1936: Austrians in the Spanish Civil War

In June 1936 right-wing military forces under General Francisco Franco staged a coup, launching the “Spanish Civil War”, which soon became an international showdown between fascism and anti-fascism. Adolf Hitler and Benito Mussolini promoted the coup with weapons and armed forces; 140 Austrians fought for Franco. In this proxy war, the Soviet Union showed solidarity with the Republic. The Republic was also supported by the approximately 35,000 anti-fascist volunteers of the “International Brigades” from all over the world, which included 1400 Austrians, many of whom were persecuted as Communists and Socialists by the Austro-fascist regime.

Austrians were represented in all units of the Republican Army, especially in the “February 12” battalion, which was founded in June 1937. Even before the end of the civil war on April 1, 1939, surviving Austrian volunteers had to retreat to France, where most of them were imprisoned in camps. A small number of them found exile in other countries, more than 450 of them were sent to Nazi concentration camps, and 319 volunteers lost their lives. The Lexikon der österreichischen Spanienkämpfer 1936–1939 as well as the Spanish Archives of the Documentation Centre of Austrian Resistance document numerous biographies of Austrians who fought in the Spanish Civil War.