Group    From 1936  To 1938

International Brigades

Categories: Armed Forces

Countries: Spain

A military uprising in Spain in July 1936 was assisted by Hitler and Mussolini. The elected Spanish Republican government pleaded for help from France and Britain but, as part of the appeasement philosophy, this was denied. Many people across Europe were so appalled and worried that Spain might fall to the Fascists that they volunteered to fight alongside the Republicans. The Comintern (Communist International) organised these foreign volunteers into International Brigades.  It was estimated that between 30,000 and 35,000 people were involved in the Brigades.  More than 2,300 volunteers came from Britain, Ireland and the commonwealth, of who over 500 were killed. The majority were working-class and members of the Communist Party.

A Non-Intervention Committee had been set up by many European countries, with the aim of preventing personnel and supplies reaching the warring parties. In October 1938, this committee ordered the withdrawal of the brigades, while at the same time turning a blind eye to the support that Germany and Italy were giving to the Nationalist side.

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This section lists the memorials where the subject on this page is commemorated:
International Brigades

Commemorated ati

Hammersmith and Fulham International Brigade

{Front of memorial:} International Brigade In honour of the volunteers who le...

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International Brigade

The quote “they went….other way” is a paraphrase of two lines from C. Day Lew...

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Tower Hamlets International Brigade

'No Pasaran' translates from Spanish as 'they shall not pass'.

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Other Subjects

P Goad

P Goad

Co-partner or employee of the South Suburban Gas Company. Served but did not die in WW1.

Person, Armed Forces

War served, WW1
1 memorial
Field Marshal Montgomery

Field Marshal Montgomery

Army Commander. Born Bernard Law Montgomery, son of Sir H. H. Montgomery, in St Mark's Vicarage, Kennington Oval, or Kensington, Knightsbridge, depending on source. Spent the early years of his lif...

Person, Armed Forces, Seriously Famous, Australia, Egypt, France, Italy

5 memorials
ORP Błyskawica

ORP Błyskawica

Former Destroyer in the Polish Navy. ORP stands for Okret Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej (Ship of the Polish Republic).

Vehicle, Armed Forces, Poland

1 memorial
Brigadier  A. F. L. Clive

Brigadier A. F. L. Clive

Born Archer Francis Lawrence Clive.  Military Cross in 1914.  1941-3 commanded the 6th Battalion Grenadier Guards, including at the Battle of Morpeth.

Person, Armed Forces

1 memorial
Richard Beaty

Richard Beaty

Lieutenant Richard Norton Beaty was born on 30 January 1920 in New York City, New York, USA, the third of the five children of Julian Bonar Beaty (1880-1978) and Constance Saltonstall Dawbarn Beaty...

Person, Armed Forces, USA

War served, WW2
1 memorial

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Westminster City Council

Westminster City Council

The ancient parish of St Margaret's was divided into St Margaret's and St John's in 1727 but it was still run as a single vestry. In 1855 the two parishes were reformed into the Westminster Distric...

Group, Politics & Administration

183 memorials
Kingston Spiritualist Church

Kingston Spiritualist Church

Our photo of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle officiating at the church's opening comes from a previous incarnation (appropriate expression?) of the Kingston Spiritualist Church website. Now, 2020, there is ...

Building, Religion

4 memorials