The
Black Shirts were Italian fascists who
fought with the Nationalist
Army during the
Spanish
Civil War. The Black Shirts occupied Majorica in August 1936 and
ruled the island for several months before being ousted by the Republican
Army.
By the end of 1936 there
were 3,000 members of the Black Shirts in Spain.
They took part in the fighting around Madrid
and participated in the fall of Málaga
in February 1937. By this time their numbers had increased to 30,000.
There were also 20,000 members of the Italian
Army fighting in Spain.
The Italians also played
a prominent role in the offensive at Guadalajara. Mussolini insisted
that his forces should be used as a single unit. General Francisco
Franco was unhappy
about this as he wanted the Italians dispersed among his own Spanish
units.
On 8th March over 35,000
Italian soldiers and 81 whippet tanks and a company of machine-gunners,
went into action at Guadalajara. The Italians failed to breakthrough
on the first day and on the 9th March the Republican
Army reinforced
the frontline with over 20,000 soldiers.
The Republicans held the
Nationalist for over a week before launching its own counter-offensive
on 18th March. Using its best troops, including the International
Brigades, the Republicans were able to force the Italians to retreat.
During the failed offensive
at Guadalajara, the Italians had 400 killed, 1,800 wounded and had
500 men taken prisoner. The Italians also lost significant quantities
of arms and supplies, including 25 artillery pieces, 10 mortars, 85
machine-guns and 67 trucks.
General Francisco
Franco blamed the Italians for the Nationalist defeat and
banned them from operating again as an independent unit in Spain.
He insisted that in future the Italians would have to operate in larger
units made up primarily of Spanish troops and commanded by Spanish
generals.
The Black Shirts eventually
left Spain in November 1938.
(1)
The Manchester Guardian (20th
February 1937)
Further
detachments of Italian troops arrived last week in Spain just before
the prohibition of volunteers came into
force. Their total strength is estimated at about 10,000, so that
there are now at least 70,000 Italian troops in Spain. Some 5,000
French volunteers also succeeded in reaching Spain just before closing
time.
Amongst the war material
shipped to Spain from Italy this month was a consignment of 100 Caproni
bombers, which arrived in an aircraft-carrier. It does not seem that
any Russian volunteers or war material have reached Spain during the
last few weeks. Instead, it would seem that Russia has given up her
intervention altogether.
All figures relating to
numbers of troops - whether Spanish or foreign - in Spain are conjectural,
but as far as can 'be judged at the moment there would seem to be
between 30,000 and 60,000 volunteers on the Government side and between
80,000 and 100,000 on the rebel side, the latter, of course, bring
supplies with an incomparably superior armament.
(2)
Katharine
Stewart-Murray, the
Duchess of Atholl, wrote about visiting
Spain in 1937 in
her autobiography, Working Partnership (1958)
At Valencia the first
thing we saw was one of the schools for refugee children, which showed
clearly the interest in education taken by the Republican government.
Next came a visit to a prison for political prisoners, until lately
occupied by the present President and Prime Minister.
The prison consisted of
a large well-lit building with a central hall from which radiated
staircases to various galleries. Outside these there was a good-sized
gravelled recreation ground in which some fifty men were standing
about, looking well clothed and fed. We were allowed to call out for
men who could speak French or English, and any who could do so were
hastily pushed forward. In reply to our questions they said that little
was wrong with the food, and that letters and gifts from friends were
received regularly. The only complaint made to us was that no visitors
had been allowed for a month.
In another prison we visited,
two hundred Italian prisoners-of-war, Mussolini's so-called 'volunteers',
were confined. We were allowed to talk to them freely and we asked
them how they came to be here. Several replied that they had thought
they were being taken to one of the
Italian colonies. Others had come with their own officers, as a regiment.
When we asked them how they were being treated, several ran off to
fetch samples of the bread they were getting, which they
obviously found satisfactory. They looked well cared for, and happy
to be out of the fighting.
(3)
Resolution passed by the British
Battalion on 27th March 1937.
We the members of the British working class in the British Battalion
of the International Brigade now fighting in Spain in
defence of democracy, protest against statements appearing
in certain British papers to the effect that there is little or
no interference in the civil war in Spain by foreign Fascist Powers.
We have seen with our own
eyes frightful slaughter of men, women, and children in Spain. We
have witnessed the destruction of many of its towns and villages.
We have seen whole areas which have been devastated. And we know beyond
a shadow of doubt that these frightful deeds have been done mainly
by German and Italian nationals, using German and Italian aeroplanes,
tanks, bombs, shells, and guns.
We ourselves have been
in action repeatedly against thousands of German and Italian troops,
and have lost many splendid and heroic comrades in these battles.
We protest against this
disgraceful and unjustifiable invasion of Spain by Fascist Germany
and Italy; an invasion in
our opinion only made possible by the pro-Franco policy of the Baldwin
Government in Britain. We believe that all
lovers of freedom and democracy in Britain should now unite in a sustained
effort to put an end to this invasion of Spain and to force the Baldwin
Government to give to the people of Spain and their legal Government
the right to buy arms in Britain to defend their freedom and democracy
against Fascist barbarianism. We therefore call upon the General Council
of the T.U.C. and the National Executive Committee of the Labour party
to organise a great united campaign in Britain for the achievement
of the above objects.
We denounce the attempts
being made in Britain by the Fascist elements to make people believe
that we British and
other volunteers fighting on behalf of Spanish democracy are no different
from the scores of thousands of conscript troops sent into Spain by
Hitler and Mussolini. There can be no comparison between free volunteers
and these conscript armies of Germany and Italy in Spain.
Finally, we desire it
to be known in Britain that we came here of our own free will after
full consideration of all that this step involved. We came to Spain
not for money, but solely to assist the heroic Spanish people to defend
their country's freedom and democracy. We were not gulled into coming
to Spain by promises of big money. We never even asked for money when
we volunteered. We are perfectly satisfied with our treatment by the
Spanish Government; and we still are proud to be fighting for the
cause of freedom in Spain. Any statements to the contrary are foul
lies.
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