Cultura física y deporte en el Ejército Popular. Discursos textuales e iconográficos en la prensa de guerra republicana

Abstract

Physical culture and sports were the subject of a campaign of promotion by the republican government during the Civil War. Through the textual and iconographic analysis of 228 illustrated publications belonging to the set of publications known as the war press, we will try to find out what were the causes that motivated this campaign and around what pedagogical and iconological messages this campaign was structured. Methodologically we have resorted to the examination of primary sources that reveal concrete data about this campaign, and secondary ones allow us a transversal reading and a better contextualization. In the framework of the Civil War, physical education within the Popular Army was used as a tool to increase their capacity of war, but also to cohere and discipline the troops and transmit values and ideologies.