Your Children Will Be Next: Bombing and Propaganda in the Spanish Civil War, 1936-1939 - Softcover

Stradling, Robert

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0708320945 ISBN 13: 9780708320945

Publisher: University of Wales Press, 2008

Synopsis

Baghdad, Kandahar, Jakarta—not to mention Dresden, Hiroshima, Hanoi: the mass killing of civilians as collateral damage, especially as the result of air bombardment, represents one of the most emotional and ethically urgent issues in the contemporary world. Many experts in the field see the civil war that tore apart Spain as the original site of this “new kind of war,” as George Steer, reporting on the bombing of Guernica, christened it. Your Children Will Be Next centers on the bombing of Getafe, a small town south of Madrid, shortly after that war’s outbreak—when Nationalist rebels advancing on the capital launched air raids on targets that unfortunately included this suburban township, where thirty young children were killed. The claims of the Republican government produced not only the celebrated poster—“If You Tolerate This Your Children Will Be Next”—but also a worldwide propaganda campaign that stimulated support for the Spanish republic. The core of this thought-provoking book is a meticulous account of the alleged atrocity of Getafe that is presented as part of a wide-ranging survey of both sides’ conduct in the matter, as well as the reactions of politicians, soldiers, reporters, writers, and artists. Appealing to anyone with an interest in European history, as well as in the potent powers of media and propaganda, Your Children Will Be Next is guaranteed to stimulate lively debate on a powerful and controversial topic.

About this title

About the Author

Robert Stradling is professor emeritus of history at Cardiff University. He is a leading authority on the Spanish Civil War who has published extensively on the topic and made a number of documentaries for Spanish television and BBC Wales.

Review

'Stradling's meticulous examination is a significant contribution to the historiography. His examination of the Gernika devastation is also excellent. His coverage of the lesser-known Nationalist air attacks on Lerida, Granollers, and Alicante is exemplary.' Michael Seidman, English Historical Review, Oct 2009 "An...excellent new book..."Stanley G. Payne, La Razon 'This book represents an excellent study of the Spanish Civil War: an impressive synthesis of the literatures on memory, propaganda and war. This is a well written, informative and scholarly book that deserves a wide readership for those interested in the phenomenon of war and the human experience.' R. Gerald Hughes, Planet, Issue 191

Edition details

• Publisher: University of Wales Press
• Publication date: 2008
• ISBN 10: 0708320945
• ISBN 13: 9780708320945
• Binding: Paperback
• Language: English
• Edition number: 2
• Number of pages: 256