Francisco Franco

About Francisco Franco

The Spanish dictator who ruled from 1939 to 1975. Franco won the Spanish Civil War with help from Hitler and Mussolini. His regime killed or imprisoned hundreds of thousands. Franco maintained neutrality during World War II despite his fascist ideology. He ruled as an authoritarian conservative, suppressing regional identities including Catalan and Basque culture. Franco designated Prince Juan Carlos as his successor, expecting continuity. Instead, Juan Carlos transitioned Spain to democracy after Francos death in 1975. The exhumation of Francos body from the Valley of the Fallen in 2019 was controversial.