José
Asensio
was
born in Spain in 1892. He joined the Spanish Army and had reached
the rank of colonel by the age of thirty-four.
On the outbreak of the
Spanish Civil War Asensio joined the armed
forces supporting the Popular Front government.
He was appointed as chief of staff to General José
Miaja who was
given responsibility for defending Madrid.
When Francisco
Largo Caballero became
prime minister he immediately promoted Asensio to general and appointed
him to command the central theatre of operations. Asensio was unpopular
with the Anarcho-Syndicalists and Communists
and after the failure at Illescas he lost his post.
Largo Caballero continued
to have faith in Asensio and appointed him undersecretary of war in
September, 1936. In this role he helped develop the new Republican
Army. Asensio
insisted on proper uniforms and the traditional hierarchy. He decided
that Militias should be placed under military law and schools were
established to train future officers in the army.
Asensio was blamed for
the loss of Málaga in February 1937
and was dismissed from office. In September he was arrested and imprisoned.
He was accused of incompetence but he was released in 1938 without
charge.
In January 1939 Asensio
was appointed military attaché to the Spanish Embassy in Washington.
He remained in the United States after the war.
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