Formulation of a Policy

Abstract

July weather depressing for its lack of sunshine and abundance of rain gave Britain a sombre backdrop for the collapse of Spanish democracy. Although there had been previous reports of terror and confusion it was not until several days before the seventeenth that diplomatic correspondence hinted at the possibility of a coup d’état. The early confusion made it difficult to ascertain exact power relationships, but as it was evident that there would be civil war, it was also clear that the war was more than purely Spanish. “It promises to be a bleak and bitter future for the Spanish people,” wrote the Guardian.¹ Frequently in the past the rivalries of Europe had been fought on Spanish soil, but for the first time it appeared that the rivalries of Spain would be fought on the soil of Europe. Apprehensively Britain temporized. The Rebels were lucky to have timed their revolt for the vacation, said one critic, because the “Englishman on holiday doesn’t want to be bothered with foreign wars.”²