed in a Republican prison, giving him martyr status among the Falangists.

After Franco seized power, On 19 of April 1937 Franco united under his command the Falange with the Carlist Comunión Tradicionalista, forming Falange Española Tradicionalista y de las JONS (FET de las JONS), whose official ideology were the falangist's 27 puntos. Despite this, the party was in fact a wide ranging right coalition, closely controlled by Franco. Parts of the original Falangist (including Hedilla) and most Carlist did not join the unified party.

Most of the property of all other parties and trade unions were assigned to the party. In 1938, all trade unions where unified under falangist command.

After the war

After the war, the party was charged with developing an ideology for Franco's regime. This job became a cursus honorum for ambitious politicians -- new converts, who were called camisas nuevas ("new shirts") in opposition to the more overtly populist and ideological "old shirts" from before the war.

The Falange also developed youth organizations (Flechas, Pelayos; compare to Hitlerjugend and Italian Balilla and Arditi), a female section (Sección Femenina) led by José Antonio's sister, that instructed young women on how to be "good patriots, good Christians and good wives", and a student's union (the Sindicato Unificado de Estudiantes (SEU)) -mandatory till the 50's.

After the opening to the United States and the Spanish Miracle of the 1950s, Franco began working with younger, more technocratic politicians linked to Opus Dei.

Post-Franco era

After Franco's death (20 November 1975, also known as "20-N") the Spanish Crown was restored to the House of Borbón in the person of HM King Juan Carlos, and a move towards democratization begun under Adolfo Suárez, a former chief of the movimiento. The new situation splintered the Falange. In the first elections in 1977, three different groups fought in court for the right to the Falangist name. Today, decades after the fall of the Francoist regime, Spain still has a minor Falangist element, represented by a number of tiny political parties. Chief among these are Falange Auténtica, Falange Española Independiente, FE - La Falange and Falange Española de las Juntas de Ofensiva Nacional-Sindicalista, the latter taking its name from the historical party. Vastly reduced in size and power today, these Falangist-inspired parties are rarely seen publicly except on ballot papers, in State-funded TV election advertisements, and during demonstrations on historic dates, like November 20 (death of Jose Antonio Primo de Rivera and General Francisco Franco).

Falangism today

Despite changing times, Falangism remains a living political philosophy. The Kataeb, a political party in Lebanon, also espouses a Falangist ideology, and is the most prominent right-leaning organization in the region; in Bolivia there is a political party called Falange Socialista Boliviana. In America, one small group, the Christian Falangist Party of America, inspired by Kataeb, was formed in 1985. It is vehement in rejecting racism, antisemitism, and neo-nazism and espousing traditional National Syndicalism, which it claims is neither racist nor socialist in nature.

Debate

Whether or not Falangism is an extreme right-wing movement is a topic of constant debate between those who consider themselves Falangists and people of other parties, particularly extreme leftists. That is because Falangists consider themselves to be neither rightists nor leftists, but members of a nationalist, traditionalist, and distributist movement whose roots lie deeply in Catholic monarchism. Many modern political analysts agree that Falangism is, indeed, a right-wing anti-democratic political movement due to its emphasis on family, free enterprise, and regionalism , albeit one with strongly anti-capitalist foundations.

External links

Falange Española de las JONS (in Spanish)
La Falange, Spanish Falange party website (in Spanish)
Falange Auténtica (in Spanish)
American Falange Party American Falange
Christian Falangist Party of America Christian Falange

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