The Siege of the Alcázar commenced and Moscardó held out for General Francisco Franco's Nationalist forces for 70 days from 22 July to 27 September 1936. Day after day, the Colonel sent out his daily radio report: "Sin novedad en el Alcázar" ("Nothing new at the Alcázar," or "All quiet at the Alcázar", an ironic understatement). His defiance heartened Franco's supporters everywhere and maddened the Republicans, who committed vast forces in vain assaults on the Alcázar.