Book Review of
Fighting for Spain
The International Brigades in the Civil War-1936-1939
Author: Alexander Clifford
Pen & Sword Books
ISBN: 9781526774385
By Ray Mehlberger
Copyright 2020
MSRP: $42.95
ISBN: 9781526774385
By Ray Mehlberger
Copyright 2020
MSRP: $42.95
HISTORY:
In the English-speaking world, the Spanish Civil War is perhaps best remembered through the exploits of thousands of foreign volunteers from across the globe, who joined International Brigades – a force of communists, socialists and others who took their opposition to fascism to extraordinary lengths.
Their passionate political commitment to Spain’s cause and determination in battle place them among the crack troops of the Republic’s People’s Army.
Yet, while much has been written about the political, social and cultural significance of the brigades and their experience in Spain, less has been said about their performance as front-line troops.
It is this military history that Alexander Clifford focuses on in this highly illustrated, with 167 black and white photos, new study.
His account tells the story of the brigades as combat units, tracing the course of each major battle in which they fought and showing the drastic changes they underwent as the war progressed – from and untrained militia in 1936, to the tried and tested shock troops of 1937, to a shadow of their former selves by 1938, after several maulings and the introduction of Spanish conscripts to fill their ranks.
THE BOOK:
This book is hard-bound with a loose paper jacket cover with locking flaps. It shows a color cover art of a T-26 tank with troops atop it at the top of the front cover, over a color photo of a Maxim-Tokarev machine-gun crewed by British gunners in a Teruel trench. The well-entrenched machine-gun company proved vital in halting the Nationalist counter-offensive in January 1938.
The back cover shows a black and white photo of 20 men in the 14th Brigade.
It contains 256 pages. Eight pages are blank.
There are 14 maps, 11 info charts, photos of troops in and out of action, weapons, a Me-109 & a Ju-87 Stuka in flight, 5 photos of cannons, 4 photos of a T-26 tank, 2 photos of a Pz.Kpfw. I, 4 photos of a CV-33 and a photo of a BT-5, 2 photos of memorials after the war, a photo of a U.S. M3 half-track, a photo of a mass grave and 23 photos of cities and landscapes.
Photos of notable people includes:
General Francisco Franco
The “Butcher of Albacete”, the brutal French communist Andre Marty, Chief Commissar of the brigades.
Polish commander General Walter.
General Kleber, Soviet Military Intelligence agent.
Randolfo Pacciardi, Commander of the International Brigade.
General Lukacs, Commander of the 12th International Brigade.
Otto Brummer, Swiss Communist National Battalion Commander.
Robert Hart Merriman, Volunteer from California.
Lieutenant Colonel Juan Modesto, leading Communist Commander of People’s Army VC Corps.
Colonel Steven Pupua, American Military Attache in Spain.
Captain Edward Cecil Smith, former 14th International Brigade commander.
Rol Tanguy.
Also included in an illustration of a safe-conduct pass (Salvoconducto) and a postage stamp honoring one of the war heros.
This book will be more of interest to military historians and to some lesser degree to modelers.
I want to sincerely thank Casemate Publishers that sent me this review sample and the folks at Pen & Sword.
All Pen & Sword book titles can be seen on Casemate’s website at:
In the English-speaking world, the Spanish Civil War is perhaps best remembered through the exploits of thousands of foreign volunteers from across the globe, who joined International Brigades – a force of communists, socialists and others who took their opposition to fascism to extraordinary lengths.
Their passionate political commitment to Spain’s cause and determination in battle place them among the crack troops of the Republic’s People’s Army.
Yet, while much has been written about the political, social and cultural significance of the brigades and their experience in Spain, less has been said about their performance as front-line troops.
It is this military history that Alexander Clifford focuses on in this highly illustrated, with 167 black and white photos, new study.
His account tells the story of the brigades as combat units, tracing the course of each major battle in which they fought and showing the drastic changes they underwent as the war progressed – from and untrained militia in 1936, to the tried and tested shock troops of 1937, to a shadow of their former selves by 1938, after several maulings and the introduction of Spanish conscripts to fill their ranks.
THE BOOK:
This book is hard-bound with a loose paper jacket cover with locking flaps. It shows a color cover art of a T-26 tank with troops atop it at the top of the front cover, over a color photo of a Maxim-Tokarev machine-gun crewed by British gunners in a Teruel trench. The well-entrenched machine-gun company proved vital in halting the Nationalist counter-offensive in January 1938.
The back cover shows a black and white photo of 20 men in the 14th Brigade.
It contains 256 pages. Eight pages are blank.
There are 14 maps, 11 info charts, photos of troops in and out of action, weapons, a Me-109 & a Ju-87 Stuka in flight, 5 photos of cannons, 4 photos of a T-26 tank, 2 photos of a Pz.Kpfw. I, 4 photos of a CV-33 and a photo of a BT-5, 2 photos of memorials after the war, a photo of a U.S. M3 half-track, a photo of a mass grave and 23 photos of cities and landscapes.
Photos of notable people includes:
General Francisco Franco
The “Butcher of Albacete”, the brutal French communist Andre Marty, Chief Commissar of the brigades.
Polish commander General Walter.
General Kleber, Soviet Military Intelligence agent.
Randolfo Pacciardi, Commander of the International Brigade.
General Lukacs, Commander of the 12th International Brigade.
Otto Brummer, Swiss Communist National Battalion Commander.
Robert Hart Merriman, Volunteer from California.
Lieutenant Colonel Juan Modesto, leading Communist Commander of People’s Army VC Corps.
Colonel Steven Pupua, American Military Attache in Spain.
Captain Edward Cecil Smith, former 14th International Brigade commander.
Rol Tanguy.
Also included in an illustration of a safe-conduct pass (Salvoconducto) and a postage stamp honoring one of the war heros.
This book will be more of interest to military historians and to some lesser degree to modelers.
I want to sincerely thank Casemate Publishers that sent me this review sample and the folks at Pen & Sword.
All Pen & Sword book titles can be seen on Casemate’s website at:
Recommended.