Chapayev Battalion

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The items Louise Michel Battalion , Henri Vuillemin Battalion , Chapayev Battalion and XIII. International brigades overlap thematically. Help me to better differentiate or merge the articles (→  instructions ) . To do this, take part in the relevant redundancy discussion . Please remove this module only after the redundancy has been completely processed and do not forget to include the relevant entry on the redundancy discussion page{{ Done | 1 = ~~~~}}to mark. - Rita2008 ( discussion ) 18:34, Dec. 20, 2014 (CET)
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The Chapayev Battalion ( Spanish Chapayev, English Chapayev Battalion) was a multinational battalion of the International Brigades in the Spanish Civil War .

It was named after the Russian civil war hero Chapayev . The Chapayev Battalion is also known as the 21-Nations Battalion . Until its official dissolution on August 5, 1937, the battalion consisted of brigadists who came from 21 nations, the majority of which came from Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Luxembourg, countries of the former Danube monarchy and Poland.

The Chapayev battalion was set up on December 1, 1936 in Albacete , the central base and training camp of the International Brigades. The battalion became part of the XIII. International Brigade with the Louise Michel Battalion , the Henri Vuillemin Battalion , the Spanish Juan Marco Battalion , an international artillery group and a tank formation. Commander with the rank of major was the Swiss Otto Brunner , adjutant of the battalion was Alwin Günther (pseudonym Julius Lackner) and war commissioner was Edwald Munschke . The battalion suffered losses of around 50% in the fighting for Teruel in December 1937. Furthermore, the Chapayev battalion suffered after fighting in southern Spain at the Battle of Brunete in July 1937 losses of about 75%, whereupon the Chapayev battalion with the XIII. International Brigade ceased to exist. The remaining brigadists were mostly the XI. International Brigade or Dąbrowski Battalion .

history

The Chapayev battalion was set up on November 18, 1936 in Albacete , the central base and training camp of the International Brigades. The battalion was given the number N o 8 .

After completing their military training, the international volunteers were assigned preferentially to battalions with the same language. The Chapayev battalion, however, consisted of twenty-one language groups. The grouping of the brigadists in the Chapayev battalion was carried out in such a way that, if possible, no brigadist had to cope with more than one additional language. Lively brigadists were appointed as translators between the groups. One of these translators was the Romanian student Sigmond Leibowitsch, who spoke half a dozen languages ​​more or less well. The command language was determined to be German and Polish, corresponding to the strongest language groups in the battalion.

According to one list, 201 industrial workers, 68 agricultural workers, 36 seamen, 13 farmers, 25 employees, 7 civil servants, 7 artisans and 8 intellectuals served in the Chapayev battalion. The Chapayev battalion was under the command of the XIII. International Brigade . Chief of Staff of the XIII. International Brigade was Albert Schreiner (pseudonym Albert Schindler). The commander of the XIII. International Brigade was Wilhelm Zaisser , better known as General Gomez. The Polish captain Stasiakowski became the deputy commander of the battalion.

During the formation, the XIII. International Brigade has the following structure:

  1. Louise Michel Battalion (French)
  2. Chapayev battalion (mainly German and Polish)
  3. Henri Vuillemin Battalion (French)
  4. Juan Marco Battalion (Spanish)

Levant

Immediately after the formation of the battalion, it received the order to march into the Levant to secure the coast . The battalion traveled by rail from Albacete to Valencia . The reason for the marching order to secure the coast was that larger troop transports were carried out from Italy to Spain, so that there was a risk of a landing operation by Italian Black Shirt divisions on the Mediterranean coast between Castellón de la Plana and the mouth of the Ebro . After a week of stationing in the barracks of the XIV Marine Infantry Regiment near Valencia, the Chief of Staff Albert Schreiner informed the Brigadists of the Chapayev Battalion that the XIII. International Brigade with the Louise Michel Battalion , the Henri Vuillemin Battalion , the Spanish Juan Marco Battalion and an international artillery group is reinforced by a tank formation and the battalion had received the order to build the tank formation, which was on a freight train at the Railway line from Valencia to Castellón de la Plana was loaded, guarded. After just a week of guarding the tank formation, the Chapayev battalion was replaced by the Henri Vuillemin battalion. The next day the XIII. International Brigade with the Chapayev battalion in December 1936 the order to march to the Teruel Front .

Teruel relief offensive

As part of the fighting over Madrid , the republican government decided to launch a relief offensive near Teruel . The aim of this relief offensive was the conquest of Teruel over the valley of the Alfambra river . The section of the front, a few kilometers from Teruel, was held by the anarchist column Ledesma , which was commanded by Pancho Villahermosa . A characteristic of this section of the front was that it was not yet militarized and that the front at Villalba Bajader had not changed for five months.

On December 26, 1936, shortly after the arrival of the Chapayev battalion in the valley of the Alfambra River, the XIII. International brigade with the tank formation and the Ledesma column gave the order to attack the railway line from Teruel to Caminreal via Concud . The battalion received orders to advance in the morning hours of December 27, 1936 over Monte Viego and Monte Saliga onto the railway line between Teruel and Concud. After conquering Monte Viego, the battalion advanced to the main road to Teruel, which led straight into town. Around noon, units of the Chapayev battalion managed to take the Teruel cemetery, among other things. Due to the nocturnal artillery bombardment, the Chapayev battalion withdrew to a containment position in the area of ​​the main road. The company commander of the first Casimir company died in these battles, whereupon Gustel took over the management of the first company. The next morning there was another attack on Teruel, which was carried forward with tanks, but which was nevertheless repulsed by the fascist troops. Because of the failure of the attack, the deputy commander of the Chapayev battalion, the Polish captain Stasiakowski, was relieved of his command and charged with treason. Due to the acute flank threat from a fascist position on Monte Cementerio, the republican units tried in vain for several days to conquer the plateau. Even with the support of the Henri Vuillemin Battalion and the Louise Michel Battalion , the Chapayev battalion did not manage to take the positions on Monte Cementerio. When the XIII. International Brigade on the Mediterranean coast, the positions of the brigade were to be occupied by the Ledesma column , which however refused to take these positions. The column preferred to take positions that were easier to defend. Thus a gain of five kilometers of terrain was revealed.

Fight for the coastal road on the Gulf of Almería

At the end of January 1937, the battalion received the news that Italian troops were landing in Cádiz , which was already held by the nationalists, and were advancing on Málaga from the west . For this reason, the battalion received on January 27, 1937 the order to march to the Málaga front . The battalion drove from Tortajado to Requena by truck . There the battalion was increased, since during the four-week fighting for Teruel the battalion's losses amounted to 250 to 300 brigadists, with the first company of the Chapayev battalion being hardest hit. Of their 120 brigadists, only 37 were still operational. After the increase in Requena, the majority of the battalion consisted of brigadists with no combat experience. Furthermore, the Spanish Otumba Battalion was grouped into the XIII. International Brigade.

After the regrouping, the XIII. International Brigade has the following structure:

After continuing from Requena via Alicante , Murcia and Huércal-Overa , the battalion reached the Gulf of Almería that night . We went on to the Malaga Front via the coastal road to Motril . Halfway from Alermia to Motril, in Adra , the battalion headquarters decided to occupy the heights of Adra to secure the coastal road. Then the battalion learned that Albuñol by the Spanish VI. Brigade was held, so that the battalion leadership decided to advance along the coastal road in the morning hours. Due to the destruction of the river bridge at La Rábita , the battalion was no longer able to advance by truck, so that the battalion was forced to advance on foot. After the occupation of a strategic ridge in front of La Rábita, which dominated the entire coastal road to Castell de Ferro , the battalion command learned from nightly patrols that the town of Castell de Ferro and the mountain ranges along the coastal road were also not yet occupied by the fascist troops, whereupon the battalion occupied Castell de Ferro the next day. To secure the coastal road, a barrier was set up in front of Castell de Ferro on the road to Motril. The bolt position of the XIII. International brigade by two hundred Spaniards, including a naval unit that advanced with a ship's gun, and Asturian dynamiteros . After the defense of an Italian tank reconnaissance party, the battalion command decided to attack Calahonda . The surprising advance of the battalion succeeded in conquering the town of Calahonda without losing any of its own. In the late afternoon of the same day, the Italians tried for their part to retake the town. After the failed attack by the Italian black shirts, the front stabilized in this area, so that after a week in March 1939 the battalion received the order to leave.

Fight in the Sierra Nevada

The battalion commissar Ewald informed the first company of the Chapayev battalion that the positions on the coastal road should be taken over by the column Romero and that the battalion should be reunited in Albuñol . After the battalion was brought together in Albuñol, the battalion drove by truck across the road to Órgiva to Juviles de Alpujarras .

General view of Trevélez

In this area of ​​the front, a relief offensive in the Trevélez valley was intended to give a dispersed unit of 800 militiamen from Málaga the opportunity to get through the enemy lines. On the day of their arrival in Juviles de Alpujarras, the battalion advanced with the Lenin battalion over a mountain path to the town of Trevélez. After a short night's sleep, the offensive began in the Trevélez Valley. The battalion advanced on the town of Trevéles, which was held by Moroccan troops , and after a brief skirmish, captured the town. After taking the town, the battalion marched down the valley, where it met with the Spanish battalion Lenin and the Spanish Otumba battalion of the XIII. International Brigade United. Towards evening the battalion received the order to advance with the Henri Vuillemin battalion over the mountain ranges near Pórtugos to Capilerilla . The battalion reached the valley of Pórtugos Capilerilla via high-altitude paths and captured the village. As part of the offensive, the Spanish and international battalions managed to take the towns of Pitres , Busquístar , Ferreirola and Mecina-Fondales on this day in addition to the town of Capilerilla . After the stabilization of the front line in the Pórtugos area and the fortification of heights in the Sierra Nevada and Trevélez Valley, the trapped 800 militiamen from Málaga managed to escape the encirclement in the area of ​​the Lenin battalion during a snow storm at night. After the successful liberation of the militiamen from Málaga, the Chapayev battalion received the relocation order on March 27, 1937.

Cordoba Province

When the battalion marched back from the front in the Sierra Nevada, the battalion command found that the Chapayev battalion had grown from two hundred Spaniards to almost eight hundred brigadists. For this reason, before the battalion left, an order was issued that all Spaniards who had joined the battalion must remain behind. After the departure of the battalion in the night, the battalion next morning reached Bailén in the province of Cordoba and in the evening the railway line by Cordoba on Almorchón of Portugal led so that the battalion on April 1, 1937 its initial position in the region Los Pedroches reached . At the beginning of the offensive, on April 4, 1937, the Chapayev battalion, accompanied by an armored train, advanced over the railway line to Valsequillo and captured the Valsequillo train station. Furthermore, the battalion managed to take the village of La Granjuela on the same day . In addition, the battalion secured the road to Fuente Ovejuna with a bolt position. With further advances the battalion succeeded in capturing a German Krupp tank (Type 110) . It turned out that one of the crew members was a German member of the Condor Legion and belonged to the Dohne tank brigade from Dallgow-Döberitz near Berlin . During an attack by the Condor Legion, half the village of Fuente Ovejuna was reduced to rubble by Junkers bombers .

Until April 6, 1937 tried the XIII. Cerro Mulva International Brigade , a key nationalist position. During the offensive, the XIII. International Brigade with the 86th Brigade and other Spanish units, in addition to the villages of Valsequillo and La Granjuela , also the villages of Los Blázquez , Esparragossa , Prados , Cuenca and Granja . Within a few days the republican units succeeded in conquering an area of ​​almost one hundred square kilometers with the Spanish units, so that the front line could be advanced to the mountains of Peñarroya and Fuente Ovejuna .

The battalion took up position in the area from La Granjuela to Fuente Ovejuna and the Henri Vuillemin battalion took up position on the right wing of the battalion near Los Blázquez. After 5 months, the XIII. International Brigade received news that the brigade should be withdrawn. For this reason, the battalion command of the Chapayev battalion decided to straighten the front line by an attack in the area of ​​a mountain cone at Cerro de Mulva , which was defended by Moroccan colonial troops . After the successful conquest of the mountain cone, the Chapayev battalion received the withdrawal order from the southern front to the central front. The battalion was relocated via Valdepeñas to Alcobendas near Madrid . Furthermore, the battalion was increased by a replacement company.

Battle of Brunete

Map of the Battle of Brunete

From July 6, 1937, the Chapayev battalion fought with the Henri Vuillemin battalion , the Juan Marco battalion and the Otumba battalion in the battle of Brunete . About the royal road from Madrid to Escorial reached the XIII. International Brigade as well as the XI. and the XV. International Brigade with the V. and XVIII. Spanish army corps their starting position. At the beginning of the battle, in the morning hours, the Chapayev battalion took up a position in the southern gorges of the Rio Aulencia . It was not until around 10 a.m. that the battalion was instructed to move to the starting position of XXXIV. Spanish division advance in front of Villanueva de la Cañada . The battalion marched over narrow mountain paths and moved to its assigned starting position on the road from Escorial to Navalcarnero around 12 noon . After the failure of the attack of the XVIII. Cuerpo de Ejército , commanded by Enrique Jurado Barrio , advanced the Chapayev battalion with the Henri Vuillemin battalion to the left of the road from Valdemorillo to Villanueva de la Cañada and the two Spanish battalions of the XIII. International Brigade left the street. The Chapayev battalion came 300 to 400 meters from the nationalist positions, whereupon the attack stalled. The Spanish Battalion Juan Marco Battalion of the XIII. However, international brigades managed to break into nationalist positions. Due to the attack of the Chapayev battalion on the cemetery and the attack of the XV. International Brigade, the International Battalions succeeded in taking the village of Villanueva de la Cañada.

After the capture of Villanueva de la Cañada by the XIII. and XV. International brigades camped the brigadists in Villanueva de la Cañada, which gave the fascists the opportunity to fortify the heights of Villanueva de la Cañada. After the failure of the Republican offensive, the XIII. International Brigade prepared for the expected counterattack by the nationalists. After five days, Franco's troops began bombarding the lines in front of Villanueva de la Cañadader with artillery.

Due to the massive bombardment over several days, the Chapayev battalion only existed on paper from July 23, 1937. The battalion's losses were so great that the battalion was only as strong as a company . Overall, the losses of the XIII. International brigades two-thirds of the crew. Among other things, the brigade commissar and three battalion commissars of the XIII fell. International Brigade. In addition, a dozen company commanders and several commissioners fell. In the course of the reorganization of the XIII. International Brigade, among other things, the grouping of the Polish brigadists of the Tschapajew battalion in the Dąbrowski battalion .

Reorganization of the International Brigades

After the Battle of Brunete , the XIII was reorganized. International Brigade, the 129th International Brigade, and the 150th International Brigade . As part of this reorganization, the Chapayev battalion was assigned to the 129th International Brigade.

Dissolution of the battalion

Alfred Kantorowicz mentions that the Chapayev battalion was disbanded in August 1937. This information contradicts a list of the International Brigades from 1938. In this list, the Tschapajew Battalion with the Dąbrowski Battalion , the Mickiewicz Battalion and the Rákosi Battalion form the XIII. International Brigade .

Surprisingly, Hanns Maaßen mentions in his book "The Sons of Chapayev" the last order for the Chapayev battalion without a year:

"... lying in an armchair, comrades, the images of the past battles, victories and privations of our storm battalion pass by. It was a hard war that we waged to the point of physical exhaustion on all fronts in Spain over the past few months. But none of you grumbled when, after almost seven months of uninterrupted, heavy and costly fighting, the military had to go back to work again: to the front in Madrid. You did a brilliant job! The Commander-in-Chief of the Central Front says to all of you that our battalion has always done its duty and fought heroically. The great task facing you all now is to carry over the spirit of our storm battalion into the new units into which you will now be integrated, in whose ranks you will fight as bravely as good anti-fascists in the future as in our Chapayev battalion.

Your commander

Military Hospital No. 1 / Madrid, on August 11, 19 .. "

Relatives

literature

  • Alfred Kantorowicz : Spanish War Diary . With a new foreword by the author and an appendix to previously unpublished documents and letters. Fischer , Frankfurt am Main 1986, ISBN 3-596-25175-3 (library of burned books as "Fischer pocket book number 5175", licensed edition of Konkret-Literatur-Verlag, Hamburg ).
  • Alfred Kantorowicz: The battalion of 21 nations . Imprenta Colectiva Torrent, Madrid 1938.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Patrik von zur Mühlen : Spain was your hope. The German Left in the Spanish Civil War 1936 to 1939 , (PDF file; 9.66 MB), Research Institute of the Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung, Bonn, Verlag Neue Gesellschaft GmbH, 1983, ISBN 3-87831-375-6 , page 226
  2. ↑ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p Hanns Maaßen : Die Söhne des Tschapajew , Publishing House of the Ministry of National Defense, Berlin 1960, (a) page 223, (b) page 56, (c) Page 166, (d, e) Page 70, (f) Pages 69 and 74, (g) Pages 69 to 78, (h) Pages 81 to 136, (i) Page 137, (j) Pages 137, 142, 214 and 353, (k) pages 136 to 185, (l) pages 272 to 290, (m) pages 357 to 367, (n) page 378, (o) pages 401,402,405 and 410, (p) page 411
  3. ↑ Angela Berg : The International Brigades in the Spanish Civil War 1936-1939 , Klartext Verlag, Essen, 2005, ISBN 3-89861-418-2
  4. ^ Hugh Thomas : The Spanish Civil War , Verlag Ullstein, 1967, page 304
  5. ^ Gomez - not a Spaniard , accessed January 2, 2014
  6. ↑ a b Hanns Maaßen: Brigada Internacional is our honorary name ... , Röderberg-Verlag GmbH, Frankfurt / Main 1976, ISBN 3-87682-515-6 , (a) page 223, (b) page 448
  7. ↑ The author Hanns Maaßen only reports on the Chapayev battalion until the battle of Brunete. The reference that the Chapayev battalion was assigned to the 129th International Brigade comes from the Spanish Wikipedia article XIII Brigada Internacional
  8. ↑ Alfred Kantorowicz: Chapaiev. The battalion of 21 nations  ( page no longer available , search in web archives )  Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , Page 1, Section Two, accessed December 20, 2014@1@ 2Template: Dead Link / www.ananieva.de  
  9. ^ Structure of the XIII. International Brigade , accessed December 20, 2014