Emilio Mola

Emilio Mola

Don Emilio Mola y Vidal, 1st Duke of Mola, Grandee of Spain (June 9, 1887 – June 3, 1937) was a Spanish Nationalist commander during the Spanish Civil War. He was a veteran of the African wars where he rose to prominence serving with the Regulares Indígenas.

Following the fall of the dictator General Primo de Rivera in February 1930 he was appointed director general of security and "put down labour and student subversion as he had crushed tribal rebelion in Morocco." He believed that Jews had masterminded the revolution and must be prevented from doing the same in Western Europe. He believed this justified Nazism. He believed in a Jewish-Masonic-Bolshevik contubernio, or conspiracy. He believed the democratic Second Spanish Republic had been engineered by Jews and Freemasons. He was among a number of influential figures who through their writings " fomented an atmosphere of social and racial hatred."

He coined the term "fifth column".