The Spanish Foreign Legion In The Spanish Civil War 1936

In 1936, the Spanish Foreign Legion was the most well equipped, thoroughly trained, and battle-tested unit in the Spanish Army, and with its fearsome reputation for brutality and savagery, the Legion was not only critical to the eventual victory of Franco and the Nationalists, but was also a powerful propaganda tool the Nationalists used to intimidate and terrorize its enemies. Drawing upon Spanish military archival sources, the Legion’s own diary of operations and relevant secondary sources, Alvarez recounts the pivotal role played by the Spanish Foreign Legion in the initial months of the Spanish Civil War, a war that was not only between Spaniards, but that pitted the political ideology of Communism and Socialism against that of Fascism and Nazism.

The Spanish Civil War, 1936–39, was the curtain-raiser to World War II, and the major international event of the 1930s. It was the first great clash of 20th-century ideologies, between the rebel Nationalist army led by General Franco (right-wing, and aided by Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy), and the Republican army of the government (left-wing, and aided by the Communist Soviet Union and many volunteers from liberal democracies). Three years of widespread campaigns involved the most modern weapons available. The war was fought ruthlessly by both sides, and when the Nationalists secured victory they installed a dictatorship that lasted until November 1975 – the last such regime in Western Europe. Featuring specially commissioned full-color artwork, this first part of a two-part study depicts the fighting men of the Nationalist forces that strove to take control of Spain alongside their German and Italian allies.

The Spanish Civil War, 1936–39, was the curtain-raiser to World War II, and the major international event of the 1930s. It was the first great clash of 20th-century ideologies, between the rebel Nationalist army led by General Franco (right-wing, and aided by Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy), and the Republican army of the government (left-wing, and aided by the Communist Soviet Union and many volunteers from liberal democracies). Three years of widespread campaigns involved the most modern weapons available. The war was fought ruthlessly by both sides, and when the Nationalists secured victory they installed a dictatorship that lasted until November 1975 – the last such regime in Western Europe. Featuring specially commissioned full-color artwork, this first part of a two-part study depicts the fighting men of the Nationalist forces that strove to take control of Spain alongside their German and Italian allies.

During the Spanish Civil War many groups on the European right were galvanised by the Nationalist cause. This book recounts the experiences of a number of foreign volunteers, all of whom saw their engagement in Spain as a means of promoting their own political causes at home.

By the spring of 1936 an armed clash was imminent between the forces of Spain's extreme Left and extreme Right. Viewed largely as a confrontation between democracy and fascism, the resulting civil war proved to be of enormous international significance. Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy intervened to assist General Franco, while the Soviet Union came to the aid of the Republican forces. This book explains the background to the war and charts the course of the nearly three-year long conflict through to General Franco's victory. Photographs and colour plates illustrate the uniforms and equipment of the Republican and Nationalist armies.

"The Spanish Civil War was fought from 17 July 1936 to 1 April 1939 between the Republicans, who were loyal to the established Spanish Republic, and the Nationalists, a rebel group led by General Francisco Franco. The Nationalists prevailed, and Franco ruled Spain for the next 36 years, from 1939 until his death in 1975."--Wikipedia.

"The Spanish Civil War was fought from 17 July 1936 to 1 April 1939 between the Republicans, who were loyal to the established Spanish Republic, and the Nationalists, a rebel group led by General Francisco Franco. The Nationalists prevailed, and Franco ruled Spain for the next 36 years, from 1939 until his death in 1975."--Wikipedia.

Why did the Spanish Republic lose the Spanish Civil War – and could the Republic have won? These are the key questions Alexander Clifford addresses in this in-depth study of the People’s Army and the critical battles of Brunete, Belchite and Teruel. These battles represented the Republic’s best chance of military success, but after bitter fighting its forces were beaten back. From then on the Republic, facing the superior army of Franco and the Nationalists, aided by Germany and Italy, faced inevitable defeat. This tightly focused and perceptive account of the military history of the Republic and its army is fascinating reading. As well as providing a broad overview of the strategy and tactics of the People’s Army and its Nationalist opponents, Alexander Clifford quotes vivid eyewitness testimony to give the reader a direct insight into the experience of the front-line soldiers on both sides during these three critical battles. Their recollections reveal to the reader what it was like to fight in the scorching heat of the plains around Brunete, in the shattered streets of Belchite – still ruined to this day – and in the frozen hills of Teruel.