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The fight against venereal diseases had already made its appearance during the Second Republic, but during the Civil War it became a constant both in the Republican zone and in the Francoist zone. This is evidenced by the numerous posters that could be seen in the streets, the pamphlets of the authorities and in the press, mainly republican. ‘Organization of the anti-venereal struggle’, could be read in the edition of ‘Solidaridad Obrera’ published on January 5, 1937.
This is how the official newspaper of the CNT in Catalonia explained: «The fight against venereal diseases is linked to the abolition or suppression of prostitution, both consensual and illegal, and the consideration of contagion as a serious crime […] The suppression of prostitution, which must be done not in words but in fact, has three problems in it.
The first, due to its importance at the present time, is the economic one, that is, providing work and support for the four thousand prostitutes that exist in Catalonia. The second, of a cultural nature: to reform these prostitutes through proper education. The third is a nasty police function.’
The Republican government had already tried to put a stop to it by means of the abolitionist Decree of June 1935. But, what was the real scope of the measure? It is true that many tolerated brothels were closed, although that was not exactly what the mandate contemplated. However, clandestine prostitution developed. As the jurist Luis Jiménez de Asúa pointed out in those years, “almost a month after the decree came into force, the newspapers report that on the streets of Oso and Olivar [en el madrileño barrio de Lavapiés] there are turbulent and noisy brothels, and even the owner of one of them boasts of her influence»
From the Republic to the war
Such concern grew shortly after the coup d’état of July 18, 1936. This had its origin in the enormous spread and resurgence that these diseases were having during the conflict, despite the therapeutic progress achieved at that time. One of the organizations that put the most momentum was ‘Free Women’, of anarchist origin, which focused its struggle on the abolition of regulated prostitution, which was still considered the main focus.
«The strong concentration of soldiers in some localities clearly represented an element favorable to the development of prostitution activity. In the Francoist zone this was the case, for example, in the city of Logroño, where the Italian expeditionary troops (Corpo di Truppe Volontarie, CTV) had their headquarters”, explains Jean-Louis Guereña in his book ‘Prostitution in Spain contemporary’ (Marcial Pons, 2003). The author also wonders if the same thing happened in the republican zone, and in cities like Albacete where the International Brigades had their headquarters.
The conclusion is similar, because in the cities controlled by the Republicans during the war the aforementioned decree of 1935 was repealed, as they realized that it was practically impossible to apply it in practice, especially in the midst of the war situation that Spain was suffering. . This caused prostitution to spread in the same way, despite the strong mobilization of republican abolitionist organizations or the attempts of the League of Nations to end this practice and “rehabilitate” prostitutes.
“Withered Bodies”
The concern, however, continued to be present on the Republican side, although it was never effective. ‘The victims of prostitution now have a clear path to redemption’, could be read in the magazine ‘Crónica’ in November 1936. In the article it assured: «The hour of liberation has also sounded for those poor women whose lives are impossible , whose withered bodies leaned on the dirty corners of the narrow and miserable streets, offering the passer-by the damaged merchandise of their fallen and dead breasts, of their malnourished and pale flesh, profaned to infinity by human beasts».
In this sense, and beyond the somewhat derogatory description of the prostitutes, in the three capitals that the Republic had throughout the Civil War (Madrid, Valencia and Barcelona), there was a certain attempt to monitor prostitution from the point of view of hygienic and sanitary point of view. Within the Army, for example, the departments in charge of health came to take measures to recognize and treat prostitutes, whose main clients were, in general, soldiers, which could affect the conduct of the war.
A French witness collected by Guereña in his book assured that, in January 1939, “a very severe legislation has prohibited prostitution in public.” All this, in parallel, as contradictory as it may seem, to the “process of discrediting the figure of the militiawoman, often equated without more or almost to a prostitute, which was, apparently, general within the Hispanic public opinion », underlined the author. And that some more or less “reformed” prostitutes managed to integrate into some republican militias.
prostitution release
This propaganda against the presence of women at the front began to develop early, even before the end of the first year of the war. Above all, after the hard battle of Guadalajara in March 1937, but as a necessary hygienic measure rather than a moral one, given the not insignificant development of venereal diseases among the combatants. Official regulations ordered by President Francisco Largo Caballero were established. «The men, to the front; the women, to the rear” or “the man, to fight; the woman, to work”, were some of the slogans and slogans that were spread to express this idea.
The Free Women organization went further and positioned itself in favor of free love and against marriages, regardless of whether they were religious or civil. He spoke of abortion and contraceptive measures, in addition to prostitution, even trying to promote those known as the ‘Liberatories’, which sought to rehabilitate prostitutes with health and psychotherapeutic care, in addition to giving them professional training focused on learning a trade. Some publications such as ‘Mi Revista’ or ‘Nosotras’ took care of this. However, they were never launched.
Despite the attempts, there is no doubt that prostitution increased considerably during the almost three years of the Civil War, as it usually does during most conflicts due to an increase in both demand and supply, despite the continuous denunciations of the revolutionary organizations. It was impossible to act against soldiers and citizens in general frequenting brothels. “The houses of prostitution are still full of red, red and black scarves and all kinds of anti-fascist insignia,” read a Free Women manifesto published in January 1937.
Madrid and Barcelona
In Madrid, apparently, the brothels continued to function with absolute normality throughout the war. In his novel ‘San Camilo, 1936’, Camilo José Cela accurately described some of the most famous brothels, such as “Madame Teddy’s House on Gravina Street”. In Barcelona, the Chinatown continued to maintain its main activity, with some clothing variations of the circumstances. This is how the historian Eulalio Ferrer described the situation in Barcelona in his book ‘Between wire fences’ (Grijalbo, 1988):
«In Barcelona, when I was in the Carlos Marx barracks, they took me to a brothel in the area around Las Ramblas. Some prostitutes displayed themselves naked, others wrapped in the red and black flag of the anarchists. There were more pimps, most of them of military age, than women. The visitor who did not decide quickly to go to bed was called a fascist or had a glass of brandy thrown in his face. Still, you had to pay.”
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