Unity of Rigas Fereosa
The Greek unit Rigas Fereosa was a military unit of the Dimitrov Battalion in the Spanish Civil War . It was named after Rigas Velestinlis , a pioneer of the Greek revolution of 1821, which ultimately led to Greek independence from the Ottoman Empire .
The first Greek volunteers
The first group of Greek volunteers came to Valencia by ship from France in October 1936 . After their arrival in Albacete , the headquarters of the International Brigades , a Greek unit was formed as part of the Dąbrowski battalion , under the command of Panagiotis Ayvadzisa. Another group of Greek volunteers was assigned to the Balkan unit of the Thalmann battalion , while a group of 60 Cypriots arrived via London. This group became part of the British Saklatvala Battalion . In addition, Greeks joined the Commune de Paris battalion and the Edgar André battalion in Madrid .
Furthermore, on January 12, 1937, about 100 Americans of Greek origin reached Spain. As part of the Lincoln battalion , the American-Greek brigadists fought in the Battle of Jarama from February 23, 1937 . In an attempt to take the heights of Pingarrón, the " Suicide Hill ", the Lincoln battalion lost over 110 brigadists with a man strength of 263. Five of the brigadists killed were Greeks.
The Rigas Fereosa unit of the Dimitrov Battalion
The reason why the Greek brigadists were not grouped into one unit was the difficulty in forming battalions with homogeneous languages. In December 1936 the 18th battalion, the Dimitrov Battalion , was formed in Albacete with 800 brigadists, including about 400 Bulgarians , 160 Greeks and 25 Yugoslavs . Greek brigadists from other battalions were then assigned to the Dimitrov Battalion, with the American Greeks remaining with the Lincoln Battalion and the Cypriot Greeks with the Saklatvala Battalion.
The first commander of the Greek unit Rigas Fereosa of the Dimitrov battalion was Yannis Pantelias, a member of the leadership of the Communist Party of Greece . Kyriakos Stefopulos, alias Dimitris Perros, became the commissioner. Initially, the unit was named after the leader of the Communist Party of Greece, Nikos Zachariadis, who was liquidated during the Metaxas dictatorship . Later, the Greek unit was named after the Greek revolutionary Rigas Velestinlis . In addition, the Dimitrov Battalion became part of the XV on January 31, 1937. International Brigade. In February 1937, the Dimitrov Battalion as well as the Lincoln Battalion and the Saklatvala Battalion suffered heavy losses in the Battle of the Jarama . The Greek brigadists suffered the greatest losses at the Battle of Belchite and the Battle of Brunete .
Separation of the Dimitrov Battalion from the XV. International Brigade
At the end of 1937, after the Battle of Brunete, the XV. International Brigade regrouped with Lincoln-Washington Battalion , Mackenzie Papineau Battalion , Saklatvala Battalion, and Dimitrov Battalion . The Lincoln-Washington-Battalion and the Saklatvala-Battalion, with their Greek brigadists, remained with the XV. International Brigades, with the Dimitrov Battalion assigned to the 129th International Brigade. Thus remained with the XV. International Brigade 70 Greek Cypriots in the Saklatvala Battalion and 24 American brigadists of Greek origin in the Lincoln-Washington Battalion.
Dimitrov Battalion with the Greek unit Rigas Fereosa
After the separation of the Dimitrov battalion with its Greek unit Rigas Fereosa from the XV. International Brigade, the Dimitrov Battalion remained in central Spain as part of the 129th International Brigade. The 129th International Brigade did not intervene until September 1938, during the fighting in the Levant . After the decision to withdraw the International Brigades, the 129th International Brigade was shipped from Valencia to Catalonia by sea . Until the demobilization of the International Brigade on October 5, 1938, the Dimitrov battalion with the Greek brigadists remained with the 129th International Brigade.
Lincoln Washington Battalion and Saklatvala Battalion
In the following months the Greeks, who were in the XV. International Brigade remained to take part in the Battle of Teruel . The Pontus Greek brigadist Minas Thomaidis died in these fighting . In March 1938 the Greek brigadists of the Saklatvala battalion suffered heavy losses. 20 Greek brigadists were killed in these fighting. On April 1st, the American-Greek brigadists of the Lincoln-Washington battalion defend the heights north of the city of Kantesa. After two days the battalion was ordered to withdraw. In these retreat skirmishes, 20 Greek brigadists were killed and three were taken prisoner. During the fighting of the XV. International Brigades at the Battle of the Ebro in July 1938, the Greek unit of the Saklatvala battalion suffered heavy losses again. The commandant, seaman Nikos Kurkuliotisa, was also killed.
Aftertaste
After the Catalonia offensive in February 1939, many brigadists fled across the border to France . There they were sent to internment camps that were quickly improvised along the French Mediterranean coast (including in Saint-Cyprien (Pyrénées-Orientales) , Camp d'Agde internment camp and Argelès-sur-Mer internment camp ), where they first had to sleep on the bare ground. The French authorities gave them the choice of either staying in the detention center or returning to their home countries.