Event Details

The CWD work in progress seminar features CWD members and visiting speakers discussing ongoing research.

CWD Work in Progress Seminar: Dr Stephanie Wright (History Lancaster), ‘"The spirit and justice of the protector nation": Moroccan disabled veterans of the Spanish Civil War'

Tuesday 5 December, 14.00-14.50, Lancaster University campus, Marcus Merriman Lecture Theatre

Out of the 78,504 Moroccan soldiers who served in the Francoist army during the Spanish Civil War, an estimated 55,468 sustained injuries. This extraordinarily high rate of wounding reflected the use of the Moroccan Regulars as shock troops throughout the conflict, and was second only to the casualty rates of the Republican side’s International Brigades. Yet the physical and psychological aftermaths of the Spanish Civil War for Franco’s Moroccan soldiers have received very little attention from historians, who have focused instead on expanding our understandings of the nature of the Moroccan participation in the war itself. An assessment of Francoist Spain’s management of its disabled Moroccan troops contributes to our understanding of colonial veterans and their post-war experiences over the course of the twentieth century. This paper will offer an insight into the relationship between Francoist legislation, local colonial administrators and their colonial subjects, arguing that the bureaucratic structures established to facilitate support for the war disabled in fact ended up defining this support (or lack thereof).

Dr Stephanie Wright is Lecturer in Modern European History at Lancaster University and a member of the CWD.

Accessibility

This seminar is located on the ground floor of Bowland North building. Full information on accessibility for Bowland North can be found on the AccessAble website.