[Exanthematous typhus during the period following the Spanish Civil War (1939-1943). Use of a collective disease to legitimize the New State].

By analyzing how the early Francoist regime in Spain used certain aspects of the epidemic of exanthematous typhus during the period from 1939 to 1943, this article explores how health policies may legitimize sociopolitical systems by validating ideas and actions that affect many aspects of society. The typhus epidemic and the actions it gave rise to were used as points of reference to support each of the doctrines of legitimization, within the overall ideological framework that the victors of the Civil War intended to establish. Their objective was to consolidate their power and challenge recusants to the New State.