This book presents a new history of the most important conflict in European affairs during the 1930s, the Spanish Civil War. It describes the complex origins of the conflict, the collapse of the Spanish Republic and the outbreak of the only mass worker revolution in the history of Western Europe. Stanley Payne explains the character of the Spanish revolution and the complex web of republican politics, while also examining the development of Franco's counter-revolutionary dictatorship. Payne gives attention to the multiple meanings and interpretations of war and examines why the conflict provoked such strong reactions at the time, and long after. The book also explains the military history of the war and its place in the history of military development, the non-intervention policy of the democracies and the role of German, Italian and Soviet intervention, concluding with an analysis of the place of the war in European affairs, in the context of twentieth-century revolutionary civil wars.

‘Payne, drawing on his knowledge and research on Spanish history, has written a legible (rather than just academic) history of the origins, political and military development, and consequences of the Spanish Civil War. His familiarity with twentieth-century European history enables him to place it in a comparative perspective. An important and objective work that … will generate interesting debates.’

Juan J. Linz - Sterling Professor Emeritus of Political and Social Science, Yale University

‘Stanley Payne has written a fine introductory history of the Spanish Civil War. Based on an unrivalled mastery of the huge historiography of the topic, Payne’s volume convincingly dispels many of the myths that still surround the fratricidal conflict. It will be indispensable not just to students but to anyone interested in understanding one of the bitterest wars of the twentieth century.’

Julius Ruiz - University of Edinburgh

‘This is an extremely insightful book that has remarkably condensed analytical power. Payne's vast knowledge has generated an up-to-date and inclusive history of the Spanish conflict. He situates the Spanish Civil War in the context of revolutionary and counterrevolutionary confrontations in Europe, from the French Revolution to World War II. Furthermore, he succinctly and skillfully places the conflict within the long history of Spain. There is no better synthesis.’

Michael Seidman - University of North Carolina Wilmington

‘It seems providential that one S. Payne should produce the most accomplished non-native writing on Spain's recent past. In his sixth decade of research, Stanley Payne has acquired wisdom beyond maturity. No living historian thinks so broadly or writes so cogently. Few authorities survey the scarred landscape of the tortured twentieth century with such a cool, forensic gaze. His standards of consideration and interpretation are elevated – and for readers, elevating. Perhaps surprisingly, this latest book is Payne's first comprehensive study of the Spanish Civil War. It prioritizes recent work without neglecting the packed storehouse of earlier scholarship. It should become an indispensable guide to its endlessly complex and supremely significant subject.’

Rob Stradling - Professor Emeritus of History, Cardiff University

‘Essential for interwar and/or modern Spain graduate collections. Highly recommended.’

Source: Choice

‘Stanley Payne's study of the Spanish Civil War and the events leading up to that cataclysm is the latest work by one of America's premier historians of Europe.’

Paul Gottfried Source: The American Conservative

‘The Spanish Civil War still excites strong passions … is a must-read for anyone wishing to understand that controversial event … Payne’s book restores scholarly standards to a field that remains more than ever beset by ideological controversy.'

Paul Gottfried Source: Chronicles Magazine