Nine Nationalities Battalion
The nine nationalities battalion , also nine nations battalion , was a mixed battalion in the Spanish Civil War , which mainly consisted of French , Belgians , Finns , Germans , Austrians , Dutch , Danes , Swiss , Italians and British . It was a battalion of the International Brigades in the Spanish Civil War between 1936 and 1937.
In French it is known as Sans Nom or Neufs Nationalités and in English as Nine Nations Battalion .
XIII. International Brigade
Formation of the nine nationalities battalion
The battalion was set up on December 15, 1936 in Albacete , the central base and training camp of the International Brigades. It was named N o 9 . The battalion became part of the XIV International Brigade, later called La Marsellesa .
The basis for the creation of the XIV International Brigade was laid in Albacete on December 2, 1936 . In addition to the nine nationalities battalion, the Vaillant-Couturier-Battalion , the Henri-Barbusse-Battalion and the La-Marseillaise-Battalion were grouped in the XIV International Brigade. The commander of the XIV International Brigade was General Walter and the command staff was taken over by the Italian Aldo Morandi . The first political commissioner was the Englishman Ralph Winston Fox ., Later the Frenchman André Heusler . The battalion was well armed but poorly trained.
Cordoba Province
In the face of the nationalist offensive, the Nine Nations Battalion without the XIV International Brigade was hastily ordered to reinforce the province of Cordoba . On December 23, 1936, the Nine Nations Battalion arrived in Andújar in the province of Jaén and advanced across the road from Andújar to Villa del Rio without knowing that the places Villa del Río and Lopera had already been occupied by the nationalists .
Shortly before Villa del Rio, the brigade was attacked by units of the nationalists and the battalion encircled in the forests along the Guadalquivir , from which there was practically no escape as the river was flooding at this time of year. The Italian and English companies were almost completely wiped out. In addition, General Queipo de Llano announced over the radio that more than forty Italian interbrigadists had been liquidated after their capture.
When the XIV. International Brigade with the Vaillant-Couturier-Battalion , the La-Marseillaise-Battalion and the Henri-Barbusse-Battalion took up positions in front of Villa del Río and Lopera on December 25, 1936, the XIV. Brigade tried on December 28 Take Lopera in 1936. Nevertheless, by advancing to the places Villa del Rio and Porcuna , the brigade succeeded in securing the nine-nationality battalion. The battalion suffered losses of 65% in these fighting, so that 214 of the 600 brigadists fell.
Dissolution of the nine nationalities battalion
The battalion was disbanded on January 16, 1937.
literature
- Hanns Maaßen : Brigada Internacional is our honorary name ... (The tragedy of the 9th Bataillos) , Röderberg-Verlag GmbH, Frankfurt / Main 1976, ISBN 3-87682-515-6 , pages 232 to 234
Web links
- La Marsellesa, Historique de la XIVeme Brigade Internationale, "la Marsellesa" (French), accessed May 10, 2012
Individual evidence
- ↑ Hanns Maaßen : Brigada Internacional is our name of honor ... , Röderberg-Verlag GmbH, Frankfurt / Main 1976, ISBN 3-87682-515-6 , page 224