A treasonous group who secretly undermine a nation from within.
The term was coined by the Nationalist General Emilio Mola Vidal during the Spanish Civil War (1936-39). As four of his army columns moved on Madrid, he referred to his militant supporters within the capital as a “fifth column,” who weakened the loyalist government with a campaign of sabotage and uprisings.
The post fifth column appeared first on Taegan Goddard's Political Dictionary.
