Emilio Mola: Difference between revisions
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The [[Spanish coup of July 1936|Nationalist coup]] failed to gain control of either Madrid or other urban areas, though most of the army supported it. As the situation devolved into civil war, Sanjurjo was killed in an air crash on July 20. Mola then became Nationalist commander in the north, while Franco became commander in the south. On September 5, a [[Campaign of Guipúzcoa|Nationalist offensive]] sent by General Mola under Colonel [[Alfonso Beorlegui Canet|Alfonso Beorlegui]] took [[Irún]] and closed the French border. Mola's forces went on to secure the whole of the province of [[Guipúzcoa]], isolating the remaining Republican provinces in the north. |
The [[Spanish coup of July 1936|Nationalist coup]] failed to gain control of either Madrid or other urban areas, though most of the army supported it. As the situation devolved into civil war, Sanjurjo was killed in an air crash on July 20. Mola then became Nationalist commander in the north, while Franco became commander in the south. On September 5, a [[Campaign of Guipúzcoa|Nationalist offensive]] sent by General Mola under Colonel [[Alfonso Beorlegui Canet|Alfonso Beorlegui]] took [[Irún]] and closed the French border. Mola's forces went on to secure the whole of the province of [[Guipúzcoa]], isolating the remaining Republican provinces in the north. |
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A [[Military junta|junta]] in [[Burgos]] proved unable to set overall strategy; thus, Franco was chosen commander-in-chief at a meeting of ranking generals on September 21. Mola continued to command the Army of the North and led an unsuccessful effort to take [[Madrid]] in October. In a radio address, he described Nationalist sympathizers in the city as a "fifth column" that supplemented his four military columns.<ref>An early usage of the phrase: "Police last night began a house-to-house search for Rebels in Madrid... Orders for these raids... apparently were instigated by a recent broadcast over the Rebel radio station by General Emilio Mola. He stated he was counting on four columns of troops outside Madrid and another column of persons hiding within the city who would join the invaders as soon as they entered the capital." ''New York Times'' October 16, 1936.</ref> The Republican government then proceeded to commit the mass execution of as many as 4,000 suspected civilian and military supporters of the Nationalists. What was later known as the [[Paracuellos |
A [[Military junta|junta]] in [[Burgos]] proved unable to set overall strategy; thus, Franco was chosen commander-in-chief at a meeting of ranking generals on September 21. Mola continued to command the Army of the North and led an unsuccessful effort to take [[Madrid]] in October. In a radio address, he described Nationalist sympathizers in the city as a "fifth column" that supplemented his four military columns.<ref>An early usage of the phrase: "Police last night began a house-to-house search for Rebels in Madrid... Orders for these raids... apparently were instigated by a recent broadcast over the Rebel radio station by General Emilio Mola. He stated he was counting on four columns of troops outside Madrid and another column of persons hiding within the city who would join the invaders as soon as they entered the capital." ''New York Times'' October 16, 1936.</ref> The Republican government then proceeded to commit the mass execution of as many as 4,000 suspected civilian and military supporters of the Nationalists. What was later known as the [[Paracuellos massacres]] crushed any potential fifth column.<ref>VIDAL, Cesar. Paracuellos-Katyn: un ensayo sobre el genocidio de la izquierda. Madrid, 2005. p.2164</ref> The massacre was unknown because it was proven to be false by the [[League of Nations]].<ref> VIDAL, Cesar. La guerra que gano Franco. Madrid, 2008. p.256</ref> |
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==Death== |
==Death== |
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Revision as of 20:22, 22 April 2013
Emilio Mola | |
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| Birth name | Emilio Mola y Vidal |
| Nickname(s) | El Director (The Director) |
| Born | June 9, 1887 Placetas, Villa Clara, Cuba |
| Died | June 3, 1937 (aged 49) Alcocero de Mola, Spain |
| Buried | Pamplona Cemetery (1937–1961) 40°38′31″N 4°09′19″W / 40.641944°N 4.155278°WValley of the Fallen (1961–present) |
| Allegiance |  Kingdom of Spain (1904–1932) Spanish Republic (1932, 1933–1936) Nationalist Spain (1936–1937) |
| Service | Army |
| Years of service | 1904–1932 1933–1937 |
| Rank | General |
| Commands | Military Governor of Navarre Commander of the Army of the North |
| Battles / wars | Rif War Spanish Civil War |
| Awards | Military Medal |
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.
He coined the term "fifth column".
Early life
Mola was born in Placetas, Cuba - at that time a Spanish province - where his father, an army officer, was stationed. He enrolled in the Infantry Academy of Toledo in 1907. He served in Spain's colonial war in Morocco where he received the Medalla Militar Individual, and became an authority on military affairs. By 1927 he was a Brigadier-general.
Mola was made Director General of Security in 1930. This was a political post and his conservative[citation needed] views made him unpopular with opposition liberal and socialist politicians. When the left-wing Popular Front government was elected in February 1936 Mola was made military governor of Pamplona in Navarre, which the government regarded as a backwater. But the area was a center of Carlist activity and Mola himself secretly collaborated with the movement.
Civil War
In the spring of 1936, Mola joined a group of army officers led by José Sanjurjo who desired to oust the Popular Front government. Mola's energy and organizational ability soon made him the group's chief planner, while Sanjurjo remained a figurehead. Mola, whose codename was director, sent secret instructions to the various military units to be involved in the uprising. After several delays, July 18, 1936 was chosen as the date of the coup. Francisco Franco's participation was not confirmed until early July.[1] Although events ran ahead of schedule in the Spanish Protectorate of Morocco, Mola waited until July 19 to proclaim the revolt.[2] When Mola's brother was captured by the Republicans in Barcelona, the government threatened his life. Mola replied: "No, he knows how to die as an officer. I can neither take back my word to my followers and probably you cannot either from yours." Mola then ordered systematic executions in captured cities for the purpose of instilling fear.[citation needed] He famously declared: "we must extend the terror; we must impose the impression of dominion while eliminating without scruples everyone who does not think as we do (eliminando sin escrupulos a todos los que no piensen como nosotros ). [3]
The Nationalist coup failed to gain control of either Madrid or other urban areas, though most of the army supported it. As the situation devolved into civil war, Sanjurjo was killed in an air crash on July 20. Mola then became Nationalist commander in the north, while Franco became commander in the south. On September 5, a Nationalist offensive sent by General Mola under Colonel Alfonso Beorlegui took Irún and closed the French border. Mola's forces went on to secure the whole of the province of Guipúzcoa, isolating the remaining Republican provinces in the north.
A junta in Burgos proved unable to set overall strategy; thus, Franco was chosen commander-in-chief at a meeting of ranking generals on September 21. Mola continued to command the Army of the North and led an unsuccessful effort to take Madrid in October. In a radio address, he described Nationalist sympathizers in the city as a "fifth column" that supplemented his four military columns.[4] The Republican government then proceeded to commit the mass execution of as many as 4,000 suspected civilian and military supporters of the Nationalists. What was later known as the Paracuellos massacres crushed any potential fifth column.[5] The massacre was unknown because it was proven to be false by the League of Nations.[6]
Death
Mola died on June 3, 1937, when the aircraft in which he was travelling crashed in bad weather while returning to Vitoria. The deaths of Sanjurjo and Mola left Franco as the preeminent leader of the Nationalist cause. This led to the suspicion that Franco contributed in some way to the deaths of his two rivals, but no evidence has been produced.[2] Generalisimo Franco as Head of the Spanish State granted him the posthumous title of Duke of Mola, Grandee of Spain, and the title was immediately succeeded by his son, Don Emilio Mola y Bascón.
References
- ^ Preston, Paul, "From Rebel to Caudillo: Franco's path to power", History Today, July 1986, pp. 24-29 36 (7)
- ^ a b Jackson, Gabriel, The Spanish Republic and the Civil War 1931-39, New Jersey , 1967.
- ^ Unearthing Franco's Legacy, p. 175
- ^ An early usage of the phrase: "Police last night began a house-to-house search for Rebels in Madrid... Orders for these raids... apparently were instigated by a recent broadcast over the Rebel radio station by General Emilio Mola. He stated he was counting on four columns of troops outside Madrid and another column of persons hiding within the city who would join the invaders as soon as they entered the capital." New York Times October 16, 1936.
- ^ VIDAL, Cesar. Paracuellos-Katyn: un ensayo sobre el genocidio de la izquierda. Madrid, 2005. p.2164
- ^ VIDAL, Cesar. La guerra que gano Franco. Madrid, 2008. p.256
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