 He later rejected the poem from his collected editions, regarding it as a "dishonest" poem that expressed political views that he never believed but which he thought would be rhetorically effective.The poem describes the history that led up to the Spanish Civil War, then the arrival of the International Brigades at the war itself, then foresees a possible future that may result from the war.On its publication, Cyril Connolly described "Spain" as "good medium Auden in a good cause—the Spanish Medical Aid".