1.4.2 Political Instability and Social Unrest

• Rural Militancy:

  1. The FNTT encouraged peasants who had been evicted to forcefully reclaim land. 60,000 peasants in Extremadura seized 3,000 farms
  2. Poor harvests created even lower standards of living
  3. Increased conservative fears of revolution
• The PSOE refused to participate in the cabinet or government in 1936 as they believed a coalition government would dilute their social reform agenda
• In April 1936, Azana replaced Alcala Zamora as president, which the right saw as a step towards a Marxist regime in Spain
• Within major cities, the UGT and CNT continued to organise strikes to protest against low wages which often led to violent clashes between the Falange militia and striking workers
• Right-wing propaganda exaggerated the disorder in Spain. According to Gil-Robles, there had been 300 strikes, 269 murders and 251 church burnings in the first month of the new government
• Gil Robles publically abandoned democracy, claiming that the only way to prevent a communist revolution was to create a fascist regime with the army and Falange