Spain

William Chislett is a writer who has lived in Madrid since 1986. He covered Spain's transition to democracy (1975-78) for The Times of London and was later the Mexico correspondent for the Financial Times (1978-84). He is emeritus senior research fellow at the Elcano Royal Institute. He was granted Spanish nationality in 2021 by Royal Decree.

• List of TablesAcknowledgmentsPolitical Map of SpainIntroduction1. Historical Background, 800 BC-1939Where does the name Spain come from?What was the legacy of the Muslim presence between 711 and 1492?How did Ferdinand and Isabella forge a united Spanish kingdom?How did the Spanish Empire arise?Who was Christopher Columbus?Who were the conquistadors?What was the Spanish Golden Age?Why did Spain go into decline in the 17th century?What did the Bourbon kings contribute to the modernization of Spain between 1700 and 1823?What was the 1812 Constitution?What were the Carlist civil wars between 1833 and 1876?Why was the First Spanish Republic (1873-1874) short lived?What was the "Disaster" of 1898?Why did Alfonso XIII go into exile in 1931?What were the causes of the 1936-1939 Civil War?Who was General Francisco Franco?What were the ideological dimensions of the Civil War?What role did foreign intervention play in the Civil War?Why did the Republicans lose the Civil War?2. The Franco Regime, 1939-1975What kind of dictatorship did General Franco establish after winning the 1936-1939 Civil War?What was the Franco regime's role in the Second World War, and what happened to it after the defeat of Nazism?How was the regime organized politically?What was the economic legacy of the Civil War?How was the Catholic Church rewarded for supporting General Franco?Why was the 1953 military bases agreement with the United States important?What role did the 1959 Stabilization Plan play in creating a modern economy?What is Opus Dei?How did Spain become one of the world's main tourist destinations?What was the opposition to the Franco regime?What is the violent Basque separatist group ETA?What impact did the ETA's assassination of Prime Minister Carrero Blanco in 1973 have on the regime?How much did the economy and society change during the Franco regime?3. The Transition to Democracy, 1975-1982What happened when Franco died?Who is King Juan Carlos I?How was the transition to democracy achieved?Who was Adolfo Suárez?How important was grassroots mobilization and strike action in pressuring the regime to change?What role did the Spanish media play in the transition to democracy?What were the main economic problems?What were the 1977 Moncloa Pacts?What form did the 1978 Constitution take?How and why was the system of regional autonomy created?How different are the regions?Why did the ETA continue its violent campaign for an independent Basque state?Why was there an attempted coup in 1981?4. The Socialist Era, 1982-1996Why did the Socialists win a landslide victory in the 1982 election?Who is Felipe González?How did the Socialists get to grips with the dire economic situation?Why and how were the armed forces reformed?Why did the Socialists oppose NATO membership and then make a U-turn?What was the impact of European Economic Community membership?What was the Socialists' foreign policy?How did the Socialists create a welfare state?How close were the Socialists to meeting the conditions for membership in the European Economic and Monetary Union?What were the Socialists' relations with the Catholic Church?What was La Movida Madrileña?How did the Socialists advance the system of regional autonomy?Why was a

[M]akes the country's complex history strikingly accessible ... This is a splendid book that delivers exactly what its title promises.