Battle of the Jarama

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Military operations during the
Spanish Civil War (1936-1939)

The Battle of Jarama took place from 6. February bis 27. February 1937 during the Spanish Civil War south-east of Madrid. Regular units of the nationalists under Franco , the Spanish Foreign Legion , colonial troops from Morocco , the Republican army and units of the International Brigades faced each other.

prehistory

In November 1936, the attempt by the nationalist forces under Franco to conquer Madrid failed, and Madrid was besieged . General Emilio Mola was the commander in chief of the nationalist troops near Madrid. The plan has now been drawn up to cross the Jarama River , 11 kilometers southeast of Madrid, in order to cut off communication between Madrid and the new seat of the Popular Front government in Valencia .

According to the plans, the attack was to take place at the same time as the attack by the allied Italians at Guadalajara northeast of Madrid ( Battle of Guadalajara ) in order to encompass Madrid on both sides. However, since the Italians were not ready in time, General Mola decided to carry out the offensive alone.

The nationalist troops consisted of around 25,000 infantry , including troops from the Spanish Foreign Legion . Furthermore stood General Mola ten squadrons of cavalry and troops of the Condor Legion are available, including two battalions with heavy machine guns and a tank unit under the command of Wilhelm Ritter von Thoma with several 88-mm anti-aircraft and 105-mm artillery pieces.

The primary aim of the offensive was to take the western bank of the Jarama River and the adjacent heights of La Marañosa , and then to advance to Madrid over the El puente del Pindoque bridges at Soto de Pajares and the Arganda bridge near Arganda del Rey .

Course of the battle

February 6th to February 10th

The plain in front of the heights of La Marañosa
View of the Jarama river in the town of Titulcia

The nationalist offensive began on February 5 with attacks on republican positions under the command of Sebastián Pozas on the west bank of the Jarama in the valley between La Marañosa and Ciempozuelos . The nationalists advanced with five mobile brigades and totally overwhelmed the surprised Republicans. Brigadier leaders were Francisco García-Escámez , Eduardo Sáenz de Buruaga , Fernando Barrón Ortiz , Carlos Asensio and Ricardo Rada . Artillery support was provided by six 155 mm batteries and an artillery group of the Condor Legion with 8.8 cm anti-aircraft guns.

Colonel Asensio was in command of the center of the attack. On the left (northern) flank led Rada and on the right (southern) flank García-Escámez. García-Escámez's brigade overran the Republican positions at Ciempozuelos in the southern combat zone on February 6. In this attack, the Republican XVIII. Brigade to 1,800 men. Subsequently, Rada's brigade captured the hills of La Marañosa in the northern combat area . These hills made it possible to dominate large areas with artillery and machine gun fire when crossing a river. The two republican battalions stationed on the hill of La Marañosa were worn out to the last man. Furthermore, on February 7th, the nationalists were able to conquer the towns of Caen, La Boyeriza , Mesa, Valdecabas and Gózquez de Abajo . Until February 8, the west bank of the Jarama was in the hands of the nationalists.

Parts of Sebastián Pozas' republican army were already on the run when the elite brigades of Enrique Líster and El Campesino stabilized the front. José Miaja also sent the XI. International Brigade to the Jarama. On February 9, 1937, the Republican defense rallied along the heights on the east bank of the Jarama. A republican division to which the XII. International Brigade was held in reserve.

February 11th to February 13th

Map of the course of the battle from February 12th to 14th

On the morning of February 11, a small group of Moroccan colonial soldiers of the Spanish Legion crossed the Jarama unnoticed near the Pindoque bridge. They penetrated the positions of the André Marty Battalion of the XII. International brigades at Casas de Pajares , so that the nationalists could take the bridge El puente del Pindoque near the village of Soto de Pajares . In this attack, the André Marty battalion was wiped out. Then the nationalist cavalry crossed the bridge under heavy Republican fire and built a bridgehead. Although the explosives attached to the bridge by the Republican forces detonated, the bridge remained intact. The Garibaldi Battalion of the XII. However, the international brigade managed to maintain positions on a hill near Soto de Pajares. The battalion thus prevented the further advance of the nationalists on this section of the front.

Furthermore, on February 11, at 3 a.m., the brigade led by Barrón Ortiz crossed the river near the bridge from Arganda del Rey to Madrid. The Dąbrowski battalion of the XII. The International Brigade succeeded in stabilizing the front shortly before the bridge at Arganda del Rey. They prevented the nationalists from advancing any further.

On the same morning, the nationalists also captured the village of San Martín de la Vega . The Republicans managed to hold the bridge in place. On the night of February 11-12, a Moroccan unit crossed the Jarama River near the bridge. The unit managed to take the bridge. After building a beachhead, the nationalists advanced and during the day conquered the heights of Pingarrón . The nationalists brought their reserves, the Sáenz de Buruaga brigade, across the bridge at San Martín de la Vega and on February 12 began their offensive in the direction of Morata de Tajuña . At the same time, the Republicans led the newly established XV. International Brigade with the British Saklatvala Battalion into battle. Commander of the XV. International Brigade was János Gálicz ( General Gal ).

The Saklatvala battalion carried the brunt of the nationalist offensive towards Morata de Tajuña on February 12 . For seven hours, the battalion defended a hill called "Suicide Hill" under heavy artillery and machine gun fire from the heights of Pingarrón . In these skirmishes the nationalists threw all their reserves into battle. The next day the nationalists were able to take "Suicide Hill". After a counter-attack by the Saklatvala battalion, the Republicans were able to retake the hill.

Furthermore, on February 12, the nationalist brigade of Sáenz de Buruaga advanced against the road from Arganda del Rey to Madrid. But it was from the XI. International brigade with the Thälmann Battalion , the Dimitrov Battalion and a Soviet tank unit with T-26 tanks pushed back to the Jarama River. This counterattack, however, was repulsed with the help of the nationalist artillery dug into La Marañosa .

The Republican Air Force, which consisted largely of Soviet planes and pilots, was able to maintain air sovereignty until February 13th. After that, Italian and Spanish planes arrived, creating an equilibrium of forces in the air.

Until February 14th, the nationalist troops tried to advance from the heights of Pingarrón over the "Suicide Hill" to Morata de Tajuña .

February 14th to February 23rd

From February 14, republican troops in the northern combat area tried to overcome the nationalist positions of José Enrique Varela . The first advance on February 14 with five brigades and 50 T-26 tanks with the participation of three international brigades collapsed due to the artillery bombardment at La Marañosa . In addition, the Saklatvala battalion , which was defending "Suicide Hill", suffered heavy losses from artillery fire. The fights for "Suicide Hill" turned out to be the toughest of the entire battle.

On February 15, General José Miaja took over the leadership of the republican units. Previously, the high command was split between him and Sebastián Pozas , which did not facilitate the coordination of the republican attacks. Miaja ordered on February 17th the XI., XII. XIV. And XV. International Brigade launched a major attack. These four International Brigades held the front from Arganda del Rey to Morata de Tajuña . The only success was that the nationalist troops in the northern part of the combat area in front of Arganda del Rey had to retreat. The international brigades suffered heavy casualties in these counter-attacks. In addition, the Saklatvala battalion had to give up its position on "Suicide Hill".

February 23 to February 27

There were further attacks by Republican forces between February 23 and 27. General Gal ordered the Pingarrón Heights to be retaken. In this attack, the Lincoln battalion lost more than 110 brigadists with a strength of 263. A soldier said after the attack: "The Lincoln battalion was named after Abraham Lincoln because he was also murdered." After the failed attacks by the International Brigades, the front calmed down and the enemy dug into the ground.

More battles

On the morning of March 13th, the Irish Brigade of the Spanish Legion attacked Republican positions east of the town of Titulcia . After being fired by the Republican artillery, the brigade withdrew to its starting position. On March 17, the brigade was transferred to the heights of La Marañosa , where it was stationed for a few months until it was disbanded in the summer.

consequences

At the end of February, the opposing parties found themselves in a dead end, as further attacks would have made little sense due to the expanded positions. Both sides suffered heavy casualties (between 6,000 and 25,000 dead on each side, according to various estimates) and the troops were exhausted and short of food and ammunition.

Despite having managed to cross the river, the nationalist troops ultimately failed to break the Madrid-Valencia line. The area lost strategic importance and a trench warfare ensued.

Commemoration

Near Pingarrón, the site of the battle for Suicide Hill , in honor of the 600 fallen soldiers of British Battalion 375, the XV. International Brigade Lincoln / Washington a memorial (coordinates ⊙ ).

literature

  • Antony Beevor : The Spanish Civil War. Cassell, London 1999, ISBN 0-304-35281-0 .
  • Ken Bradley: The International Brigades in Spain. 1936-39 (= Osprey Military. Elite Series. 53). Color plates by Mike Chappell. Osprey Publishing, London 1994, ISBN 1-85532-367-2 .
  • Moritz Krawinkel: The Battle of the Jarama. Between history and memory. Dietz, Berlin 2011, ISBN 978-3-320-02265-5 (also: Frankfurt am Main, diploma thesis, 2009).
  • R. Dan Richardson: The Defense of Madrid: Mysterious Generals, Red Front Fighters, and the International Brigades. In: Military Affairs. Vol. 43, No. 4, 1979, pp. 178-185, doi: 10.2307 / 1986750 .
  • Hugh Thomas : The Spanish Civil War. Revised and updated edition. Modern Library, New York NY 2001, ISBN 0-375-75515-2 .

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c Batalla del Jarama. (PDF; 400 kB) ( Memento from July 14, 2014 in the Internet Archive ) Publication of the city of Arganda del Rey (Spanish), accessed on December 4, 2015.
  2. ↑ Hugh Thomas: The Spanish Civil War. Ullstein, Berlin West 1962, p. 291.
  3. ↑ a b El puente del Pindoque, restos de una Batalla. ( Memento of the original from June 21, 2012 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. Website with pictures (Spanish) of the battle for the bridge of El puente del Pindoque, accessed on December 4, 2015. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.parquelineal.es