The early 20th century saw Europe ravaged by not one but two devastating world wars. These conflicts shattered great imperial empires and left tens of millions of people dead. By the end of it, the British Empire, the French Empire, the German Empire, the Ottoman Empire, and the Austro-Hungarian Empires all largely met their collective ends. Despite the carnage and the disintegration of global empires, one imperial European power managed to stay neutral: Spain.

Spain did not simply avoid one world war, they remained neutral in both world wars. It is a feat that was unmatched by everyone save Switzerland who managed to remain neutral due to their favorable defensive geography.

Not only does Spain not have such an impregnable natural barrier but they sat at a crossroads between France, Portugal, Italy, and North Africa. So how did Spain manage to escape both world wars?

World War I

Spain was not involved in the complex web of entangling alliances that dragged the rest of the global powers to war in 1914. The reason for that was twofold. First, Spain was dealing with simmering internal political tension. The deepening division in Spanish society would eventually erupt into full-scale civil war in 1936 but those fractures were being felt as early as 1914. Spain was afraid that entering into a global conflict would only enhance the dangerous divisions that were already plaguing the Spanish crown.

The second part involves Spain’s own recent humiliating military losses. Spain had large foreign territories ripped away from it after the Spanish-American War in the twilight of the 19th century. After that defeat, Spain turned their eyes closer to home and attempted to shore up their position in Morocco.

The Second Rif War was fought in 1909 and was a disaster for Spain. The government ended up having to pour more manpower and treasure into North Africa than expected. Despite fielding heavy artillery and advanced soldiers, Spain struggled to quell the local uprisings in Morroco which only reinforced the idea on the global stage that Spain’s military greatness lay firmly in the past.

Spain feared a military disaster if they joined the war so they remained on the sidelines. Even Portugal became entangled in World War I due to their historic alliance with Great Britain. But Spain managed to remain neutral throughout the conflict.

The prime minister during the war was Eduardo Dato who made a firm statement in favor of Spanish neutrality at the outbreak of the war saying:

“Existent, sadly, the state of war between Austria, Hungary and Serbia […] the Government of His Majesty believes in the duty to order the strictest neutrality to Spanish subjects.”

Despite U-boat attacks and a precarious position in colonial Africa Spain stayed neutral and benefited. As one of the most easily accessible neutral countries Spain managed to rebuild its gold reserve and acquire much needed cash to pay down some of their debts that had been building up for the past century.

World War II

The Second World War erupted right after the end of the Spanish Civil War. Spain’s civil war was longer and bloodier than anyone expected and brought the country to its knees. After General Franco took full control of the country in early 1939, there was no appetite to join in another war. They didn’t have the manpower, the money, or the will.

But staying neutral in World War II was going to prove much harder than it had during World War I.

General Franco was a fascist and his regime had readily accepted monetary and material support from Fascist Italy and Nazi Germany. The support from the nearby fascist nations helped Franco win the war. In return, Hitler expected similar support from Franco during his wars. But Franco was not willing to commit to joining the Axis.

As the war in Europe unfolded, Spain once again declared neutrality. Unlike the First World War, multiple high level talks were being held between Franco’s government and Hitler’s allies.

Hitler wanted Franco to join the Axis in order to use Spain as a launching point to wrest control of Gibraltar from Britain and to potentially seal off the Portuguese coast. But the talks went nowhere.

Despite extensive planning, scheming, and negotiating, Franco could not commit his nation to another war. He was barely recovering from the one they had just fought.

Franco and Hitler were worried that the Allies could invade the Iberian Peninsula by way of North Africa or Portugal in order to press a front into southern France. But the Allies did not want to infringe on Spanish neutrality and push another fascist nation into the war.

The best Franco could offer was quiet support. He allowed Spanish volunteers to leave and fight for Germany, which thousands did. An entire Spanish division fought on the Eastern Front for Germany against the hated communists.

The Allies reclassified Spain as a non-belligerent friendly to the Axis but they respected their neutrality throughout the war.

After the end of the war, Franco was the last fascist leader of a major European power. Bitter about Spanish neutrality and the fascist support of Adolf Hitler, Franco, and his government was shunned in Europe following the Allied victory.

But Spain managed, again, to escape another devastating world war.

Legacy

Spain watched as major empires around the world dissolved in fire in two devastating wars and managed to escape that same fate. Their empire had already slipped through their fingers in the 19th century and they saw nothing to be gained from fighting protracted battles against their former imperial rivals.

A predicted Spanish renaissance did not materialize after the peace. While World War I helped Spain industrialize and rebuild its shattered economy, World War II left them isolated and licking their wounds from a devastating civil war. Spain did not lose any territory and escaped much material damage but they were not able to use their health to ascend in Europe. They were locked out of both of the post-war talks that reshaped the world, twice.

Still, the feat is impressive. No other major European nation managed to escape unharmed through both world wars. But the only reason they avoided the Second World War is due to the civil war that left hundreds of thousands dead or homeless.