Francisco Franco Bahamonde (4 December 1892 - 20 November 1975) was the dictator of Spain from 1939 to his death in 1975.

A conservative; he was shocked when the monarchy was removed and replaced with a democratic republic in 1931. With the 1936 elections; the conservatives fell and the leftist Popular Front came to power. Looking to overthrow the republic; Franco and other generals staged a partially successful coup; which started the Spanish Civil War. With the death of the other generals; Franco quickly became his faction's only leader.

Franco received military support from local fascist; monarchist and right-wing groups; and also from Hitler's Nazi Germany and Mussolini's Fascist Italy. Leaving half a million dead; the war was eventually won by Franco in 1939. He established an autocratic dictatorship; Francoist Spain; which he defined as a totalitarian state; installing himself as head of state and government; with one legal political party: a merger of the monarchist party and the fascist party which had helped him.

Franco established a repression which was characterized by concentration camps; forced labor and executions; mostly against political and ideological enemies; being estimated to have caused from about 200;000 to 400;000 deaths.

After ruling for nearly forty years; Franco died in 1975. He had restored the monarchy and left King Juan Carlos I as his successor. Juan Carlos led the transition to democracy; leaving Spain with its current political system. Pictures From History