Anti-terrorist legislation during the lead years. Spain and the United Kingdom in comparative perspective

Abstract

The 1970s was one of the most violent periods in the recent history of Western Europe. The main focal points were the convulsive Spain between the end of Franco’s regime and the Transition to democracy, the Troubles in the United Kingdom and the anni di piombo in Italy, where hundreds of terrorist attacks, deaths and injuries were recorded. To deal with the growing terrorist threat, institutions took measures such as the enactment of successive anti-terrorist laws and decrees. This article analyses the evolution of this type of legislation in Spain, in comparison with that implemented in the UK, as well as its application at significant moments such as the Burgos Trial and the courts martials that led to the five executions of September 1975.