BATTLE OF THE EBRO: CAUSES, DEVELOPMENT AND CONSEQUENCES - HISTORY - 2024

The Battle of the Ebro was one of the most important confrontations that occurred during the Spanish Civil War. The battle took place in 1938, between the months of July and September. Its location was in the Ebro river valley, in the western part of the province of Tarragona and in the eastern part of the province of Zaragoza.

Since the armed uprising in 1936 against the republican government, the rebels had managed to slowly but steadily gain ground. The situation in the weeks prior to the Battle of the Ebro had left the government side with few territories under its control.

Source: PACO - under the CC BY-SA 3.0 license

The republican hope that European countries would intervene in their aid was totally discarded after the agreements between Great Britain and France with Nazi Germany to allow it to occupy the Sudetenland. The foreign anti-fascist volunteers had to withdraw, while the German aviation bombarded the republican positions.

Although at first the republicans managed to advance positions, finally the rebels took the victory. With this result the war was definitively sentenced.

Background

The Civil War in Spain had started in July 1936, when a group of soldiers tried to give a coup to the established government. Faced with the failure of the coup, the situation quickly led to a conflict that would last three years.

After two years of fighting, the rebels (called "nationals") had managed to occupy most of the country's territory. At the end of July 1938, the Republicans tried to turn the situation around by launching a major offensive on the Ebro.

Nationals

The year 1938 began with very negative news for the republican army. Although in January he had managed to conquer Teruel, only a month later the city was again conquered by the nationals.

That battle was a considerable strain on government troops. On the contrary, the nationals led by Franco hardly noticed the casualties and, two weeks after the confrontation, they launched an attack against Aragon.

At that time, the rebels were very close to the Mediterranean, a vital objective as it meant opening a new supply route.

With little resistance, the nationals entered Aragon. Some units even penetrated Catalonia, still faithful to the Republic. Yagüe, one of the most prominent generals of the Francoist army, showed his impatience to conquer that community, but was ordered to stop completely.

At that time, Franco made a decision that has been widely disputed by historians. Instead of paying attention to Yagüe and taking Catalonia, he decided to focus on Valencia. However, in that city the Republicans were well equipped and the Nationals could not break through their defenses.

The Republicans

By April 1838, it seemed that the situation had calmed down. However, the Republicans had suffered great defeats. The most important result of these had been that the territory still in government hands had been divided into two parts: the center, with Madrid as the main city, and Catalonia.

Another coup, this time internal, occurred in early April of that year. Indalecio Prieto, defense minister, resigned from his post due to disagreements with the resistance policy imposed by the government.

Among those who asked to try to reverse the situation was Juan Negrín, who proclaimed the motto "to resist is to win." Vicente Rojo also shared that opinion and both managed to mark the government line.

The two politicians believed that international events, with Nazi Germany annexing Austria, would eventually favor the Republic when Britain and France reacted.

Trying to buy time and return the initiative to the Republic, Vicente Rojo organized an offensive that was to be final for the course of the war.

Causes

More than concrete causes, the Battle of the Ebro was produced by the very inertia of the conflict. The nationals were about to reach the Mediterranean and had Catalonia, one of the centers of maximum resistance, in their sights.

On the other hand, the Republicans needed a victory to turn the war around. Furthermore, they relied on the intervention of the European democratic powers.

Attempt to show strength in the face of enemies

The republican government was closely watching the events that were taking place abroad. The danger from Nazi Germany and fascist Italy, allies of Franco, was becoming increasingly clear and they believed that the reaction of the democratic powers would help them in their struggle.

For this reason, showing strength before the enemy and buying time while waiting for international aid, became one of the few options left to the Republicans.

Division in two the republican territory

In June 1938, the rebels managed to take Vinaroz, in Castellón. This meant that the territory controlled by the legitimate government was divided in two: the center and Levante, on the one hand, and Catalonia.

The Republican offensive on the Ebro was an attempt to reconnect both areas and thus prolong the resistance.

Avoid Franco's attack on Valencia

Instead of heading straight for Catalonia, Franco had decided to attack Valencia earlier, seeking to reach the Mediterranean.

With the Battle of the Ebro, the republicans also tried that part of the national army had to go to that area and that the offensive on Valencia was not so hard.

Development

The Northern Army was the one that participated in the battle on the part of the national side. Furthermore, the unit that was destined to defend the Ebro was the Moroccan Army Corps, under the command of General Yagüe.

This concentrated the troops on the right bank of the river, covering from the Segre (another river in the area) to the Mediterranean. However, although the Republican preparations were quite evident, Yagüe did not order any prior action to be taken to reject the offensive.

On the government side, the main force that entered the fight was the Autonomous Group of the Ebro, created for that battle. It had 100,000 troops under the command of Guilloto León, all very young and with little experience in warfare.

The Grouping was divided into several divisions, highlighting for their significance the so-called International Divisions, volunteers from all over the world who came to fight against fascism.

Start of the battle

The offensive began on the night of July 24, 1938. A few minutes after midnight on the 25th, the Republicans began to cross the Ebro using rowboats.

Earlier, they had sent out advance teams to kill the sentries with knives and take advantage of the surprise factor.

The first moments after the attack were very favorable for the Republicans. The defense arranged by Yagüe proved quite inadequate, and the division that he had positioned in the area was soon overwhelmed by government soldiers, causing the national troops to flee.

Historians claim that the rebel general erred by entrusting the position to a newly created unit with little prior experience.

River crossing

Republican troops crossed the river at twelve different points. Up to 250 rowboats were used in this operation, previously requisitioned off the coast of Catalonia.

Once they crossed with the boats, the Republicans began to build different kinds of bridges. Some were very simple catwalks, accommodating a single row of men. Others, on the other hand, were metal bridges through which even tanks could pass.

The Francoists responded by calling the aviation. Not only did they bombard Republican positions, but also several dams to cause floods. Before the national air superiority, supported by German and Italian aircraft, the republican aviation did not even appear.

First Republican successes

The experts affirm that the first days of the Battle of the Ebro ended with a republican victory. As an example, the more than 4000 enemy prisoners they captured. Franco was forced to divert part of his forces destined for other parts of the country to try to save the situation.

On the 25th, the nationals had to undertake a tactical withdrawal, gathering around the town of Gandesa. Given this, the Republicans focused their efforts on trying to overcome the defense that the rebels had mounted there.

The reinforcements sent by Franco achieved their purpose. The Nationals held out and the Republicans failed to break through the defenses, which would have been almost final for the battle.

National, Italian and German bombings

For two consecutive days, on the 26th and 27th, the Republicans attacked Gandesa with intensity. Despite the fact that on some occasions it seemed that they were going to be able to conquer it, the nationals maintained their position.

Meanwhile, Franco's aviation, with the support of the Germans and Italians, continued to bombard the bridges built by government troops.

The objective was to prevent the arrival of reinforcements and, especially, war material. This was a delay in government plans that would prove decisive.

Until the beginning of August, the situation remained unchanged. However, little by little, the national air and artillery superiority began to give them some advantage. Finally, between August 1 and 3, the head of the Republican Ebro Army gave the order to go on the defensive.

Franco's counterattack

On August 6, the Nationals launched a total counteroffensive. Their attack against Republican positions allowed them to overcome them in several places and force the withdrawal of a good part of the government troops.

In their flight, the Republicans crowded the bridges built over the Ebro, causing some to give way under the weight. Many men were trapped and ended up in the hands of the enemy.

Despite this, the central core of the Republican army still remained. As of August 11, the fighting intensified. The national bombardments continued on the Republicans, who were forced to retreat towards Corbera. This town fell into rebel hands on September 4 after a new mass attack.

End of battle

Although the battle itself was being fought on Spanish soil, experts emphasize the importance of the events that were taking place in Europe at that time.

First, the signing of a Non-Intervention treaty that forced the international anti-fascist brigades to leave Spain.

This did not affect the army of the Republic too much, with enough troops still. On the other hand, the Munich Agreement, signed on September 30, did pose a real problem for him.

Through this Agreement, England and France allowed Hitler to annex the Sudetenland. This policy of appeasement meant, in practice, that the democratic powers were not going to do anything to save the Republic.

The same day that treaty was signed, the Francoists intensified the offensive. The following hours were the most intense of the battle.

Little by little, the Francoist planes forced the Republicans to abandon many positions, allowing the ground troops to advance without problems. On November 10, only six government batteries remained west of the Ebro.

On the 18th, Yagüe launched the last offensive and the Ebro line returned to recover the situation in which it was before the battle.

Consequences

The republican attempt to cross the Ebro ended in failure after several months of battle. Both sides suffered heavy casualties.

Historians put them at 6,500 among the Francoists and 10,000 among the Republicans, although some experts believe that the number could have been double.

The material losses were also enormous, although given the situation of the war, it affected the government side much more. This one got to lose more than 100 airplanes, without possibilities to replace them.

Republican wear

The Battle of the Ebro is considered the largest of the entire Spanish Civil War. Although the consequences, as has been pointed out, affected both sides, it was the Republicans who most accused the wear and tear suffered.

His army was practically destroyed, with his troops exhausted. Furthermore, the loss of material left the remaining divisions in a very precarious position.

Catalonia within reach of the rebels

The most immediate consequence of the Battle of the Ebro was that it left Catalonia within the reach of the Francoists. The offensive came early, in the month of November.

Although they tried to resist, Barcelona fell on January 26, 1939 and the Republican government was forced into exile a few days later.

He had tried to negotiate peace with Franco, but he did not agree to reach any agreement. On February 13, all of Catalonia was in national hands.

End of the war

Despite this, the war still continued for a few months. Finally, on April 1, 1939, just four months after the Battle of the Ebro, Franco proclaimed his victory, giving way to a long dictatorship.

References

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