US EditionSpain to Release Documents on 1981 Coup Attempt
The files will clarify the roles of King Juan Carlos I and intelligence agencies in the 1981 coup, fulfilling public demand for transparency, the government said.
- On Monday, Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez announced Spain will declassify documents on the 1981 coup, with the cabinet expected to approve Tuesday, declassification Tuesday, and files published Wednesday on La Moncloa's website.
- Antonio Tejero Molina, Lieutenant Colonel in the Civil Guard, led rebellious guards to storm the lower house of parliament in Madrid, firing shots and holding lawmakers hostage, interrupting the swearing-in of a new government.
- Legal records show Alberto Saiz, former spy chief, warned in 2022 that many archival records related to 23‑F have disappeared, raising gaps in key documents.
- The government argued the release will settle a 'historic debt' with the public, and the files may reveal the roles of former King Juan Carlos I and intelligence agencies.
- Historians and archivists note that, as the archives open, `memory cannot be locked away`, but concerns persist over missing documents, complicating efforts to resolve uncertainties.
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67 Articles
The Spanish government is making available all the secret documents relating to the 1981 coup attempt. To this day, conspiracy theories have been hanging around the day on which the young democracy threatened to fail.
He accuses the ultra-right of misinforming «chavales who think that with Franco they lived better and that they sing the Face in the sun through our streets»
The declassification of documents promised by the government reopens an old debate: the identity of the 'white elephant'
This February 23, 2026 marks the 45th anniversary of the aborted coup d'état of Lieutenant-Colonel Tejero, the day when the young Spanish democracy (Franco had died in 1975) wavered. Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez announced the declassification of the documents related to this national drama which, fortunately, had been stifled. The right, who never clearly condemned this attempted coup d'état, is uneasy.
Spain Set to Reveal Declassified Files Uncovering Shocking New Details of 1981 Coup Attempt
Spain is set to declassify a vast trove of documents related to the failed 1981 coup attempt, a pivotal moment in the country’s transition to democracy. The release of these files, announced by the Spanish government, promises to offer new insights into the events of February 23, 1981, when armed officers attempted to seize control [...]
New elements on the 23-F, the day Franco's nostalgic soldiers had entered Parliament, weapons by hand, will be brought to the attention of "all interested persons," the government announces.
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