Francisco J. Romero Salvado

Interesting book about how the First World War affected Spain; more specifically, how the war affected the political power arrangements and the struggles within the country to maintain stability and balance. One of the large issues in Spain at the time was should Spain side with one side or the other, or keep at strict neutrality. There were of course pluses and minuses to each stand. However, in Spain's political situation this became a very complicated decision. Not only was their political arrangement incredibly corrupt, factions within each party or group had competing subgoups. All this made any decision impossible due to a lack of cooperation.

Something about this volume I must point out from my view. At times I would become very confused. The number of parties and organizations (Liberal, Conservative, Anarchist, Socialist, the Church, the Army, industrialist, unions, etc.) created an incredible blend of actions and chaos. Particularly since I have no knowledge of Spain's politics I had a hard time sorting all this out.
Maybe that was part of the message of the book. Reading it caused confusion, therefore in reality all this caused confusion in the counrty.

I still recommend the book if you are interested in a seldom covered aspect of the First World War: the impact on Spain. This is the first book I have come across on this subject. Just do not get too caught up in trying to understand all issues in the political dynamics. Other than that, I thought it was a good read.… (mere)