Picasso created Guernica to express his outrage at the bombing of the undefended town of Guernica during the Spanish Civil War (1936-1939). German bombers, supported by Spanish Nationalist leader Francisco Franco, destroyed the Basque town on April 26, 1937. There were many casualties, mostly women, children, and elderly people. Guernica, a town with little strategic importance, was attacked by the Germans to test the effects of bombing civilian targets in an effort to demoralize the enemy.