Declassification of papers on Spain's 1981 coup gives new insights

The government declassified a batch of secret documents on Wednesday this week relating to the 1981 attempted military coup. By coincidence, it happened on the same day that one of the main instigators, Antonio Tejero, died.

The pre-announced move was designed to end 45 years of government silence on what is known in Spain as the “23-F” uprising, when gunmen held the Spanish parliament hostage.

The prime minister defended the release in parliament as a vital step for Spanish democracy, asking the opposition: “Why does transparency bother you?” There has been speculation and conspiracy theories over the years. Government officials said the release finally clarifies the roles of key participants during the hours Lieutenant Colonel Antonio Tejero held the young democracy in check.

In total, 167 documents comprising 1,228 pages have been published online. These include conversations, confidential communications and summaries which have revealed the tough message King Juan Carlos sent to Milans del Bosch, one of the ringleaders, in the early hours of the coup.

Around half of the documents come from the CNI, Spain’s intelligence service, while many others are from the archives of the ministry of foreign affairs and the ministry of defence.

They show that the reason government troops did not attempt to end the hostage situation in the parliament building by force that day was fear of a “bloodbath” of MPs in the debating chamber. In the end, the authorities opted for the negotiated release and surrender that history remembers.

Also released were the instructions given to the troops acting under orders from those loyal to the coup when they took over the main building of national broadcaster RTVE. They were ordered “to shoot to kill”, according to one paper in the file. “The first shot in the air and the second to hit. With magazines inserted and no safety catches or anything,” a soldier at the scene explained.

One of the documents records a conversation that King Juan Carlos had with Lieutenant General Jaime Milans del Bosch in the early hours of the 24th, minutes after the King’s famous televised message against the coup was broadcast. In it, the former monarch told the officer that “any coup d’état” could not “hide behind the King” and would be “against the King”. “I order you to withdraw all the units you have deployed,” Juan Carlos said.