'A fresh outburst of the old terror' ? : Jewish-born volunteers in the Spanish Civil War

Abstract

In July 1936 a major part of the Spanish army revolted against the democratically elected Popular Front government.The resulting civil war raged on from 1936 to 1939,when general Franco’s troops secured victory, resulting in the establishment of the Franco dictatorship that lasted until 1975. The Spanish Civil War did not only pit a coalition of anti-left parties and groups against the ruling Popular Front coalition. The instant support of Hitler and Mussolini for the Nationalists, headed by general Franco, and subsequent support for the republican Loyalists by the Soviet Union and Comintern turned a civil war, that was deeply rooted in internal Spanish strife, into a conflict with significant international dimensions. Before long,the first foreign volunteers could be seen fighting in different militias on the Spanish battlefields. Most of them were delegates for the Workers Olympiad that was to take place in Barcelona in July 1936 and was organised in answer and opposition to the Olympic Games in Berlin. Instead of joining a sports event they ended up in the middle of a civil war and many decided to stay, volunteering to fight the revolters and subsequently serving in the different militias, anarchist, socialist and communist, that were organised in the early stages of the conflict. In September 1936 the Communist International (Comintern) decided to recruit an international army in aid of the Republic and its member parties began the recruitment of volunteers.