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Guardia de Asalto
 
 
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The blue-uniformed Guardia de Asalto (Assault Guard) were the urban police
Municipal police

Municipal police are law enforcement agencies that are under the control of local government, where is it the smallest administrative subdivision....
 force of Spain
Spain

Spain or the Kingdom of Spain , is a country located in Southern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula.The Spanish constitution does not establish any official denomination of the country, even though Espa?a , Estado espa?ol and Naci?n espa?ola are used interchangeably....
, during the Spanish Second Republic. They were similar to the green uniformed Guardia Civil which patrolled the countryside, but, while Guardia Civil units tended to support the Nationalists, most of the Assault Guards stayed loyal to the Second Republic. Tending to support opposing sides, the two groups often fought each other in the Spanish Civil War
Spanish Civil War

The Spanish Civil War was a major conflict in Spain that started after an attempted coup d'?tat by a group of Spanish Army generals, supported by the conservative Spanish Confederation of the Autonomous Right , Carlist groups and the fascistic Falange, against the government of the Second Spanish Republic, then under the leadership of pr...
.

Origins
Unlike the Guardia Civil, which was preserved from its origin under the monarchy because of a relatively apolitical stance during the formation of the Second Republic, the Cuerpo de Seguridad wasn't well seen by the new Government.






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The blue-uniformed Guardia de Asalto (Assault Guard) were the urban police
Municipal police

Municipal police are law enforcement agencies that are under the control of local government, where is it the smallest administrative subdivision....
 force of Spain
Spain

Spain or the Kingdom of Spain , is a country located in Southern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula.The Spanish constitution does not establish any official denomination of the country, even though Espa?a , Estado espa?ol and Naci?n espa?ola are used interchangeably....
, during the Spanish Second Republic. They were similar to the green uniformed Guardia Civil which patrolled the countryside, but, while Guardia Civil units tended to support the Nationalists, most of the Assault Guards stayed loyal to the Second Republic. Tending to support opposing sides, the two groups often fought each other in the Spanish Civil War
Spanish Civil War

The Spanish Civil War was a major conflict in Spain that started after an attempted coup d'?tat by a group of Spanish Army generals, supported by the conservative Spanish Confederation of the Autonomous Right , Carlist groups and the fascistic Falange, against the government of the Second Spanish Republic, then under the leadership of pr...
.

Origins


Unlike the Guardia Civil, which was preserved from its origin under the monarchy because of a relatively apolitical stance during the formation of the Second Republic, the Cuerpo de Seguridad wasn't well seen by the new Government. The Ministro de la Gobernación Miguel Maura reorganized the former police force as peace force in the cities, leaving the countryside to the Guardia Civil. Due to the reorganization were created the Compañías de Vanguardia or Vanguard Squads (later called Sección de guardias de Asalto). As a part of the reformed Cuerpo de Seguridad they served as control force for masses of people, like the modern anti-riot squads. In 1932, the Cuerpo de Seguridad changed into Cuerpo de Seguridad y Asalto.

The Civil War


During the Spanish civil war
Spanish Civil War

The Spanish Civil War was a major conflict in Spain that started after an attempted coup d'?tat by a group of Spanish Army generals, supported by the conservative Spanish Confederation of the Autonomous Right , Carlist groups and the fascistic Falange, against the government of the Second Spanish Republic, then under the leadership of pr...
, 70% of its members remained loyal to the Republic. Although not as numerous as the Guardia Civil they formed the best Republican troops early in the war and played a key role in suppressing army units attempting to rise up in certain cities. Guardia de Asalto personnel were drawn from ex-Army of Africa
Spanish Army of Africa

The Spanish Army of Africa was a Spain field army that garrisoned Spanish Morocco from the early 20th century until Morocco's independence in 1956....
 and Spanish Legion
Spanish Legion

The Spanish Legi?n , formerly Spanish Foreign Legion, is an elite unit of the Spanish Army. Founded as the Tercio de Extranjeros , it was originally intended as a Spanish equivalent of the French Foreign Legion, but in practice it recruited almost exclusively Spaniards....
 personnel and were therefore considered better trained and equipped for street fighting than army conscripts.

See also

  • Guardia Civil (Spain)
  • Spanish Civil War
    Spanish Civil War

    The Spanish Civil War was a major conflict in Spain that started after an attempted coup d'?tat by a group of Spanish Army generals, supported by the conservative Spanish Confederation of the Autonomous Right , Carlist groups and the fascistic Falange, against the government of the Second Spanish Republic, then under the leadership of pr...
  • Spanish Foreign Legion


External links


  • , por Alejandro Vargas González, Cuadernos Republicanos, nº 53, Otoño 2003.