Forty years ago, on February 23, 1981 (later known as 23-F), in the middle of the afternoon in a cold Madrid atmosphere, the most serious attack against the reborn Spanish democracy took place. An arm
Lieutenant Colonel Antonio Tejero, moments after breaking into the Chamber of Deputies, on the afternoon of February 23, 1981, which began a coup in Spain, with the seizure of Parliament and armed uprisings in several cities. Its failure ended up consolidating the recently restored democracy. Credit: RTVE.
MIAMI, Feb 22 2021 (IPS) - Forty years ago, on February 23, 1981 (later known as 23-F), in the middle of the afternoon in a cold Madrid atmosphere, the most serious attack against the reborn Spanish democracy took place. An armed contingent of more than 200 Civil Guard agents invaded the Congress of Deputies and threatened the dissolution of the government and the establishment of a dictatorship.
The events in Spain marked the definitive end of Francoism. Will the
assault on the Capitol do the same for Trumpism?
Lt Col Antonio Tejero during the attempted coup in the Spanish parliament on 23 February 1981. Photograph: Manuel Barriopedro/AP
Lt Col Antonio Tejero during the attempted coup in the Spanish parliament on 23 February 1981. Photograph: Manuel Barriopedro/AP
Sat 9 Jan 2021 04.00 EST
Last modified on Mon 11 Jan 2021 06.31 EST
Tension was high, security was weak and a bitter handover of power was under way when violent intruders forced the people’s representatives to stop their debate and cower on the floor.
Future generations of Americans will identify this as a description of events at the Capitol in Washington DC on 6 January 2021. For Spaniards, however, it fits an earlier moment in history – an assault on Madrid’s parliament, the Congreso de los Diputados, on 23 February 1981.