Spanish Civil War

The Battle for Spain: The Spanish Civil War 1936-1939 (1982, 2006) by Antony Beevor

Update and revised version of the 1982 edition.

The Spanish Civil War was right vs. left, state centralism vs. regional independence, and authoritarianism vs. freedom of the individual.

The legally elected leftist Republican government was opposed by a right-wing coup d'etat led by General Franco. It is interesting to note that before the election, leftists stated that they would engage in civil war if they lost.

The Republicans were backed by the Soviet Union. The Republicans shipped Spain's gold reserve to Stalin, and in return they got obsolete and often defective weapons and incompetent advisers. Many of the Soviet advisers were shot when they returned to Russia.

Franco's Nationalists were backed by Germany and Italy. The Condor Legion contained some of Germany's best aircraft and pilots. The war served as a testing and training ground. The development of Stuka dive-bomber tactics was particularly interesting. The effectiveness of 88mm anti-aircraft guns against tanks was also demonstrated. Italy provided lesser quality troops and arms.

Britain and France stayed on the sidelines.

Catholics in the United States blocked aid to the Republicans, but American trucks provided to Franco proved decisive in certain situations where the Nationalists needed to rapidly shift troops.

Several International Brigades fought with the Republicans. Volunteers included Americans.

There were many reasons that the Nationalists won and the Republicans lost. One of the main reasons was that the communists spent a lot of their energy trying to eliminate their own allies. The communists also suffered from believing their own propaganda. Political considerations often trumped military ones. One example was the reluctance to concentrate armored fighting vehicles because the Russian proponent of such tactics had been politically discredited..

There was an appalling loss of life, including civilians, and numerous atrocities committed by both sides.

Many Republicans were executed or imprisoned after the war's conclusion. Some escaped abroad. And some of those who escaped to France were arrested by the Gestapo when Germany invaded France in 1940.

With hindsight, it is difficult to understand how a civilized society could descend into the madness of a disastrous civil war.