Editing Francisco Franco (section)

=== Rif War and advancement through the ranks ===
Francisco followed his father into the Navy, but as a result of the [[Spanish–American War]] the country lost much of its navy as well as most of its colonies. Not needing any more officers, the Naval Academy admitted no new entrants from 1906 to 1913. To his father's chagrin, Francisco decided to try the [[Spanish Army]]. In 1907, he entered the Infantry Academy in [[Toledo, Spain|Toledo]]. At the age of fourteen, Franco was one of the youngest members of his class, with most boys being between sixteen and eighteen. He was short and was bullied for his small size. His grades were average; though his good memory meant he seldom struggled academically, his small stature was a hindrance in physical tests. He graduated in July 1910 as a second lieutenant, standing 251st out of 312 cadets in his class, though this might have had less to do with his grades than with his small size and young age. Stanley Payne observes that by the time civil war began, Franco had already become a major general and would soon be a ''[[generalissimo]]'', while none of his higher-ranking fellow cadets had managed to get beyond the rank of lieutenant-colonel.{{Sfn|Jensen|2005|pp=13–14}}{{Sfn|Payne|Palacios|2014|pp=12–15}} Franco was promoted to the rank of first lieutenant in June 1912 at age 19.{{Sfn|Jensen|2005|p=28}}{{sfn|Hodges|2002|p=34}} Two years later, he obtained a commission to Morocco. Spanish efforts to occupy the new African [[protectorate]] provoked the [[Second Melillan campaign]] in 1909 against native Moroccans, the first of several [[Riffians|Riffian]] rebellions. Their tactics resulted in heavy losses among Spanish [[officer (armed forces)|military officers]], and also provided an opportunity to earn promotion through merit on the battlefield. It was said that officers would receive either ''la caja o la faja'' (a coffin or a general's sash). Franco quickly gained a reputation as an effective officer. [[File:Francisco y Ramón Franco 1925.jpg|thumb|left|Francisco and his brother Ramón in [[Spanish protectorate in Morocco|North Africa]], 1925]] In 1913, Franco transferred into the newly formed [[regulares]]: Moroccan colonial troops with Spanish officers, who acted as elite [[shock troops]].{{sfn|Payne|2011|p=71}} In 1916, aged 23 with the rank of captain, Franco was shot in the abdomen by guerrilla gunfire during an assault on Moroccan positions at ''El Biutz'', in the hills near Ceuta; this was the only time he was wounded in ten years of fighting.{{sfn|Ellwood|2014|p=15}} The wound was serious, and he was not expected to live. His recovery was seen by his Moroccan troops as a spiritual event – they believed Franco to be blessed with ''[[Barakah|baraka]]'' or protected by God. He was recommended for promotion to major and to receive Spain's highest honour for gallantry, the coveted ''[[Laureate Cross of Saint Ferdinand|Cruz Laureada de San Fernando]]''. Both proposals were denied, with the 23-year-old Franco's young age being given as the reason for denial. Franco appealed the decision to the king, who reversed it.{{sfn|Ellwood|2014|p=15}} Franco also received the ''Cross of Maria Cristina, First Class''.{{Sfn|Payne|Palacios|2014|p=30}}

With that he was promoted to major at the end of February 1917 at age 24. This made him the youngest major in the Spanish army. From 1917 to 1920, he served in Spain. In 1920, Lieutenant Colonel [[José Millán Astray]], a [[wikt:histrionic|histrionic]] but charismatic officer, founded the [[Spanish Foreign Legion]], along similar lines as the [[French Foreign Legion]]. Franco became the Legion's second-in-command and returned to Africa. In the [[Rif War]], the poorly commanded and overextended Spanish Army was defeated by the [[The Republic of the Rif|Republic of the Rif]] under the leadership of the [[Muhammad Ibn 'Abd al-Karim al-Khattabi|Abd el-Krim]] brothers, who [[Battle of Annual|crushed a Spanish offensive]] on 24 July 1921, at [[Annual (Morocco)|Annual]]. The Legion and supporting units relieved the Spanish city of [[Melilla]] after a three-day forced march led by Franco. In 1923, now a [[lieutenant colonel]], he was made commander of the Legion.

On 22 October 1923, Franco married [[Carmen Polo|María del Carmen Polo y Martínez-Valdès]] (11 June 1900 – 6 February 1988).{{sfn|Romero Salvadó|2013|p=259}} Following his honeymoon Franco was summoned to Madrid to be presented to [[Alfonso XIII of Spain|King Alfonso XIII]].{{sfn|Preston|1995|pp=42, 62}} This and other occasions of royal attention would mark him during the [[Second Spanish Republic|Republic]] as a monarchical officer.

Disappointed with the plans by Spain's Prime Minister, Lieutenant General [[Miguel Primo de Rivera]], for a strategic retreat from the interior to the African coastline, Colonel Franco wrote in the April 1924 issue of ''Revista de Tropas Coloniales'' (''Colonial Troops Magazine'') that he would disobey orders of retreat given by a superior. As a result, Franco had a tense meeting with Primo de Rivera in July.

Lieutenant Colonel Franco visited a fellow ''africanista'', General [[Gonzalo Queipo de Llano]], on 21 September 1924 to propose that Queip de Llano organize a coup d'état against Primo.{{Sfn|Casals|2006|p=212}} In the end, Franco complied with General Primo's orders, taking part in the [[:es:Retirada de Chauen|retreat of Spanish soldiers from Xaouen]] in late 1924, and thus earning a promotion to colonel.{{sfn|Casals|2006|pp=211–212}}

Franco led the first wave of troops ashore at [[Al Hoceima]] (Spanish: ''Alhucemas'') in 1925. This landing in the heartland of Abd el-Krim's tribe, combined with the French invasion from the south, spelled the beginning of the end for the short-lived [[Republic of the Rif]]. Franco was eventually recognised for his leadership, and he was promoted to brigadier general on 3 February 1926, making him the youngest general in Europe at age 33, according to Payne and Palacios.{{sfn|Payne|Palacios|2014|p=50}} On 14 September 1926, Franco and Polo had a daughter, [[Carmen Franco y Polo|María del Carmen]]. Franco would have a close relationship with his daughter and was a proud parent, though his traditionalist attitudes and increasing responsibilities meant he left much of the child-rearing to his wife.{{sfn|Payne|Palacios|2014|p=54}} In 1928 Franco was appointed director of the newly created General Military Academy of Zaragoza, a new college for all Spanish army [[cadet]]s, replacing the former separate institutions for young men seeking to become officers in infantry, cavalry, artillery, and other branches of the army. Franco was removed as Director of the Zaragoza Military Academy in 1931; when the Civil War began, the colonels, majors, and captains of the Spanish Army who had attended the academy when he was its director displayed unconditional loyalty to him as ''[[Caudillo]]''.{{sfn|Casanova|Andrés|2014|p=238}}