@onliest it's not so easy. When communism is involved it's easy to choose sides quickly. Church is Spain was collaborating with fascists groups as Falange for example, back then society was really radicalised in both ends. Do you think the fascist didn't rape women and kill children??
The dictatorship was the end of any hope for a healthy and independent Spain, not necessarily ruled by communism. Racism between regions was created, destruction of other languages and cultures, historical catholical kingdoms also destroyed because you can only be "Spanish". Destruction of monuments, libraries etc. Terror to speak your mind, freedom was only given to rich people that of course supported Franco in order to keep their wealth. This is the base of our current democracy, the rich families that ruled with Franco are the ones that have Spain on strings, and no right or left party will touch them, because these are Franco's death bed wishes. He also stole cultural heritage like Castles, art, sculptures, land, everything. Like i told you, when the communist are the enemy is so easy to point out the evil side right?? I wouldn't be so brave saying that Franco was the less worse option, I know that my nation which is Galicia would be free and independent nowadays if Franco didn't rule. I know that my grandparents wouldn't have to start working at 9 years old instead of learning how to read (they were born after the war), I know that, indeed, Spain would be a better country letting go of nations and kingdoms that doesn't belong to Spain.
I hope you understand, for foreigners to fully understand the depth of Iberia, I would have to write here the length of 4 bibles. It's not something unique in Europea as so many modern countries are formed with other countries without state. And the damage that the dictatorship caused here, I assure you you can't even get a grasp of it. It could be a great country, yes, but so many dreams were destroyed when the war started. And as i told you the Church was a fascist tool so the attacks on churches were seen as normal by comms. Franco bombed Guernika full of civilians to show off muscle... That's also horrible like the comms. The real way out of that madness was slowly giving privileges to these nations without state and forming the country based on the necessities of each region, because that Spanish national pride is artificial and made up to create the idea of a unified country. In Galicia a golden generation of intelectuals defended from many points of view, cultural, artistical, historical, traditional, linguistical.. the independence of Galicia, they were catholic and really religious, some more right handed others left handed, but the link between them was the love for Galicia and the hope to see the nation running free from all the miseries that the Spanish government was causing (yes, long before the dictatorship). Truth is that republics and dictatorships always treated these nations like shit, because thats what it matters on Spanish politics, keeping the centralized system with the center of the black hole in Madrid, no right no left, they lost Cuba and they don't want to lose the last colonies left, because without them Spain wouldn't be Spain.
