To commemorate the 90th anniversary of the Civil War, José Ángel Mañas recreates in Zenda, day by day in this section, what happened in 1936, perhaps the most pivotal year in all of Spain’s recent history.
Sunday, October 25, 1936: Telephone communication between Mola and Franco
The line was poor. The wires screeched.
—Mola, are you there? There is interference on this line.
—I hear you perfectly, General. And you?
—Now… better.
—My dear General. The news is bad, very bad. Today sails, bound for Odessa, the ship that carries the gold of the Bank of Spain. Seven hundred tons that the Republicans have kept hidden in Cartagena, and despite the statements coming from the Nationalist side warning that this gold is the international guarantee of the Spanish currency and that it must remain neutral, not serving any side, it will be used to pay for Soviet military aid… It is a robbery.
—A disgrace, Mola, I agree. In every interview I make it clear. The Marxist Government has no right to dispose of the Bank of Spain’s gold for the ends pursued by Madrid’s Reds. That gold serves the purpose of guaranteeing the backing of banknotes in accordance with constitutional provisions and forms part of the national patrimony.
—The problem, General, is that we cannot do anything. Stalin and the Russians have played their cards well. I can think of only one thing…
—I’m listening, Mola.
—We must point out that the acceptance of these reserves by any foreign state would constitute a blatant violation of neutrality. It would amount to lending aid to one side in the conflict. Aid would be even more direct if one considers that the use to which this gold is typically destined is the purchase of weapons and war materiel that once outside Spain will pass easily from one country to another. Its mere presence abroad stimulates arms offers to support one of the combatants. We should suggest possible international legal actions.
—It’s a small thing, Mola…
—It is, General, but it will help. There can be no effective neutrality if it is tolerated that one side in the conflict has free and exclusive control of the nation’s gold. Therefore we should ask that the governments which, at the French proposal, have joined the strict prohibition on supplying war materiel to the forces fighting in our nation, exercise tight surveillance over the illegally exported gold. I don’t see what more we can do.
—Agreed. Regarding the rest?
—Regarding the rest, General, the advance on Madrid progresses as planned. Navalcarnero has been definitively taken, just twenty kilometers from the capital. If the progression continues, by early November we will reach Madrid. I have already had word that a table should be reserved for those dates at any of the Gran Vía venues.
—I’ve heard, Mola. There are many jests about the famous cafe. But soon they will stop laughing… Barbarous Marxists —muttered, in his high-pitched voice, General Franco.
Todas las entradas de 1936 día a día
Entrevista con José Ángel Mañas sobre 1936 día a día