The Spanish right and the Jews, 1898-1945

Two intertwined myths - of the "Reconquista" and of the Jewish conspiracy - were an integral part of the political culture of the Spanish radical right from the late 19th century to the Franco regime. The image of the Jew, or Converso, could be identified with any foe of the conservative or radical right: the Rif rebels in Spanish Morocco in the 1920s, the Second Republic in the 1930s, Catalan or Basque nationalists, communists, or liberals. Francoists interpreted the Republic as a Judeo-Masonic conspiracy and the Civil War as a new "Reconquista"; many Francoist leaders (e.g. Mola, Queipo de Llano) were rabid antisemites. During the Civil War, while drafting Muslims into their army, the Francoists in Morocco incited anti-Jewish sentiments which led to violence. Despite declarations of Spanish conservatives to the contrary, racism was part and parcel of Spanish antisemitism; e.g. conservatives ascribed the decay of the Spanish state in the 19th century to the miscegenation of "Old Christians" with Conversos. Racism was one of the motives behind the reluctance of Spanish authorities to return Jews to Spain before and during World War II. At the same time, opportunistic considerations caused the Spanish conservative authorities to make advances to the Jews; for instance, in the last stage of World War II the Francoists granted protection to Jews in Budapest and even allowed some Jewish refugees entry into Spain, hoping to improve their relations with the USA. (From the Bibliography of the Vidal Sassoon International Center for the Study of Antisemitism - The Hebrew University of Jerusalem)