Catalonia Offensive

Catalonia Offensive
Part of the Spanish Civil War

Map of Spain in November 1938, after the end of the Battle of the Ebro and immediately before the start of the Catalonia Offensive. Republican territory is in red, and Nationalist territory is blue. Please click on map to enlarge the image.
Date December 23, 1938 – February 10, 1939
Location Northeastern Spain
Result Decisive Nationalist victory
Belligerents
 Spanish Republic  Nationalist Spain
 Italy (Corpo Truppe Volontarie)
Condor Legion
Commanders and leaders
Juan Hernández Saravia
Juan Modesto
Enrique Líster
Colonel Perea		 Fidel Dávila Arrondo
Agustín Muñoz Grandes
Rafael García Valiño
José Moscardó Ituarte
Juan Yagüe
José Solchaga
Gastone Gambara
Strength
Thomas: 300,000[1]
Beevor: 220,000[2]
Jackson: 90,000[3]
Thomas: 360 artillery pieces[4]
Beevor: 250 artillery pieces[2]
Thomas: 200 tanks and armourd cars[4]
Beevor: 40 tanks and armoured cars[2]
Thomas: 80 aircraft[4]
Beevor: 106 aircraft[5]		 Jackson: 350,000[6]
Beevor: 340,000[7]
Thomas: 300,000[8]
Beevor: 1,400 artillery pieces[7]
Thomas: 565 artillery pieces[1]
300 tanks[7]
500 aircraft[1][7]
Casualties and losses
? dead
10,000 wounded
60,000 captured[9]
220,000 disarmed in France [10]		 ? dead
? wounded
? captured
Background
July 1936 uprising
Melilla · Seville · Barcelona · Cuartel de la Montaña · Gijón · Oviedo · Cuartel de Loyola
1936
Alcázar · Extremadura · Convoy de la victoria · Almendralejo · Sigüenza · Mérida · Badajoz  · Mallorca · Sierra Guadalupe · Córdoba · Gipuzkoa · San Marcial · Monte Pelato · Talavera · Irún · Santuario de Nuestra Señora de la Cabeza  · Cerro Muriano · Cape Espartel  · Seseña · Madrid · Ciudad Universitaria · 1st Corunna Road · Villarreal · Ursula · Aceituna · Lopera · 2nd Corunna Road
1937
3rd Corunna Road · Málaga · Jarama · Cape Machichaco · Guadalajara · Pozoblanco · War in the North · Biscay · Guadarrama · Durango · Jaén · Guernica · Barcelona May Days · Deutschland · Almería · Segovia · Huesca · Bilbao · Albarracín · Brunete · Santander · Zaragoza · 1st Belchite · Asturias · El Mazuco · Cape Cherchel · Sabiñánigo · Teruel
1938
Alfambra · Cape Palos  · Aragón · 2nd Belchite · Bombing of Barcelona · Caspe · Lérida · 1st Gandesa · Segre · XYZ Line · Balaguer · Los Blázquez · Alicante · Granollers · Bielsa · Merida pocket · Ebro · 2nd Gandesa · Cantabria · Cabra
1939
Catalonia · Valsequillo · La Garriga · Menorca  · Cartagena · Olite · Final offensive

The Catalonia Offensive was part of the Spanish Civil War. The Nationalist Army started the offensive on December 23, 1938, and rapidly conquered Republican-held Catalonia with its capital city from October 1937,[11] Barcelona. Barcelona was captured on January 26, 1939. The Republican government headed for the French border. Thousands of people fleeing the Nationalists also crossed the French border in the following month, to be placed in internment camps. Franco closed the border with France by February 10, 1939.

Contents

Background

After the defeat of the Ebro the Republican Army was broken and would never recover. The Republicans had lost most of their armament and experienced units.[12] Furthermore, on October 1938 the republican government agreed to withdraw the volunteers of the International Brigades.[13] On the other hand, the Nationalists received new supplies of ammunitions, weapons and aircraft from Germany.[14] Furthermore, after the Munich Agreement, the hope of an intervention of the Western democracies in order to aid the Republic against Germany and Italy vanished.[12] France had closed again the frontier in mid-June 1938 and froze Republican financial assets in French Banks.[15]

The Combatants

Nationalists

At the beginning of December, the Nationalists concentrated an army of 300.000[1]-340.000[16] men led by the general Davila in order to conquer Catalonia. The Nationalists assembled their best divisions all along the front from the Pyrenees to the Mediterranean. Along the Segre the Nationalists deployed the Muñoz Grandes's Army Corps of Urgel, the Garcia Valiño's Army Corps of Maestrazgo and the Moscardo's Aragon Army Corps; in the confluence of the Segre with the Ebro the Gambara's Italian Cuerpo Legionario Italiano of four divisions (55,000 men) and Solchaga's Army Corps of Urgel; and in the Ebro the Yagüe's Moroccan Corps.[1] The Nationalists also had, according to Beevor, 300 tanks, more than 500 aircraft (among them the Me-109e and Heinkel 112 fighters) and 1,400 cannons.[17]

Republicans

Opposing the Nationalists the Republicans had the Colonel Perea's East Army and the Colonel Modesto's Ebro Army under the command of the General Hernandez Saravia, with 220,000[18]–300,000[1] men, many unarmed (Hernandez Saravia said that the Republican army had only 17,000 rifles for all Catalonia),[19] 106 airplanes[5] (most of them Chatos), 250 cannons and 40 tanks (many of them unserviceable due to shortage of spare parts).[2] The soviet government agreed to send to Catalonia a shipment of 250 aircraft, 250 tanks and 650 cannons,[1] but the shipment did not reach Bordeaux until 15 January and only a small part of it crossed the border.[20] Furthermore, because of the international isolation of the Republic and the lack of food (according to Beevor, in Barcelona the ration per day was down to 100 grams of lentils)[5] the morale of the government troops and civil population in the Republican zone was very low. The people only wished the end of the war: "…just let it be over, it doesn’t matter how it ends, but let it end now."[21]

The Battle

Nationalist Offensive

The Nationalist offensive was planned for the 10 December, but was postponed to the 23 December.[8] On 23 December, the Italians and the Navarreses crossed the Segre at Mequinenza, broke the Republican lines and advanced sixteen kilometres, but they were stopped by the V and XV Republican corps led by Lister on 25 December. On the left flank, Muñoz Grandes and Garcia Valiño advanced towards Cervera and Artesa, but they were blocked by the 26th Republican Division. On the south, Yagüe's troops were held back by the Ebro's floodwater. The Republicans had stopped the first Nationalist attack, nevertheless, they had lost 40 aircraft in the first ten days of the battle.[22]

On 3 January, Solchaga attacked Borjas Blancas, Muñoz Grandes and Garcia Valiño occupied Artesa, and Yagüe crossed the Ebro. Moscardo attacked from Lerida and the Italians occupied Borjas Blancas on 5 January. The same day, the republican army started a surprise attack in Extremadura towards Peñarroya in order to divert nationalists forces, but the offensive was halted after a few days and the Nationalist offensive in Catalonia continued.[23] On 9 January, the Moscardo's Aragon Army Corps joined Gambara at Mollerusa and broke the northern part of the front. The V and XV Republican Corps collapsed and retreated in disorder. On 15 January the Aragon and Maestrazgo Corps conquered Cervera and the Morrocan Corps after a one day march of 50 km occupied Tarragona. By this day, the Nationalists had conquered a third of the Catalonia, had taken 23.000 prisoners and killed 5.000 Republican soldiers.[24]

Fall of Barcelona

Then, the Republican government tried to organize the defense of Barcelona, ordered the general mobilization of all men to forty-five and militarized all the industry. Nevertheless, the successive defensive lines (L1, L2, L3) fell,[25] the Republican forces were outnumbered six to one and the Nationalist air force bombed Barcelona every day (40 times beetwen 21 and 25 January).[26] Then became clear that the defense of the city was impossible.[27] On 22 January, Solchaga and Yagüe reached the Llobregat only a few miles west of Barcelona, Muñoz Grandes and Garcia Valiño attacked Sabadell and Tarrasa, and Gambara advanced to Badalona. The chief of staff of the Republican Army, Rojo told to the Republican prime minister Negrín that the front had ceased to exist and the government abandoned Barcelona, after release most of its prisoners.[28] Also a large part of the Barcelona population fled from the city. On 24 January, Garcia Valiño occupied Manresa,[29] and on 25 January the Nationalist vanguard occupied the Tibidabo in the outskirts of Barcelona. The Nationalists occupied Barcelona on 26 January,[30] and there were five days of looting by the Yagüe's Regulares[31] and extrajudicial killings (paseos).[32]

The retreat

After the occupation of Barcelona the Nationalists troops, tired from the long marches, slowed their advance but soon resumed their offensive, pursuing the retreating columns of Republican soldiers and civilians.[28] On 1 February, Negrin proposed, in the last meeting of the Cortes in the Figueres Castle, capitulation with the sole condition of respecting the lives of the vanquished and the holding of a plebiscite so the Spanish people could decide the form of government, but Franco didn't accept.[33] On 2 February the Nationalists entered Gerona, on 3 February arrived within 50 kilometes of the frontier,[9] on 8 February occupied Figueras and Rojo ordered to republican troops to withdraw to the French frontier.[9] Hundred of thousands of Republican soldiers, women, children and old men marched to the French frontier on foot, carts, buses or trucks[34] through bitterly cold sleet and snow. Their retreat was covered by units of the Republican Army which carried out hit and run attacks and ambushes.[35] The Nationalist air force and the Condor Legion bombed and straffed the roads leading to France.[36] From 28 January, the French government announced that civilians could cross the frontier and on 5 February also the Republican soldiers.[37] Between 400,000[38] and 500,000,[9] Republican refugees crossed the frontier among them the president of the Republic (Manuel Azaña), the prime minister (Juan Negrín) and the chief of staff of the Republican Army (Vicente Rojo). Negrin returned to Spain on 9 February, but Azaña and Rojo refused to return.[36] By 9 February the Nationalists reached the frontier, on 10 February the last units of the Modesto's Army of the Ebro crossed into France and the Nationalists sealed the frontier.[1]

Aftermath

Military and political consecuences.

With the fall of Catalonia, the Republic lost the second largest city of the country, the Catalan war industry and a large part of its army (more than 200.000 soldiers).[39] On 27 February Azaña resigned and the same day France and the Great Britain recognised the Francoist government.[40] A further military resistance was impossible and the war was lost for the Republic.

The Catalonia autonomy was abolished. The catalan language, the Sardana and the catalan christian names were forbidden. All the catalan newspapers were requisitioned and the forbidden books retired and burned.[41] Even the inscriptions on tombs in the Montjuïc Cemetery, commemorating Durruti, Ascaso and Ferrer i Guardia were removed.[42]

Fate of the Republican refugees.

The Republican exiles were interned in fifteen improvised camps (mostly barbed-wire enclosures on the sand, without basic shelter, sanitary or cooking facilities)[43] by the French government like Argelès, Gurs, Rivesaltes and Vernet.[44] The living conditions in the camps were very harsh (in the first six months, 14,672 refugees died from malnutrition or dysentery),[45] the French government encouraged the refugees to return and by the end of 1939 between 70,000[46] and 180,000 refugees had returned to Spain, but 300,000 never returned.[47] Many fled to the Soviet Union (between 3,000[48] and 5,000),[49] USA and Canada (about 1,000), and Great Britain, Belgium and other european countries (between 3,000[50] and 5,000).[51] Many others managed to reach Latin America (30,000 to Mexico, 10,000 to Argentina, 5,000 to Venezuela, 5,000 to Dominican Republic, 3,500 to Chile, etc.)[52] seeking asylum.[53] Nevertheless, at least 140,000 refugees remained in the Metropolitan France and 19,000 in the French colonies of the North Africa,[54] and after the fall of France 10,000[55]-15,000[56] refugees were detained by the Nazis and deported to concentration camps. Another 10,000 joined the French Resistance[57] and more than 2,000 to the Free French Forces.[58]

Notes

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h Thomas, Hugh. The Spanish Civil War. Penguin Books. 2001. London. p. 844
  2. ^ a b c d Beevor, Antony. The Battle for Spain. The Spanish Civil War 1936-1939. Penguin Books. 2006. p. 373
  3. ^ Jackson, Gabriel. The Spanish Republic and the Civil War, 1931-1939. Princeton University Press. Princenton. 1967. p. 463
  4. ^ a b c Thomas, Hugh. The Spanish Civil War. Penguin Books. 2001. London. p. 845
  5. ^ a b c Beevor, Antony. The Battle for Spain. The Spanish Civil War 1936-1939. Penguin Books. 2006. p. 368
  6. ^ Jackson, Gabriel. The Spanish Republic and the Civil War, 1931-1939. Princeton University Press. Princeton. 1967. p. 463
  7. ^ a b c d Beevor, Antony. The Battle for Spain. The Spanish Civil War 1936-1939. Penguin Books. 2006. p. 372
  8. ^ a b Thomas, Hugh. The Spanish Civil War. Penguin Books. 2001. London. p.844
  9. ^ a b c d Beevor, Antony. The Battle for Spain. The Spanish Civil War 1936-1939. Penguin Books. 2006. p. 382
  10. ^ Thomas, p. 877
  11. ^ Graham, Helen. The Spanish Civil War. A very short introduction. Oxford University Press. 2005. p. 102
  12. ^ a b Preston, Paul. The Spanish Civil War. Reaction, Revolution & Revenge. Harper Perennial. London. 2006. p. 292
  13. ^ Preston, Paul. The Spanish Civil War. Reaction, Revolution & Revenge. Harper Perennial. London. 2006. pp.292-293
  14. ^ Preston, Paul. The Spanish Civil War. Reaction, Revolution & Revenge. Harper Perennial. London. 2006. p. 294
  15. ^ Graham, Helen. The Spanish Civil War. A very short introduction. Oxford University Press. 2005. p. 99
  16. ^ Beevor, Antony. The Battle for Spain. The Spanish Civil War 1936-1939. Penguin Books. 2006. p. 372
  17. ^ Thomas, Hugh. The Spanish Civil War. Penguin Books. 2001. London. pp. 372-373
  18. ^ Beevor, Antony. The Battle for Spain. The Spanish Civil War 1936-1939. Penguin Books. 2006. p. 373
  19. ^ Thomas, Hugh. The Spanish Civil War. Penguin Books. 2001. London. p. 847
  20. ^ Beevor, Antony. The Battle for Spain. The Spanish Civil War 1936-1939. Penguin Books. 2006. p. 488
  21. ^ Graham, Helen. The Spanish Civil War. A very short introduction. Oxford University Press. 2005. p. 111
  22. ^ Beevor, Antony. The Battle for Spain. The Spanish Civil War 1936-1939. Penguin Books. 2006. p. 374
  23. ^ Beevor, Antony. The Battle for Spain. The Spanish Civil War 1936-1939. Penguin Books. 2006. pp.375-376
  24. ^ Beevor, Antony. The Battle for Spain. The Spanish Civil War 1936-1939. Penguin Books. 2006. pp. 374-376
  25. ^ Thomas, Hugh. The Spanish Civil War. Penguin Books. 2001. London. p.848
  26. ^ Beevor, Antony. The Battle for Spain. The Spanish Civil War 1936-1939. Penguin Books. 2006. pages 376 and 484
  27. ^ |Beevor, Antony. The Battle for Spain. The Spanish Civil War 1936-1939. Penguin Books. 2006. p. 376
  28. ^ a b Beevor, Antony. The Battle for Spain. The Spanish Civil War 1936-1939. Penguin Books. 2006. p. 377
  29. ^ Thomas, Hugh. The Spanish Civil War. Penguin Books. 2001. London. p.845
  30. ^ Preston, Paul. Doves of War. Four women of Spain. Harper Collins. London. 2002. p.374
  31. ^ Beevor, Antony. The Battle for Spain. The Spanish Civil War 1936-1939. Penguin Books. 2006. p. 378
  32. ^ Thomas, Hugh. The Spanish Civil War. Penguin Books. London. 2001. p.850
  33. ^ Beevor, Antony. The battle for Spain. The Spanish civil war. Penguin Books. 2006. London. pp.380-381
  34. ^ Preston, Paul. Doves of War. Four women of Spain. Harper Collins. London. 2002. p.374
  35. ^ Beevor, Antony. The Battle for Spain. The Spanish Civil War 1936-1939. Penguin Books. 2006. p. 379
  36. ^ a b Preston, Paul. The Spanish Civil War. Reaction, Revolution & Revenge. Harper Perennial. London. 2006. p. 295
  37. ^ Thomas, Hugh. The Spanish Civil War. Penguin Books. 2001. London. p. 854
  38. ^ Thomas, Hugh. The Spanish Civil War. Penguin Books. 2001. London. p. 860
  39. ^ Thomas, Hugh. The Spanish Civil War. Penguin Books. 2001. London. p.854
  40. ^ Graham, Helen. The Spanish Civil War. A very short introduction. Oxford University Press. 2005. p. 165
  41. ^ Beevor, Antony. The Battle for Spain. The Spanish Civil War 1936-1939. Penguin Books. London 2006. pp.378-379
  42. ^ Thomas, Hugh. The Spanish Civil War. Penguin Books. 2001. London. pp.850-851
  43. ^ Preston, Paul. Doves of War. Four women of Spain. Harper Collins. 2002. London. p.180
  44. ^ Beevor, Antony. The Battle for Spain. The Spanish Civil War 1936-1939. Penguin Books. London 2006. pp.411-412
  45. ^ Preston, Paul. Doves of War. Four women of Spain. Harper Collins. 2002. London. p.180.
  46. ^ Graham, Helen. The Spanish Civil War. A very short introduction. Oxford University Press. 2005. p. 117
  47. ^ Beevor, Antony. The Battle for Spain. The Spanish Civil War 1936-1939. Penguin Books. 2006. p. 412
  48. ^ Beevor, Antony. The Battle for Spain. The Spanish Civil War 1936-1939. Penguin Books. 2006. p. 412
  49. ^ Graham, Helen. The Spanish Civil War. A very short introduction. Oxford University Press. 2005. p. 120
  50. ^ http://geocommons.com/maps/11419
  51. ^ Beevor, Antony. The Battle for Spain. The Spanish Civil War 1936-1939. Penguin Books. 2006. p. 412
  52. ^ http://geocommons.com/maps/11419
  53. ^ Graham, Helen. The Spanish Civil War. A very short introduction. Oxford University Press. 2005. p.115
  54. ^ http://geocommons.com/maps/11419
  55. ^ Graham, Helen. The Spanish Civil War. A very short introduction. Oxford University Press. 2005. p. 126
  56. ^ Preston, Paul. The Spanish Civil War. Reaction, Revolution & Revenge. Harper Perennial. London. 2006. p. 315
  57. ^ Graham, Helen. The Spanish Civil War. A very short introduction. Oxford University Press. 2005. p. 125
  58. ^ Graham, Helen. The Spanish Civil War. A very short introduction. Oxford University Press. 2005. p. 120

Sources