Domestic Queens and Warrior Wives: Imperial Role‐Models for Spanish Schoolgirls during the Early Francoist Regime (1940s–50s)¹

¹ An earlier version of this article forms as part of a chapter in my thesis: ‘The feminising process: The construction of girlhood in La nueva España’, Ph.D diss., University of London, 2002. A further version was presented at “Contested Terrains: Gendered Knowledge, Landscapes and Narratives”, Women’s History Network Conference, 13/14 September 2003 at the University of Aberdeen, where the paper was entitled: “Domesticating Queens and Saints: Teaching Spanish Schoolgirls National History and Culture During the early Francoist Regime (1940s–50s).”

Abstract

This article focuses on heroic images of Spanish women in schoolbooks for girls published during the dictatorial regime of General Franco (1939–75). Alongside the female members of Spain’s royal ranks and the holy women of the Catholic Church’s canon, who were domesticated by association with the needle, some schoolbooks also recovered a small number of women warriors.

¹ An earlier version of this article forms as part of a chapter in my thesis: ‘The feminising process: The construction of girlhood in La nueva España’, Ph.D diss., University of London, 2002. A further version was presented at “Contested Terrains: Gendered Knowledge, Landscapes and Narratives”, Women’s History Network Conference, 13/14 September 2003 at the University of Aberdeen, where the paper was entitled: “Domesticating Queens and Saints: Teaching Spanish Schoolgirls National History and Culture During the early Francoist Regime (1940s–50s).”

Notes

¹ An earlier version of this article forms as part of a chapter in my thesis: ‘The feminising process: The construction of girlhood in La nueva España’, Ph.D diss., University of London, 2002. A further version was presented at “Contested Terrains: Gendered Knowledge, Landscapes and Narratives”, Women’s History Network Conference, 13/14 September 2003 at the University of Aberdeen, where the paper was entitled: “Domesticating Queens and Saints: Teaching Spanish Schoolgirls National History and Culture During the early Francoist Regime (1940s–50s).”

² Riera, J. M., and E. Valenciano. Las mujeres de los 90: el largo trayecto de las jóvenes hacia su emancipación (Women of the Nineties: Young women’s long trajectory towards emancipation). Madrid: Ediciones Morata, 1993: 43. My translation. Henceforth it can be assumed that all the Spanish texts quoted in this article have been translated by me, unless otherwise stated.

³ Vilanova Ribas, M., and X. Moreno Julià. Atlas de la evolución del analfabetismo en España de 1887 a 1981 (Atlas of the evolution of illiteracy in Spain from 1887 to 1981). Madrid: CIDE, 1992: 303–25.

⁴ Cámara Villar, Gregorio. Nacional‐Catolicismo y escuela. La socialización política del franquismo (1936–1951) (National‐Catholicism and education. The political socialization of the francoist regime). Granada: Hesperia, 1984.

⁵ Pastor, Inmaculada. La educación femenina de la postguerra (1939–1945): El Caso de Mallorca (The education of girls during the postwar period (1939–1945): The case of Mallorca). Madrid: Instituto de la Mujer, 1984; Alted Vigil, Alicia. “Education and Political Control.” In Spanish Cultural Studies: An Introduction‐The Struggle for Modernity, edited by H. Graham and J. Labanyi. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1995; Morcillo Gómez, Aurora. “Shaping true Catholic womanhood: Francoist educational discourse on women.” In Constructing Spanish Womanhood: Female Identity in Modern Spain, edited by V. L. Enders and P. Radcliff. New York: SUNY Press, 1999: 51–69; Ballarín Domingo, Pilar. La educación de las mujeres en la España contemporánea (siglos XIX–XX) (The education of women in contemporary Spain, 19th and 20th centuries). Madrid: Sintesis, 2001.

⁶ Costa Rico, Antón. “Guirnaldas de la historia: La construcción cultural y social del género femenino en la escuela del franquismo” (Garlands of history: the cultural and social construction of femininity in the Francoist school). In Mujer y Educación en España, 1868–1975 (Women and education in Spain, 1868–1975). Santiago de Compostela: Publicaciones de la Universidad, 1990: 117.

⁷ Although it fails to include a chapter solely on publications for girls in circulation during the Regime, for those interested in Spanish schoolbooks the following is a valuable and richly illustrated study: Escolano Benito, Antonio, ed. Historia ilustrada del libro escolar en España (An illustrated history of the schoolbook in Spain). 2 vols. Madrid: Fundación Germán Sánchez Ruipérez, 1997–98. In addition, it is now possible to view a wide range of schoolbooks online as part of a digitizing project by Centro de Investigación Manes: http://www.uned.es/manesvirtual/BibliotecaManes/index.htm

⁸ Fernández Rodriguez, Antonio. Panoramas: tercer libro de lecturas (Landscapes: third reader) Plasencia: Sánchez Rodrigo, 1941.

⁹ Boyd, Carolyn P. Historia patria. politics, history, and national identity in Spain, 1875–1975. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 1997: 253.

¹⁰ Carandell, Luis. Las habas contadas (Memoirs). Madrid: Espasa‐Calpe, 1998: 20.

¹¹ Onieva, A. J., and F. Torres. Enciclopedia Hernando: niñas (período de perfeccionamiento). (Enciclopedia Hernando: girls). Madrid: Librería y Casa Editorial Hernando, 1954: 336.

¹² Alted Vigil. “Education and Political Control”, 198.

¹³ Enders, Victoria Lorée. “Problematic portraits: the ambiguous historical role of the Sección Femenina of the Falange.” In Constructing Spanish Womanhood: Female Identity in Modern Spain, edited by V. L. Enders and P. Radcliff. New York: SUNY Press, 1999: 376.

¹⁶ Monreal, La educación de las niñas, n.p.

¹⁴ Monreal, Luciana Casilda. La educación de las niñas por las biografias de Españolas y Americanas ilustres (The education of girls using biographies of illustrious Spanish and Latin American women). Barcelona: Establecimiento Tip. de Susany y Comp^a, 1890.

¹⁵ Mariana Pineda’s crime and punishment has become the popular subject of ballads, art and other cultural representations and is still being reworked today. Celia Martín Pérez, Representaciones culturales en torno a la figura de Mariana Pineda (The cultural recycling of a Spanish heroine: Mariana Pineda). Granada: Ayuntamiento de Granada, 2005.

¹⁷ Álvarez Junco, José. “Education and the limits of liberalism.” In Spanish Cultural Studies: An Introduction‐The Struggle for Modernity, edited by H. Graham and J. Labanyi. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1995: 47.

¹⁸ The titles of publications for girls are revealing in themselves of this progression: Mera, José. La niña instruida (The educated girl). S.l.: s.n., 1841; del Valle, Jenaro. El espejo de las niñas: Tratado de educación moral é intelectual (The girls’ mirror: Treatise of moral and intellectual education). Madrid: González, 1854; Martinez Alcubilla, Indalecio. El diamante de las niñas: Libro de lectura para Señoritas en los colegios y escuelas de primera enseñanza (The girls’ diamond: Readings for young ladies attending primary education establishments). Madrid: Espinosa y Bautista, 1878; Fornari, Pasquale. La buena Juanita (Good little Josephine). Adapted by S. Calleja Fernandez. Madrid: Enrique Teodoro, s.a., 1880s; and García Balsameda de González, Joaquina. Historia de una muñeca escrita por ella misma: Libro de utilidad y recreo para las niñas (The story of a doll written by herself: a useful and entertaining book for little girls). Barcelona: Juan y Antonio Bastinos, 1889, to name but a few.

¹⁹ Aldaraca, Bridget. El ángel del hogar: Galdós and the ideology of domesticity in Spain. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina, Department of Romance Languages, 1991: 13.

²⁰ Aldaraca, El ángel del hogar, 13.

²¹ Anon, “Fray Luis de Leon: La perfecta casada” (Fry Luis de Leon: The perfect wife). Mis Chicas (My girls), n.200 1945: 3.

²² Cubitt, Geoffrey. “Introduction: heroic reputations and exemplary lives.” In Heroic Reputations and Exemplary Lives, edited by G. Cubitt and A. Warren. Manchester–New York: Manchester University Press, 2000: 3.

²³ Enders, “Problematic portraits”, 379.

²⁴ Luna, Lola. Leyendo como una mujer la imagen de la mujer (Reading the image of women like a woman). Barcelona–Seville: Anthropos/Instituto Andaluz de la Mujer, 1996, 18.

²⁵ Fernández González, Antonio. Enciclopedia práctica: Grado elemental (Practical encyclopedia: elementary). Barcelona: Miguel A. Salvatella, 1943: 141.

²⁶ Onieva and Torres, Enciclopedia Hernando, 318.

²⁷ Onieva and Torres, Enciclopedia Hernando, 328.

²⁸ Serrano de Haro, Agustín. Guirnaldas de la Historia: historia de la cultura española contada a las niñas (Garlands of history: The history of Spanish culture told to little girls). Madrid: Escuela Española, 1948; Onieva, Antonio J. Florilegio de mujeres españolas (Treasury of Spanish women). Burgos: Hijos de Santiago Rodríguez, 1955; Onieva, Antonio J. Ramillete de mujeres universales (A posy of women from around the world). Burgos: Hijos de Santiago Rodríguez, 1956; Fernández Rodriguez, Antonio. Santas y heroinas: Libro escolar de lectura (Saints and heroines: A school reader). Madrid: Magisterio Español, 1958; Álvarez Perez, A., and C. Herrero Salgado. Biografias (niñas) (Biographies (girls)). Valladolid: Miñon, 1963.

²⁹ Serrano de Haro, Guirnaldas, 5.

³⁰ Fernández Soria, Juan Manuel. Educación, socialización y legitimación política: (España 1931–1970) (Education, socialization and political legitimacy: (Spain 1931–1970). Madrid: Tirant lo Blanch, 1998: 185.

³¹ Serrano de Haro, Guirnaldas, 5.

³² Onieva, Florilegio, 5.

³³ Vallone, Lynne. Disciplines of Virtue: Girls’ Culture in the Eighteenth and Nineteenth Centuries. New Haven, CT–London: Yale University Press, 1995: 9.

³⁴ Onieva, Florilegio, 5.

³⁵ Onieva, Ramillete, 5.

³⁶ Serrano de Harro, Agustín. España es así (Spain is like this). Madrid: Editorial Escuela Española, 1961: 313.

³⁷ Onieva, Florilegio, 43.

³⁸ Mitchell, Rosemary. “The Red Queen and the White Queen: exemplification of medieval queens in nineteenth‐century Britain.” In Heroic Reputations and Exemplary Lives, edited by G. Cubitt and A. Warren. Manchester: Manchester University Press, 2000: 162.

³⁹ Serrano de Harro, España es así, 160.

⁴⁰ Serrano de Haro, Guirnaldas, 82.

⁴¹ Rousseau, Jean Jacques. Emile or On Education. Translated with introduction and notes by Allan Bloom. London: Penguin Classics, 1991: 331.

⁴² Parker, Rozsika. The Subversive Stitch: Embroidery and the Making of the Feminine. London: Women’s Press, 1984: 11.

⁴³ Parker, The Subversive Stitch, 11.

⁴⁴ Bolinaga, Josefina. Mi costurero: libro de lectura para niñas (My sewing box: a reader for girls). Plasencia: Sánchez Rodrigo 1953: 7.

⁴⁵ Carabias, Josefina. Teresa de Jesús: la más alegre y risueña de las santas (Teresa of Jesus: the happiest and most cheerful of the saints). Barcelona: Editorial Juventud, 1962. There is a fascinating study of the ways in which these two exemplars symbolize Spanish femininity during the Regime: di Febo, Giuliana. La santa de la raza: Teresa de Ávila, un culto barroco en la España franquista (1937–1962) (The Saint of the race: Teresa of Avila, a Baroque cult in Francoist Spain (1937–1962)). Translated by Ángel Sánchez‐Gijón. Barcelona: Icaria, 1988.

⁴⁶ Enders, “Problematic portraits”, 376.

⁴⁷ Primo de Rivera, Pilar. Recuerdos de una vida (Memoirs). Madrid: Ediciones Dyrsa, 1983: 402.

⁴⁸ Morcillo Gómez, “Shaping true Catholic womanhood”, 51.

⁴⁹ These four women appear most often as national exemplars in girls’ schoolbooks, though rarely in similar publications for boys, but Serrano de Haro (1948), mentions many more patriots: Jimena Blázquez who, in the Middle Ages, defended Avila from the Moors; María Pacheco; Manuela Sancho; Casta Alvarez and the Countess of Bureta.

⁵⁰ Salmonson, Jessica Amanda. The Encyclopedia of Amazons. New York, Doubleday, 1991: x.

⁵¹ Onieva, Florilegio, 74; Fernández Rodriguez, Santas, 105–06.

⁵² Onieva, Florilegio, 75.

⁵³ Naumann, Ann K. The career of Dona Inés de Suaréz: The First European Woman in Chile. Lewinston–Lampeter: Edwin Mellen Press, 2000: x.

⁵⁴ Onieva, Florilegio, 55.

⁵⁵ Onieva, Florilegio, 55.

⁵⁶ Onieva, Florilegio, 73.

⁵⁷ Onieva, Florilegio, 73; Fernández Rodriguez, Santas, 101.

⁵⁸ Álvarez Perez and Herrero Salgado, Biografías, 85.

⁵⁹ Fernández Rodriguez, Santas, 101

⁶⁰ Álvarez Perez and Herrero Salgado, Biografías, 121.

⁶¹ Onieva, Florilegio, 99.

⁶² Folguera Crespo, Pilar. “El Franquismo. El retorno a la esfera privada (1939–1975)” (Francoism. The return to the private sphere (1939–1975)). In Historia de las mujeres de España (History of Spanish women), edited by E. Garrido. Madrid: Editorial Síntesis, 1997.