National Catholicism (Spanish: nacionalcatolicismo) was part of the ideological identity of Francoism, the political system through which the Spanish dictator Francisco Francogoverned the Spanish State between 1939 and 1975.[3] Its most visible manifestation was the hegemony that the Catholic Church had in all aspects of public and private life.[3] As a symbol of the ideological divisions within Francoism, it can be contrasted to national syndicalism (Spanish: nacionalsindicalismo), an essential component of the ideology and political practice of the Falangists.