George Esenwein

The Persistence of Politics: The Impact of the Cold War on Anglo-American Writings on the Spanish Civil War

The purpose of this essay is twofold. Without claiming to be exhaustive, it seeks to identify the debates and trends in Spanish Civil War historiography in the United States and Great Britain which developed during key phases of the Cold War between 1947 and 1959. Second, it considers the extent to which the ideological preoccupations of the Cold War were transmitted to Civil War studies and thereby contributed to the ongoing politicization of the subject. Implicit in this analysis is the argument that most contemporary academics make the mistake of reading anti-communist perspectives found in writings on the Spanish Civil War as products of a monolithic Cold War mentality. To achieve a more nuanced understanding of the political dimension of the Civil War, this essay will focus on representative examples of Anglo-American writings critical of the communists which fall into distinct genres.

Freedom Fighters or Comintern Soldiers? Writing About the ‘Good Fight’ During the Spanish Civil War

Since it ended over 70 years ago, the Spanish Civil War has had a polarizing effect on the immense literature that has grown up around the subject. For many years, this was due largely to the fact that Francoist historians sought to portray the conflict as a modern-day crusade against godless communism, while most liberal and leftist scholars outside of Spain looked back on the war as an epic battle in the struggle against international Fascism. Because the Civil War would remain for both groups of writers a ‘good fight’ of transcendent significance, they had no desire to produce an unvarnished assessment either of their own causes or of the forces on the other side. Even though the demise of Franco’s dictatorship (1939–75) and the ending of the Cold War (1948–91) have contributed to the rise of a more critical scholarship on the Civil War, many of the latest studies still reflect the partisanship and ideological ‘baggage’ of the past. This is especially evident in the scholarly secondary accounts and memoir literature relating to the remarkable group of international volunteers who fought for the Republicans and Nationalists. British and American historians writing about the International Brigades have tended to fall into two opposing camps. One seeks to glorify the exploits of the volunteers by treating them as self-sacrificing individuals who were engaged in a noble cause. The other maintains that, whether wittingly or not, the brigadistas played an integral part in Stalin’s strategy to dominate the political and military spheres of Republican Spain. The longevity of the divide separating these two schools of interpretation can be largely attributed to ideological stubbornness. Supporters of the official communist version of the historical role of the brigades have persistently characterized all critics of the Soviet Union and the communists as

Comments on James L. Gelvin's “Al-Qaeda and Anarchism: A Historian's Reply to Terrorology”

Because they have long been associated with bombing outrages and spectacular acts of violence, it is tempting to draw parallels between the anarchists of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries and contemporary terrorists. However, as such recent studies on jihadist terrorism have shown, constructing a comparative model for such an analysis is fraught with difficulties. As Professor Gelvin intimates in his thought-provoking article, the ways in which Al Qaeda appears to overlap with anarchism, a comparative study demands a careful examination of both the beliefs and practices underlying distinct historical phenomena. But though he should be commended for bringing greater focus to a discussion that is too often couched in distorting generalities, Professor Gelvin never manages to defend satisfactorily his claim that the political and ideological strands of anarchism and radical jihadism are fundamentally compatible. This is true above all because Dr. Gelvin’s argument is predicated on a number of mistaken notions about both anarchists and the ideological content of their revolutionary doctrine. Dr. Gelvin’s argument runs into trouble when he asserts that there is no commonly accepted definition of anarchism. Most scholars who have worked in the field, including myself, have a clear understanding of what is meant by the term. While it is true that anarchism has found expression in different theoretical currents—collectivism, communism, syndicalism, and individualism, to name the best known of these—the underlying values and beliefs which give coherence and meaning to the doctrine as a political ideology are recognizable in each of these variants. Nearly all exponents of anarchism, for example, have used the term to refer to a natural state of society in which people are not governed by submission to humanmade laws or to any external authority. They are also fundamentally in agreement over the belief that anarchism is above all a moral doctrine concerned with maximizing the personal freedom of individuals in society. Partly because he is not familiar with the core values and beliefs of anarchism and partly because he assumes that we cannot turn to the anarchists themselves (Emile Henry) or pro-libertarian scholars (Guérin) to provide us with a suitable definition of their creed, Dr. Gelvin feels compelled to develop his own working definition of the ideology. Drawing upon ‘‘the literature of history and political science’’ rather than the seminal writings of the movement’s most important and representative thinkers, Gelvin constructs a framework of analysis which aims to bring us closer to delineating ‘‘a distinct type of political phenomenon’’ (p. 2).

Anarchist Immigrants in Spain and Argentina by James A. Baer (review)

In his introduction, Melillo categorizes three forms of connections: displacements that have unidirectional impacts, exchanges that have effects on both the sender and receiver, and influences that are intentional efforts to transform. Following the introduction, there are five chapters on Chilean impacts on California, followed by four chapters focusing on the opposite direction. The chapters on California are primarily related to the Gold Rush, with the exception of the last one. Chapter 4, is a history of the effects of Chilean alfalfa and sodium nitrate in the creation of the dairy and citrus industries, respectively. During the Gold Rush, Chilean wheat fed the state, its technology and expertise made mining more efficient, and Chilean women catered to the demands of miners. Most of these connections are previously documented, although the detail presented here is extensive and provides a well-researched and lively discussion of cultural, political, and legal issues as well. It is not always clear, however, if the focus belongs on Chileans, or more broadly on Spanish-speaking Americans.

Ghosts of the Past: Confronting Myths and Misconceptions about the Spanish Civil War

Antony Beevor, The Battle for Spain: The Spanish Civil War, 1936–1939. London: Weidenfeld & Nicolson, 2006, pp. 526, ISBN 9-780-0-2978-4832-1 Paul Preston, We Saw Spain Die: Foreign Correspondents in The Spanish Civil War. London: Constable & Robinson, 2008, pp. 525, ISBN 9-780-0-4153-1889-1 Hilari Raguer, Gunpowder and Incense: The Catholic Church and the Spanish Civil War. London: Routledge/Canada Blanch Studies on Contemporary Spain, 2007, pp. 418, ISBN 9-781-8452-9946-0

Spain at War: The Spanish Civil War in Context, 1931-1939.@@@Memories of Resistance: Women's Voices from the Spanish Civil War.

Introduction. Part I: The Second Republic and the origins of the Civil War. Chapter 1. The course of politics. Chapter 2. The Church. Chapter 3. The regional questions. Chapter 4. The military. Chapter 5 Social Conflicts. Part II: Civil War and Revolution. Chapter 6. Rebelion and civil war. Chapter 7. Revolution in the towns and countryside. Chapter 8 Conflicting approaches to war: Military policy in the Repub lican camp. Chapter 9 The politics of the Movimiento. Chapter 10. The role of foreign intervention. Chapter 11 The dynamics of politcs in the Republican Zone. Chapter 12. The Republican road to defeat. Part III: Epilogue. Bibliographical essay. Glossary (1) Political groups and list of abbreviations. Glossary (2) Major actions