Date of Award

2011

Degree Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Department

School of Education

Abstract

Societies in transition are vulnerable to strong forces for political change. When Franco's fascist government defeated the socialist party that had taken control from 1931 to 1936, it aligned itself with Spain's Catholic Church. For most of Spain's history, the established Church culture had been inseparable from Spanish identity and Catholicism was taught in all schools, private and public. Therefore, under the guise of religion, the government used the educational system as a means of socialization, connecting nationalism and religion to promote their fascist agenda. The purpose of this historiographic study is to examine the relationships among the school, government, and Church in Spain during the Franco era (1939 - 1975) in the context of that nation's social, economic, political, and cultural forces. An examination of school textbooks written and used in the Franco era were analyzed as to their reflection of State and Church policies. Interviews of Spaniards that attended school during the Franco era were also included.

Creative Commons License

Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 License.

Share

COinS