George Orwell: The Making of a Tory Anarchist

“Orwell’s ascertaining of certain political facts was not the occasion for a change of heart, nor for a crisis of the soul.  What he learned from his experience in Spain of course pained him very much, and it led him to change his course of conduct.” – Homage to Catalonia

Fascism caught fire in the aftermath of World War I by filling the vacuum of political instability left in its wake.  By bringing quasi-relief to struggling nations, many countries elected either fascist regimes or birthed movements growing in that direction.  In the first half of the 20^th century, the seemingly binary choice between Fascism and Communism was ubiquitous, with total state control as the result in each scenario.  Fascism brought about national authoritarianism, while Communism brought about a tyranny that was class-based and revolutionary. 

In 1936, the nearly three-year Spanish Civil War began following the election of a far-left government, which had defeated a coalition of fascists, monarchists, and traditionalists called the National Front.  The war lines were drawn between the democratically elected, Soviet Union-backed leftist government and a Nationalist opposition backed by Hitler’s Nazi Germany and Mussolini’s Fascist Italy.  In the end, the Nationalists would succeed, installing dictator Francisco Franco from 1939 to his death in 1975. 

In George Orwell’s 1952 amended book, “Homage to Catalonia”, Orwell relays his 6-month odyssey as a revolutionary soldier fighting fascism in the Spanish Civil War, before a gunshot wound to his throat would send him back to England.  His special regard for his experience in Spain was a defining moment in his political education.  After returning to the UK, Orwell aligned with the Labour Party, whose interests were most closely associated with workers' rights.   

The Nationalist faction of the Spanish army, supported by Germany and Italy, launched a failed coup d’état following the election, sparking the civil war.  The Republican government, backed by the Communist Party of Spain, promised reforms to rectify the vast wealth imbalance between industrialists and workers.  Among the first reforms, following the election, were amnesty for political prisoners and the restoration of regional self-government, particularly in Catalonia. 

The Popular Front, a coalition of leftist parties including the working class, communists, socialists, and progressives, joined with anarchists to fight off nationalist forces following the coup.  Despite a lack of resources and munitions, the workers' rights alliance won many early battles. 

One of the most consequential battles for Orwell occurred during the Barcelona May Day clash between two government factions: the Socialists and the Anarchists, who stood for workers' rights, versus the Communists and liberals, who represented centralized government and a militarized army.  For the Communists, winning the war against the nationalists was more important than winning the socialist revolution.  As such, the Soviet-backed communists were more focused on eliminating their rivals within their own party than on defeating Franco’s fascist forces.  This became a key factor leading to Orwell’s lifetime opposition to totalitarianism, a system where states wield absolute control. 

Orwell’s experience in the Spanish War was also a defining event in his political writing.  In his 1945 book, “Animal Farm”, Orwell warned against the intentions of a revolution that ended in authoritarianism, symbolizing Stalin’s rise following the Russian Revolution in 1917.   In his 1949 book Nineteen Eighty-Four, Orwell further detailed the loss of freedom under a totalitarian regime that uses propaganda, language control, and censorship.

Although Orwell never belonged to a political party, he once described himself as a Tory Anarchist, reflecting his own unique brand of non-conformance to any established coalition.  Noting his conservative upbringing, which included a stint at the prestigious Eton school, he was culturally British and respected British institutions and traditions.  On the other hand, he had sympathies for revolutionaries who worked for workers' rights and were allied with his anti-authoritarian leanings.  As an activist, he wanted to see radical changes that challenged the status quo, believing that there was no point in winning an election if change did not occur.  As a socialist, he supported a democratically governed society that prioritizes solutions to poverty, exploitation, and inequality. 

Becoming one of the most prolific writers against all forms of authoritarianism, whether on the right (fascism) or the left (Communism), Orwell’s global popularity continues into 2026, with a movie, “Animal Farm,” opening in theaters throughout the United States in May—one of the many legacies from his time in Spain.