The road to anarchy : the CNT under the Spanish Second Republic (1931-1936)

"The Road to Anarchy is the result of an exhaustive investigation into the anarcho-syndicalist Confederación Nacional del Trabajo (CNT) during the democratic years of the Second Republic. By analysing the course of the CNT in terms of its role in the labour conflict and the internal life and approach of the organisation (its ideology, its practice, its internal conflicts, the role of the individual and the weight of history) this book dismantles the long-held view that the CNT orchestrated three insurrections against the Republic. Key is analysis not only of the violence of the anarchists, but also that of the state. Two crucial themes emerge: the 'political' struggle within the organisation, and its involvement in the revolution of October 1934 and in the events of the spring of 1936.Ángel Herrerín investigates the controversial relations of the anarchists with other political formations, such as the republicans, the socialists, Communists and Catalans, with whom the anarchists fought on the republican side during the Civil War. Special attention is paid to the crucial relationship with the socialist trade unions, the Unión General de Trabajadores (UGT), as this evolved from one of competition for trade-union dominance to the acceptance of anarcho-syndicalist practices by the socialists and collaboration between the two organisations."