Battle of Brunete

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

The Battle of Brunete took place 25 km west of Madrid between July 6th and 25th 1937 during the Spanish Civil War . It is a failed offensive by the Republican army against the nationalists, which resulted in great losses.

prehistory

Map of the Battle of Brunete
The GDR postage stamp from 1966 shows Heinrich Rau and the march past of members of the International Brigades after the Battle of Brunete

After the fall of Bilbao on June 19, the Republican General Staff came to the conclusion that an attack on Brunete would ease nationalist pressure on Cantabria and Madrid and allow the republican troops fleeing to reorganize. Brunete was also chosen because the city was on the road to Extremadura and its loss would make it difficult for the nationalists to supply their troops who were besieging Madrid.

However, political reasons also played a role. The Communists wanted to prove to the Soviets with the offensive that they were able to take the initiative themselves. The Soviet advisors had been pressing for an attack on Brunete since the spring of 1937.

The arms deliveries from the Soviet Union had already declined due to the blockade of the republican ports by the nationalists. Prime Minister Juan Negrín was forced to convince the French Prime Minister Camille Chautemps that the Second Spanish Republic was still able to act militarily after the loss of Bilbao and Málaga . Republicans assumed that a success at Brunete would lead the French to reopen their borders.

The parties

republican

General Miaja commanded two army divisions, with about 80,000 soldiers.

The 14th Division under Cipriano Mera , the 45th Division under General Kléber and the 69th Division under Gustavo Doran were available as reserves.

Nationalists

The nationalist army was under the command of General Andrés Saliquet Zumeta. However, General José Enrique Varela Iglesias was in command of the fighting .

  • 7th Army Corps under Varela consisted of:
    • 71st Division, under Colonel Ricardo Serrador Santés. The division consisted mainly of Falangists and about 1,000 Moroccan regulares .
  • 1st Army Corps under the command of Colonel Juan Yagüe consisted of:

Then there were the 150th Division under General Sáenz de Buruaga, the 4th Navarre Brigade under Colonel Juan Bautista Sánchez and the 5th Navarre Brigade under Colonel Alonso Vega.

The units of the German Condor Legion in the north moved to airfields closer to the front immediately after the start of the republican offensive. These included Ávila , Escalona del Prado , Salamanca-Matacán and Villa del Prado .

Republican offensive

July 6th

Early in the morning of July 6th a half-hour bombardment of the positions of the 71st Division by the Republicans began. Immediately after the bombardment, the 11th Division attacked under Líster and was able to advance 8 km and enclose Brunete. The nationalist troops there were completely taken by surprise and at noon the city fell into the hands of the Republicans.

The Republican advances on the flanks of Lister's 11th Divisions, by the 34th and 46th Divisions, met with fierce resistance from the nationalists and forced Lister to interrupt his advance south of Brunete.

The nationalists handed over command of their troops to General Varela. In the evening the 12th, 13th, 150th Divisions and the Condor Legion arrived at the front.

7th of July

The 15th Division was stuck at Villanueva de la Cañada until the British battalion of the XV. International brigades managed to drive the nationalists out of the village. The nationalists in the neighboring villages of Villanueva del Pardillo and Villafranca del Castillo continued to fight.

To enable the 15th Division on the Republican left flank to advance further towards Boadilla, the 10th Division attacked the 12th Division of Asensio at the Mocha Heights. The nationalists were pushed back and retreated to the hills outside Boadilla.

July 8th and 9th

After the 15th Division had crossed the Guadarrama River on July 8, it attacked the positions defended and newly fortified by the 12th Division for two days. All attacks were repulsed and if there was a gain in terrain, this was immediately destroyed by a nationalist counterattack.

The Republican attack on Lister's right flank halted at the village of Quijorna and Modesto ordered the 35th Division to support El Campesino's 46th Division . Actually, the plan was that the 35th Division should support the attack in the center. However, since the 35th Division was now missing in the center, it was impossible for Lister to advance further. On the morning of July 9, the last nationalists were driven out of Quijorna.

July 10-11

Villafranca del Castillo was now slowly being surrounded by Enciso's 10th Division and Kléber's 45th Division. Colonel Jurado had the plan to attack the village on July 11th. However, he fell ill and was replaced by Colonel Casado. Casado did not want to carry out the order for the attack as his soldiers were exhausted and demoralized, but General Miaja insisted on the original plan. The Republicans managed to trap the nationalist occupation of Villafranca del Castillo and General Varela was forced to send the 5th Navarre Brigade to the rescue. The arrival of the Navarre Brigade marked the turning point and the Republicans had to retreat across the Guadarrama River.

The only bright spot for the Republicans was the capture of Villanueva del Pardillo on July 11th by the XII. International Brigade of the 69th Division of Durán.

July 12th to 17th

The Republican offensive came to a standstill and Miaja ordered the end of the attacks on July 15. At this point the Republicans stopped Brunete and cut the road to Extremadura. Major George Nathan the XV. International Brigade was killed by bomb fragments. The nationalists had prevented their troops besieging Madrid from being cut off and the reinforcements that had arrived in the meantime enabled them to prepare their counterattack. The Republicans began digging in and preparing for the anticipated counterattack.

Nationalist counterattack

July 18-23

The counterattack was planned by General Varela and was due to begin on the anniversary of the beginning of the Civil War on July 18th. The Republicans were prepared for the attack, however, and no substantial land gains were made by July 23.

24th July

On July 24th, the nationalists finally managed to break through enemy lines. The 13th Division under General Barrón attacked in the center with the help of German tanks and forced the Republican 11th Division to withdraw from Brunete, only the city cemetery remained in Republican hands.

July 25th

A counterattack by Republicans of the 14th Republican Division under the command of Cipriano Mera on Brunete was repulsed and Lister's 11th Division was withdrawn from the cemetery. Franco ordered Varela to stop his attack so the nationalists could finally defeat the republicans in the north near Santander . For propaganda reasons Franco chose July 25th as the day of St. Jacob , the patron saint of Spain, for the cessation of the counterattacks and claimed victory under this sign.

consequences

At the end of the battle, the Republicans' attempt to occupy the road to Extremadura had failed. However, they still held Villanueva de la Cañada, Quijorna and Villanueva del Pardillo. From this perspective, both parties saw themselves as winners.

However, the losses in people and material were considerably higher on the Republican side. The Republican Army lost much irreplaceable material and so many of its best soldiers in the International Brigades that the outcome of the battle can be viewed as a strategic victory for the nationalists.

Politically, the communists lost much of their prestige, as the offensive could not prevent the north of Spain from being lost. In addition, many of the International Brigades refused to go back to the front. The government had to use the Guardia de Asalto to restore order.

Due to the very successful deployment of the Condor Legion, Germany received special economic concessions from Franco.

literature

  • Hugh Thomas : The Spanish Civil War. Harper, New York NY 1961.

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