---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: For all those who experienced it, the…"
description: "\"For all those who experienced it, the Spanish Civil War was devastating.\" — Michael Portillo"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/42e/michael-portillo-5117_civil-war_for-all-those-who-experienced-it-the-spa_2295961.png"
---

#  For all those who experienced it, the Spanish Civil War…

![“For all those who experienced it, the Spanish Civil War was devastating.” quote by Michael Portillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/42e/michael-portillo-5117_civil-war_for-all-those-who-experienced-it-the-spa_2295961.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/42e/michael-portillo-5117_civil-war_for-all-those-who-experienced-it-the-spa_2295961.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/42e/michael-portillo-5117_civil-war_for-all-those-who-experienced-it-the-spa_2295961.png)

> “For all those who experienced it, the Spanish Civil War was devastating.”

[Michael Portillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-portillo/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

The war caused immense suffering for those who lived through it, leaving lasting trauma.

**In simple terms:** The war devastated its survivors.

Key Takeaway

Remember and learn from the human cost of conflict.

Themes

war trauma history

Mood

somber thoughtful

Type

historical educational

When to use this quote

- educational curricula
- memorial events
- peace advocacy
- psychological counseling
- family storytelling

Key Concepts

human suffering collective memory

Questions to Reflect On

- How can we honor personal stories in large historical events?
- What lessons can modern societies draw from this devastation?

A Different Perspective

Historical narratives can sometimes overlook individual experiences.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Civil war](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/civil-war/) [Devastating](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/devastating/) [Experienced Spanish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/experienced-spanish-5413050/) [Spanish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spanish/) [Spanish Civil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spanish-civil-557818/) [Spanish civil war](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spanish-civil-war/) [Those](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/those/) [War](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/war/) [War Devastating](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/war-devastating-454317/) [Who](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/who/)

## Related quotes

> [ Some 2,800 Americans went to Spain \[during the Spanish Civil War\], and it was, by far, the largest number of Americans before or since… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-hochschild/some-2-800-americans-went-to-spain-during-the-spanish-civil-war-and/)

[Adam Hochschild](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-hochschild/)

> [I think in many ways, the Spanish Civil War was the first battle of World War II. After all, where else in the world…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-hochschild/i-think-in-many-ways-the-spanish-civil-war-was-the-first-battle-of/)

[Adam Hochschild](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-hochschild/)

> [Mum and Dad met campaigning on the Spanish civil war. Both were active peace campaigners. They died in 1986 and '87.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeremy-corbyn/mum-and-dad-met-campaigning-on-the-spanish-civil-war-both-were-active/)

[Jeremy Corbyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeremy-corbyn/)

> [“Widespread violence against civilians also demonstrated that the Spanish Civil War was, sadly enough, not a unique case in modern history: such terror has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geoffrey-jensen/widespread-violence-against-civilians-also-demonstrated-that-the/)

[Geoffrey Jensen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geoffrey-jensen/)

> [There was so much going on in 1936 with the height of the Great Depression and the Spanish Civil War and Germany on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-bomer/there-was-so-much-going-on-in-1936-with-the-height-of-the-great/)

[Matt Bomer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-bomer/)

> [War is devastating, and it leaves its scars for generations.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-blunt/war-is-devastating-and-it-leaves-its-scars-for-generations/)

[James Blunt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-blunt/)

> [During the 1980s, international interest in the Nicaraguan war was intense. No conflict since the Spanish civil war had provoked such passion around the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-kinzer/during-the-1980s-international-interest-in-the-nicaraguan-war-was/)

[Stephen Kinzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-kinzer/)

> [Whatever the reasons may be, I was very much affected by events of the 1930s - the Spanish Civil War, for example, though I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/whatever-the-reasons-may-be-i-was-very-much-affected-by-events-of-the/)

[Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/)

> [The great question, is there anything at all which is worth fighting such a war about, with the devastating loss it will bring? I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-perry/the-great-question-is-there-anything-at-all-which-is-worth-fighting/)

[Anne Perry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-perry/)

> [Airpower has become predominant, both as a deterrent to war, and-in the eventuality of war-as the devastating force to destroy an enemy's potential and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/omar-n-bradley/airpower-has-become-predominant-both-as-a-deterrent-to-war-and-in-the/)

[Omar N. Bradley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/omar-n-bradley/)

> [War is the most devastating endemic and epidemic disease the human race has to endure, and yet too little has been done to discover…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pearl-s-buck/war-is-the-most-devastating-endemic-and-epidemic-disease-the-human/)

[Pearl S. Buck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pearl-s-buck/)

> [My own father was a refugee from the Spanish civil war in the 1930s, later going on to become a BBC radio producer after…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-portillo/my-own-father-was-a-refugee-from-the-spanish-civil-war-in-the-1930s/)

[Michael Portillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-portillo/)

> [Stillertook part in the Spanish Civil WarIt is not clear what impelled him to this military gesture. Probably many factors were combined--a rather romantic…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-frisch/stillertook-part-in-the-spanish-civil-warit-is-not-clear-what/)

[Max Frisch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-frisch/)

> [“Poem Heart of the heartless world, Dear heart, the thought of you Is the pain at my side, The shadow that chills my view.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-cornford/poem-heart-of-the-heartless-world-dear-heart-the-thought-of-you-is/)

[John Cornford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-cornford/)

> [“Bloomsbury lost Fry, in 1934, and Lytton Strachey before him, in January 1932, to early deaths. The loss of Strachey was compounded by Carrington’s…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-goldman/bloomsbury-lost-fry-in-1934-and-lytton-strachey-before-him-in-january/)

[Jane Goldman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-goldman/)

## More by Michael Portillo

> [We must have a welfare system that we can afford, which will mean giving greater attention to directing the welfare program toward its primary…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-portillo/we-must-have-a-welfare-system-that-we-can-afford-which-will-mean/)

[Michael Portillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-portillo/)

> [You never quite know what you do in life that leaves a seed behind that grows into an oak tree.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-portillo/you-never-quite-know-what-you-do-in-life-that-leaves-a-seed-behind/)

[Michael Portillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-portillo/)

> [If the Tories and Lib Dems fought together, they'd keep their ministerial offices and limousines, and continue to do the right things for the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-portillo/if-the-tories-and-lib-dems-fought-together-they-d-keep-their/)

[Michael Portillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-portillo/)

> [Were we ever to find ourselves living under a totalitarian regime, place no faith in the mercy of your fellow citizens.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-portillo/were-we-ever-to-find-ourselves-living-under-a-totalitarian-regime/)

[Michael Portillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-portillo/)

> [America, to me, is this enormous contrast between the heady idealism of founding fathers such as Thomas Jefferson, who said, 'All men are created…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-portillo/america-to-me-is-this-enormous-contrast-between-the-heady-idealism-of/)

[Michael Portillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-portillo/)

> [There's only one person who knows me - and that's me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-portillo/there-s-only-one-person-who-knows-me-and-that-s-me/)

[Michael Portillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-portillo/)

> [I think a lot of people of my generation have a certain guilt that, from the Sixties onwards, we started taking package holidays abroad…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-portillo/i-think-a-lot-of-people-of-my-generation-have-a-certain-guilt-that/)

[Michael Portillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-portillo/)

> [Television brings with it two dangerous hazards: the worship of celebrity and the blurring of reality and fantasy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-portillo/television-brings-with-it-two-dangerous-hazards-the-worship-of/)

[Michael Portillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-portillo/)

> [People have said to me, 'Oh, you are much nicer making documentaries than you were in politics.' So I should be. If you are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-portillo/people-have-said-to-me-oh-you-are-much-nicer-making-documentaries/)

[Michael Portillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-portillo/)

> ['Bradshaw's' is a lovely device for the time-travelling television presenter. I just hope that people buying it aren't doing so with the intention of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-portillo/bradshaw-s-is-a-lovely-device-for-the-time-travelling-television/)

[Michael Portillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-portillo/)

> [King Edward VIII was forced to abdicate because he was determined to marry a divorced woman. As a result of that decision, the Queen's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-portillo/king-edward-viii-was-forced-to-abdicate-because-he-was-determined-to/)

[Michael Portillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-portillo/)

> [Three letters send a chill down the spine of the enemy: SAS. Those letters spell out one clear message. Don't mess with Britain!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-portillo/three-letters-send-a-chill-down-the-spine-of-the-enemy-sas-those/)

[Michael Portillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-portillo/)

> [If life is a soap opera you shouldn't be in too much of a hurry to get to the final credits.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-portillo/if-life-is-a-soap-opera-you-shouldn-t-be-in-too-much-of-a-hurry-to/)

[Michael Portillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-portillo/)

> [Before my teens, my contemporaries were reading Tolkien and were absorbed by his works, but try as I might, I could not be drawn…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-portillo/before-my-teens-my-contemporaries-were-reading-tolkien-and-were/)

[Michael Portillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-portillo/)

> [I will say what I want to say. I had some homosexual experiences as a young person.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-portillo/i-will-say-what-i-want-to-say-i-had-some-homosexual-experiences-as-a/)

[Michael Portillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-portillo/)

[Explore all 101 Michael Portillo quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-portillo/)

## More Civil war quotes

> [“Time overlaps itself. A breath breathed from a passing breeze is not the whole wind, neither is it just the last of what has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-kesey/time-overlaps-itself-a-breath-breathed-from-a-passing-breeze-is-not/)

[Ken Kesey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-kesey/)

> [“Whatever happened in those more than one hundred years, from the time my great-great-great grandfather studied law to the time when my own father…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gwenn-wright/whatever-happened-in-those-more-than-one-hundred-years-from-the-time/)

[Gwenn Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gwenn-wright/)

> [“AUSTRALIA, LIKE THE UNITED STATES, experienced a different path to inclusive institutions than the one taken by England. The same revolutions that shook England…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daron-acemo-lu/australia-like-the-united-states-experienced-a-different-path-to/)

[Daron Acemoğlu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daron-acemo-lu/)

> [“These are all good things, I said. But no one knows where your country is or who you are. You don't have a familiar…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-shteyngart/these-are-all-good-things-i-said-but-no-one-knows-where-your-country/)

[Gary Shteyngart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-shteyngart/)

> [“Thinking about the weather was one way of shutting out of his mind the appalling bloody human mess sprawled out over the bed of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-ellis/thinking-about-the-weather-was-one-way-of-shutting-out-of-his-mind/)

[Mark Ellis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-ellis/)

> [It cost about 75 cents to kill a man in Ceasar's time. The price rose to about $3,000 per man during the Napoleonic wars;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/homer-bone/it-cost-about-75-cents-to-kill-a-man-in-ceasar-s-time-the-price-rose/)

[Homer Bone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/homer-bone/)

> [Alabama soldiers, all I ask of you is to keep up with the Texans!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-e-lee/alabama-soldiers-all-i-ask-of-you-is-to-keep-up-with-the-texans/)

[Robert E. Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-e-lee/)

> [“ “In the South, football is confused with religion, chivalry, the Civil War, and women.” -Diane Roberts, The Quotable South ”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deborah-ford/in-the-south-football-is-confused-with-religion-chivalry-the-civil/)

[Deborah Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deborah-ford/)

> [“By the following morning, September 15, Jackson had positioned nearly fifty guns on Maryland Heights and at the base of Loudoun Heights.  Then he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-river-editors/by-the-following-morning-september-15-jackson-had-positioned-nearly/)

[Charles River Editors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-river-editors/)

> [Strange, (is it not?) that battles, martyrs, blood, even assassination should so condense - perhaps only really lastingly condense - a Nationality.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-whitman/strange-is-it-not-that-battles-martyrs-blood-even-assassination/)

[Walt Whitman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-whitman/)

> [You must study to be frank with the world: frankness is the child of honesty and courage. Say just what you mean to do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-e-lee/you-must-study-to-be-frank-with-the-world-frankness-is-the-child-of/)

[Robert E. Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-e-lee/)

> [“Civil wars...are the best wars for the writer...because they have a way of continuing long afterwl wars between nations are resolved; because, with the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-ellison/civil-wars-are-the-best-wars-for-the-writer-because-they-have-a-way/)

[Ralph Ellison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-ellison/)

> [I am out of money,we are all out of money,but we dont need money down here- Dont need anything but Men , Muskets, Ammunition,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-a-connolly/i-am-out-of-money-we-are-all-out-of-money-but-we-dont-need-money-down/)

[James A. Connolly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-a-connolly/)

> [Affirmative action was designed to recognize the uniquely difficult journey of African-Americans. This policy was justifiable and understandable, even to those who came from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-webb/affirmative-action-was-designed-to-recognize-the-uniquely-difficult/)

[Jim Webb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-webb/)

> [“Only twenty - nine years in the entire human history had been without warfare, and now here he was too, travelling between the episodes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nadeem-aslam/only-twenty-nine-years-in-the-entire-human-history-had-been-without/)

[Nadeem Aslam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nadeem-aslam/)

[Browse all 1,714 Civil war quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/civil-war/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "For all those who experienced it, the Spanish Civil War was devastating.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Michael Portillo"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-portillo/for-all-those-who-experienced-it-the-spanish-civil-war-was-devastating/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Civil war"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-portillo/for-all-those-who-experienced-it-the-spanish-civil-war-was-devastating/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/42e/michael-portillo-5117_civil-war_for-all-those-who-experienced-it-the-spa_2295961.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/42e/michael-portillo-5117_civil-war_for-all-those-who-experienced-it-the-spa_2295961.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/42e/michael-portillo-5117_civil-war_for-all-those-who-experienced-it-the-spa_2295961.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“For all those who experienced it, the Spanish Civil War was devastating.” — Michael Portillo",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "Michael Portillo",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-portillo/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "For all those who experienced it,...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-portillo/for-all-those-who-experienced-it-the-spanish-civil-war-was-devastating/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-portillo/for-all-those-who-experienced-it-the-spanish-civil-war-was-devastating/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
