Franco

This lucid account provides an excellent introduction to Franco’s rise to power and his four decades as autocratic head of state in Spain. Given that he was an unprepossessing and uncharismatic figure who lacked a ready-made power base, Sheelagh Ellwood seeks the answer to Franco’s enduring career in the social, economic and political evolution of twentieth-century Spain, and in the personal characteristics which enabled Franco to take advantage of those circumstances. *An important study which examines Franco’s formative influences, and the use he made of power once he had achieved it. ‘An admirably good job of introducing readers to Franco…intelligently.’ The Historian *Explores whether he had a consistent vision for Spain and if so, how far he was able to realise it. *Provides an analysis of the special circumstances in Spain that made such a career both possible and long lasting.