Franco’s ‘Mutilated Gentlemen’: Masculinity and War Disability in Modern Spain, 1936-1976

Aug 30, 2026

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This thesis investigates masculine identity in Francoist Spain “from below,” focusing on representations and lived experiences of Spanish Civil War veterans with war disabilities. It examines how these men contested Francoist propaganda that emphasized discipline, physical strength, and self-control. Rather than treating the maimed as marginal or emasculated, it shows that the Civil War became central to the regime’s legitimising narrative. Under a dictatorship framing the conflict as a holy “Crusade,” disabled veterans were positioned as living martyrs through the category “Mutilated Gentlemen.”

LanguageEnglish

CategoryPaper Templates

FormatDOCX

Pages259

Reading Time1 h 31 min

AccessFree to download

Abstract

List of Figures

Acknowledgements

Introduction

Situating the ‘mutilados’ within the historiography of modern Spain

Francoist ‘Mutilated Gentlemen’ and the historiography of war disability

Francoist mutilados and ‘hegemonic masculinity’

Writing the history of the Francoist ‘disabled’: Sources and methodology

Francoist ‘Mutilated Gentlemen’ in Popular Culture

Voices ‘from below’: ego-documents of the maimed

Working with military personnel files

Images of the Francoist war disabled as historical sources

The vocabulary of war disability after the Spanish Civil War

Structure

Conclusion

The legacy of the Caballeros Mutilados

Bibliography

Franco’s ‘Mutilated Gentlemen’: Masculinity and War Disability in Modern Spain, 1936-1976 Stephanie Marylene Wright A thesis submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Department of History Faculty of Arts and Humanities University of Sheffield May 2018 Contents TOC \o "1-3" \h \z \u HYPERLINK \l "_Toc515359404" HYPERLINK \l "_Toc515359405" Abstract PAGEREF _Toc515359405 \h 4 HYPERLINK \l "_Toc515359406" List of Figures PAGEREF _Toc515359406 \h 5 HYPERLINK \l "_Toc515359407" Acknowledgements PAGEREF _Toc515359407 \h 6 HYPERLINK \l "_Toc515359408" Introduction PAGEREF _Toc515359408 \h 8 HYPERLINK \l "_Toc515359409" Situating the ‘mutilados’ within the historiography of modern Spain PAGEREF _Toc515359409 \h 16 HYPERLINK \l "_Toc515359410" Francoist ‘Mutilated Gentlemen’ and the historiography of war disability PAGEREF _Toc515359410 \h 25 HYPERLINK \l "_Toc515359411" Francoist mutilados and ‘hegemonic masculinity’ PAGEREF _Toc515359411 \h 34 HYPERLINK \l "_Toc515359412" Writing the history of the Francoist ‘disabled’: Sources and methodology PAGEREF _Toc515359412 \h 39 HYPERLINK \l "_Toc515359413" Francoist ‘Mutilated Gentlemen’ in Popular Culture PAGEREF _Toc515359413 \h 42 HYPERLINK \l "_Toc515359414" Voices ‘from below’: ego-documents of the maimed PAGEREF _Toc515359414 \h 44 HYPERLINK \l "_Toc515359415" Working with military personnel files PAGEREF _Toc515359415 \h 47 HYPERLINK \l "_Toc515359416" Images of the Francoist war disabled as historical sources PAGEREF _Toc515359416 \h 49 HYPERLINK \l "_Toc515359417" The vocabulary of war disability after the Spanish Civil War PAGEREF _Toc515359417 \h 51 HYPERLINK \l "_Toc515359418" Structure PAGEREF _Toc515359418 \h 57 HYPERLINK \l "_Toc515359419" I: ‘Rebranding’ disabled masculinities: representing the ‘Mutilated Gentleman’ PAGEREF _Toc515359419 \h 60 HYPERLINK \l "_Toc515359420" Rebranding war disability: The Cuerpo de Mutilados and José Millán Astray PAGEREF _Toc515359420 \h 64 HYPERLINK \l "_Toc515359421" Husbands and lovers: Representing Mutilated Gentlemen as ‘ordinary’ men PAGEREF _Toc515359421 \h 75 HYPERLINK \l "_Toc515359422" Citizen Caballeros: Humility, suffering and self-control PAGEREF _Toc515359422 \h 85 HYPERLINK \l "_Toc515359423" The relativity of stigma: veterans, beggars and jodidos cojos PAGEREF _Toc515359423 \h 95 HYPERLINK \l "_Toc515359424" An incredible ideal? Cultural representations of the Mutilated Gentleman PAGEREF _Toc515359424 \h 114 HYPERLINK \l "_Toc515359425" II: Experiences of physical disablement: breadwinners, families and the relativity of privilege PAGEREF _Toc515359425 \h 128 HYPERLINK \l "_Toc515359426" Public personas PAGEREF _Toc515359426 \h 131 HYPERLINK \l "_Toc515359427" Material and institutional support PAGEREF _Toc515359427 \h 137 HYPERLINK \l "_Toc515359428" Work, masculinity, and the ‘national community’ PAGEREF _Toc515359428 \h 142 HYPERLINK \l "_Toc515359429" Men’s work? PAGEREF _Toc515359429 \h 152 HYPERLINK \l "_Toc515359430" Mutilated Gentlemen in employment PAGEREF _Toc515359430 \h 158 HYPERLINK \l "_Toc515359431" Problematic workers PAGEREF _Toc515359431 \h 168 HYPERLINK \l "_Toc515359432" Mutilated Gentlemen and the family PAGEREF _Toc515359432 \h 172 HYPERLINK \l "_Toc515359433" Policing the ideal PAGEREF _Toc515359433 \h 179 HYPERLINK \l "_Toc515359434" III: Experience and identity: the mentally infirm PAGEREF _Toc515359434 \h 191 HYPERLINK \l "_Toc515359435" Methodology: working with psychiatric case files PAGEREF _Toc515359435 \h 197 HYPERLINK \l "_Toc515359436" Mental illness in the military: ‘veterans’ or ‘patients’? PAGEREF _Toc515359436 \h 207 HYPERLINK \l "_Toc515359437" Mental illness and masculinity in the dome

FAQs

What core question does the thesis address about Francoist Spain?

It examines masculine identity in Francoist Spain “from below,” focusing on how war disability shaped representations and experiences of Spanish Civil War veterans.

How does the thesis position “Mutilated Gentlemen” within Francoist rule?

It argues that the Civil War became central to the regime’s legitimising narrative, so disabled veterans were retained as symbolic figures and “living martyrs” rather than being left behind after the war.

Which aspects of Francoist propaganda does the thesis analyze through disabled veterans?

It analyzes propaganda’s emphasis on discipline, physical strength, and self-control, and shows how the disabled contested or were reframed within those masculine ideals.

Aug 30, 2026

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