In the throne room of the Captaincy General in Burgos, General Francisco Franco receives power over the Spanish nationalist zone. On October 1, 1936, in the midst of the civil war, he is proclaimed Generalissimo and takes over the leadership of the government created by the military who rebelled against the Second Spanish Republic.
The ceremony is the culmination of a decision taken a few days earlier. On September 29, the National Defense Junta passes a decree, published in Burgos on September 30. It appoints Franco as “head of the government of the Spanish State“, explicitly stating that he “will assume all the powers of the new state“. The document also gave him the title of Generalissimo of the land, navy and air forces, as well as the post of commander-in-chief of the active armies.
The decision that put an end to collective command
Up until that point, the nationalist zone had been led by the National Defense Junta, created after the military uprising in July 1936. The chairman of the junta was General Miguel Cabañas. On October 1, it was he who handed over powers to Franco during the official ceremony in Burgos.
The wording of the decree also creates a historical peculiarity. The document speaks of “head of the government of the state“, while from the very ceremony itself Franco began to be presented publicly as head of state. Spanish archives define the decision as the moment when the junta dissolved itself, and Franco was appointed both head of government and generalissimo of the armed forces.
„To conquer and to convince“
After taking power, Franco gave a speech to representatives of the junta and the inhabitants of Burgos. In it, he stated: „I do not seek only to conquer, but also to convince.“ The message combined promises of order, social policy and the construction of a „new Spain“ with the intention of imposing a unified government on the territories controlled by the Nationalists.
On 1 October, a law was also passed for the construction of the new Spanish state. It created a Technical Junta of the State, secretariats and the position of governor-general for the civil organization of the occupied territories. Thus, the military command began to transform into a centralized state system. The next day, the law was published in the official gazette of the new government.
The beginning of the long rule
The appointment in Burgos did not mean the end of the war. The Republican government continued to control a significant part of Spain, and the fighting continued until April 1, 1939. Then Franco declared the victory of the Nationalist forces.
After the end of the civil war, he retained power as an authoritarian head of state until his death on November 20, 1975. Thus, the decision of October 1, 1936, taken as a military appointment in the conditions of civil conflict, became the basis of a regime that lasted almost four decades.
Sources: pares.cultura.gob.es, history.state.gov