How did the Spanish Civil War affect the Basque Country?

During the 1936-9 Spanish Civil War the Basque people sided with the republican government against the nationalist forces of General Franco. Franco was the latest in a long line of threats to the Basque Country, which had in its troubled history held off Romans, Vikings, Visigoths and Moors. When Franco came to power in 1939 he sought retribution, and punished the region for its resistance by banning its language and neglecting its economy. It was during Franco’s reign that the group ETA appeared in 1959, and it has remained active ever since.

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