LYCOS RETRIEVER 
Francisco Franco: Adolf Hitler
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Franco now cherished hopes of rebuilding the Spanish empire. During World War II, he pinned his hopes on an Axis victory, offering in June 1940 to fight at Hitler's side. Initially, the Führer was not interested. On October 23, 1940, Franco met Hitler at Hendaye near the Franco-Spanish border. Hitler was not prepared to feed and arm Spain, or to give Franco a North African empire. British and American supplies of food and fuel kept him neutral, although he did substantial service for Hitler by providing submarine refuelling bases, reconnaissance facilities, and strategic raw materials.
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After the outbreak of World War 2 in September of 1939, Franco maintained a neutral position and did not take sides. On October 23, 1940, Franco and Hitler met in the city of Hendaye, France to discuss Spain joining the Axis powers. Franco demanded a lot in return, including control of Portugal, North Africa, Gibraltar, and military supplies, causing Hitler to back off. Regardless, Spain's condition at this time would not have allowed it to contribute very much to the Axis war effort. Franco did... provide small amenities to Nazi forces, such as usage of Spanish naval ports. Additionally, a number of Spanish troops joined the German military without official approval from Franco.
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In February 1936 Franco was send to a command in the Canary Islands by the left wing Spanish government. Just five month later in July he joined other right-wing officers in a revolt against the republic and in October he became commander in chief and head of new Nationalist regime.This revolution followed bloody civil war, in which Franco was supported by German volunteer forces (Legion Condor) which was send by the German chancellor Adolf Hitler. After three years of war Franco's forces gained victory on April 1st, 1939. During the civil war, Franco established his control over Nationalist political life and expanded the Falange into an official political party at the service of his government.
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Following the war, Franco was faced with an embittered and impoverished nation. Meanwhile, in Europe, World War II broke out, and although Adolf Hitler sought Spain's participation during a personal interview in Hendaye, France (23 October, 1940), Franco's demands (Gibraltar, French North Africa, e.g.) proved unacceptable, and Spain remained officially neutral during the war. It is the subject of some debate whether Franco's behavior was a diplomatic way of refusing or a miscalculation. Nonetheless, Franco sent troops (Divisi�n Azul, or "Blue Division") to fight on the Eastern Front against the Soviet Union. They were "volunteers"; some were crusaders against Communism and some went just for the pay or to clear former liaisons with the Republic. Franco ... offered facilities to German ships.
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Während des Zweiten Weltkrieges hat Franco eine neutrale Position Spaniens gegenüber den Kriegsparteien bezogen. Allerdings hegte er zweifelsohne Sympathien für die Achsenmächte. Franco-Spanien war seit 1939 Mitglied im Antikominternpakt. Die einzige nennenswerte militärische Unterstützung der Achsenmächte Deutschland und Italien bestand in der Bereitstellung der Blauen Division (División Azul) an der Ostfront im Krieg gegen die Sowjetunion bis 1943. Eine militärische Besetzung Gibraltars, die Hitler von Franco bei einem Treffen am 23. Oktober 1940 im französischen Ort Hendaye verlangte und die zum Eintritt Spaniens in den Zweiten Weltkrieg geführt hätte, lehnte Franco kategorisch ab. Hitler meinte nach dem Treffen, er ließe sich lieber mehrere Zähne ziehen als noch einmal mit Franco zu verhandeln. Franco ließ Deutschland allerdings bis 1944 mit kriegswichtigen Rohstoffen (Wolfram etc.) beliefern.
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Franco's tactics received important support from Hitler and Mussolini during the civil war. He remained emphatically neutral in the Second World War, but nonetheless offered various kinds of support to Italy and Germany. He allowed Spanish soldiers to volunteer to fight in the German Army against Stalin (the Blue Division), but forbade Spaniards to fight in the West against the liberal democracies. Franco's common ground with Hitler was particularly weakened by Hitler's propagation of a pseudo-pagan mysticism and his attempts to manipulate Christianity, which went against Franco's deep commitment to defending Christianity and Catholicism.
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