History of War – October 2019

roseupagainsttheentryof a rightwingparty

intotheSpanishgovernment.Thestrikequickly

developedintoaninsurgencythattookasits

rolemodeltheSovietrevolution.Thestrikewas

brutallyputdownbytheLegionandMoroccan

colonialtroops,withthedeathtollputat around

2,000,amongminers,troopsandevensome

33 clergymen.

ThemilitaryuprisingagainsttheRepublic

wasin factfirstproclaimedin Spain’sNorth

Africanterritorieson 17 July1936,a day

beforetheattemptedcouponthemainland.

Within 24 hours,theLegionhadtakenSpain’s

overseasbasesfortheinsurgents.Two

dayslater,a contingentof Legionnaireswas

dispatchedto thePeninsulaunderGeneral

EmilioMola,whoinitiallyonlymanagedto take

onemajorcity,Seville.GeneralFrancomade

hiswayto Spain’sNorthAfricanenclaveof

Ceutafromhisbasein theCanaryIslands,

whereheassumedcommandof thecolonial

forces.FrancomobilisedtheLegionasshock

troopsin hisinvasionof mainlandSpain.

Byshuttlingthe5thBandera,or battalion,

acrosstheMediterranean,thepudgy,

squeaky-voicedgeneralfromGaliciacouldlay

claimto havingorganisedthefirstairbridgein

militaryhistory.Thanksto aircraftprovidedby

hisGermanallies,Francoeventuallyflewmore

than23,000menof theArmyof Africaacross

theStraitof Gibraltar.

At theoutbreakof hostilities,theLegionhad

sixBanderasspreadacrossSpanishNorth

Africa.Theirinterventionwasto provecrucial

in thefirstmonthsof theuprising.Franco

immediatelyraisedtwonewBanderas.With

thehelpof GermanandItalianaircraft,they

wereflownintoAndalucía,muchof whichwas

alreadyin rebelhands.In lessthana month,

theentireLegionwasfightingonSpanishsoil.

Francowasdeterminedto leadhistroopsdirect

to thecapital.Heputtogethertwobattalions,

a platoonof regulars,a companyof sappers

anda unitof gunnersintohisMadridColumn

which,withoutmuchdifficultyonitsmarch

north,sweptawayresistancein everytown

in spiteof itsimageastheultimatehardcore

maleredoubt,womenhaveplayeda rolein

theLegion sinceitsearliestdays.Theywould

accompany thecolumnsintobattleasnurses

andcanteenmanagers,oftendoingbothjobsat

once.Like themen,theysuffereddepravations

andnever flinchedfromcourageouslybearing

armswherecircumstancesrequired.

Severalwomenheldmedalsforbravery.Rosario

Vázquezwasawardedtwosilvercrossesfor

heroismin theMoroccanandasturiascampaigns.

TeresagonzálezattendedwoundedLegionnaires

of the7thBandera,whileVicentaValdiviadevoted

herentireworkinglifeto theLegion.Millán-astray

expressed wordsof praiseforwomenvolunteers,

“Women,whendrivenbya senseof honour,

arenotgivento halfmeasures.Womenarethe

bastionof ourraceandweshouldbeinspiredby

theirferventandheroicpatriotism.”

Thiswasmanyyearsbefore1989,when

womenwereofficiallyadmittedintoactiveservice

in thearmedforces.Thefirstwomanto wear

theLegion’suniformwasthearmymedicpilar

HernándezFrutos.in 1990shewasassignedto

the7thBandera,whereshewasputin chargeof

thebattalion’smedicalservices.Shealsoserved

witha tacticalunitonpeacekeepingmissionsin

Bosnia-Herzegovinaandalbaniain 1997.

women of

the Legion

“womenarethebastion

ofourraceandwe

should beinspiredby

their ferventandheroic

patriotism”

in itspath.BySeptember1936,Francohad

beenproclaimedsupremecommanderof the

NationalistarmyaswellastheLegion.

At theendof theSpanishCivilWar,most

theLegion’sBanderasweredisbandedand

theoriginalTerciosreturnedto theirNorth

Africanbases.Theywouldoncemoresee

overseasaction,thistimeagainsttheSahara

LiberationArmy,beforeSpainrelinquished

controlof theSpanishSaharato Moroccoin

1976,a yearafterFranco’sdeath.

Alongwiththerestof theArmedForces,

theLegionhasstruggledto overcomeits

imagein thepubliceyeasa repressivetool

of theFrancodictatorship.Spaniardstoday

areawarethattheLegion,withtheendof its

rolein theSahara,hasadoptednewfunctions

andresponsibilities,muchof whichinvolves

cooperationwithinternationalfightingforces

andpeacekeepingduties.TheLegion,which

is themostenthusiasticallyapplaudedunit

in Spain’sannualArmedForcesDayparade,

remainsfaithfulto itstraditionsanditshistory.

Althoughnowtotallyintegratedintothearmy,

thecorpsretainsitsuniquecharacter.Foreign

volunteersonceaccountedforaroundtenper

centof theranks.Theynownumberat most

onepercentandaredrawnexclusivelyfrom

Spanish-speakingcountries.

Thetroopsaretrainedto dealwith

newtasks,fromriotcontrolto rescue

operationsanddisasterrelief.Theyhavealso

accompaniedtheSpanishArmyintocombat

zonesabroad,suchasAfghanistan,andhave

beeninvolvedin peacekeepingmissions

aroundtheworld,fromAfricaandAsiato Latin

America.“TheLegionis a unitof theSpanish

ArmedForces,”saysBrigadierGeneralMiguel

BallenillaGarcíadeGamarra.“Inspiteof the

Legion’senduringespiritdecorps,whichis

linkedto itshistoryandlegends,thepublicview

todayis thatof a forcepreparedto confrontthe

mostdemandingchallenges.Thisin turnhas

animpactontheLegion’sofficersandrankand

file,whodemandmoreof themselvesto fulfil

whatsocietyexpectsof theLegion.”

A female soldierof the

legionat a procession

duringHoly Weekin

Malaga,Andalusia

A memberof the

Legiontakespartin a

religiousprocession,

in Andalusia, 1960

Spain’S LegiÓn

Images: Alamy, Getty