References To The Spanish Civil War
"Spanish Bombs" praises the heroism of Republicans – who ranged from centrists to revolutionary anarchists and communists – in the Spanish Civil War, a major conflict that devastated Spain from July 17, 1936 to April 1, 1939 and ended in the victory for the Nationalists. It should also be noted that several thousand foreigners fought in this pre-World War II war, mainly the International Brigades supporting the "leftist" group, while Hitler and Mussolini gave military and financial support to the Nationalists. The Nationalists ranged from centrists to Carlists and fascists- under the leadership of Francisco Franco, who ruled Spain for the next 36 years. Many locations and people associated with the Spanish Civil War are mentioned in the song lyrics. Andalucia was one of the first regions of Spain to be overtaken by Franco's National faction in 1936. The Costa Brava in the Republican stronghold of Catalonia contained ports important to the Republican effort. Federico García Lorca, (referred to in the song as Federico Lorca), was a well-known poet from Andalucia who was killed by a firing squad during the war. The Guardia Civil (or "Civil Guard") is a military police force under the control of both the Ministry of Interior and the Ministry of Defence of Spain.
The line "They sang The Red Flag, they wore the black one" contains references to both the red flag as a symbol of socialism and the socialist anthem The Red Flag, as well as the black flag of the anarchists. The Confederación Nacional del Trabajo (CNT), the Anarcho-syndicalist labour union, also flew the red and black flag of anarchist-communism.
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