the guardia mora has its origins in the early stages of the spanish civil war. in july 1936 as military commander of the canary islands, general francisco franco managed to fly to spanish morocco, where he took control of the spanish army of africa, consisting mainly of morrocan regulares and spanish legion units. these professional troops were transported to spain and began to advance towards madrid. already in october 1936, when he was appointed head of state during an official ceremony in burgos, franco attended the event accompanied by an escort formed by moroccan soldiers from the existing regulares regiments, mounted on horseback. thereafter, franco began attending public events flanked by a large escort of moroccan guards. the british historian paul preston has pointed out that the guardia mora became a symbol in itself and the best example of the new power that was being built around the figure of franco..