Luis Pío Moa Rodríguez (
Vigo
Vigo ( , , , ) is a city and municipality in the province of Pontevedra, within the autonomous community of Galicia, Spain. Located in the northwest of the Iberian Peninsula, it sits on the southern shore of an inlet of the Atlantic Ocean, the ...
, Galicia, 1948) better known as simply Pío Moa, is a Spanish writer and journalist. He has authored historical essays about the origins of the
Spanish Civil War
The Spanish Civil War ( es, Guerra Civil Española)) or The Revolution ( es, La Revolución, link=no) among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War ( es, Cuarta Guerra Carlista, link=no) among Carlism, Carlists, and The Rebellion ( es, La Rebeli ...
, the
Second Republic in Spain,
Francoism
Francoist Spain ( es, España franquista), or the Francoist dictatorship (), was the period of Spanish history between 1939 and 1975, when Francisco Franco ruled Spain after the Spanish Civil War with the title . After his death in 1975, Spa ...
and the various political movements of that era.
Following the death of Franco and the reinstatement of a democratic regime in Spain, a slow process of opening of archives and publicizing of Civil War related documents began. In the face of this process Moa started reviving the
Francoist
Francoist Spain ( es, España franquista), or the Francoist dictatorship (), was the period of Spanish history between 1939 and 1975, when Francisco Franco ruled Spain after the Spanish Civil War with the title . After his death in 1975, Spai ...
theses that the parties that formed the
Popular Front
A popular front is "any coalition of working-class and middle-class parties", including liberal and social democratic ones, "united for the defense of democratic forms" against "a presumed Fascist assault".
More generally, it is "a coalitio ...
were ultimately responsible for the
Spanish Civil War
The Spanish Civil War ( es, Guerra Civil Española)) or The Revolution ( es, La Revolución, link=no) among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War ( es, Cuarta Guerra Carlista, link=no) among Carlism, Carlists, and The Rebellion ( es, La Rebeli ...
and the rise of
autocracy
Autocracy is a system of government in which absolute power over a state is concentrated in the hands of one person, whose decisions are subject neither to external legal restraints nor to regularized mechanisms of popular control (except per ...
in Spain. Moa maintains that they have left a legacy of "moral, political and intellectual devastation", accuses the left of hypocrisy in regards to democracy and
totalitarianism
Totalitarianism is a form of government and a political system that prohibits all opposition parties, outlaws individual and group opposition to the state and its claims, and exercises an extremely high if not complete degree of control and reg ...
and claims that the material aid provided by
Stalin
Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin (born Ioseb Besarionis dze Jughashvili; – 5 March 1953) was a Georgian revolutionary and Soviet political leader who led the Soviet Union from 1924 until his death in 1953. He held power as General Secret ...
and the
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...
to the
Spanish Republic in the Civil War not only prolonged the war and caused innumerable deaths but also was equivalent to the help provided by
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...
and
Fascist Italy
Fascism is a far-right, authoritarian, ultra-nationalist political ideology and movement,: "extreme militaristic nationalism, contempt for electoral democracy and political and cultural liberalism, a belief in natural social hierarchy and the ...
to
General Franco
Francisco Franco Bahamonde (; 4 December 1892 – 20 November 1975) was a Spanish general who led the Nationalist faction (Spanish Civil War), Nationalist forces in overthrowing the Second Spanish Republic during the Spanish Civil War ...
.
The polemical nature of Moa's writings have gained him much public attention in Spain and a measure of controversy as a result. His best-selling book, ''Myths of the Civil War'', with 150,000 units sold, was a best-seller for six consecutive months.
Biography
Early years as radical
Born during 1948 in
Vigo
Vigo ( , , , ) is a city and municipality in the province of Pontevedra, within the autonomous community of Galicia, Spain. Located in the northwest of the Iberian Peninsula, it sits on the southern shore of an inlet of the Atlantic Ocean, the ...
,
Galicia
Galicia may refer to:
Geographic regions
* Galicia (Spain), a region and autonomous community of northwestern Spain
** Gallaecia, a Roman province
** The post-Roman Kingdom of the Suebi, also called the Kingdom of Gallaecia
** The medieval King ...
,
Spain
, image_flag = Bandera de España.svg
, image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg
, national_motto = '' Plus ultra'' ( Latin)(English: "Further Beyond")
, national_anthem = (English: "Royal March")
, ...
. During his youth, Moa was a radical
anti-Francoist agitator. He was a militant of the
Communist Party of Spain
The Communist Party of Spain ( es, Partido Comunista de España; PCE) is a Marxist-Leninist party that, since 1986, has been part of the United Left coalition, which is part of Unidas Podemos. It currently has two of its politicians serving a ...
(and its
reconstituted version), as well as the clandestine
Maoist
Maoism, officially called Mao Zedong Thought by the Chinese Communist Party, is a variety of Marxism–Leninism that Mao Zedong developed to realise a socialist revolution in the agricultural, pre-industrial society of the Republic of Ch ...
terrorist-designated organisation
GRAPO
The First of October Anti-Fascist Resistance Groups ( es, Grupos de Resistencia Antifascista Primero de Octubre, GRAPO) was a Spanish clandestine Marxist–Leninist group aiming for the formation of a Spanish Republican state.
Besides its anti ...
. It was involved in violent clashes with the government's
Movimiento Nacional
''Movimiento Nacional'' ( en, National Movement) was a governing institution of Spain established by General Francisco Franco during the Spanish Civil War in 1937. During Francoist rule in Spain, it purported to be the only channel of participa ...
. Moa was present at the murder of a policeman on 1 October 1975 after the execution of two
ETA
Eta (uppercase , lowercase ; grc, ἦτα ''ē̂ta'' or ell, ήτα ''ita'' ) is the seventh letter of the Greek alphabet, representing the close front unrounded vowel . Originally denoting the voiceless glottal fricative in most dialects, ...
and three
FRAP members. Two other members of GRAPO, Enrique Cerdán Calixto and Abelardo Collazo Araújo, were also present. Cerdán shot the police officer. Moa was expelled from GRAPO in 1977 and later recalled this period of his life in ''About Time and a Country: The Violent Left''. After the transition of
Spanish transition to democracy, Moa dedicated himself to the study of contemporary
Spanish history and evolved over time to a Francoist position.
Intellectual evolution and writing
His opinions increasingly changed towards conservative positions. He is an outspoken critic of the Spanish
political left
Left-wing politics describes the range of political ideologies that support and seek to achieve social equality and egalitarianism, often in opposition to social hierarchy. Left-wing politics typically involve a concern for those in soci ...
, which he accuses of being the main cause of the
Spanish Civil War
The Spanish Civil War ( es, Guerra Civil Española)) or The Revolution ( es, La Revolución, link=no) among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War ( es, Cuarta Guerra Carlista, link=no) among Carlism, Carlists, and The Rebellion ( es, La Rebeli ...
.
He has also written essays on feminism, Marxism, current Spanish politics and an autobiographical book about his experiences in the terrorist group GRAPO. In his books, he strongly criticises Franco's communist, socialist and nationalist rivals.
Moa is rejected as a "pseudo-historian" by several historians,
["Pro-Franco history tops bestseller list"](_blank)
''The Guardian'', 14 November 2005.. While disagreeing with some of Moa's theses,
/ref> the historian Stanley G. Payne
Stanley George Payne (born September 9, 1934) is an American historian of modern Spain and European Fascism at the University of Wisconsin–Madison. He retired from full-time teaching in 2004 and is currently Professor Emeritus at its Department ...
has praised his work.
He believed in a conspiracy theory on the authorship of the 11-M Madrid train bombings in 2004
The 2004 Madrid train bombings (also known in Spain as 11M) were a series of coordinated, nearly simultaneous bombings against the Cercanías commuter train system of Madrid, Spain, on the morning of 11 March 2004—three days before Spain's g ...
.
He has been accused of homophobia
Homophobia encompasses a range of negative attitudes and feelings toward homosexuality or people who are identified or perceived as being lesbian, gay or bisexual. It has been defined as contempt, prejudice, aversion, hatred or antipathy ...
by civil rights groups and of being a defender of the Franco's regime. In an interview in 2008 he openly refused to condemn Franco's regime.Pio Moa: “No condeno el franquismo”
, ''La Nación'', 17 April 2008. However, he declares in his books that he does not defend the dictatorship but rather criticizes his rivals.
He was the editor of the historical journals ''Tanteos'' (1988–1990) and ''Ayeres'' (1991–1993) and a librarian at the
Ateneo de Madrid
The Ateneo de Madrid ("Athenæum of Madrid") is a private cultural institution located in the capital of Spain that was founded in 1835. Its full name is ''Ateneo Científico, Literario y Artístico de Madrid'' ("Scientific, Literary and Artistic ...
, a prestigious cultural and literary institute in Madrid and was on its board of directors for three years.
He currently writes for online newspapers such as ''
Libertad Digital'' .
Publications
*''Los orígenes de la guerra civil española'' (The origins of the Spanish Civil War)
*''Los personajes de la República vistos por ellos mismos'' (The characters of the
panish secondrepublic as viewed by themselves)
*''El derrumbe de la segunda república y la guerra civil'' (The collapse of the second republic and the civil war)
*''Una historia chocante – Los nacionalismos vasco y catalán en la historia contemporánea de España'' (A shocking history – Basque and Catalan nacionalism within the contemporary history of Spain)
*''Los mitos de la Guerra Civil'' (Myths of the Civil War)
*''La sociedad homosexual y otros ensayos'' (Homosexual society and other essays)
*''Años de hierro. España en la posguerra. 1939–1945"'' (Iron years, Post-war Spain 1939–1945)
*''De un tiempo y de un país, La izquierda violenta (1968–1978)'' (About a time and a country. The violent left 1968–1978)
*''Franco – un balance histórico'' (Franco – a historical assessment)
*''Franco para antifranquistas'' (Franco for antifrancoist)
*''1934: comienza la guerra civil'' (1934: civil war begins)
*''1936: el asalto final a la república'' (1936: final assault on the republic)
*''Los crímenes de la guerra civil y otras polémicas'' (The crimes of the civil war and other controversies)
*''Nueva Historia de España'' (New History of Spain)
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Moa, Pio
1948 births
Living people
People from Vigo
Spanish male writers
Spanish revolutionaries
2004 Madrid train bombings conspiracy theorists
20th-century Spanish journalists
Spanish conspiracy theorists
Spanish historians