Spanish Civil War and Foreign Involvement

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The Spanish Civil War had large numbers of non-Spanish citizens participating in combat and advisory positions. Foreign governments contributed large amounts of financial assistance and military aid to forces lead by Generalísimo Francisco Franco and those fighting on behalf of the Second Spanish Republic.

A Republican T-26 tank in the streets of Madrid.
A Republican T-26 tank in the streets of Madrid.

Contents

[edit] Arms Embargo and non-intervention

The British government proclaimed itself neutral; however, the British ambassador to Spain, Sir Henry Chilton, believed that a victory for Franco was in Britain's best interests and worked to support the Nationalists. British Foreign Secretary Anthony Eden publicly maintained the official policy of non-intervention but privately expressed his desire that the Republicans win the war[citation needed]. Admiral Lord Charfield, British First Sea Lord at the time of the conflict, was an admirer of Franco and, with or without Government support, the British Royal Navy favoured the Nationalists during the conflict.[1] As well as permitting Franco to set up a signals base on Gibraltar, the Germans were allowed to overfly Gibraltar during the airlift of the Army of Africa to Seville. The Royal Navy also provided information on Republican shipping to the Nationalists, and HMS Queen Elizabeth was used to prevent the Republican navy shelling the port of Algeciras. The German chargé d'affaires reported that the British were supplying ammunition to the Republicans, as well as passing on information about Russian arms shipments to the Germans. During the fighting for Bilbao the Royal Navy supported the Nationalist line that the River Nervión was mined, telling British shipping to keep clear of the area - and were badly discredited when a British vessel ignored the advice and sailed into the city, finding the river unmined as the Republicans had claimed.[1] Despite this, Britain discouraged activity by its citizens supporting either side.

The Anglo-French arms embargo meant that the Republicans' only foreign source of materiél was the USSR while the Nationalists received weapons from Italy and Germany and logistical support from Portugal. The last Republican prime minister, Juan Negrín, hoped that a general outbreak of war in Europe would compel the European powers (mainly Britain and France) to finally help the Republic, but World War II would not commence until months after the Spanish conflict had ended. Ultimately neither Britain nor France intervened to any significant extent. Britain supplied food and medicine to the Republic, but actively discouraged the French government of Léon Blum from supplying weapons. The American Ambassador to Spain, was to later condemn the League of Nations Non-Intervention Committee, saying that each of their moves had been made to serve the cause of the rebellion, and that 'This committee was the most cynical and lamentably dishonest group that history has known.'[1]

[edit] German and Italian Intervention

Both Italy under Mussolini and Germany under Hitler violated the embargo and sent troops (Corpo Truppe Volontarie and Condor Legion), aircraft, and weapons to support Franco. The Italian contribution amounted to over 60,000 troops at the height of the war, and the involvement helped to increase Mussolini's popularity among Italian Catholics, as the latter had remained highly critical of their ex-Socialist fascist Duce.[citation needed] Italian military help to Nationalists against the anti-clerical and anti-Catholic atrocities committed by the Republican side, worked well in Italian propaganda targeting Catholics. On July 27, 1936 the first squadron of Italian airplanes sent by Benito Mussolini arrived in Spain.[2] It has been speculated that Hitler used the Spanish Civil War issue to distract Mussolini from Hitler's own designs on and plans for Austria (Anschluss), as the authoritarian Catholic, anti-Nazi Vaterländische Front government of autonomous Austria had been in alliance with Mussolini, and in 1934, the assassination of Austria's authoritarian president Engelbert Dollfuss had already successfully invoked Italian military assistance in case of a Nazi German invasion.

[edit] Foreign Volunteers

Republican propaganda pays homage to the International Brigades.
Republican propaganda pays homage to the International Brigades.

In addition, there were a few volunteer troops from other nations who fought with the Nationalists, such as some Irish Blueshirts under Eoin O'Duffy and the French Croix de Feu. Antonio Salazar organised a Portuguese volunteer formation known as the Legião Viriato, numbering 20,000 men of which 8,000 were killed during the course of the conflict [3]. Although these volunteers, primarily Catholics, came from around the world (including Ireland, Brazil, and the USA), there were less of them and they are not as famous as those fighting on the Republican side, and were generally less organized and hence embedded in Nationalist units whereas many Republican units were comprised entirely of foreigners.

[edit] Soviet Aid

Due to the Franco-British arms embargo, the Government of the Republic could receive material aid and could purchase arms only from the Soviet Union. These arms included 1,000 aircraft, 900 tanks, 1,500 artillery pieces, 300 armored cars, hundreds of thousands of small arms, and 30,000 tons of ammunition (some of which was defective). To pay for these armaments the Republicans used US$500 million in gold reserves. At the start of the war the Bank of Spain had the world's fourth largest reserve of gold, about US$750 million,[4] although some assets were frozen by the French and British governments. The Soviet Union also sent more than 2,000 personnel, mainly tank crews and pilots, who actively participated in combat, on the Republican side.[5] Nevertheless, some have contended that the Soviet government was motivated by the desire to sell arms and that they charged extortionate prices.[6] Later, the "Moscow gold" was an issue during the Spanish transition to democracy. They have also been accused of prolonging the war because Stalin knew that Britain and France would never accept a communist government. Though Stalin did call for the repression of Republican elements that were hostile to the Soviet Union (for example, the anti-Stalininst POUM), he also made a conscious effort to limit Soviet involvement in the struggle and silence its revolutionary aspects in an attempt to remain on good diplomatic terms with the French and British.[7] Mexico also aided the Republicans by providing rifles and food. Throughout the war, the efforts of the elected government of the Republic to resist the rebel army were hampered by Franco-British 'non-intervention', long supply lines and intermittent availability of weapons of widely variable quality.

[edit] International and Intellectual Support for the Republic

American veterans.
American veterans.

Volunteers from many countries fought in Spain, most of them on the Republican side. 60,000 men and women fought in the International Brigades, including the American Abraham Lincoln Brigade and Canadian Mackenzie-Papineau Battalion, organized in close conjunction with the Comintern to aid the Spanish Republicans. Others fought as members of the CNT and POUM militias. Those fighting with POUM most famously included George Orwell and the small ILP Contingent.

'Spain' became the cause célèbre for the left-leaning intelligentsia across the Western world, and many prominent artists and writers entered the Republic's service. As well, it attracted a large number of foreign left-wing working class men, for whom the war offered not only idealistic adventure but also an escape from post-Depression unemployment. Among the more famous foreigners participating on the Republic's side were Ernest Hemingway and George Orwell, who went on to write about his experiences in Homage to Catalonia. Orwell's novel Animal Farm was loosely inspired by his experiences and those of other members of POUM, at the hands of Stalinists when the Popular Front began to fight within itself, as were the torture scenes in 1984. Hemingway's novel For Whom the Bell Tolls was inspired by his experiences in Spain. George Seldes reported on the war for the New York Post. The third part of Laurie Lee's autobiographical trilogy ('A Moment of War') is also based on his Civil War experiences, (though the accuracy of some of his recollections has been disputed). Norman Bethune used the opportunity to develop the special skills of battlefield medicine. As a casual visitor, Errol Flynn used a fake report of his death at the battlefront to promote his movies. Despite the predominantly leftist attitude of the artistic community, several prominent writers such as Ezra Pound, Roy Campbell, Gertrude Stein, and Evelyn Waugh sided with Franco.

[edit] United States and the Spanish Civil War

Polish volunteers.
Polish volunteers.

The United States was isolationist, neutralist, and was little concerned with what it largely saw as an internal matter in a European country. Nevertheless, from the outset the Nationalists received important support from some elements of American business. The American-owned Vacuum Oil Company in Tangier, for example, refused to sell to Republican ships and the Texas Oil Company supplied gasoline on credit to Franco until the war's end. While not supported officially, many American volunteers such as the Abraham Lincoln Battalion fought for the Republicans.

[edit] Use of the Spanish Civil War as weapons testing ground

Germany and the USSR used the war as a testing ground for faster tanks and aircraft that were just becoming available at the time. The Messerschmitt Bf 109 fighter and Junkers Ju 52 transport/bomber were both used in the Spanish Civil War. The Soviets provided Polikarpov I-15 and Polikarpov I-16 fighters. The Spanish Civil War was also an example of total war, where the killing of civilians such as the bombing of the Basque town of Gernika by the Legión Cóndor, as depicted by Pablo Picasso in the painting "Guernica", foreshadowed episodes of World War II such as the bombing campaign on Britain by the Nazis and the bombing of Dresden or Hamburg by the Allies.

The extent of foreign involvement in the conflict has led some commentators (most notably Paul Preston) to view it as part of a wider integrated European Civil War.

[edit] Specifics of foreign intervention and aid

[edit] Nationalists

[edit] Germans

The government of Nazi Germany participated covertly in the conflict via a body of volunteers from the ranks of the Luftwaffe and Wehrmacht known as the Legion Kondor (Condor Legion).[8] Members of the Kriegsmarine also particpated. Probably a total of 16,000 Germans citizens fought mostly as pilots, ground crew, artillery men, in tanks, and as military advisors and instructors. 10,000 Germans were the maximum at any one time. Perhaps 300 were killed.[9]

[edit] Italians

The government of Fascist Italy participated in the conflict via a body of volunteers from the ranks of the Regio Esercito, Regia Aeronautica, and La Regia Marina formed into an expeditionary force known as Corpo Truppe Volontarie (CTV). The maximum number of Italians in Spain, at one time, fighting for the Nationalists, was 50,000 in 1937.[10] Probably a total of 75,000 Italians fought in Spain for the Nationalists.[11] Italians also served in the Spanish-Italian Flechas Brigades and Divisions. The airborne component of Aeronautica pilots and ground crew were known as Aviazione Legionaria (Aviation Legion) and the contingent of submariners as Sottomarini Legionari. 6,000 Italians are estimated to have died in the conflict.[12]

[edit] Other nationals

  • The Portuguese furnished about 20,000 troops for the Nationalist Side in the Legião Viriato. About 8,000 Portuguese died.[13]
  • About 600 Irishmen under General O'Duffy and a few Frenchmen and other central Europeans fought for the Nationalists.[14]
  • Probably 75,000 Moroccans fought in the Nationalist ranks.[15] Spanish Morocco was an independent protectorate at the time so the Moroccans were not Spanish citizens.
  • Despite its name, the Spanish Foreign Legion, fighting on the Nationalist side, was mostly Spaniards.[16]

[edit] Republican

Probably 40,000 foreigners fought for the Republican forces in the Soviet and Comintern sponsored International Brigades. It is believed that not more that 18,000—20,000 fought at any one time.[17] Approximately 5,000 other non Soviets fought in the Republican forces during the conflict, primarily in Catalonia.[18]

[edit] Europeans

The personnel of the International Brigades included 10,000 Frenchmen of whom 1,000 were killed, 5,000 Germans and Austrians of whom 2,000 died, and also about 5,000 from Poland and that part of Poland now in the Ukraine. The next highest number was from Italy with 3,350 men. 2,000 British served with 500 being killed. There were also 1,500 Czechs, 1,500 Yugoslavs, 1,200 Canadians, 1,000 Hungarians and 1,000 Scandinavians about half of whom were Swedes. The rest came from 53 countries.[19] Perhaps 3,000 of the volunteers were Jewish.[20]. Palestine sent a mixed Jewish-Arab contingent of almost 200 fighters, which included Left-Zionists in its ranks, alongside members of the Palestine Communist Party.

[edit] Americans

The United States furnished 2,800 men of whom 900 were killed.

[edit] Soviets

The Soviets claim to have 537 "Volunteers" who served in Spain.[21] The maximum number of Soviets in Spain at any one time is believed to have been 700, and the total during the war is thought to have between 2,000 — 3,000. Estimates for Soviet pilots who took part in the conflict are given at 1,000.[22]

[edit] Military and financial aid

The total amount of foreign military and financial aid is difficult to calculate exactly.[23] Total aid is also difficult to determine as both sides purchased as much material as they could privately.[24]This article uses an exchange rate of five United States dollars for a British pound which was the going rate in 1936—1939.[25]

[edit] Aid to Nationalist forces

German aid to the Nationalists amounted to approximately £43,000,000 ($215,000,000) in 1939 prices. This was broken down in expenditure to:

  • 15.5% used for salaries and expenses,
  • 21.9% used for direct delivery of supplies to Spain and
  • 62.6% expended on the Condor Legion. (No detailed list of German supplies furnished to Spain has been found).[26]

The Italian Government sent large amounts of material aid to the Nationalists. This aid included:

  • 763 aircraft,
  • 1,930 pieces of artillery,
  • 100,000's of pieces of small arms,
  • tons of bombs and
  • millions of rounds of ammunition.[27]

Italian warships also participated and after the war, Italy presented a bill for £80,000,000 ($400,000,000) in 1939 prices to the Francoists.[28]

[edit] Aid to Republican forces

The Republic sent its gold reserve to the Soviet Union to pay for arms and suppies. That reserve was worth £63,000,000 ($315,000,000) in 1939 prices. In 1956, the Soviet Union announced that Spain still owed it $50,000,000.[29] Other estimates of Soviet and Comintern aid totaled £81,000,000 ($405,000,000) in 1939 value. The German military attached estimated that Soviet and Comintern aid amounted to:

  • 242 Aircraft,
  • 703 pieces of artillery,
  • 731 tanks,
  • 1386 trucks,
  • over 69,000 tons of war material, and
  • over 29,000 tons of ammunition. [30]

Much of this material was purchased in France, Czechoslovakia, the United States,Britain and Mexico.[31] Mexico furnished $2,000,000 in aid, and another $2,000,000 came from the United States for humanitarian purposes.[32] Mexico was the only country of the world that stood with the Spanish Republic. President Cardenas saw the the war as similar to Mexico's own revolution although a large part of Mexican society wanted a Nationalist victory. The rest of Latin America sympathesized with the Nationalists or was neutral.[33]

Modern resesarch conducted after the collapse of the Iron Curtain shows that Poland was second after the USSR to sell arms to the Republic. Unfortunately, much of it was useless junk.[34] In the autumn of 1936, indeed, Poland was the only nation to offer arms to the Republic in any quantity. At that time the Republic was in great need as the Nationalists were at Madrid.[35] The Republic was continuously swindled and short-changed in its purchases.[36]

The Republic also made poor buys for ammunition. The arms trade has a standard that with every rifle, 1,000 rounds of ammunition are included; with every machine gun, 10,000 rounds are included; and with every artillery piece, 2,400 shells should be included. Otherwise the hardware quickly becomes useless for lack of ammunition. A great bulk of the purchases fell far short of this standard.[37]

[edit] References

  1. ^ a b c Beevor, Antony (2001 reissued). The Spanish Civil War. London: Penguin. ISBN 0-14-100148-8.
  2. ^ Speech delivered by Premier Benito Mussolini. Rome, Italy, February 23, 1941
  3. ^ Hugh Thomas, The Spanish Civil War (2001), pp.794
  4. ^ Soviet Union in the Spartacus Schoolnet series on the Spanish Civil War. Accessed 12 October 2006.
  5. ^ The Soviet Union and the Spanish Civil War, Compass, April 1996, No. 123 (published by Communist League, UK). Accessed 12 October 2006.
  6. ^ Neal Ascherson, How Moscow robbed Spain of its gold in the Civil War, Guardian Media Group, 1998: review of Gerald Howson, Arms For Spain. Accessed 12 October 2006.
  7. ^ Paul Preston, “A Concise History of the Spanish Civil War”, (London, 1986), p.107
  8. ^ These men went as volunteers after resigning their rank from the German services.
  9. ^ Hugh Thomas, The Spanish Civil War (1961), p. 634.
  10. ^ Hugh Thomas, (1961) p.634.
  11. ^ Hugh Thomas, The Spanish Civil War, (1986), p. 985
  12. ^ Hugh Thomas, (1961) p.634.
  13. ^ Hugh Thomas, (1961) p. 635.
  14. ^ Hugh Thomas, (1961) p. 635.
  15. ^ Hugh Thomas, (1986), p. 985.
  16. ^ Hugh Thomas, (1986), p. 94.
  17. ^ Hugh Thomas, (1961) p. 637.
  18. ^ Hugh Thomas, (1961) p.637.
  19. ^ Hugh Thomas, The Spanish Civil War (1986) pp 982-983
  20. ^ Hugh Thomas, (1961) p. 637.
  21. ^ Hugh Thomas, (1961) p. 637.
  22. ^ Hugh Thomas, (1986), p. 984
  23. ^ Hugh Thomas, (1961), p. 634.
  24. ^ Hugh Thomas, (1961) p. 638.
  25. ^ Gerald Howson, Arms for Spain, The Untold Story of the Spanish Civil War, (1998), p. xi
  26. ^ Hugh Thomas, (1961) p. 634.
  27. ^ Hugh Thomas, (1961) p. 634 and 635.
  28. ^ Hugh Thomas, (1961) p. 635.
  29. ^ Hugh Thomas, (1961) p. 635.
  30. ^ Hugh Thomas, (1961) p. 643.
  31. ^ Hugh Thomas, (1961) pp. 636, 640-643, inclusive.
  32. ^ Hugh Thomas, (1961) pp. 637-638.
  33. ^ Gerald Howson, p. 165.
  34. ^ Gerald Howson, p. 113.
  35. ^ Gerald Howson, p. 111.
  36. ^ Gerald Howson, pp. 109-110.
  37. ^ Gerald Howson, p. 109.

[edit] See Also

[edit] Military forces and Aid

  • Fuerza Aérea Nacionales (Arma de Aviación) - Nationalist Air forces
  • Aviación de El Tercio - Spanish Foreign Legion Air forces
  • Fuerza Aérea de la República Española (FARE) - Second Republic and Soviet Air forces
  • Polish Brigade in Spain - Dąbrowszczacy

[edit] Military operations

  • Operation Ursula - Uboat
  • Operation Rügen - Legion Kondor
  • Operation Bodden - Abwehr

[edit] Economic Aid and Dealings

  • Sociedad Hispano-Marroqui de Transportes (HISMA)
  • Rohstoff-Waren-Kompensation Handelsgesellschaft (ROWAK)
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