Francoist Spain

Francoist Spain (España franquista), also known as the Franco dictatorship, was the period of Spanish history during which Francisco Franco ruled Spain from 1939 until his death in 1975. During this period, the country was officially known as the Spanish State (Estado Español).

The regime emerged from the Nationalist side in the Spanish Civil War and developed into a dictatorship centred on Franco and the institutions of the FET y de las JONS/Movimiento Nacional. Historians generally describe Francoist Spain as an authoritarian regime with fascist or para-fascist features, especially during the first phase called the "First Francoism", which is characterized as semi-fascist or straightly fascist and totalitarian or quasi-totalitarian.

During the Second World War, Spain remained formally non-belligerent or neutral, though the regime was supportive of the Axis powers. After a period of postwar isolation and autarky, the regime shifted in the 1950s toward economic liberalization and technocratic government. Following Franco's death in 1975, Spain entered the Spanish transition to democracy.