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When the 1936 elections produced a Popular Front government which was supported mainly by left-wing parties, a military uprising began in garrison towns throughout Spain. This was led by the rebel Nationalists and supported not only by conservative elements in the clergy, military, and landowners but by the fascist Falange. In contrast, the ruling Republican government was supported by workers, a large number of the educated middle class, militant anarchists and communists. Government forces successfully quelled the uprising in most regions except in parts of NW and SW Spain, where the Nationalists held control and named General Franco (1892-1975) head of state. During the Civil War, both sides repressed opposition, executing and assassinating a combined total of over 50,000 suspected enemies . The Republicans, who were also known as Loyalists, were largely provided with military material by the Soviet Union, and were further supported by the volunteer force of the International Brigade. The Nationalist side gradually gained territory and by April 1938 succeeded in splitting Spain from east to west, causing 250,000 Republican forces to flee into France. In March 1939 the remaining Republican forces surrendered, with Madrid finally falling to the Nationalists on March 28. The war's end brought with it a period of dictatorship that lasted almost until Franco's death in 1975.