Francisco Franco Bahamonde
1892 - 1975
Part One in A Series on Spain's Greatest Head of State
"Francisco Franco was perhaps the shrewdest of any dictator that ever lived and also one of the least understood." Patricio Cortes.
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In his lifetime he was compared to the Archangel Gabriel, Julius Caesar, El Cid, Charlemagne, Philip II and a host of other heroes. After having lunch with Franco, the world famous artist Salvador Dalí said
"I have reached the conclusioin that he is a saint".
HIS CHILDHOOD
Francisco Franco was born in El Ferrol in Galicia on December 04, 1892 at 12:30 am in the calle ( street ) Frutos Saavedra 108, known by the locals as calle María. He was christened Francisco Paulino Hermenegilda Teódulo on December 17th in the nearby military parish church of San Francisco.
His father Nicolás Franco Salgado - Araujo was born on November 22nd, 1855 and was the equivelant of an army general in the Spanish Navy. Francisco's grandfather Francisco Franco Vietti was also the equivelant to a general in the Navy. His mother María del Pilar Bahamonde y Pardo de Andrade was a gentle, kindly and serene woman. She was politically conservative and an extremely devout Catholic. In stark contrast his father was a liberal, sympathetic to freemasonry and critical of the Catholic Church and eventually left his family to live his life as a bachelor. After her husband left María Pilar always wore black.
The second of five children Francisco was known to be introverted as a child but was also very well- behaved and was much more mature than other boys his age. He cried when he made his first communion and was a pious boy who regularly accompanied his mother to church and communion.
In school he was an average student but with a good talent for drawing. He was described as a nice, thoughtful , playful lad with a happy disposition. He was very particular about his personal appearance, a trait that would follow him throughout his life. In his adolescence, Francisco showed a normal interest in girls, favoring slim brunettes, most of them his sister's schoolfriends. He often wrote them poems and was embarrassed when they were shown to his sister.
At the age of twelve he entered the Naval Preparatory School and in July 1907 at fourteen he took the entrance examinations for the Infantry Military Academy in Toledo and entered the Academy after passing the exams, on August 29th.
Although there is no evidence of Francisco being sensitive to the wealth of religious art with which Toledo abounded, it appears that he responded to the sense of the past which permiates from its streets. A growing obsession with the greatness of imperial Spain made him receptive to Toledo as a symbol of that greatness. His later identification with the figure of El Cid may also have had its origins in his youthful ventures around the historic streets of that town.
Life
as an Army cadet would itself strengthen his interest in Spanish
history but would also strengthen character. He threw himself
into Army life with a passion, fulfilling his tasks with a most
thorough sense of duty and making an obsession of heroism,
bravery and military virtues. In the Academy he beg
an to
change his personality from the insecure teenager from Galicia to
eventually become a tough desert hero and ultimately the Saviour
of Spain " El Caudillo " ( The Chief ). On account
of his small stature of 5' 4'' he was called Franquito
or little Franco. he worked hard with a keen interest in
topography and Spanish military history. He had no interest in
the sexual or alcoholic escapades in which the other cadets
participated in the seedier parts of town and because of that he
was the target for cruel initiation ceremonies handed out by his
fellow students, against which he reacted with some violence.
When taken to his commanding officer he refused to name those who
had picked on him, winning him the admiration of his peers.
Franco completed his studies at the Academy in June of 1910. Like most of those who graduated at that time he wanted to go to Morocco and fight against the insurrectionists, where rapid promotion was possible and where he could help wipe out the national shame of losing the Spanish - American War. On July 13th Franco was formally incorporated into the officer corps of the Army with the rank of second lieutenant. Even though he graduated with the mediocre position of 251 in a class of 312 cadets Franco would be the the first of his class to become a general. As bad as he wanted to go to Morocco at this time regulations prohibited him, as only first lieutenants were eligible. He was stationed in his home town of El Ferrol though he would finally reach Morocco on February 17th 1912.
Part Two "The Making of a Warrior" will be coming soon.
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