The population of Spain before the civil war. course of the Spanish Civil War. The fate of the Spanish "children of war"

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CIVIL WAR IN SPAIN 1936 39, began as a result of a rebellion raised by Generals E. Mola and F. Franco (see FRANCO BAAMONDE Francisco). Although the origins of the conflict were rooted in the dispute hundred years ago between traditionalists and encyclopedic Dictionary

1936 39 began as a result of a mutiny raised by Generals E. Mola and F. Franco. Although the origins of the conflict were rooted in a hundred-year-old dispute between traditionalists and proponents of modernization, in Europe in the 1930s. he took the form of ... ... Big Encyclopedic Dictionary

Spanish Civil War- (Spanish Civil War) (1936 39), fierce military. confrontation between left and right forces in Spain. After the fall of Primo de Rivera (1930) and the overthrow of the monarchy (1931), Spain was split into two camps. On one side were privileged and ... ... The World History

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• , Beevor E.. "Spanish Civil War remains one of the few conflicts of the modern era whose history is better described by the losers than the winners. This is not surprising when you remember...
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Spain did not participate in First World War 1914 - 1918, but, like many European countries, after it suffered from a leapfrog of weak government offices. In 1923 General Miguel Primo de Rivera overthrew another government and declared himself a dictator. He was in power for seven years, and his reign came to an end when the great economic crisis of the turn of the 1920s and 30s also affected Spain. The sharp drop in the standard of living of the Spaniards led to the final loss of authority among the people. Democracy was restored in Spain, and a left-wing government came to power. The monarchy was abolished, King Alphonse XIII of Spain emigrated, the country became a republic. Left and right cabinets began to replace each other in turn, and the country was polarizing political forces. In the February 1936 general election, the left, from moderate socialists to anarchists and communists, formed a coalition: People's Front . They managed to defeat the right bloc, which consisted of parties of Catholic orientation and radical phalanges founded by the son of Miguel Primo de Rivera, Jose Antonio. The advantage of the Popular Front in the elections was very small, but when it came to power, it banned the Falangists almost immediately. This led to street clashes between left and right. The outbreak of strikes and land grabs alerted the right, who feared the establishment of a communist dictatorship.

The activities of the left were of particular concern to the Spanish military. It seemed to them that only an armed uprising could prevent the emergence of red Spain. Therefore, on July 17, 1936, the Spanish units located in Morocco, under the command of General Francisco Franco seized power in the part of this colony that belonged to Spain and declared non-recognition of the Madrid government. Within a week, the rebellious garrisons in Spain itself captured Oviedo, Seville, Zaragoza and a number of other cities. However, the uprisings in Madrid and Barcelona were quickly suppressed. As a result, the north-west of the country remained under the control of the nationalists, with the exception of part of the coast in the Bilbao region and the area around Seville. Republicans controlled the eastern half of Spain, including the capital, Madrid. The country found itself in the fire of a civil war, replete with horrors and atrocities.

To get his troops across Gibraltar, Franco turned to Hitler for help. Even before the end of July, Junkers-52 transport aircraft began to arrive in Morocco, creating an air bridge. Mussolini, who ruled Italy, also sent his planes. Germany and Italy began to intensively supply the nationalists with weapons. The Moscow Comintern, for its part, decided to send volunteers to Spain and provide financial assistance to the Republicans.

Great Britain and France were very afraid that a new European war could flare up out of this internal conflict. They proclaimed a policy of non-intervention, although the then left-wing French government was extremely reluctant to do so. They made contact with Italy, Germany and Portugal and obtained from them a promise not to interfere in the conflict. Was founded International Committee on non-intervention, its first meeting was held in London in early September. However, Hitler and Mussolini, despite their assurances of non-participation, continued to supply the nationalists with weapons and people, and in ever-increasing quantities. Then the Soviet Union declared that it would comply with non-intervention agreements only to the extent that Germany and Italy do.

The Spanish right opened two fronts. General Mola began to clear the north of the country from the Republicans, and General Franco moved to Madrid from the south. By the end of the year, with the help of Mola, he managed to surround Madrid from three sides. The republican government left the besieged capital, moving to Valencia, and Italy officially recognized the government of Franco.

The motives of the powers that provided active support to the belligerents in Spain were very different. Hitler saw the conflict as something of a training ground where he could test new weapons, primarily tanks and aircraft. Germany during the entire conflict sent no more than 15,000 people to Spain, but its main contribution was associated with the participation of aviation - the Condor Legion. It was in the skies of Spain that the Messerschmitt-109 fighter and the Junkers-87 dive bomber received their baptism of fire. German bombers and inflicted most damage adversary. The world remembered their raids on Madrid, and most importantly, on a small town Guernica near Bilbao on April 26, 1937, when 6,000 civilians died.

Gradually, the position of the Republicans began to deteriorate. One of the reasons for the failures were internal squabbles in their camp - between socialists, pro-Stalinist communists, Trotskyists and anarcho-syndicalists. Although incendiary speeches Dolores Ibarruri, nicknamed Passionaria (“Flaming”), excited the defenders of Madrid, the contradictions between the members of the coalition became so great that in May 1937 clashes between communists and anarchists took place in Barcelona.

The second reason for the advantage of the Nationalists was that they were better armed than the Republicans. The non-intervention committee decided to blockade the coast of Spain. Germany and Italy were instructed to control the east coast, Great Britain - the south, and together with France - the north. The blockade, however, had little effect. The Nationalists managed to get everything they needed through friendly Portugal, and besides, no one controlled the airspace. By November 1937, Franco had strengthened his position so much that he himself could organize a blockade. Therefore, by the end of 1938, the Republicans held only one small enclave in the extreme northeast and the second - on the east coast opposite Madrid. By that time, foreign volunteers, including the International Brigades, were forced to leave Spain according to a plan put forward by the Non-Intervention Committee. More and more states recognized the Franco regime, and finally, in February 1939, the republican government emigrated through the Pyrenees to France. At the end of March, Madrid also fell, and a month later, Franco announced a cessation of hostilities.

Spanish Civil War(Spanish Civil War) (1936-39), fierce military. confrontation between left and right forces in Spain. After the fall of Primo de Rivera (1930) and the overthrow of the monarchy (1931), Spain was split into two camps. On one side were privileged and politically influential factions such as the monarchists and the Spanish Falange, on the other - the republicans, Catalan and Basque separatists, socialists, communists and anarchists. In the elections of 1936, the left-wing pr-in the Popular Front came to power, after which a wave of strikes, riots and wars swept the country. conspiracies. In July 1936, Generals José Sanjurjo and Francisco Franco led the Spanish. Morocco failed rebellion against the republic, began civil. a war marked by brutality on both sides. In 1937, Franco-led nationalists, including Falangist, Carlist and Moroccan troops, took over the Republican-backed Basque Country in the hope of gaining full independence. The nationalists also managed to keep the important city of Teruel, repulsing the attacks of the rep. troops. This allowed Franco to help him. and ital. troops to separate the forces of the Republicans, capturing the territory. between Barcelona and Valencia (1938). Republicans, weakened int. intrigues between rival factions and the cessation of Soviet aid launched a desperate counteroffensive, but failed. Barcelona was in the hands of Franco (Jan. 1939); Madrid soon followed. Franco became head of state, and the Falange became a unity, a legal party. In G.v. Both sides received support from abroad: the Soviet Union sent advisers and weapons to the Republicans, and approx. 50 thousand soldiers from Italy and 10 thousand from Germany, predominantly. pilots and tankers. Bombing of civilians German objects. pilots and the destruction of the Basque city of Guernica (1937) became a symbol of fascist brutality and inspired Picasso to create one of his most famous paintings. In the ranks of the international brigades, volunteers from many others fought for the cause of the Republicans. countries of the world - in the main. people of the left and com. beliefs. The war cost Spain c. 700 thousand dead in battles, 30 thousand executed or killed without trial or investigation, and 15 thousand dead from air. raids.

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CIVIL WAR IN SPAIN (1936-1939)

It took place between the left-wing socialist republican government of the country, supported by the communists, and the right-monarchist forces, which raised an armed rebellion, sided with most of the Spanish army, led by General F. Franco.

The rebels were supported by Germany and Italy, and the Republicans by the Soviet Union. The rebellion began on June 17, 1936 in Spanish Morocco. On July 18, most of the garrisons on the peninsula revolted. Initially, the head of the monarchist forces was General José Sanjurjo, but soon after the start of the rebellion, he died in a plane crash. After that, the rebels were led by the commander of the troops in Morocco, General F. Franco. In total, out of 145 thousand soldiers and officers, more than 100 thousand supported him. Despite this, the government, with the help of the army units that remained on its side and the hastily formed detachments of the people's militia, managed to suppress the rebellions in most major cities countries. Only Spanish Morocco, the Balearic Islands (with the exception of the island of Menorca) and a number of provinces in the north and southwest of Spain were under the control of the Francoists.

From the very first days, the rebels received support from Italy and Germany, which began to supply Franco with weapons and ammunition. This helped the Francoists in August 1936 capture the city of Badajoz and establish a land connection between their northern and southern armies. After that, the rebel troops managed to establish control over the cities of Irun and San Sebastian and thereby make it difficult for the Republican North to communicate with France. Franco directed the main blow against the country's capital, Madrid.

At the end of October 1936, the German aviation legion "Condor" and the Italian motorized corps arrived in the country. The Soviet Union, in turn, sent significant batches of weapons and military equipment, including tanks and aircraft, to the republican government, and also sent military advisers and volunteers. At the call of the communist parties European countries Volunteer international brigades began to form and went to Spain to help the Republicans. The total number of foreign volunteers who fought on the side of the Spanish Republic exceeded 42,000. With their help, the Republican army managed in the fall of 1936 to repel the Franco attack on Madrid.

The war took on a protracted character. In February 1937, Franco's troops, with the support of the Italian expeditionary forces, captured the city of Malaga in the south of the country. At the same time, the Francoists launched an offensive on the Jarama River south of Madrid. On the east bank of the Jarama they succeeded in capturing

The fighters of the international brigade formed a bridgehead, but after fierce fighting, the Republicans pushed the enemy back to their original position. In March 1937, the rebel army attacked the Spanish capital from the north. main role the Italian Expeditionary Force played in this offensive. In the Guadalajara region, he was defeated. Soviet pilots and tank crews played a big role in this Republican victory.

After the defeat at Guadalajara, Franco shifted his main efforts to the north of the country. The Republicans, in turn, in July - September 1937, carried out offensive operations in the Brunete region and near Zaragossa, which ended in vain. These attacks did not prevent the Francoists from completing the destruction of the enemy in the north, where on October 22 the last stronghold of the Republicans fell - the city of Gijón.

Soon the Republicans managed to achieve serious success. In December

In 1937, they launched an attack on the city of Teruel and in January 1938 captured it. However, then the Republicans transferred a significant part of the forces and means from here to the south. The Francoists took advantage of this, launched a counteroffensive and in March 1938 recaptured Teruel from the enemy. In mid-April, they reached the Mediterranean coast at Vinaris, cutting in two the territory under the control of the Republicans. The defeats prompted a reorganization of the republican armed forces. From mid-April, they were combined into six main armies, subordinate to the commander-in-chief, General Miah. One of these armies, the Eastern, was cut off in Catalonia from the rest of Republican Spain and acted in isolation. On May 29, 1938, another army was allocated from its composition, called the Ebro army. On July 11, the reserve army corps joined both armies. They were also given 2 tank divisions, 2 brigades anti-aircraft artillery and 4 cavalry brigades.! The Republican command was preparing a major offensive to restore the land connection of Catalonia with the rest of the country.

After the reorganization, the Popular Army of the Spanish Republic numbered 22 corps, 66 divisions and 202 brigades with a total strength of 1,250 thousand people. On the Ebro army, commanded by General H.M. Guillotte," accounted for about 100 thousand people. The Chief of the Republican General Staff, General V. Rojo, developed a plan of operation that provided for the crossing of the Ebro and the development of an offensive against the cities of Gandes, Vadderrobres and Morella. Covertly concentrating, the Ebro army on June 25, 1938 began crossing the river. Since the width of the Ebro river was from 80 to 150 m, the Francoists considered it a formidable obstacle.On the offensive sector of the republican army, they had only one infantry division.

On June 25 and 26, six republican divisions under the command of Colonel Modesto occupied a bridgehead on the right bank of the Ebro, 40 km wide along 1 front and 20 km deep. The 35th International Division under the command of General K. Sverchevsky (in Spain he was known under the pseudonym "Walter"), which was part of the XV Army Corps, captured the heights of Fatarella and the Sierra de Cabals. The Battle of the Ebro River was the last J battle of the Civil War in which the International Brigades took part. In the autumn of 1938, at the request of the republican government, they left Spain together with Soviet advisers and volunteers. The Republicans hoped that thanks to this it would be possible to obtain permission from the French authorities to allow the passage to Spain of weapons and equipment purchased by the socialist government of Juan Negrin

The 10th and 15th Army Corps of the Republicans, commanded by Generals M. Tatuegna and E. Lister, were supposed to surround the Francoist troops in the Ebro region. However, their advance was stopped with the help of reinforcements that Franco had transferred from other fronts. Due to the Republican attack on the Ebro, the Nationalists had to stop their offensive against Valencia.

The Francoists managed to stop the advance of the V Corps of the enemy at Gandesa. Franco's aviation seized air supremacy and constantly bombed and fired at the Ebro crossings. For 8 days of fighting, the republican troops lost 12 thousand killed, wounded and missing. A long battle of attrition began in the region of the republican bridgehead. Until the end of October 1938, the Francoists made unsuccessful attacks, trying to throw the Republicans into the Ebro. Only at the beginning of November, the seventh offensive of Franco's troops ended with a breakthrough of the defense on the right bank of the Ebro.

The Republicans had to leave the bridgehead. Their defeat was predetermined by the fact that the French government closed the Franco-Spanish border and did not allow weapons for the Republican army to pass. Nevertheless, the Battle of the Ebro delayed the fall of the Spanish Republic for several months. Franco's army lost in this battle about 80 thousand people killed, wounded and missing.

During the Spanish Civil War, the Republican army lost more than 100 thousand people killed and died from wounds. The irretrievable losses of Franco's army exceeded 70 thousand people. The same number of National Army soldiers died of disease. It can be assumed that in the republican army the losses from diseases were somewhat less, since it was inferior in number to the Francoist one. In addition, the losses of the international brigades in the dead exceeded 6.5 thousand people, and the losses of Soviet advisers and volunteers reached 158 people killed, died of wounds and missing. There is no reliable data on the losses of the German Condor Air Legion and the Italian Expeditionary Force who fought on the side of the Franco.

Great Definition

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On July 17, at 17:00, the radio station of the city of Ceuta in Spanish Morocco transmitted: "A cloudless sky over all of Spain." This was the signal to start an uprising.

Beginning of the Spanish Civil War

Parts of the Spanish armed forces stationed in 45,186 people, including 2,126 officers. These were elite troops with combat experience. The indigenous people of Morocco were far from Spanish political life. The Republic was an empty word for them, since it did not change anything in their daily life. Participation in the rebellion promised booty.

For these reasons, the Moroccan units throughout the entire period of the civil war were the best shock troops of the rebels and terrified the opponents with their cruelty, their chilling cries during the attack. The people continued to call them Moors.

Moroccan troops of Franco

The organizers of the rebellion - a military conspiracy against the republican government of the Popular Front - were Generals José Sanjurjo, Emilio Mola, Gonzalo Queypo de Llano and Francisco Franco.

Causes of the Spanish Civil War

What did the military want?

Cessation of unrest and riots in the streets, repeal of the republican constitution and anti-clerical laws, prohibition political parties, the departure of liberals and other leftists. In general, a return to the old order, and some wanted a return to the monarchy.

Mola declared: "We will sow terror, ruthlessly destroying all those who do not agree with us." was announced crusade against the "red plague", for "great and united Spain".

The rebellion of the generals was supported by the military garrisons of several cities, most of the regular military and civil guards (police) and, of course, the Spanish Falange.

In Navarre and its capital, Pamplona, ​​the rebellion had the character of almost national holiday. Detachments of the "requete", a paramilitary organization of Carlists, supporters of the Bourbon monarchy, took to the streets of cities, and under bell ringing churches simply abolished the republic. There was practically no resistance. Navarre became the only part of Spain where the rebels had the support of the population.

Requete Carlists

Course of the Spanish Civil War

On July 18, many Madrid newspapers reported on the revolt of the African army and that the government of the republic was in control of the situation and was confident of an early victory. Some media even wrote that the uprising had failed.

Meanwhile, at 2 pm on July 18, General Gonzalo Queypo de Llano raised a rebellion in the capital of Andalusia - Seville.

In their plans, the rebels attached key importance to Andalusia. Using this region as a base, the African army was to launch an attack on Madrid from the south, meeting in the capital with the troops of General Mola, who were prepared to attack the capital from the north.

But if Andalusia was the key to the success of the putsch, then Seville was the key to Andalusia. Seville, like Madrid, was called "red" for a reason. Along with Barcelona, ​​it was a longtime stronghold of anarchism.

Rebels in Seville, July 1936

Queipo de Llano would hardly have been able to capture the entire city on his own. In addition, on July 19, the governor of Huelva sent a detachment of the civil guard to the aid of the Sevilles, which was joined by a column of miners from the mines of Rio Tinto. But near Seville itself, the civil guards defeated the miners and went over to the side of the rebels.

Members of the Spanish Civil War

Nazi Germany sent an elite military aviation unit, the Condor Legion, to help the rebels.

Very quickly, the colonial troops were transferred from Africa to Spain on German Luftwaffe aircraft, and this played a fatal role, the rebels were immediately able to gain a foothold in the south, sinking resistance in blood, and sent several columns towards Madrid. German operations in Spain were led by Hermann Göring.

Mussolini sent an entire expeditionary force to Spain. It was actually a military intervention, which largely determined the course and outcome of the war.

On July 20, the first detachments of the legion from Morocco arrived at the Seville airfield in Tablada. The workers' quarters of the city of Triana and Macarena held out until July 24, the people's militia fought on the barricades with weapons in their hands. When the rebel troops captured the entire city, real terror began - mass arrests and executions.

The general strike was also terminated: Queipo de Llano simply threatened to shoot anyone who did not come to work. Summing up his activities to seize power in Seville, the general boasted that 80% of the women of Andalusia put on or would put on mourning.

The result of the military mutiny in Andalusia spoke of the approximate equality of forces of the warring parties. Four of the eight main cities in the region were captured by the rebels - Seville, Granada, Cordoba and Cadiz, and four remained with the republic - Malaga, Huelva, Jaen, Almeria. But the putschists won. They fulfilled their main task - they created a reliable springboard in southern Spain for the landing of the African army.

On July 17-20, all of Spain became the scene of fierce battles, betrayal and heroism. But still, only one question was the main one: on whose side will the two main cities of the country - Madrid and Barcelona.

Barcelona managed to be defended thanks to the loyalty of the local civil guard to the republic and the participation of numerous armed detachments of anarchists.

This is how Pravda correspondent Mikhail Koltsov described the situation in Barcelona:

“Everything is now flooded, dammed up, swallowed up by a dense, excited mass of people, everything is stirred up, splashed out, brought to highest point tension and boiling. ... Youth with rifles, women with flowers in their hair and naked sabers in their hands, old men with revolutionary ribbons over their shoulders, among portraits of Bakunin, Lenin and Zhores, among songs and orchestras, a solemn procession of workers' militia, charred ruins of churches ... "

People's Militia in Barcelona

General Franco

On September 28, a meeting of the military junta of the rebels took place in Salamanca. Franco became not only the commander-in-chief, but also the head of the Spanish government for the duration of the war.

Franco was made precisely the head of the government, and not the state, since the monarchist majority among the generals considered the king to be the head of Spain.

Franco himself suddenly began to call himself not the head of government, but the head of state. For this, Queipo de Llano called him a "pig". smart people it immediately became clear that Franco did not need any monarch: as long as the general was alive, he would not give the supreme power into anyone's hands.

Cara al sol - "Facing the sun" - the anthem of the Spanish phalanx.

Franco introduced the treatment "caudillo", that is, "leader", in relation to himself.

The slogan of the newly-minted dictator was the motto - "One Fatherland, One State, One Caudillo"(in Germany it sounded like "One people, one Reich, one Fuhrer").

Becoming leader, Franco immediately informed Hitler and Mussolini about this.

Defense of Madrid.
International aid to Republicans

In November 1936, Madrid was surrounded by several columns of rebels. The famous expression "fifth column" belongs to General Mola. He then stated that five columns were operating against Madrid - four from the front, and the fifth column - in the city itself. Franco dreamed of entering the city on a white horse precisely on November 7 to annoy the Reds.

People's militia in Madrid, 1936

Madrid was defended by about 20 thousand people's militia fighters (there were 25 thousand people in the Mola group), united in militia units according to the shop principle. There were detachments of bakers, workers and even hairdressers. They miraculously managed to defend Madrid, stopping the Francoists literally on the outskirts. It was possible to get to the front line by tram.

The International Brigades, created from volunteers from different countries who came to the aid of the Spanish Republic, took part in the defense of Madrid.

Hundreds of Russian emigrants came from France. In total, 35,000 members of the International Brigades passed through Spain. They were students, doctors, teachers, left-wing workers, many with World War I experience. They came to Spain from Europe and America to fight for their ideals against international fascism. They were called "freedom volunteers".

American Battalion of Abraham Lincoln

It was during the defense of Madrid that the Soviet military aid- tanks and planes. The USSR turned out to be the only country that really helped the republic. The rest of the countries adhered to a policy of non-intervention, fearing to provoke Hitler's aggression. This assistance was effective, although not as powerful as the German and Italian ones (Hitler sent 26,000 troops, Mussolini 80,000, Portuguese dictator Salazar 6,000).

On October 14, 1936, the Komsomolets steamer arrived in Cartagena, delivering 50 T-26 tanks, which became the best tanks civil war in Spain.

On October 28, 1936, unknown bombers made an unexpected raid on the Seville airfield of Tablada. It was the debut in Spain of the latest Soviet bombers SB (i.e. "high-speed bomber"). Soviet pilots called the plane respectfully - "Sofya Borisovna", and the Spaniards called the SB "katyushki" in honor of a Russian girl. Soviet pilots defended the skies of Madrid, Barcelona and Valencia from German Junkers and Italian Fiats.

Soviet pilots near Madrid

The Republicans actively waged a guerrilla war with the help of a Soviet adviser, military engineer Ilya Starinov, who came to Spain under the pseudonym Rodolfo. The 14th partisan corps was created, in which Starinov taught the Spaniards the technique of sabotage and tactics of partisan actions. Very soon, the name of Rodolfo begins to terrify the soldiers and officers of Franco's army. He planned and carried out about 200 acts of sabotage, which cost the enemy thousands of lives of soldiers and officers.

In February 1937, near Cordoba, Rodolfo's group blew up a train carrying the headquarters of the Italian air division sent by Mussolini to help Franco's army. Ernest Hemingway, the only war correspondent, went with the partisans behind enemy lines. This experience was useful to him for the novel. "For whom the Bell Tolls".

In Madrid there is a monument to the fallen Soviet volunteers. And many of those who survived and returned to the USSR from Spain were repressed. In 1938, Mikhail Koltsov, the author of The Spanish Diary, a living, passionate document of the era, was arrested. In 1940 he was shot.

Among the Soviet advisers in Spain were intelligence officers and agents of the NKVD, who helped the republican government create security structures and at the same time monitored, together with emissaries from the Comintern, "order" in the camp of the republicans, especially the "Trotskyists" and anarchists.

"Oh, Carmela!" - the most famous song of the Republicans.

Civil War and anarchism

The mutiny of July 17-20 destroyed the Spanish state in the form in which it existed not only in the republican five-year period. There was no real power at all in the republican territory for the first months.

Spontaneously arose people's militia - militia (as in 1808, during the war with Napoleon) - at first did not obey anyone. The left parties and trade unions had their own armed detachments and committees.

Anarchists staged revolutionary experiments, created rural communes in the Aragonese villages and workers' committees in the factories and plants of Barcelona. Here is the picture that George Orwell saw in Barcelona at the end of 1936:

“For the first time I was in a city in which power had passed into the hands of the workers. Almost all large buildings were requisitioned by workers and decorated with red banners or red-and-black anarchist flags, the sickle and hammer and the names of the revolutionary parties were painted on all the walls; all the churches were destroyed, and the images of the saints were thrown into the fire. No one said “senor” or “don” anymore, they didn’t even say “you”, - everyone turned to each other “comrade” or “you” and instead of "Buenosdias"said"Salud! » ... The main thing was the belief in the revolution and the future, the feeling of a sudden leap into an era of equality and freedom.” (“In Memory of Catalonia”)

Anarchism, with its self-rule and contempt for any authority, was very popular in Spain.

“No God, no state, no masters!”

The anarchist trade union CNT was the most numerous, it consisted of one and a half million people, and in Catalonia the power was actually in their hands.

Civil war and terror

Civil wars are particularly brutal. Saint-Exupery, the future author of The Little Prince, who visited Spain as a correspondent, wrote a poignant book of reports, Spain in the Blood:

“In a civil war, the front line is invisible, it passes through the heart of a person, and here they are fighting almost against themselves. And therefore, of course, the war takes on such a terrible form ... here they are shot, as if they were cutting down a forest ... In Spain, crowds began to move, but every single person, this huge world, vainly calls for help from the depths of the collapsed mine.

In Hemingway's novel "For Whom the Bell Tolls" there is a terrible scene that conveys the atmosphere of what was happening in those cities and villages in which the military rebellion was defeated. An angry mob of peasants brutally cracks down on their fellow villagers, local rich people - "fascists", and throws them off a cliff.

The front line also passed through families: the brothers fought on opposite sides of the barricades. Franco ordered the execution of his own cousin, who was on the side of the Republicans.

The Republicans had spontaneous terror from below, which arose in the atmosphere of chaos and confusion after the rebellion, when uncontrolled armed units of the people's militia cracked down on those who were considered their enemies, "fascists."

Why were churches sacked and priests attacked? Here are the words of the philosopher Nikolai Berdyaev:

“Spanish Catholicism has a terrible past. It was in Spain that the Catholic hierarchy was most connected with the feudal aristocracy and with the rich. Spanish Catholics rarely took the side of the people. In Spain, the Inquisition flourished most. catholic church. It was strange to assume that the hour of reckoning would never come. "

Later, the republican government managed to regain control over its territory and stop extrajudicial killings. In the autumn of 1936, people's courts were introduced.

The Francoists carried out systematic, brutal terror from above, organizing purges in cities and villages, mass executions of supporters of the Popular Front, members of leftist parties and trade unions - throughout the war and for a long time after its end. Franco believed that it was necessary to break the spirit of the civilian population by eliminating any potential threat or opposition.

Andalusian village

In Granada, the poet Federico Garcia Lorca was shot.

The capture of Malaga by the Francoists in January 1937 was one of the bloodiest pages of the civil war, when tens of thousands of retreating refugees along the Malaga-Almeria road were shot by cruiser artillery and Italian aircraft.

It was in Spain that the tactics of inhuman bombing of peaceful cities and residential areas began to be actively used in order to intimidate the enemy.

The German legion "Condor" bombed Madrid, Barcelona, ​​Bilbao. Moreover, German aircraft did not touch fashionable quarters, but bombed densely populated working-class areas. Incendiary bombs were used for the first time, causing a large number of casualties. The completely destroyed Guernica, the ancient city of the Basques, has become a symbol of senseless cruelty.

Pablo Picasso. "Guernica", 1937

Spanish children.

Spanish children suffering from hunger and bombings were rescued abroad.

In 1937-38, 38 thousand people were taken from the northern regions of Spain to other countries, of which about 3 thousand ended up in the Soviet Union. Spanish children were brought on a ship to Leningrad, and from there they were already distributed to orphanages, boarding schools, near Moscow, in Leningrad and in Ukraine.

The oldest of the Spanish children then volunteered for the front during the Great Patriotic War. Underage boys ran away to partisan detachments, girls became nurses.

Spanish children did not go to Soviet schools, their educators and teachers were Spaniards who came with them. There was such an idea that they should study in their native language, because they would soon return to their homeland. But the connection with the motherland was interrupted for long years, the news from the parents did not reach.

They were able to return only in the 50s after the death of Stalin. It so happened that the first of them returned with the prisoners from the Blue Division. Then an agreement was reached between the two countries that the USSR would release the Spanish prisoners who fought on the side of Hitler, and Spain would allow children and political emigrants - Republicans to enter.

Some of the children who then came to Spain did not take root in their homeland. They returned completely different, strangers in Francoist Spain and often did not find common language with family after many years of separation. Most of the children returned to Spain in the 70s after Franco's death.

There is a Spanish Center in Moscow on Kuznetsky Most, which still gathers Spanish children, “Russian Spaniards”, who are already over 80.

Spanish children before departure

Decisive battles during the civil war

Madrid withstood the siege until the end of the war. The main victory of the Republicans was Guadalajara, where the Italian expeditionary force was defeated. However, in the spring of 1938, Franco's troops reached mediterranean sea and cut Republican Spain in two.

The longest and bloodiest was the battle on the Ebro River in July-November 1938, in which about 70 thousand people died on both sides. This was the last attempt by the Republicans to turn the tide of the war as the Francoists slowly advanced throughout the country. The republic lacked weapons, Soviet aid weakened due to Soviet assistance to China.

After initial heady success on the Ebro, the Republican army was forced to retreat.

This was the beginning of the end of Republican Spain.

Republican fighters crossing the Ebro, 1938

In January 1939, Barcelona fell, 300 thousand refugees, along with the remnants of the Republican army, reached the French border - it was a real exodus through the Pyrenees, whole villages left, women, children, old people ...

On a damp night, the winds whittled the rocks.
Spain, dragging armor,
Went north. And screamed until the morning
Trumpet of a crazy trumpeter.
(Ilya Erenburg, 1939)

Spanish refugees march towards the French border, 1939

The French sent republicans to refugee camps, men separately, women with children separately, some of them later ended up in German concentration camps, others joined the ranks of the French Resistance and took part in the liberation of France from the Germans.

In March 1939, the commander of the republican army of the center, Sehismundo Casado, staged a putsch and surrendered Madrid in order to conclude an honorable peace with the Francoists and avoid unnecessary sacrifices. However, Franco demanded the unconditional surrender of the Republic and announced the end of the war on 1 April: "We have captured and disarmed the troops of Red Spain and have achieved our final national military goals."

Generalissimo Francisco Franco

National Catholicism became the official ideology of the new regime, and the only party was the fascist Phalanx.

"There is nothing more terrible than the union between the dementia of the barracks and the idiocy of the sacristy", - said the writer and philosopher Miguel de Unamuno.

To be continued...

Lola Diaz,
Raisa Sinitsyna, guide in Seville

• route your mini-tour in Andalusia - I will help you create an individual, according to your interests,
• I will arrange excursions for you in the cities of Andalusia,
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• hotel- I will advise which one is better for you to choose, closer to the center and with parking,
• what else is interesting to see in Andalusia - I will tell you the sights that will be of interest to you personally.

Lively, interesting, creative excursions in the cities of Andalusia, designed for your individual interests:

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"The laws of war are harsh. There is no place for sentiment in them. In Madrid, Murat acted in full accordance with the logic of a military man. She is straightforward and steel like a bayonet: a civilian with a weapon in his hands is a bandit. So it was and will always be, no matter what they say our liberals," Solano thought. "And about England, Murat is also probably right. English agents obviously could not have done here. The British have long dreamed of pushing us against France, and it seems that now they have succeeded. Now they will […]
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On July 17, 1936, the uprising of the Spanish military began in Morocco. On July 19, the rebellion came to continental Spain. This is how it started Spanish Civil War, covering the country for three years. This war became one of the most tragic episodes not only in Spanish, but also in world history and the history of the world communist and anti-fascist movement in general. The words of the leader of the Communist Party of Spain, Dolores Ibarruri (Passionaries), became prophetic:

“If the fascists are allowed to continue the crimes they are committing in Spain, aggressive fascism will fall upon other peoples of Europe as well. We need help, we need planes and guns for our struggle... The Spanish people prefer to die standing than to live on their knees.”

Indeed, after the victory of the right-wing forces in Spain, a series of wars began in Europe. On March 15, German troops entered Czechoslovakia (the war in Spain had not yet ended, but its outcome had already been decided); On 7 April Italy occupied Albania; September 1, German troops entered the territory of Poland. The Second World War.

Spanish Civil War was the result of a series different events. The days of the great Spanish Empire are long gone: the army has become weaker, Spain has lost all its colonies in the New World. A huge gulf formed between the rich and the poor: the living conditions of ordinary workers and peasants were extremely harsh, and any attempts at rebellion were brutally suppressed by the army. However, this could not last forever: in 1931, the monarchy was still overthrown. Thus the Second Republic was born.

However, there was no unity in society. The Spaniards adhered to a wide variety of ideologies, from the radical right to the radical left. In addition, not all of Spain's natives were Spaniards: some, such as the Basques and Catalans, had their own language and culture.

The right bloc was represented mainly by conservatives, Falangists, monarchists, Catholics. The left consisted of many different parties: mainly numerous but extremely divided socialists, and few but close-knit communists. In addition to them, millions of Spaniards adhered to anarcho-syndicalist ideas, did not have leaders (for in such groups all its members were equal) and parties.

The peak of the struggle between these blocks came in 1936. It was then that the next elections to the Cortes were held. The left parties tried not to make the mistake made in Germany, when, due to the fragmentation of the left parties, a counterweight to the Nazis was not created, they united in a bloc called "People's Front". The right-wing parties united in "National Front". The elections were extremely tense. With a slight margin (4,176,156 against 3,783,601 votes), the Popular Front won. The right began to accuse the government of electoral fraud. A series of street fights began between representatives of different ideologies, some of which ended in fatal. Many representatives of right-wing ideas held prominent positions in the army: it was they who planned the rebellion. Its main organizer was General Emilio Mola.

Barricades of dead horses. Barcelona. July 1936.

A rebellion began in Spanish Morocco, the last colony of Spain, but two days later it moved to the continent. The rebellion swept through all the Spanish cities and provinces, in some places it was successful, in others it was crushed. But the rebels captured mostly only the cities: the areas adjacent to them were out of their control, so they were unable to contact each other. The situation was disastrous, and then the putschists turned to Germany and Italy for help. Both Germany and Italy reacted positively to this action: during the entire war they delivered to Spain hundreds of thousands of weapons, tens of thousands of soldiers, more than a thousand tanks and aircraft.

Thanks to outside help, the rebellion was able to live through its most difficult period, after which the rebels regrouped and went on the offensive against those cities that could not be captured by the uprisings. They won victory after victory, as they had a trained, professional army, had a sufficient amount of ammunition thanks to the allies, while the defenders of the republic consisted of the people's militia and militia, in other words, from the common people who did not have serious knowledge and experience of military operations.

In autumn, the nationalists reached Madrid. They hoped for the weak resistance of the republicans and for the help of the inhabitants: it is to the battle for Madrid that the world owes the expression "fifth column", taken from the presumptuous statement of General Mola about four columns with him and about the fifth, which was already in Madrid. The fifth column did exist and conducted anti-republican activities, but ordinary citizens treated it extremely negatively and often severely cracked down on its members. The battle for Madrid, contrary to the expectations of the nationalists, turned out to be very fierce: the suburbs of Madrid, for example, the university campus, were turned into ruins, where there was a struggle for every floor and staircase. The world saw something similar only six years later, in Stalingrad. In addition, the Prime Minister of Spain, Largo Caballero, approved the USSR's offer of assistance: Soviet tanks, aircraft, weapons, and, most importantly, military instructors, who made the main contribution to the victory in this battle, got into Spain. The dreams of the nationalists to take the city by the seventh of November failed: with considerable losses, the Republic managed to win. However, the Republicans were unable to organize a successful counteroffensive: for almost the entire war, the nationalists stood close to the city.

Winter period 1936-1937 was generally quite successful for the Republic. Attacks on Madrid were repulsed during two battles: "Foggy" and as a result of the Guadalajara operation, while in the South the Republicans managed to defend valuable mines. During the battles of this year, it became clear that everything would not end quickly: the war became positional.

Franco quickly recovered from the defeats: already in the spring he gathered an impressive army and transferred the war to the north of Spain, to the Basque country. Despite the powerful defensive structures called the "iron belt", the Basques failed to beat back the blow: there were many fortifications, but they were not quite correctly placed. After this victory, the superiority of the nationalists became apparent. The Republic urgently needed to turn the tide of the war, and an attempt to do this was carried out during the Teruel operation, however, it turned out to be a failure, despite some successes of the Republican fleet (which, unlike the army, remained loyal to the Republic), and the Republicans suffered huge losses.

In 1937, Largo Caballero resigned: he did not like the increasing influence of the communists and the USSR. His post was taken by Juan Negrin, much friendlier to the latter than Caballero, but much less enterprising.

During the spring offensive, the nationalists came close to Barcelona and Valencia. It was to Valencia in 1938 that the nationalists sent their new blow. The Republicans were inferior to the nationalists both in technology and in manpower, but they managed to prepare for the battle and create powerful fortifications: not as expensive as the "iron belt", but more successfully located. All attempts by the nationalists to break through the front ended in failure, after which, together with Soviet instructors, the Republicans developed a plan for a counteroffensive on the Ebro River. It lasted 113 days and was very violent. But in November, General Yagüe forced the Republican forces to retreat. Thus, the Republic was able to defend Valencia, but lost its last strength.

Francoist trenches near Barcelona. May 1937.

The last major battle of the war was the Battle of Barcelona. Nationalists concentrated huge forces for the offensive, hundreds of tanks, aircraft, armored vehicles supplied by Germany and Italy. The Republicans, on the other hand, lost almost all of their equipment, and its new batch, purchased in the USSR, did not reach Spain by decision of the French authorities, who feared any conflicts with Germany after the Munich Agreement. The fighting spirit of the Republicans was very low, all the international brigades were finally disbanded.

On January 26, the Nationalists entered Barcelona. The city, which was the first to crush the rebellion, surrendered without a fight. In half-empty Barcelona, ​​the nationalists held a magnificent parade. The Republic formally controlled a large part of the country, including Madrid, but the outcome of the war was clear. Many Spanish generals and politicians either emigrated or pushed for peace. During the putsch on March 6, the Negrin government was overthrown, the putsch generals began to negotiate surrender. On March 26, the nationalists again launched an offensive, but they did not meet resistance anywhere else. On March 28, they entered Madrid without a fight, where on April 1 they held a magnificent parade. Then Franco solemnly announced:

“Today, when the Red Army is captured and disarmed, the national troops have reached their final goal in the war. The war is over."

For the Spaniards era of Franco's dictatorship, which lasted until the death of the caudillo, which occurred in 1975. It cost Spain huge victims: about 450 thousand dead from all sides combined, 600 thousand emigrated (as a result, more than 10% of the pre-war population), destroyed cities, towns, roads, bridges, Spain's dependence on Germany and Italy. Both Germany and the Soviet Union gained valuable experience in warfare.

Many reasons can be given why Spanish Republic lost the war this is the support of the Falangists by Germany and Italy, this is the training of the rebel soldiers, later on simply the “right” forces, since the rebels were originally members of the Spanish army, and so on. But main reason the defeat of the Republic is the absence of autocracy. There was no single ideology in the ranks of the Republicans - the communists who supported the USSR, and the Trotskyists, and the anarcho-syndicalists, and even the right-wing Basque nationalists, who declared northern Spain their country, independent of the Republic itself, fought for the Republic, and fought against Franco only for for the obvious reason that if the Francoists managed to capture the north of Spain, there could be no question of any independence.

The Spaniards remembered the experience of the war with Napoleon, when scattered bands of Spaniards, who looked more like bandits than partisans, and also competed with each other, were able to repulse the French. All of Europe admired their struggle. The Republicans were sure that it was possible to defeat the enemy without unity of command, they would have had enough courage and faith in victory.

The Francoists were of a different opinion. Franco himself studied the experience of the war in Russia and was sure that in a civil war only a single leader could win, only the consolidation of forces and one-man command could help win the war, as he was convinced by the example of the Bolsheviks. Already in 1937, he became the sole leader of the nationalists, removing Manuel Edilho and uniting the Falange with the monarchists (Carlists), later joining it with other right-wing forces. Franco was able to organize his rear and establish external relations: the nationalists were always supplied with rifles and ammunition.

At the same time, the Republicans had a split in the rear. Only one industrial Catalonia, called "Spanish New York" could fully provide the Republic with everything necessary. But the Republic did not control its factories, they were run by trade unions and various workers' organizations, which were often preoccupied with their own benefit. Especially with a strong blow for the Republicans was the uprising of the Trotskyists from the POUM party and the anarchists who supported it, which took place in Barcelona in the spring of 1937. Parts of the People's Army had to be sent to Barcelona. This increased the fragmentation in the rear and forced the Prime Minister of the Republic, Largo Caballero, to resign.

The training of the soldiers of the People's Army also left much to be desired. Nationalist soldiers underwent full-fledged training, while Republican soldiers, especially towards the end of the war, underwent a short-term training course, often they were not even given rifles for the duration of training.

One of the leaders of the anarchists Garcia Oliver goes to the front. Barcelona, ​​1936

It is necessary to say about the anarchists as well. Most of them shared the ideas of Kropotkin and Bakunin, as did Russian anarchists during the era of the Russian Civil War. However, unlike Makhno, who had great authority in his army and was the unquestioning and sole leader, the Spanish anarchists did not have any unity. Most of them were syndicalists, that is, they did not recognize any authority, even within their own ranks. The completely inexperienced anarchist soldier was equal in his position to experienced veterans. One of the most famous Spanish anarchists, so authoritative that his syndicalist comrades-in-arms obeyed him, Buenaventura Durruti was killed during the defense of Madrid back in 1936 due to unclear circumstances, according to one version, he was shot dead by another anarchist.

Workers, peasants, soldiers, intellectuals, join the ranks communist party(1937)

The only organized force of the Republic was the communists from the KPI. Their number grew rapidly, especially after the intervention in the war. Soviet Union. We must not forget about the volunteers-internationalists. The merit of military advisers from the USSR was the victory in the defense of Madrid in 1936, the victory in the “foggy battle”, which showed the effectiveness of the Soviet T-26 tanks, later called the best tanks in the civil war, and so on.

Soviet T-26 tank in service with the Republican Army. 1936.

We must not, of course, forget about the help to the nationalists from abroad. The nationalists were supported by several countries: Portugal, Italy (moreover, the Duce saw in Spain the future part of his country), the Third Reich, in addition, the USA, Great Britain, and France recognized the nationalists. In total, 150 thousand Italians, 50 thousand Germans, 20 thousand Portuguese fought on the side of Franco throughout the war. Italy's expenses for participation in the war amounted to 14 million lire, about 1,000 aircraft, 950 armored vehicles, almost 8,000 vehicles, 2,000 artillery pieces, hundreds of thousands of rifles were delivered.

German bombers, part of the Condor Legion, in the skies over Spain, 1938. Black and white sign X on the tail and wings of the aircraft stands for the cross of St. Andrew - the sign of the nationalist troops of the Franco Air Force. The Condor Legion was made up of volunteers from the German Army and Air Force.

Germany, on the other hand, sent the infamous Condor Legion, which wiped out the ancient Spanish city of Guernica, hundreds of tanks, artillery, communications equipment, etc. The Vatican also provided financial assistance to the Francoists. At the same time, Germany and Italy officially approved of "non-intervention" in Spanish affairs.

The Republic was supported and recognized only by the USSR and Mexico. The Republicans were supplied with hundreds of tanks and aircraft, 60 armored vehicles, more than a thousand artillery pieces, about 500,000 rifles, etc. The Soviet Union, unlike Italy and Germany, did not approve of the policy of "non-intervention". The Soviets supplied more weapons and equipment to Spain than the Third Reich, but the volume of Soviet assistance is far from the huge amount of weapons supplied by Italy. Mexico did not produce its own modern weapons, moreover, was at a very great distance from Spain. However, Mexico could be a formal intermediary for the secret supply of weapons from the USSR, and at the end of the war took a lot of Spanish refugees.

42 thousand foreigners from 52 countries of the world came to the aid of the Republic. 2 thousand of them were citizens of the Soviet Union. Among them were the future marshals Malinovsky, Rokossovsky, Nedelin, Konev. Veterans of the republic emigrated to completely different parts of the world: to Britain, to France, to latin america, in USSR. Those who remained in their homeland were sentenced to work to restore the country, often they were forced to work in inhuman conditions. 15,000 Republican veterans built Valley of the Fallen, a monumental complex originally dedicated to Nationalist veterans, but later to become a memorial to all those who died in the Civil War.

Many Republican veterans took part in World War II. It was the Spaniards who were entrusted with the defense of the Kremlin in 1941. The only son Passionary, Rubén Ruiz Ibarruri died in Stalingrad in 1942, and was also the only Spaniard in the Great Patriotic war, who was awarded the title of "Hero of the Soviet Union".

Spanish Civil War became the first war in which a completely worthy rebuff to fascism was given. Looking at the bombed Barcelona, ​​Madrid, Guernica and other Spanish cities, the world learned what the whole brutal nature of fascism is. This war has become a lesson for all leftist movements. She proved that courage and heroism are not the only indicator of victory: this requires consolidation of forces and unity of command. Only by uniting in the face of a common threat, only with a strong alliance of all leftist movements, without unnecessary and reckless fanaticism, is it possible for the people to triumph over capital.