Final offensive of the Spanish Civil War
Encyclopedia
The Final offensive of the Spanish Civil War took place between the 26th of March and the 1st of April 1939, towards the end of the Spanish Civil War
. On 5 March 1939, the Republican army led by the colonel Segismundo Casado
and the politician Julián Besteiro
, rose against the prime minister Juan Negrin
and formed a military Junta
, the Council of National Defense (Consejo de Defensa Nacional) in order to negotiate a peace deal. Negrin fled to France, but the Communist troops around Madrid rose against the Junta, starting a civil war within the civil war. Casado defeated them, and started peace negotiation with the Nationalists, but Francisco Franco
only accepted an unconditional surrender. On 26 March the Nationalists started a general offensive and by 31 March they controlled all the Spanish territory. Hundreds of thousands of Republicans were arrested and interned in concentration camps.
in February 1939, the military situation of the Republic was hopeless. The Republic still had the capital city and 30 per cent of the Spanish territory, but it had lost 220,000 soldiers, the second city of the country and the Catalan war industry. Furthermore, in 27 February Manuel Azaña
the president of the Republic resigned and Great Britain and France recognized the francoist government.
's and two Katiuska
's bomber squadrons, and 25 Chatos
and Moscas fighters), little artillery and few automatic weapons. Many soldiers were unarmed (on December 1938 the Republican army had only 225,000 rifles), and lack shoes and overcoats. In Madrid there was food only for two months, and no water, heatings, medicine or surgical dressings. On the other hand the Nationalist army had more than a million men at the end of 1938, among them 35,000 moroccans, 32,000 italians and 5,000 germans and 600 aircraft.
, that a further military resistance was impossible. Most of the members of the Republican Army, the PSOE, the UGT
and the CNT
, believed that was necessary to initiate peace negotiations. Nevertheless, Negrin backed by the PCE wanted to continue the resistance because Franco rejected to give any guarantee against reprisals and he believed that the World War was imminent. Furthermore he wanted to organize the evacuation of those most in risk.
against the Negrin government in order to start peace negotiations with the Nationalists. Colonel Jose Cendaño, a Fifth column
agent inside the Republican army, promised to him that Franco would guarantee the lives of the Republican officers who had committed no crimes. Most of the non-communist elements of the Popular Front
in Madrid supported the plot, among them one of the leaders of the PSOE, Julian Besteiro, because believed that to continue the war was useless. Furthermore, after the surrender of Minorca
, many Republican officers in the central zone believed that they would negotiate a deal with the Nationalists.
On 2 March, Negrin announced a number of new appoinments in the Central Zone. The colonel Casado and the communists colonels Modesto
and Cordon
became generals, the general Manuel Matallana was appointed as head of the central general staff and communist officers were appointed to command the ports of Alicante (Manuel Tagüeña), Murcia (Etelvino Vega) and Cartagena (Francisco Galan). The non-communists elements believed that the communists wanted to control the evacuation harbours and they joined to the plot against Negrin.
) and a section of the UGT (Wenceslao Carrillo
), deposed the prime minister Juan Negrin and formed a Military junta
, the National Council of Defense (Consejo de Defensa Nacional) in order to negotiate a peace deal with Franco. On 6 March, Miaja joined the rebellion and was appointed as president of the Junta. The other members of the Junta were Casado, Julian Besteiro, Wenceslao Carrillo, Gonzalez Marín and Eduardo Val (CNT), Antonio Perez (UGT), and the republicans Miguel San Andrés and Jose del Río.
The Colonel Adolfo Prada was appointed commander of the Army of the Centre, the communist commanders of the I, II and III Corps were relieved, the PCE's newspaper Mundo Obrero
was closed and Casado ordered massive arrests of communist commisars and militans. Casado said that Negrin and the PCE wanted to carried out a Communist takeover, but in fact, he rose against the government because he believed that Franco would negotiate a peace deal without Negrin and the Communists. Furthermore, the british government said to him that Franco would guarantee the lives of the Republicans. Casado had said to Hidalgo de Cisneros: “I give you my word…that I can better terms from Franco than Negrin ever can. I can ever assure you that they will respect our ranks.”.
After a failed attempt to negotiate with Casado, on 6 March Negrin fled to France from Elda
with the commander of the Republican Air Force
(Hidalgo de Cisneros), the leaders of the PCE (La Pasionaria and Vicente Uribe), and the foreing minister Julio Álvarez del Vayo
, in order to avoid capture by the supporters of Casado. The Casado's coup was supported by the commanders of the other three army corps of the Republican army (Leopoldo Menéndez López, commander of the Levante Army; Antonio Escobar, commander of the Estremadura Army; and Domingo Moriones, commander of the Andalusia Army). Nevertheless, the army units settled around Madrid and controlled by the PCE (the I corps of the Army of the Centre led by Luis Barceló and the Emilio Bueno’s II and Antonio Ortega’s III Corps), rose against the Junta on 7 March, starting a brief civil war inside the Republic. Barceló appointed himself as commander of the Army of the Centre and his troops closed all the entrances to Madrid, occupied most of the city center and detained and shot three Casado's colonels. The supporters of Casado only held some government buildings and the south-east part of the city. Nevertheless, the Mera´s IV corps counterattacked and occupied Torrejon
and Alcala de Henares
and the Nationalists started an offensive towards the Manzanares. By 10 March, the Barcelo's troops had been surrounded and ceasefire was arranged. On 11 March, after days of bloody combats, Casado, backed by the IV corps of Cipriano Mera, defeated the Barceló’s troops. Barceló and his commissar José Conesa were arrested and executed. There were between 230 to 2,000 dead.
and Cartagena. In Ciudad Real the Escobar's Extremadura Army crushed the communist resistance led by the deputy Martínez Cárton.
Nevertheless, in Cartagena
(the main base of the Republican Navy), where the supporters of Casado, backed by elements of the Fifth column
, had started the uprising against the Negrin's government on 4 March, they were defeated by the PCE's 206th Brigade, of the IV Division, led by the colonel Joaquin Rodriguez, after a brief combat, on 7 March. On 5 March, The Republican Navy (three cruisers and eight destroyers) led by the admiral Buiza had fled to Bizerta on 5 March, after a Nationalist air bombing. One Nationalist transport ship, the Castillo de Olite
, sent by the Nationalists in order to support the uprising was sunk by the coastal batteries of Cartagena, killing 1,200 Nationalist soldiers.
must be surrendered and by 27 the Republican troops must raise the white flag. Nevertheless, on 25 March, the Republicans didn't surrender their Air Force due technicals reasons (bad weather) and Franco broke the negotiations with the Junta.
. There were no resistance and in one day captured two thousand kilometers and 30.000 prisoners. The Council of National Defense ordered not to resist to the Nationalist avance and the Republican soldiers threw away their weapons and abandoned the front. On 27 March, the Nationalists advanced in all the fronts without resistance. The Solchaga's Navarra Corps, the Gambara's CTV and the Garcia Valiño's Army of Maestrazgo advanced from Toledo. The same day, the colonel Prada, the commander of the Army of the Centre surrendered to the Nationalists and the Nationalist troops occupied Madrid. Casado and the other members of the Junta, except Besteiro, fled to Valencia. On 29 March, the Nationalists occupied Jaén
, Ciudad Real, Cuenca
, Albacete
and Sagunto
. 50,000 Republican refugees gathered at the harbours of Valencia, Alicante
, Cartagena
and Gandia
, but without the Republican navy an evacuation was impossible and the French and British governments rejected to organize an evacuation. Only a minority, those who had money to pay an passage, were evacuated by british ships (between 650 and more than 3,500), among them Casado. On 30 March the Nationalists occupied Valencia and the Gambara’s troops entered Alicante, rounding 15,000 Republican refugees. The italian general Gambara was prepared to permit the evacuation of political refugees, but on 31 March the Nationalist troops arrived and took over jurisdiction from Gambara. Then, many refugees committed suicide in order to avoid capture by the Nationalists. On 31 March the Nationalists occupied Almeria, Murcia and Cartagena, and controlled all the Spanish territory and by 1 April 1939 the war was officially over.
The Nationalists arrested hundreds of thousands of Republican soldiers and civilians (150,000 soldiers captured in the final offensive) and herded them into improvised concentration camps, (between 367,000 and 500,000 prisoners in 1939). In the first years of the post-war 50.000 Republican prisoners were executed.
's novels, Campo del Moro and Campo de los Almendros.
Spanish Civil War
The Spanish Civil WarAlso known as The Crusade among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War among Carlists, and The Rebellion or Uprising among Republicans. was a major conflict fought in Spain from 17 July 1936 to 1 April 1939...
. On 5 March 1939, the Republican army led by the colonel Segismundo Casado
Segismundo Casado
Segismundo Casado López was a Spanish Army officer in the Second Spanish Republic during the Spanish Civil War.-Early life:...
and the politician Julián Besteiro
Julián Besteiro
Julián Besteiro Fernández was a Spanish socialist politician and university professor.-Early life:...
, rose against the prime minister Juan Negrin
Juan Negrín
Juan Negrín y López was a Spanish politician and physician.-Early years:Born in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Negrín came from a religious middle-class family...
and formed a military Junta
Military junta
A junta or military junta is a government led by a committee of military leaders. The term derives from the Spanish language junta meaning committee, specifically a board of directors...
, the Council of National Defense (Consejo de Defensa Nacional) in order to negotiate a peace deal. Negrin fled to France, but the Communist troops around Madrid rose against the Junta, starting a civil war within the civil war. Casado defeated them, and started peace negotiation with the Nationalists, but Francisco Franco
Francisco Franco
Francisco Franco y Bahamonde was a Spanish general, dictator and head of state of Spain from October 1936 , and de facto regent of the nominally restored Kingdom of Spain from 1947 until his death in November, 1975...
only accepted an unconditional surrender. On 26 March the Nationalists started a general offensive and by 31 March they controlled all the Spanish territory. Hundreds of thousands of Republicans were arrested and interned in concentration camps.
Fall of Catalonia
After the fall of CataloniaCatalonia Offensive
The Catalonia Offensive was part of the Spanish Civil War. The Nationalist Army started the offensive on December 23, 1938, and rapidly conquered Republican-held Catalonia with its capital city from October 1937, Barcelona. Barcelona was captured on January 26, 1939. The Republican government...
in February 1939, the military situation of the Republic was hopeless. The Republic still had the capital city and 30 per cent of the Spanish territory, but it had lost 220,000 soldiers, the second city of the country and the Catalan war industry. Furthermore, in 27 February Manuel Azaña
Manuel Azaña
Manuel Azaña Díaz was a Spanish politician. He was the first Prime Minister of the Second Spanish Republic , and later served again as Prime Minister , and then as the second and last President of the Republic . The Spanish Civil War broke out while he was President...
the president of the Republic resigned and Great Britain and France recognized the francoist government.
Military situation.
The Republican army still had between 250,000 and 500,000 men, but only had 40 aircraft (three NatashaPolikarpov R-Z
|-See also:-External links:* * *...
's and two Katiuska
Tupolev SB
The Tupolev ANT-40, also known by its service name Tupolev SB , and development co-name TsAGI-40, was a high speed twin-engined three-seat monoplane bomber, first flown in 1934....
's bomber squadrons, and 25 Chatos
Polikarpov I-15
The Polikarpov I-15 was a Soviet biplane fighter aircraft of the 1930s. Nicknamed Chaika because of its gulled upper wings, it was operated in large numbers by the Soviet Air Force, and together with the Polikarpov I-16 monoplane, was one of the standard fighters of the Spanish Republicans during...
and Moscas fighters), little artillery and few automatic weapons. Many soldiers were unarmed (on December 1938 the Republican army had only 225,000 rifles), and lack shoes and overcoats. In Madrid there was food only for two months, and no water, heatings, medicine or surgical dressings. On the other hand the Nationalist army had more than a million men at the end of 1938, among them 35,000 moroccans, 32,000 italians and 5,000 germans and 600 aircraft.
Opposition to continue the resistance
On 16 February the high command of the Republican army told to the prime minister, Juan NegrinJuan Negrín
Juan Negrín y López was a Spanish politician and physician.-Early years:Born in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Negrín came from a religious middle-class family...
, that a further military resistance was impossible. Most of the members of the Republican Army, the PSOE, the UGT
Unión General de Trabajadores
The Unión General de Trabajadores is a major Spanish trade union, historically affiliated with the Spanish Socialist Workers' Party .-History:...
and the CNT
Confederación Nacional del Trabajo
The Confederación Nacional del Trabajo is a Spanish confederation of anarcho-syndicalist labor unions affiliated with the International Workers Association . When working with the latter group it is also known as CNT-AIT...
, believed that was necessary to initiate peace negotiations. Nevertheless, Negrin backed by the PCE wanted to continue the resistance because Franco rejected to give any guarantee against reprisals and he believed that the World War was imminent. Furthermore he wanted to organize the evacuation of those most in risk.
The plot
From the end of february 1939, the colonel Segismundo Casado, had been preparing a coupCoup d'état
A coup d'état state, literally: strike/blow of state)—also known as a coup, putsch, and overthrow—is the sudden, extrajudicial deposition of a government, usually by a small group of the existing state establishment—typically the military—to replace the deposed government with another body; either...
against the Negrin government in order to start peace negotiations with the Nationalists. Colonel Jose Cendaño, a Fifth column
Fifth column
A fifth column is a group of people who clandestinely undermine a larger group such as a nation from within.-Origin:The term originated with a 1936 radio address by Emilio Mola, a Nationalist General during the 1936–39 Spanish Civil War...
agent inside the Republican army, promised to him that Franco would guarantee the lives of the Republican officers who had committed no crimes. Most of the non-communist elements of the Popular Front
Popular Front (Spain)
The Popular Front in Spain's Second Republic was an electoral coalition and pact signed in January 1936 by various left-wing political organisations, instigated by Manuel Azaña for the purpose of contesting that year's election....
in Madrid supported the plot, among them one of the leaders of the PSOE, Julian Besteiro, because believed that to continue the war was useless. Furthermore, after the surrender of Minorca
Battle of Minorca
The Battle of Minorca was a naval battle between French and British fleets. It was the opening sea battle of the Seven Years' War in the European theatre. Shortly after Great Britain declared war on the House of Bourbon, their squadrons met off the Mediterranean island of Minorca. The fight...
, many Republican officers in the central zone believed that they would negotiate a deal with the Nationalists.
On 2 March, Negrin announced a number of new appoinments in the Central Zone. The colonel Casado and the communists colonels Modesto
Juan Modesto
Juan Modesto Guilloto León was a Republican army officer during the Spanish Civil War.-Early life:He originally worked at a sawmill before joining the Spanish Army...
and Cordon
Antonio Cordón García
Antonio Cordón García . was a Spanish soldier, born in Sevilla, who commanded during the Spanish Civil War.Career soldier as an artilleryman in the Spanish Army, he passed into the reserves in the early 1930s, but reenlisted into active duty upon the beginning of the Spanish Civil War to join the...
became generals, the general Manuel Matallana was appointed as head of the central general staff and communist officers were appointed to command the ports of Alicante (Manuel Tagüeña), Murcia (Etelvino Vega) and Cartagena (Francisco Galan). The non-communists elements believed that the communists wanted to control the evacuation harbours and they joined to the plot against Negrin.
The coup and the fight in Madrid.
On 5 March 1939, the colonel Segismundo Casado, supported by the general Matallana, the CNT (Cipriano Mera), the secret service of the Republic (the Military Intelligence Service, Servicio de Inteligencia Militar or SIM), a section of the PSOE (Julian BesteiroJulián Besteiro
Julián Besteiro Fernández was a Spanish socialist politician and university professor.-Early life:...
) and a section of the UGT (Wenceslao Carrillo
Wenceslao Carrillo
Wenceslao Carrillo was a prominent Spanish Socialist leader, father of Santiago Carrillo. He belonged to the "Caballerist" faction of the Spanish Socialist Workers' Party....
), deposed the prime minister Juan Negrin and formed a Military junta
Military junta
A junta or military junta is a government led by a committee of military leaders. The term derives from the Spanish language junta meaning committee, specifically a board of directors...
, the National Council of Defense (Consejo de Defensa Nacional) in order to negotiate a peace deal with Franco. On 6 March, Miaja joined the rebellion and was appointed as president of the Junta. The other members of the Junta were Casado, Julian Besteiro, Wenceslao Carrillo, Gonzalez Marín and Eduardo Val (CNT), Antonio Perez (UGT), and the republicans Miguel San Andrés and Jose del Río.
The Colonel Adolfo Prada was appointed commander of the Army of the Centre, the communist commanders of the I, II and III Corps were relieved, the PCE's newspaper Mundo Obrero
Mundo Obrero
Mundo Obrero is the periodical of the Communist Party of Spain . It is edited monthly and contains articles related to the Spanish and international political situations, the opinions of the different bodies of the party as well as relevant party members, and on the activities of the Party and the...
was closed and Casado ordered massive arrests of communist commisars and militans. Casado said that Negrin and the PCE wanted to carried out a Communist takeover, but in fact, he rose against the government because he believed that Franco would negotiate a peace deal without Negrin and the Communists. Furthermore, the british government said to him that Franco would guarantee the lives of the Republicans. Casado had said to Hidalgo de Cisneros: “I give you my word…that I can better terms from Franco than Negrin ever can. I can ever assure you that they will respect our ranks.”.
After a failed attempt to negotiate with Casado, on 6 March Negrin fled to France from Elda
Elda
Elda is a city located in the province of Alicante, Spain. , it has a total population of 55,618 inhabitants, ranking as the 7th most populous city in the province. Elda joins together with the town of Petrer to form a conurbation with over 85,000 inhabitants...
with the commander of the Republican Air Force
Spanish Republican Air Force
The Spanish Republican Air Force, , was the air arm of the Second Spanish Republic, the legally established government of Spain between 1931 and 1939...
(Hidalgo de Cisneros), the leaders of the PCE (La Pasionaria and Vicente Uribe), and the foreing minister Julio Álvarez del Vayo
Julio Álvarez del Vayo
Julio Álvarez del Vayo was a Spanish Socialist politician, journalist and writer....
, in order to avoid capture by the supporters of Casado. The Casado's coup was supported by the commanders of the other three army corps of the Republican army (Leopoldo Menéndez López, commander of the Levante Army; Antonio Escobar, commander of the Estremadura Army; and Domingo Moriones, commander of the Andalusia Army). Nevertheless, the army units settled around Madrid and controlled by the PCE (the I corps of the Army of the Centre led by Luis Barceló and the Emilio Bueno’s II and Antonio Ortega’s III Corps), rose against the Junta on 7 March, starting a brief civil war inside the Republic. Barceló appointed himself as commander of the Army of the Centre and his troops closed all the entrances to Madrid, occupied most of the city center and detained and shot three Casado's colonels. The supporters of Casado only held some government buildings and the south-east part of the city. Nevertheless, the Mera´s IV corps counterattacked and occupied Torrejon
Torrejón de Ardoz
Torrejón de Ardoz is a town in the urban area of Madrid, Spain that has about 110,000 inhabitants.It is a town 20 km east of Madrid on the NII highway . It is essentially a dormitory town, mostly consisting of apartments. It can be reached by bus from Av...
and Alcala de Henares
Alcalá de Henares
Alcalá de Henares , meaning Citadel on the river Henares, is a Spanish city, whose historical centre is one of UNESCO's World Heritage Sites, and one of the first bishoprics founded in Spain...
and the Nationalists started an offensive towards the Manzanares. By 10 March, the Barcelo's troops had been surrounded and ceasefire was arranged. On 11 March, after days of bloody combats, Casado, backed by the IV corps of Cipriano Mera, defeated the Barceló’s troops. Barceló and his commissar José Conesa were arrested and executed. There were between 230 to 2,000 dead.
Cartagena
There were also combats in Ciudad RealCiudad Real
Ciudad Real is a city in Castile-La Mancha, Spain, with a population of c. 74,000. It is the capital of the province of Ciudad Real. It has a stop on the AVE high-speed rail line and has begun to grow as a long-distance commuter suburb of Madrid, located 115 miles to the north. A high capacity...
and Cartagena. In Ciudad Real the Escobar's Extremadura Army crushed the communist resistance led by the deputy Martínez Cárton.
Nevertheless, in Cartagena
Cartagena Uprising
The Cartagena Uprising took place 4-7 March 1939 during the Spanish Civil War. SS Castillo de Olite sunk during the event-Background:After the fall of Catalonia in February 1939, the military situation of the Republic was hopeless...
(the main base of the Republican Navy), where the supporters of Casado, backed by elements of the Fifth column
Fifth column
A fifth column is a group of people who clandestinely undermine a larger group such as a nation from within.-Origin:The term originated with a 1936 radio address by Emilio Mola, a Nationalist General during the 1936–39 Spanish Civil War...
, had started the uprising against the Negrin's government on 4 March, they were defeated by the PCE's 206th Brigade, of the IV Division, led by the colonel Joaquin Rodriguez, after a brief combat, on 7 March. On 5 March, The Republican Navy (three cruisers and eight destroyers) led by the admiral Buiza had fled to Bizerta on 5 March, after a Nationalist air bombing. One Nationalist transport ship, the Castillo de Olite
SS Castillo de Olite
The Castillo de Olite was a merchant steamship, which was sunk by the costal defense batteries of Cartagena in the last days of the Spanish Civil War, while transporting 2,112 Spanish Nationalist troops.-History:...
, sent by the Nationalists in order to support the uprising was sunk by the coastal batteries of Cartagena, killing 1,200 Nationalist soldiers.
Peace negotiations with Franco.
After the defeat of the Barceló's troops, the Junta tried to start peace negotiations with Franco, hoping to achieve a guarantee against political reprisals. On 12th March the Junta propossed a peace deal, asking for a guarantee against reprisals and a period of 25 days to allow anyone who wanted to leave Spain to do so. On 16 March, Franco answered that he would only accept an unconditional surrender. On 23 March, the Junta sent two negotiators to Burgos (Colonel Antonio Garijo and Major Leopoldo Ortega), and the Nationalists told to them that on 25 March the Republican Air ForceSpanish Republican Air Force
The Spanish Republican Air Force, , was the air arm of the Second Spanish Republic, the legally established government of Spain between 1931 and 1939...
must be surrendered and by 27 the Republican troops must raise the white flag. Nevertheless, on 25 March, the Republicans didn't surrender their Air Force due technicals reasons (bad weather) and Franco broke the negotiations with the Junta.
The final offensive
On 26 March, the Yague’s troops advanced in Sierra MorenaSierra Morena
The Sierra Morena is one of the main systems of mountain ranges in Spain.It stretches for 400 kilometres East-West across southern Spain, forming the southern border of the Meseta Central plateau of the Iberian Peninsula, and providing the watershed between the valleys of the Guadiana to the...
. There were no resistance and in one day captured two thousand kilometers and 30.000 prisoners. The Council of National Defense ordered not to resist to the Nationalist avance and the Republican soldiers threw away their weapons and abandoned the front. On 27 March, the Nationalists advanced in all the fronts without resistance. The Solchaga's Navarra Corps, the Gambara's CTV and the Garcia Valiño's Army of Maestrazgo advanced from Toledo. The same day, the colonel Prada, the commander of the Army of the Centre surrendered to the Nationalists and the Nationalist troops occupied Madrid. Casado and the other members of the Junta, except Besteiro, fled to Valencia. On 29 March, the Nationalists occupied Jaén
Jaén, Spain
Jaén is a city in south-central Spain, the name is derived from the Arabic word Jayyan, . It is the capital of the province of Jaén. It is located in the autonomous community of Andalusia....
, Ciudad Real, Cuenca
Cuenca, Spain
-History:When the Iberian peninsula was part of the Roman Empire there were several important settlements in the province, such as Segóbriga, Ercávica and Gran Valeria...
, Albacete
Albacete
Albacete is a city and municipality in southeastern Spain, 258 km southeast of Madrid, the capital of the province of Albacete in the autonomous community of Castile-La Mancha. The municipality had a population of c. 169,700 in 2009....
and Sagunto
Sagunto
Sagunto or Sagunt is an ancient city in Eastern Spain, in the modern fertile comarca of Camp de Morvedre in the province of Valencia. It is located in a hilly site, c. 30 km north of Valencia, close to the Costa del Azahar on the Mediterranean Sea...
. 50,000 Republican refugees gathered at the harbours of Valencia, Alicante
Alicante
Alicante or Alacant is a city in Spain, the capital of the province of Alicante and of the comarca of Alacantí, in the south of the Valencian Community. It is also a historic Mediterranean port. The population of the city of Alicante proper was 334,418, estimated , ranking as the second-largest...
, Cartagena
Cartagena, Spain
Cartagena is a Spanish city and a major naval station located in the Region of Murcia, by the Mediterranean coast, south-eastern Spain. As of January 2011, it has a population of 218,210 inhabitants being the Region’s second largest municipality and the country’s 6th non-Province capital...
and Gandia
Gandia
Gandia is a city and municipality in the Valencian Community, Eastern Spain on the Mediterranean. Gandia is located on the Costa del Azahar, 65 km south of Valencia and 96 km north of Alicante....
, but without the Republican navy an evacuation was impossible and the French and British governments rejected to organize an evacuation. Only a minority, those who had money to pay an passage, were evacuated by british ships (between 650 and more than 3,500), among them Casado. On 30 March the Nationalists occupied Valencia and the Gambara’s troops entered Alicante, rounding 15,000 Republican refugees. The italian general Gambara was prepared to permit the evacuation of political refugees, but on 31 March the Nationalist troops arrived and took over jurisdiction from Gambara. Then, many refugees committed suicide in order to avoid capture by the Nationalists. On 31 March the Nationalists occupied Almeria, Murcia and Cartagena, and controlled all the Spanish territory and by 1 April 1939 the war was officially over.
Aftermath
Casado remained in exile in Venezuela until returning to Spain in 1961. Cipriano Mera fled to Oran and Casablanca, but he was extradited to Spain in February 1942. In 1943 he was condemned to death, a sentence that was exchanged for 30 years in prison, but he was set free in 1946 and fled to France. Miaja fled to France and then Mexico, where he died in 1958. Matallana was detained and imprisoned by the Nationalists and died in Madrid in 1956. Besterio was arrested by the Nationalists, he faced a court martial and was sentenced to thirty years. He died in prison in 1940.The Nationalists arrested hundreds of thousands of Republican soldiers and civilians (150,000 soldiers captured in the final offensive) and herded them into improvised concentration camps, (between 367,000 and 500,000 prisoners in 1939). In the first years of the post-war 50.000 Republican prisoners were executed.
In literature
The Casado's coup and the last days of the war are the background of the Max AubMax Aub
Max Aub Mohrenwitz was a Spanish experimentalist novelist, playwright and literary critic. In 1965 he founded the literary periodical Los Sesenta , with editors that included the poets Jorge Guillén and Rafael Alberti.-Early life:Aub was born in Paris to a Jewish French mother and German father,...
's novels, Campo del Moro and Campo de los Almendros.
External links
Further reading
- Viñas, Ángel; and Hernández Sánchez, Fernando. El Desplome de la República. Editorial Crítica. Barcelona. 2009. ISBN: 978-84-9892-031-4