Recajo is a village within Agoncillo municipality in La Rioja province in northern Spain . It is located south of a bend on the Ebro River, about 4 km to the west of Agoncillo.
100-687: Recajo has a population of 91 according to the 2010 census. A military aerodrome was built in Recajo in 1923. It was first known as Aeródromo de Recajo , but in 1932 when it was used by the Spanish Republican Air Force its official name was changed to Aeródromo de Agoncillo . Located about 10 km from Logroño, after 1939 Recajo Air Base housed the Maestranza Aérea de Logroño of the Spanish Air Force with
200-405: A Spanish colonial outpost. In 1933, under Capitan Warlela, systematic cadastral surveys of Spain were carried out using modern methods of aerial photography . The following year Spanish engineer Juan de la Cierva took off and landed on seaplane carrier Dédalo with his autogyro C-30P. In 1934 Commander Eduardo Sáenz de Buruaga became new chief-commander of the air force. On the same year
300-576: A bad state of disrepair. The ungainly French Potez 540 , a highly vulnerable plane that proved itself a failure in Spanish skies during the Civil War, was labelled as 'Flying Coffin' ( Spanish : Ataúd Volante ) by loyalist pilots. The rebel side, however, claimed that both air forces were almost equal, since the Soviet Union was helping the loyalist air force, but the fact was that: ... on
400-685: A great part of the 60 Breguet XIX , 27 Vickers Vildebeest and 56 Hispano-Nieuport Ni-52 planes that the Spanish Air Force had before the hostilities, for the Republic had the control of the majority of the territory. Nevertheless, confronted with a war of attrition in the same month, the Spanish Republican government bought in France 14 Dewoitine D.371 , 10 Dewoitine D.373 and 49 Potez 540 , among other military aircraft, for
500-769: A great part of the planes of the Spanish Republican Air Force to France. The orders had been given in haste by the beleaguered authorities of the doomed Republican Government who wanted to prevent the aircraft from falling into the enemy's hands. The planes landed in Francazal near Toulouse , where the French authorities impounded them, arrested the Spanish Republican pilots, and swiftly interned them in concentration camps . The Escuadrilla España or Escuadra España , Squadron España, French : Escadrille Espagne , also known as Escuadrilla Internacional ,
600-625: A harbinger of the decolonization process in North Africa . Others consider it one of the last colonial wars, as it was the decision of the Spanish to conquer the Rif – nominally part of their Moroccan protectorate but de facto independent – that catalyzed the entry of France in 1924. The Rif War left a deep memory both in Spain and in Morocco. The Riffian insurgency of the 1920s can be interpreted as
700-464: A joint collaboration with Spain that culminated in the Alhucemas landing , which proved a turning point. The Spanish also used chemical weapons during the conflict . By 1926, the area had been pacified; Abd-el-Krim surrendered to the French that year, and Spain gained effective control of the protectorate's territory at last. The Rif War still causes much disagreement among historians. Some see in it
800-661: A major restructuring of the Spanish military air wing took place. Following a Government decree dated 2 October 1935, the Dirección General de Aeronáutica was placed under the authority of the War Ministry, Ministerio de la Guerra , instead of under the prime minister of Spain , following which in 1936 the Air Force regional units became restructured. Accordingly, the Spanish Navy -based Escuadra model
900-507: A military coup d'état on September 13, 1923. General Primo de Rivera was in the words of the American journalist James Perry a "moderate dictator" who was convinced that the divisions between the africanists vs. the abandonistas had pushed Spain to the brink of civil war, and who had seized power to find a way out of the crisis. General Primo de Rivera soon concluded that the war was unwinnable, and considered pulling back his troops to
1000-746: A novel influenced by his Spanish war experiences. Malraux has often been criticized by opponents for his involvement or motivations in the Spanish Civil War. Comintern sources, for example, described him as an 'adventurer'. The professional pilots of the Escuadrilla España charged exorbitant rates to the Republican Government for their services. Other biographical sources, including fellow combatants, praise Malraux's leadership and sense of camaraderie. At any rate, Malraux's participation in such an historical event as
1100-618: A place that reminded him of his native Colorado. The Rif was also rich in high-grade iron, which could be easily extracted via open-pit mining . The promise of the Spanish state collecting revenues in the form of taxes and royalties from iron mining here was an incentive for it to bring the Rif under its control. The Crown granted the concession to mine iron in the Rif to the millionaire Don Horacio Echevarrieta . By 1920 he had brought out 800,000 tons of valuable high grade iron through relatively inexpensive open-pit mining. Though profitable, iron mining caused much environmental damage and required
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#17327809990911200-689: A precursor to the Algerian War of Independence , which took place three decades later. Spain, 13 kilometers across the Straits of Gibraltar from Africa, claimed influence over the Morocco region at the Berlin Conference (1884–1885). By the early 20th century, Morocco was divided into protectorates ruled by France and Spain. The Rif region had been assigned to Spain, but given that the Sultans of Morocco had been unable to exert control over
1300-590: A reputation for ruthlessness. As their number grew, the Spanish Legion and the Regulares increasingly led offensive operations after the disasters that had been suffered by the conscript forces. As an outcome of the Treaty of Fez (1912) Spain gained possession of the lands around Melilla and Ceuta . In 1920, the Spanish commissioner, General Dámaso Berenguer , decided to conquer the eastern territory from
1400-520: A result, the Spanish retreated to a few fortified positions while Abd el-Krim ultimately created an entire independent state: the Republic of the Rif . The development of the conflict and its end coincided with the dictatorship of Primo de Rivera , who took on command of the campaign from 1924 to 1927. In addition, and after the Battle of Uarga in 1925, the French intervened in the conflict and established
1500-470: A simple diet of coffee, bread, beans, rice and the odd piece of meat. Many soldiers bartered their rifles and ammunition at the local markets in exchange for fresh vegetables. The barracks that the soldiers lived in were unsanitary, and medical care at the few hospitals was very poor. Up in the mountains, Spanish soldiers lived in small outposts known as blocaos , which the American historian Stanley Payne observed: "Many of these lacked any sort of toilet, and
1600-458: Is crazy. I'm not going to take seriously the threats of a little Berber caid [judge] whom I had at my mercy a short time ago. His insolence merits a new punishment". Abd el-Krim allowed Fernández Silvestre to advance deep into the Rif, knowing the Spanish logistics were in the words of the Spanish historian Jose Alvarez "tenuous" at best. On 1 July 1921, the Spanish army in north-eastern Morocco under Fernández Silvestre collapsed when defeated by
1700-556: The abandonistas who wanted to abandon Morocco as not worth the blood and treasure. After the "Disaster of the Annual", Spain's war in the Rif went from bad to worse, and as the Spanish were barely hanging on to Morocco, support for the abandonistas grew as many people could see no point to the war. In August 1923, Spanish soldiers embarking for Morocco mutinied at the railway stations, other soldiers in Malaga simply refused to board
1800-642: The Aéropostale . After the pilots and the planes arrived to Madrid in August 1936, Malraux himself took charge of the organization of the squadron. Malraux was given considerable autonomy, in Albacete he recruited his own personnel, who escaped the control of the International Brigades run by hard-line Stalinist André Marty who tried to impose discipline. The only thing that held together
1900-615: The Geneva Protocol in 1925, which prohibited the use of chemical and biological weapons, such use was not illegal in internal conflicts. Some have cited the Spanish chemical weapons as the main reason for a widespread cancer occurrence in the Rif region, which is still the highest in Morocco; for example, according to the Head of the Association of Toxic Gas Victims (ATGV) research has shown "there are strong indicators that
2000-634: The Mariana and Caroline Islands to Germany the following year; reducing the once great Spanish Empire to only a few footholds on the Moroccan coast and Spanish Guinea . To compensate for the losses in the Americas and Asia, there emerged a powerful Africanist faction in Spain led by Alfonso, who wanted a new empire in Africa. Finally, many within the politically powerful Catholic Church , preached
2100-877: The R-Z reconnaissance bombers were known as "Natacha" in the Spanish Republican Air Force. The Republican air arm was restructured again in May 1937. The new structure included two branches, the Arma de Aviación and the Subsecretaría de Aviación , but unified the Aeronáutica Militar and Aeronáutica Naval . Some sources give this date as the date of the creation of the Spanish Republican Air Force, although it had been previously operative as an air force already. The Republican Air Force would keep this structure until this disbandment two years later. Many planes belonging to
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#17327809990912200-662: The Regimiento de Bombardeo Nº 15, Escuadrón 110 that operated Heinkel He 111 bombers until the late 1950s. After the bomber squadrons were phased out, the aerodrome reverted to civilian use as the Logroño-Agoncillo Airport . It now has a smaller airstrip and houses a museum. This article about a location in La Rioja, Spain is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Spanish Republican Air Force The Spanish Republican Air Force
2300-533: The Berbers "were often as inhospitable to the Arab as they were to the foreigner", and generally killed any outsiders who ventured into their territory. Vincent Sheean , who covered the war for The New York Times , wrote that the Rif was a truly beautiful countryside of "[c]rimson mountains flung against a sky of hieratic blue, gorges magnificent and terrifying, peaceful green valleys between protecting precipices",
2400-487: The Civil War the Air Force of the Spanish republican government would have to fight against the better equipped Aviación Nacional , created by the fraction of the army in revolt and their powerful Italian Fascist and Third Reich supporters. After 18 July 1936 coup d'état , the Republican government lost the military planes that were in aerodromes under rebel control. The loyalist areas of Spain retained, however,
2500-732: The Civil War. As an air force it became practically ineffective after the Battle of the Ebro in 1938, when the spine of the Spanish Republican Armed Forces was broken. Finally the Spanish Republican Air Force was completely disbanded after the decisive rebel victory on 1 April 1939. The last Republican military airport in Catalonia was in Vilajuiga , from where on 6 February 1939 Commander Andrés García La Calle led
2600-698: The Condor Legion Ju 52 night bombing raids. There were about 300 Russian pilots in or around Madrid by the end of November 1936. The improved defensive capacity of the Spanish Republic boosted the morale of the areas of Spain under loyalist control. The Russian pilots gave their best performance in the Battle of Guadalajara , routing the Italian Aviazione Legionaria and pounding the Fascist militias incessantly from
2700-599: The French Air Ministry, such as Jean Moulin , future French Resistance leader. Even though President Albert Lebrun opposed direct assistance to the threatened fellow republic, Léon Blum, then the prime minister of France , decided to help the Spanish Republicans with discretion. Thus 20 Potez 540, 5 Bloch 210 , 10 Breguet XIX , 17 Dewoitine D.371 , 2 Dewoitine D.500 /510, 5 Amiot 143 , 5 Potez 25 and 6 Loire 46 planes were sent to Spain at
2800-670: The Jibala tribes, but had little success. The second-in-command was General Manuel Fernández Silvestre , who commanded the eastern sector. Fernández Silvestre had spread out his troops out in 144 forts and blocaos from Sidi Dris on the Mediterranean across the Rift mountains to Annual and Tizi Azza and on to Melilla. A typical blocao held about a dozen men, while the larger forts had about 800 men. Fernández Silvestre, known for his boldness and impetuosity, had pushed his men too deep into
2900-462: The Legion and other Spanish units recalled from operations in western Morocco. By the end of August Spanish forces at Melilla numbered 36,000 under General Jose Sanjurjo and the slow process of recovering the lost territory could begin. Thus the Spanish could keep their biggest base in the eastern Rif . Later Abd el-Krim would admit: " I bitterly regret this order. It was my biggest mistake . All
3000-677: The Legionary Nazi and Italian planes that dropped their bombs over Madrid every day. This action made the Russian pilots very popular among the people in Madrid. The Katiuska pilots took advantage for the time being of their aircraft's relatively higher speed, but the plane was vulnerable and its fuel tanks easily caught fire when shot at. Furthermore, when the Condor Legion brought the speedier Messerschmitt Bf 109 fighters later in
3100-518: The Mediterranean Sea, Europeans had rarely, if ever, ventured into the area. Walter Burton Harris , the Morocco correspondent for The Times , who covered the war, wrote that as late as 1912 only "one or two Europeans had been able to visit the cedar forests that lie south of Fez. A few had traveled in the southern Atlas and pushed on into the Sus ...and that was almost all". As Harris wrote,
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3200-472: The Republican tricolor roundel was replaced by red bands, an insignia that had previously been used on Aeronáutica Naval aircraft during the monarchy in the 1920s, before the time of the Republic. In the same month the first serious air combat took place over Madrid when Italian bombers attacked the city in a massive bombing operation. The western democracies, like France, the United Kingdom and
3300-461: The Rif mountains hoping to reach Alhucemas Bay without undertaking the necessary work to build a logistical support network capable of supplying his men out in the blocaos up in the Rif mountains. Krim had sent Fernández Silvestre a letter warning him not to cross the Amekran river or else he would die. Fernández Silvestre commented to the Spanish press about the letter that: "This man Abd el-Krim
3400-575: The Rif mountains. In general, studying war was not considered to be a good use of an officer's time, and most officers devoted their time in Melilla in words of the American journalist James Perry to "gambling and whoring, sometimes molesting the native Moorish women". Morale in the Army was extremely poor and most Spanish soldiers just wanted to go home and leave Morocco forever. Because of the prostitutes from Spain, who attached themselves in great number to
3500-399: The Rif. The French accordingly intervened on the side of Spain, appointing Marshal Pétain as commander-in-chief of an expeditionary force of up to 160,000 well-trained and -equipped troops from Metropolitan, Algerian, Senegalese and Foreign Legion units, as well as Moroccan regulars ( tirailleurs ) and auxiliaries ( goumiers ). With total Spanish forces at this point numbering about 90,000
3600-680: The Rifian forces numbered about 80,000 men, although Abd el-Krim was never able to arm more than 20,000 men at a time. However, this force was largely adequate in the early stages of the war. In the final days of the war, Rifian forces numbered about 12,000 men. In addition, Rifian forces were not well armed, with weapons badly maintained and in poor condition. Initially, the Spanish forces in Morocco were largely composed of conscripts and reservists from Spain itself. These "Peninsular" troops were poorly supplied and prepared, few had marksmanship skills and proper battle training, and widespread corruption
3700-500: The Rifian forces were now seriously outnumbered by their Franco-Spanish opponents. Final French deaths from battle and disease, in what had now become a major war, were to total 8,628. On September 17, 1925, a squadron of American mercenary flyers in the service of France bombarded Chefchaouen . For the final attack commencing on 8 May 1925, the French and Spanish had ranged 123,000 men, supported by 150 aircraft, against 12,000 Rifians. Superior manpower and technology soon resolved
3800-546: The Rifian regular army was never a very large force. The elite of the Rifian forces formed regular units which according to Abd el-Krim, quoted by the Spanish general Manuel Goded , numbered 6,000 to 7,000. Other sources put it much lower, at around 2,000 to 3,000. The remaining Rifians were tribal militia selected by their Caids ; they were not liable to serve away from their homes and farms for more than 15 consecutive days. General Goded estimated that at their peak, in June 1924,
3900-439: The Soviet Union. The Spanish Republican Air Force lacked modern planes and experienced pilots. Unlike most other foreign pilots in the service of the Spanish Republican Air Force, Russian pilots were technically volunteers. They received no incentives, like combat bonuses, to supplement their modest wages. Many Soviet airmen came in the fall 1936, along with the new aircraft that the Spanish Republic had purchased from Russia. After
4000-687: The Spanish Air Force ( Aeronáutica Española ), under the names Aeronáutica Militar and Aeronáutica Naval , the former being the air arm of the Spanish Republican Army and the latter the naval aviation of the Spanish Republican Navy , included mainly French planes, some of which were remnants of the Rif War (1920–1926) . Once the Republican Government was established, General Luis Lombarte Serrano replaced pro-monarchist General Alfredo Kindelán as chief-commander of
4100-559: The Spanish Army of Africa were triggered by a 'compulsive spirit of revenge' of this and other massacres, and the desire to exact retribution on the rebel tribes. Beginning in 1924, the Spanish used chemical weapons during the conflict , which marked the first widespread employment of gas warfare in the post-WWI era. The Spanish army indiscriminately used phosgene , diphosgene , chloropicrin and mustard gas also against civilian populations, markets and rivers. While Spain signed
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4200-400: The Spanish Civil War inevitably brought him adversaries, as well as supporters, resulting in a polarization of opinion. The Soviet Union profited from the international isolation of the Spanish Republic imposed by the non-intervention agreements and assisted the beleaguered Republican government by providing weapons and pilots. Some of the most effective pilots in Spain were young men from
4300-542: The Spanish Legion, was formed in 1920. The regiment's second commander was then- Col . Francisco Franco , having risen rapidly through the ranks. In the Rif war, it was the Regulares and the Spanish Foreign Legion founded in 1919 that provided the elite forces that won Spain the war. Less than 25% of this "Foreign Legion" were, in fact, non-Spanish. Harshly disciplined and driven, they quickly acquired
4400-615: The Spanish Republican Air Force for over two years, a total of 99 lost their lives. Little gratitude or recognition were shown to the surviving pilots despite their effort and, to compound their sad lot, many would later become victims of the Stalin Purges after their return to the USSR. The training of pilots, as well as other air force personnel, was trusted to the Instruction Services ( Servicios de Instrucción ). All
4500-476: The Spanish bases in Morocco, venereal diseases were rampant in the Spanish Army. Fernández Silvestre was well aware of the poor morale of his soldiers, but he did not regard this as a problem, believing that his enemy was so inferior that the problems afflicting his troops were not an issue. Even with their numerical superiority, the "Peninsular" troops proved no match for the highly skilled and motivated Rifian forces. Accordingly, much reliance came to be placed on
4600-616: The United States, did not help the young Spanish Republic. Afraid of the " Communist threat" Neville Chamberlain and Léon Blum were ready to sacrifice Spain, as they later sacrificed Czechoslovakia , in the belief that Hitler could be appeased . In the void thus created, only the Soviet Union helped the Spanish government effectively. At the end of October, four months after the rebels had been supplied with German and Italian aircraft by Adolf Hitler and Benito Mussolini ,
4700-532: The air force, but he would be quickly succeeded by Commander Ramón Franco , younger brother of later dictator Francisco Franco , a national hero who had earlier made a Trans-Atlantic flight in the Plus Ultra hydroplane. Aviation was developing in those years in Spain; in 1931 Captain Cipriano Rodríguez Díaz and Lieutenant Carlos de Haya González flew non-stop to Equatorial Guinea , then
4800-404: The air. Following the demands of the Non-Intervention Committee , Soviet pilots were phased out in the fall of 1938 and trained Spanish airmen took their places after having been trained at the flying schools of Albacete , Alicante , Murcia , El Palomar , Alhama , Los Alcázares , Lorca or El Carmolí that had been set up by the Soviet military. From about 772 Russian airmen that served
4900-587: The beginning of the conflict. Thirteen more Dewoitine D.371 are mentioned by Jules Moch in his book Recontres avez Leon Blum and the Amiot 143 ended up not being delivered, for aircraft constructor Félix Amiot , who would later become a Nazi collaborator , sympathized with the enemies of Republican Spain in the civil war. The French planes, however, were not up to the enemy aircraft. The slow Potez 540 , some of them badly equipped, rarely survived three months of air missions, reaching only about 80 knots against enemy fighters flying at more than 250 knots. Few of
5000-408: The cancer is caused by the gases that were used against the resistance in the north." Writer Juan Pando, however, pointed out that areas of France and Belgium, which were gassed far more heavily during World War I, do not have abnormal cancer rates. Miguel Alonso, Alan Kramer and Javier Rodrigo wrote in the book Fascist Warfare, 1922–1945: Aggression, Occupation, Annihilation : "Although the Rif War
5100-423: The capability and combat readiness of the Soviet Air Forces . Therefore, much emphasis was placed on detailed reporting of the results of the testing of the new Russian military equipment and air-warfare techniques. The first planes that came to Spain were Tupolev SB bombers; the fighters would arrive later. Their first action was a morale-lifting bombing raid on the Talavera de la Reina military airfield used by
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#17327809990915200-412: The coast with the aim of at least temporarily abandoning the Rif. In late July 1924, Primo de Rivera visited a Spanish Foreign Legion post at Ben Taieb in the Rif, and was served a banquet of eggs in different forms. In Spanish culture, eggs are a symbol of the testicles, and the dishes were intended to send a clear message. Primo de Rivera responded calmly that the army would be required to abandon only
5300-423: The command structure of the Spanish loyalist forces was marred by ineptitude and lack of decision-making throughout the Civil War. Starting from the crucial first weeks of the conflict in July 1936, the rebel side was able to undertake a massive airlift of troops from Spanish Morocco using mostly the slow Ju 52 , without any Spanish Republican interference. This was the world's first long-range combat airlift and
5400-403: The conflict were repainted with the markings of the Aviación Nacional after the defeat of the Spanish Republic in the Iberian battlefields. Like all the branches of the Spanish Republican Armed Forces, the Spanish Republican Air Force went through two clear phases during its existence: At the time of the democratic municipal elections that led to the proclamation of the Spanish Republic,
5500-418: The conquest of the Rif. Following the difficulties and setbacks that it had experienced in 1909–11, the Spanish army began to adopt much in organization and tactics from the French North African forces garrisoning most of Morocco and neighboring Algeria. Particular attention was paid to the French Foreign Legion and a Spanish equivalent, the Tercio de Extranjeros ('Foreigners' brigade'), known in English as
5600-465: The course of the war in favour of France and Spain. The French troops pushed through from the south while the Spanish fleet and army secured Alhucemas Bay by a landing operation in September (the first amphibious landing in history where tanks and seaborne air support were used) and began attacking from the north. After one year of bitter resistance, Abd el-Krim , the leader of both the tribes, surrendered to French authorities, and in 1926 Spanish Morocco
5700-417: The decisive Battle of the Ebro , where the Aviación Nacional was relentlessly strafing the loyalist positions with accurate low-level attacks, the republican military airplanes were practically absent from the skies. Moreover, when they appeared and attacked, they did so in an unorganized and inadequate manner that mostly failed to achieve positive effects. Most of the Spanish Republican planes that survived
5800-575: The different units of the Instruction Services depended from the Ministerio de Marina y Aire . During the Civil War the instruction bases and centres were scattered throughout the republican zone: Some documents ascribe him 23 victories Rif War (1920%E2%80%931926) [REDACTED] 60,000–100,000 soldiers [REDACTED] 160,000 soldiers in northern Morocco 1925 The Rif War ( Tarifit : ⴰⵎⴻⵏⵖⵉ ⵏ ⴰⵔⵉⴼ , romanized: Amenɣi n Arif , Arabic : حرب الريف , romanized : ḥarb ar-rīf , Spanish : Guerra del Rif )
5900-405: The displacement of the native people. As they received no share of the profits, the Rifians soon began to oppose the mining in their territory. When Alfonso XIII ascended to the throne in 1886, Spain was considered a world power, with colonies in the Americas, Africa, Asia and the Pacific. But in the Spanish–American War , Spain lost Cuba, Puerto Rico, Guam and the Philippines in 1898, and sold
6000-418: The fighters proved to be airworthy, and were delivered intentionally without guns or gun-sights. The French Ministry of Defense had feared that modern types of planes would easily be captured by the Germans fighting for Franco, and the lesser models were a way of maintaining official "neutrality". In the end the French planes were surpassed by more modern types introduced in late 1936 on both sides and their fate
6100-401: The first Tupolev SB bombers arrived from Russia. They were nicknamed "Katiuska" . One month later the first Soviet fighter planes arrived to alleviate the lack of operational planes in the loyalist side, the Polikarpov I-15 , nicknamed "Chato" (Snubnosed) and the Polikarpov I-16 , nicknamed "Mosca" (housefly) by the loyalists and "Rata" (rat) by the rebels. The Polikarpov R-5 and
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#17327809990916200-523: The fleet of the Spanish Republican Airline LAPE (Líneas Aéreas Postales Españolas) were requisitioned by the Spanish Republican Air Force and used as military transports. Innovative, and often lethal, aeronautical bombing techniques were tested by Condor Legion German expeditionary forces against loyalist areas on Spanish soil with the permission of Generalísimo Franco. The pilots of the Spanish Republican Air Force were unable to check these modern-warfare attacks. Their planes were mostly obsolete and often in
6300-409: The flight from enemy-occupied Málaga , the last two bombers were shot down and the Escuadrilla Malraux was formally dissolved. Even after France joined the Non-Intervention Committee , Malraux helped the Spanish Republic to acquire military aircraft through third countries. The Spanish Republican government circulated photos of Malraux's standing next to some Potez 540 bombers suggesting that France
6400-440: The following five years, occasional battles were fought between the two. The Rifian forces advanced to the east and captured over 130 Spanish military posts. By late August 1921, Spain lost all the territories it had gained since 1909. Spanish troops were pushed back to Melilla, which was their biggest base in the eastern Rif . Spain still had 14,000 soldiers in Melilla. However, Abd el-Krim ordered his forces not to attack
6500-423: The following tenor of events happened because of this mistake ." By January 1922 the Spanish had retaken their major fort at Monte Arruit (where they found the bodies of 2,600 of the garrison) and had reoccupied the coastal plain as far as Tiztoutine and Batel. The Rifian forces had consolidated their hold of the inland mountains and stalemate was reached. The Spanish military suffered losses even at sea; in March
6600-491: The following weeks cost the Spanish over a thousand casualties. By September, the Spanish Army had 40,000 troops in northern Morocco and had occupied the mountainous tribal regions to the south and southeast of Melilla. The military operations in Jebala , in the Moroccan west, began in 1911 with the Larache landing . Spain worked to pacify a large part of the most violent areas until 1914, a slow process of consolidation of frontiers that lasted until 1919. The following year, after
6700-400: The forces of Abd el-Krim , in what became known in Spain as the disaster of Annual , some 8,000 soldiers and officers reported killed or disappeared out of some 20,000. The final Spanish death toll, both at Annual and during the subsequent rout that took Rifian forces to the outskirts of Melilla, was reported to the Cortes Generales as totaling 13,192. The Spanish were pushed back and during
6800-485: The group's autonomy, plotted to bring the Escuadrilla España under his command. Finally the situation was resolved by means of the integration of the squadron in the regular Spanish armed forces. Once the contracts of the professional pilots was severed, the Escuadrilla España would become part of the official Republican Air Force, losing its former status, but taking the name of Escuadrilla Malraux in honor of its founder. The losses, however, escalated, and after covering
6900-474: The mainly professional units comprising Spain's Army of Africa . Since 1911, these had included regiments of Moroccan Regulares , who proved to be excellent soldiers. The initiative was unpopular in parts of Spain as well. In 1909, during early conflicts with the Rif tribesmen, an attempt by the Spanish government to call up reservists led to a working-class uprising in Barcelona known as Tragic Week . The Catalan trade unions, many led by anarchists, argued that
7000-458: The major landing of Spanish troops at Al Hoceima , considered the first amphibious landing in history to involve the use of tanks and aircraft , Abd el-Krim surrendered to the French and was taken into exile. In July 1909, Spanish workers constructing a rail-bridge providing access to iron mines near Melilla were attacked by Riffian tribesmen. This incident led to the summoning of reinforcements from Spain itself. A series of skirmishes over
7100-411: The military planes on the Spanish Republican side failed to check it. The Battle of Guadalajara and the defence of the skies over Madrid against Nationalist bombing raids during the capital's long siege would be the only scenarios where the loyalist air force took part in an effective manner. In other important republican military actions, such as the Segovia Offensive , the Battle of Teruel and
7200-908: The minimum of territory and that junior officers should not dictate the measures necessary to resolve the Moroccan problem. However he subsequently modified the plans for withdrawal, pulling the Spanish forces back from Chefchaouen and the Oued Laou region to a prepared fortified boundary named the "Primo Line". In May 1924, the French Army had established a line of out-posts north of the Oureghla River in disputed tribal territory. On 12 April 1925, an estimated 8,000 Rifians attacked this line and in two weeks over 40 of 66 French posts had been stormed or abandoned. French casualties exceeded 1,000 killed, 3,700 wounded and 1,000 missing – representing losses of over 20 percent of their forces deployed in
7300-470: The month of his military coup, the help received by Francisco Franco from Nazi Germany ( Condor Legion ) and Fascist Italy ( Aviazione Legionaria ) gave the rebels the upper hand in airpower over Spain. The first German and Italian bombers arrived to increase the size of the rebel air force already in July 1936 and Fiat CR.32 and Heinkel He 51 fighter planes began operating in August. These planes helped
7400-541: The need for a new crusade to continue the Reconquista by conquering Morocco, adding their voices to the Africanist choir. For all these reasons, Spain began pushing into the Rif in 1909. The Berber tribesmen had a long tradition of fierce fighting skills, combined with high standards of fieldcraft and marksmanship. They were capably led by Abd el-Krim , who showed both military and political expertise. However,
7500-562: The other side, the fabled military support provided by the Soviet Union was too little and too late – and generally of poor quality. In addition, whilst the Nationalists received vast supplies on credit from the US and Britain, Stalin's assistance came with strings attached. The Spanish Republican Air Force was unable to counteract the deadly low-level attacks and close support of the infantry tactics developed by Wolfram von Richthofen during
7600-496: The rank of lieutenant colonel , even though he was not a pilot and hadn't even been through military service. This title gave Malraux authority as Squadron Leader of Escuadrilla España , for he was only answerable to general Ignacio Hidalgo de Cisneros , the Spanish Ministerio del Aire commander-in-chief. The writer thus helped to hire crews for the planes, mainly volunteers and professional pilots who had served in
7700-713: The rebel army side to gain full control of the air, as did the Italian Aviazione Legionaria and the German Condor Legion. In September 1936 the Navy and Air Ministry ( Ministerio de Marina y Aire ) and the Air Undersecretariat, ( Subsecretaria del Aire ), both part of the National Defence Ministry (Ministerio de la Defensa Nacional) were established under the command of Indalecio Prieto as minister. For identification purposes
7800-653: The region, Spanish sovereignty over the Rif was strictly de jure , existing only in the text of the General Act of the Berlin Conference on West Africa , to which the Riffians, who had de facto control of the land were not a party. For centuries, the Berber tribes of the Rif had fought off any attempt of outsiders to impose control on them. While the Rif mountains were visible to Europeans from ships in
7900-410: The rifles at the Melilla arsenal were in shoddy condition due to poor maintenance, and a report from late 1920, which Spanish commanders never bothered to read, warned that many of the rifles held there were either unusable or more of a danger to the soldier firing them than to the enemy. The average Spanish soldier in Morocco in 1921 was paid the equivalent of thirty-four US cents per day, and lived on
8000-607: The ships that were to take them to Morocco, while in Barcelona huge crowds of left-wingers had staged anti-war protests at which Spanish flags were burned while the flag of the Rif Republic was waved about. With the africanistas comprising only a minority, it was clear that it was only a matter of time before the abandonistas forced the Spanish to give up on the Rif, which was part of the reason for General Miguel Primo de Rivera, 2nd Marqués de Estella , seizing power in
8100-412: The signing of the Treaty of Fez , the northern Moroccan area was adjudicated to Spain as a protectorate. The Riffian populations strongly resisted the Spanish, unleashing a conflict that would last for several years. In 1921, in an attempt to consolidate control of the region, the Spanish troops suffered the catastrophic Disaster of Annual in addition to a rebellion led by Riffian leader Abd el-Krim. As
8200-546: The soldier who ventured out of the filthy bunker risked exposure to the fire of lurking tribesmen". Continuing a practice first begun in Cuba, corruption flourished amongst the venal Spanish officer corps, with goods meant for the troops being sold on the black market and the funds intended to build roads and railroads in Morocco ending up in the pockets of senior officers. A high number of Spanish officers could not read maps, which explains why Spanish units so frequently got lost in
8300-401: The town. He subsequently told the writer J. Roger-Matthieu that since citizens of other European nations were residing in Melilla, it was feared they would intervene in the war should their citizens come to harm. Other reasons included the dispersal of Rifian fighters from several loosely allied tribes following the victory at Annual; and the arrival in Melilla of substantial reinforcements from
8400-522: The transport ship Juan de Joanes was sunk in Alhucemas Bay by Riffian coastal batteries, and in August 1923 the battleship España ran aground off Cape Tres Forcas and was eventually scrapped in situ . In a bid to break the stalemate, the Spanish military turned to the use of chemical weapons against the Riffians . The Rif War had starkly polarized Spanish society between the africanistas who wanted to conquer an empire in Africa vs.
8500-498: The value of 12 million francs. All these planes were largely obsolete at the time, so that in the first four months after the start of the hostilities, the only aircraft of the Republican government that could be considered modern were three Douglas DC-2s that had been purchased recently for LAPE , the Republican airline in March 1935. These were requisitioned by the Spanish Republican Air Force and used as military transports. Within
8600-625: The war, the SB squadrons suffered heavy losses. Anatol Serov, nicknamed "Mateo Rodrigo", established the Escuadrilla de Vuelo Nocturno fighter squadron along with Mikhail Yakushin. This night-flight section would use I-15 Chatos that had modified exhaust pipes, so that the flames in front would not impair the pilot's night vision. M. Yakushin would become the leader of the Night Fighter Squadron that would be quite effective against
8700-455: The western democracies refused military assistance to the established Spanish Government in the name of so-called "Non-Intervention", the Soviet Union and Mexico were practically the only nations that helped Republican Spain in its struggle. In a similar manner as Hitler with his Third Reich re-armament , Joseph Stalin saw the acquisition of first-hand combat experience in Spain by Soviet pilots and technicians as essential for his plans regarding
8800-488: The working class of Barcelona had no quarrel with the people of the Rif. After the Tragic Week of 1909, the Spanish government starting in 1911 tried to raise as many Regular units as possible to avoid further working class resistance to colonial wars as much of the Spanish working class had no desire to see their sons sent to Morocco, beginning a policy of what the Spanish historian Jose Alvarez called "Moroccanizing"
8900-442: The writer's motley group of pilots, gunners , mechanicians and airfield assistants and guards, was their common antifascist resolve. Malraux had to pay a heavy price for his freedom of action though. The Escuadrilla España would suffer a chronic shortage of spare parts and supplies. The number of planes in combat condition was greatly reduced by accidents, lack of quality and by being shot down in action. André Marty, unhappy with
9000-487: Was a Spanish Republican Air Force unit organized by French writer André Malraux . Even though it was largely ineffective, this squadron became something of a legend after the writer's claims of nearly annihilating part of the rebel army in the Battle of the Sierra Guadalupe at Medellín , Extremadura . The Escuadrilla España reached a maximum of 130 members and would fly a total of 23 combat missions before it
9100-473: Was an armed conflict fought from 1921 to 1926 between Spain (joined by France in 1924) and the Berber (Amazigh) tribes of the mountainous Rif region of northern Morocco . Led by Abd el-Krim , the Riffians at first inflicted several defeats on the Spanish forces by using guerrilla tactics and with the help of captured European weapons. After France's military intervention against Abd el-Krim's forces and
9200-570: Was finally retaken. However, the unpopularity of the war in Spain and the earlier defeats of the Spanish military contributed to the instability of the Spanish government and the military coup of 1923 . On August 9, 1921, the Massacre of Monte Arruit occurred, in which 2,000 soldiers of the Spanish Army were killed after surrendering the Monte Arruit garrison near Al Aaroui following a 12-day siege. The atrocities subsequently committed by
9300-565: Was no 'fascist' war, several methods used to 'pacify' the population were applied in the post-colonial reconquista of godless Republican Spain … Apart from deciding not to use chemical weapons, Franco 's campaign to 'cleanse Spain' resembled that in Morocco: intelligence-gathering through torture, summary executions, forced labour , rape , and the sadistic killing of military prisoners." Spanish mutilations of captured Moroccans were also reported, including severing heads as retribution to
9400-530: Was on their side, at a time when France and the United Kingdom had declared official neutrality. Malraux, however, was not there at the behest of the French Government. Aware of the Republicans' inferior armaments, of which outdated aircraft were just one part of the problem, he toured the United States to raise funds for the Spanish Republican cause. In 1937 he published L'Espoir (Man's Hope),
9500-608: Was reorganized following the restructuring of the Republican Armed Forces in September 1936, at the beginning of the Spanish Civil War . This defunct Air Force is largely known for the intense action it saw during the Civil War, from July 1936 till its disbandment in 1939. The Spanish Republican Air Force was popularly known as "La Gloriosa" (The Glorious One). But, according to some historians,
9600-548: Was replaced by Región Militar divisions which are still operative today in the Spanish Air Force . Five years after the proclamation of the Spanish republic, a section of the Republican Army in Spanish Morocco rebelled under the orders of General Francisco Franco . The rebellion succeeded only in fractioning Spain and Franco went ahead and began a bloody war of attrition, the Spanish Civil War. During
9700-468: Was reported amongst the officer corps, reducing supplies and morale. Of the Spanish troops in Morocco in 1921, well over half were completely illiterate conscripts from the poorest elements of Spanish society who had been sent to Morocco with minimal training. Despite assurances from General Manuel Fernández Silvestre that his equipment was sufficient to defeat the Rifians, in fact about three-quarters of
9800-619: Was that many of them crashed or were shot down. The crash of Spanish Republican Air Force serial ' Ñ ' Potez 540 plane that was shot down by rebel planes over the Sierra de Gúdar range of the Sistema Ibérico near Valdelinares inspired André Malraux to make his L'espoir movie. In order to give the whole operation an official character, the Spanish Republican War Ministry authorities gave André Malraux
9900-719: Was the air arm of the Armed Forces of the Second Spanish Republic , the legally established government of Spain between 1931 and 1939. Initially divided into two branches: Military Aeronautics ( Aeronáutica Militar ) and Naval Aeronautics ( Aeronáutica Naval ), the Republican Air Force became the Air Forces of the Spanish Republic ( Fuerzas Aéreas de la República Española (FARE) ), also known as Arma de Aviación , after it
10000-526: Was wrapped up in February 1937. During the 1930s, André Malraux was active in the anti-fascist Popular Front in France. Upon hearing the news of General Franco's rebellion that marked the beginning of the Spanish Civil War, he put himself at the service of the Spanish Republic. Despite opposition from French president Albert Lebrun , Malraux helped to organize the aid to the Republican air force helped by his contacts with highly placed personalities within
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