Love in the time of El Generalísimo: Debates about the pill before and after Humanae Vitae

Abstract

This chapter examines the debates about responsible parenthood and Humanae Vitae (HV) that developed in Spain between the late 1950s and the late 1970s, the last years of Franco’s regime and the beginning of the democratic transition. Drawing on existing literature on church–State relationship and the history of contraception and family planning in Spain, as well as on a systematic review of the coverage on the pill in a range of Spanish print media during this period, this chapter argues that the plurality and openness of debates on responsible parenthood and contraception in the Spanish 1960s and 1970s are emblematic of the fracture within the Spanish Catholic community at the time of a progressive disconnection of the church from Franco’s regime.