HISTORY OF SPAIN IN TWENTY CENTURY

Between 1923 and 1931 Spain followed a dictatorial rule under Primo de Rivera that ended with the establishment of the Second Republic. This period was dominated by enlarging political polarization, reaching the point of culmination in the electoral victory of the leftist Popular Front in 1936. Because of pressure from all sides linked with growing and unchecked violence, in July 1936 the Spanish Civil War broke out.

The military victory of General Francisco Franco in 1939 gave way to a long dictatorial period that would last until 1975. This era was dominated by iron control of interior politics and isolation from the international environment.

Because Spain followed a pro-Axis policy during World War II although they were officially neutral, Spain was isolated from the victorious Allies in the early post-war period. Spain joined the United Nations as late as in 1955.

During the 1960s and 1970s Spain started a conversion to a modern industrial economy with a flourishing tourism sector. Due to the economic expansion of Spain, the income distribution could be improved what helped to develop a large Spanish middle class.

After the death of General Franco in November of 1975, the Spanish people made a peaceful transition from dictatorship to democracy. Prince Juan Carlos de Bourbon y Bourbon became king and chief of a social and democratic state of law. He replaced Franco's last Prime Minister with Adolfo Suarez in July 1976 who held Spain's first elections since 1936 on June 15, 1977 where his Union of the Democratic Centre (UCD) obtained with 34% the largest bloc of seats in the Cortes. This fact turned into the Constitution of 1978 that established Spain as constitutional monarchy. The president of the Government is the prime minister who is elected every 4 years.

In October 1982 the Spanish Socialist Workers Party (PSOE) under Felipe Gonzalez won the absolute majority and ruled the Congress of Deputies as well as the Senate for 13 years. During this period, Spain joined the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) in 1982 and the European Community in 1992.

In the elections of March 1996, José Maria Aznar with its Popular Party (PP) won a plurality of votes. During his government, he decentralized the powers to the regions and liberalized the economy with a program of privatization, a reform of the labour market and sanctions to increase competition in selected markets, above all the sector of telecommunications.

Aznar integrated Spain fully into European institutions and qualified his country for the European Monetary Union. In March 2000, he won the re-election and his party obtained absolute majorities in both houses of parliament.

The last parliamentary elections in March 2004, won PSOE under the leadership of José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero who started his government in April 2004.

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