Spain’s leftist government said Monday it will release classified documents related to a failed 1981 coup attempt, calling the move a step toward settling a “historical debt” with citizens.
The February 23, 1981 coup attempt came six years after the death of General Francisco Franco and was led by military officers nostalgic for the privileges they enjoyed during more than four decades of his dictatorship.
It has come to symbolise a turning point when Spain’s transition to democracy wavered but ultimately prevailed.
The coup is one of modern Spain’s most studied events, yet historians say key uncertainties persist, including how extensive the conspiracy network was and which members of the military supported it.
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“Memory cannot be locked away. Tomorrow we will declassify the 23-F documents to repay a historic debt to the public. Democracies must understand their past to build a freer future,” Socialist Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez wrote on X, in a reference to the date of the coup.
Government sources said the cabinet is expected to formally approve the measure Tuesday, with the declassification taking effect the following day.
The previously confidential archives will be made available to the public on the official website of La Moncloa, the seat of the Spanish government.
On February 23, 1981, Spain’s budding democracy came to a shuddering halt when rebellious civil guards, led by Lieutenant Colonel Antonio Tejero Molina, stormed parliament and held lawmakers at gunpoint for almost 24 hours.
The siege only ended when it became clear that King Juan Carlos, Franco’s designated successor, would not support the uprising.
The king addressed the nation on television, declaring the crown would not tolerate any attempt to interrupt the democratic process by force.
General Alfonso Armada, once considered close to the king, was later sentenced to 30 years in prison for his role in the conspiracy, accused of seeking to head a military-backed government meant to “correct” Spain’s democratic transition.
Writer Javier Cercas, author of a book on the events, has described the coup’s failure as “the founding myth of Spanish democracy”, telling the newspaper El País that it marked the end of two centuries of military intervention in politics.
