“I read with interest in one of the issues of the Professional about the French Foreign Legion. But recently I learned about the existence of the little-known Spanish Legion. What kind of military formation is this?
Sergeant
contract service
Roman Khrustalev.
Contempt for death
The prototype of the regiment of the Spanish army founded in 1920 by General José M. Astray was the Foreign Legion of neighboring France, which already then had an impeccable military reputation. By the way, the legendary general himself (at that time a lieutenant colonel) showed miracles of courage on the battlefield, lost an arm and an eye in battles. It was to him, the hero of the war in Morocco, who invariably fought in the forefront and personally raised the fighters to attack, that the phrase “Long live death, and let the mind perish!” belongs to history! (“Viva la muerte, y muera la inteligencia!”) Its first part is “Long live death!” was the battle cry of the Legion.
Having previously studied this military machine, perfect for those times, General Astray formed the first three battalions of the new regiment, called "Foreign". On October 31, 1920, having sworn allegiance to King Alfonso XIII (the brigade of the Foreign Legion now bears his name), the regiment was immediately transferred to Morocco, where for seven years it participated in almost incessant clashes. It was possible to distinguish legionnaires from other soldiers not only by their military uniform, but also by the long - up to the chin - thick sideburns that they let go. By tradition, such sideburns were considered a symbol of contempt for death.
Taking as a basis bushido - the code of honor of the Japanese samurai, M. Astray developed 12 commandments of a legionnaire. They included commandments about courage, discipline, camaraderie, friendship, unity and mutual assistance, fortitude, etc. The most important commandment of the legion was considered the "death creed": "To die in battle is the highest honor. They die only once. There is no pain in death, and dying is not as scary as it seems. There is nothing worse than living as a coward." 
Why did the Spanish Legion begin its military history in Morocco? According to international agreements concluded in 1906 in Algeciras, this African country was divided into two zones, one of which was under the protectorate of Spain, and the other - of France. In Morocco, liberation movements periodically arose, the purpose of which was to expel foreigners from the country. The most famous rebel leaders were Mohammed Ameziane - "El Mizzian", who seized the iron mines in the Reef, and Abd el Krim, who united under his command groups of Moroccans who had once fought among themselves. Abd el Krim operated mainly in the Spanish zone. His goal was to create an independent state of the European type in the north of Morocco.
At that time, compulsory military service existed in Spain. Corruption, abuse and theft flourished in the army. The rich exempted their children from military service, sending young men from poor families to serve in the army instead of them. Without sufficient training, soldiers died by the thousands. The number of victims was so great that riots broke out in Barcelona and other Spanish cities.
There was a need to create professional army units capable of resisting Moroccan troops, performing the most complex and risky operations, "fighting and dying with a smile on their lips and without a single complaint."
The war in Morocco ended in May 1926 when Abd el Krim surrendered to the French. The last pockets of resistance were crushed by 1927.
They were commanded by the Generalissimo 
A noticeable mark in the history of Spain was left by legionnaires, including Russian emigrants, during the Civil War. They marched in the advanced orders of the most violent supporters of the overthrow of the government of the Popular Front - the troops of "socialists and communists" who tried to resist the putschists in the Canary Islands were smashed by the legionnaires. Yes, it probably could not have been otherwise - Francisco Franco Baamonde himself, the future generalissimo, dictator and sole ruler of Spain until 1973, was none other than the former commander of the Spanish Foreign Legion.
After the Francoists came to power, in accordance with the decision of the command of the national army, the number of legionnaires was reduced by three times. The six battalions that survived after the reform again took their usual places of deployment on the territory of Spanish Morocco (in Ceuta and Melilla) and in the Canaries. An insignificant part of the former legionnaires subsequently took part in World War II on the side of Nazi Germany, fighting as part of the so-called "Blue Division", however, for a short time. But this group of fanatical volunteers managed to distinguish themselves by special ruthlessness and contempt for death. Their sophisticated cruelty terrified not only their compatriots, but also their German allies. Despite the fact that the legionnaires continually violated the rules established by the Germans, not a single German officer dared to reprimand them. 
Legionnaires have always fought at the forefront in the most dangerous areas. They looked intimidating when, with huge fluttering sideburns and with long knives clamped in their teeth, they burst into the Russian trenches. Drunk at the sight of blood, they slit the throats of the wounded, cut off the hands of captured partisans so that they could never again take up arms. As souvenirs, they brought the severed fingers of opponents to the camp. The soldiers of the Blue Division, who overwhelmingly avoided the manifestation of cruelty towards prisoners and the civilian population, were horrified by the behavior of the "Africans", as they called the legionnaires, and shunned them.
11 years after the end of World War II, the “fun” time again came for the Spanish legionnaires - Western Sahara turned into an arena of battles with the rebels, who were supported by the government of the newly independent Morocco formed in 1956. Having won in November 1957 one of its most significant victories over the 2.5-thousandth group of African extremists, the legion waged incessant "local battles" with the partisans for a year, confidently holding the enclaves remaining in Spain. In Western Sahara, the legion's units were in combat service until 1976, leaving this part of the African continent only after it lost the status of a Spanish colony.
Second life sideburns
Now the Spanish Legion, once called the Foreign Legion, is part of the rapid deployment forces of the armed forces of Spain, an active member of NATO. Its number, according to some sources, exceeds 7,000 people. Currently, the legion is represented by the following main units: 1st separate regiment "Grand Captain", located in Melilla; 2nd separate regiment "Duke of Alba", stationed in Ceuta; brigade "King Alfonso XIII". The main structural components of the brigade are: the 3rd regiment "Don Juan of Austria", stationed on the island of Fuertoventura, and the 4th regiment "Alejandro Farnesio", located in Ronda, province of Malaga.
In the legion, a special role is assigned to the 4th regiment "Alejandro Farnesio". He, unlike other parts of the legion, has pronounced special forces functions. In addition to two banderas (battalions) and one paratrooper unit, the regiment also has an operational battalion. It is customary to classify it as a special forces unit of the Spanish Legion. This battalion has approximately 500 troops. All of them have received special training and are trained in combat operations during maritime operations, including their use as combat swimmers-submarines; combat operations in the arctic and mountainous desert areas; organization of sabotage and sabotage; landing with parachutes (including landing on water); conducting long-term reconnaissance raids; conducting counter-terrorism operations; the use of a wide variety of vehicles (the battalion still uses land rovers, BMR600S, Nissan trucks and other vehicles made in the US and UK); the art of sniping.
The main armament used by the special forces of the battalion is practically no different from the armament of the rest of the legion and includes: a CETME rifle (5.56 caliber), an Ameli submachine gun (7.62 caliber), a 9-mm machine gun and a Star model pistol, 40- mm grenade launcher. In terms of equipment, the Spanish Legion uses the same field uniform as the Spanish Armed Forces. There is only one specific difference - red tassels on headdresses. 
The times when the procedure for entering the service of the Spanish Legion was very simple, like the process of joining the ranks of his French counterpart, are gone forever. In Spain, a foreign applicant for service in the legion could simply turn to any policeman, abroad - go directly to the Spanish embassy. On both occasions, he was immediately given the opportunity to meet with representatives of the Legion, who were ready to talk about the conditions of service and even show a demonstration film.
Formally, the legion was staffed by foreigners who had passed the preliminary selection, but the vast majority of it was made up of fighters with Spanish citizenship. The trend towards "Spanishization" found its final expression in the decree of the King of Spain, which in 1986 eliminated the possibility of recruiting parts of the legion by foreign nationals.
Is language also a weapon?
Nevertheless, the Spanish defense department does not plan to completely abandon the opportunity to replenish the ranks of the legion at the expense of foreign citizens who are ready, among other things, to serve outside Spain. The difference lies in the fact that now only emigrants from Latin American countries, for whom Spanish is their native language, can apply for the title of legionnaire. A special form of oath is provided for them, but the basic requirements for recruits remain unchanged.
What does Spain intend to offer to volunteers from abroad? First of all, Spanish citizenship, which automatically guarantees the natives of Latin America a higher standard of living (citizenship is provided only at the end of the service in the legion). Of course, the newly minted legionnaires will be provided with a fairly high salary and a whole package of a wide variety of benefits that are not so attractive to the native Spaniards.
Conscripts can also serve in the legion, but their service time is limited to 18 months. The term of service for contract volunteers is usually 3 years. At the same time, in accordance with the terms of the contract, leaving the legion of one's own will is even more difficult than in the French Foreign Legion.
A course of study, usually not exceeding 3-4 months, newly converted legionnaires, as a rule, take place in Ronda. The training program, which includes disciplines that are also practiced in the French Foreign Legion, is very severe, to say the least. The hallmark of this training is the hardest forced marches, with the help of which "natural selection" is made. The curriculum of the Spanish Legion is recognized as one of the most stringent and difficult in the world practice of training ground units. The usual thing is the use of live ammunition in training, physical impact on legionnaires. The media has repeatedly leaked information about the facts of the punishment of recruits of the Legion, coupled with brutal assault. Moreover, far from amateurs are engaged in this - the training course program also includes training in "active" interrogation methods.
The Spanish Legion is not for the weak in body and spirit. Otherwise, the legionnaires themselves believe, and it cannot be: in addition to participating in NATO peacekeeping operations abroad (Bosnia, Croatia, Angola, Nicaragua, Haiti, El Salvador, Guatemala), Spain's "headache" is relations with Morocco, which is increasingly demanding a withdrawal parts of the legion from Western Sahara, once part of the so-called Spanish Morocco. In 2002, things almost came to an armed conflict, and therefore the Spanish Legion is in constant combat readiness.
… The legionnaires who went through bloody battles left this world or turned into weak old men, and the horrors of wars passed into the realm of legends. Just as the warlike Vikings transformed into calm peace-loving Scandinavians, the current legionnaires have become the same smiling and friendly Spaniards that we see around us every day, although some of them still wear long sideburns, remember the commandments of the legionnaire by heart and remain confident that that the coolest machos in the world serve in the Foreign Legion. As for the Spaniards themselves, they still call the legionnaires "married to death."
For more than 80 years of the existence of the legion, the losses amounted to more than 40 thousand people, the last losses were in missions under the control of the UN in fulfilling the obligations given by Spain. Today, the role of Spain in the international community is quite large. Close relations with Latin America, with which it is historically and culturally connected, open up new opportunities for the legion to operate. The actions of Spain as a mediator in various world conflicts change the role of the legion, which is more used in various peacekeeping missions conducted under the auspices of the UN.
Today, the legionnaire is the pride of the Spanish army: a highly trained soldier ready for any mission. His hallmarks are ultimate dedication, devotion, loyalty and teamwork. Moreover, missions can be completely different: military, humanitarian, and even civil protection. And he will always be ready to give everything for his country, his battalion, and will always help others, risking his life. After all, he is the "bride of death." His name is a Spanish legionnaire!
One of the most celebrated units of the Spanish army is the Spanish Legion, commonly referred to simply as La Legión. During its existence, the unit was noted in all major conflicts in which Spain participated in the XXcentury. On the threshold of the unit's centennial anniversary, we recall the brightest pages of its history.
At the walls of Badajoz
The summer of 1936 was hot in Spain. A column of the African Army marched on Madrid. The “Africans” officers commanding it, led by Lieutenant Colonel Juan Yague Blanco, were in a hurry: there was still a chance to quickly take Madrid and prevent the country from plunging into the bloody chaos of the Civil War. Their path was blocked by the ancient fortress of Badajoz, which was defended by 8,000 soldiers and militias of the Popular Front. On the morning of August 14, 3,000 soldiers of the Army of Africa stormed the city. The 4th Bandera of the Legion, under the command of Major José Vierna Trapaga, had the most difficult section - the assault on the gates of Trinidad and a nearby breach in the fortress wall, protected by a barricade with machine guns mounted on it.
At the very beginning of the battle, the Republicans managed to disable the armored car attached to the legionnaires. Three times unusual bearded soldiers, singing the hymns of the Legion, rose in a bayonet attack on the machine guns of the Republicans. On the third attempt, they were able to overcome the barricade in the "Gap of Death" and fight their way to the main square of the city - Plaza de España. Having taken all-round defense on it, Captain Perez Caballero, who commanded the remaining legionnaires, reported to headquarters: “Passed. There are 14 people left. I don't need reinforcements.". The legendary military unit came to the land of Spain.
Father of the Legion
At the origins of the Legion is one of the outstanding Spanish military figures of the first half of the twentieth century - José Milian Astray. He was born in 1879 in the family of a lawyer and an official, and from childhood he dreamed of a military career, so at the age of 14 he entered the infantry academy in Toledo. After graduating with the best marks, the young man received an appointment that was a dream for any Spanish officer - in the elite 1st Royal Infantry Regiment. However, just a few months later, José Milian Astray left him, going as a volunteer to fight against the rebels in the Philippines. There he commanded a Cazador company, participated in many operations against partisans and received his first military awards.
Like many young Spaniards, the "catastrophe of 1898" - the Spanish-American War, as a result of which Spain lost Puerto Rico, the Philippine Islands and other colonies - became a personal tragedy for Milyan Astray, and the revival of the glorious name of the Spanish army was the goal of life . He became interested in military history, taught at the infantry academy in Toledo, where many students were very impressed by his inspired stories about the exploits of the famous Spanish thirds in the fields of Flanders. In 1911, the colonial war began in Morocco, and Major Milyan Astray left his teaching job and went to fight. Commanding various native units, he not only distinguished himself in battles with the rebellious Moors, but also actively participated in comprehending the experience of the colonial war, compiling tactical instructions.
In 1919, Lieutenant Colonel Milian Astray received a very unusual order from the Minister of War: to visit units of the French Foreign Legion in Algiers.
Legion for Spain
The colonial war in Morocco was not very popular in Spain itself. This seriously affected the combat capability of infantry units sent to the Spanish protectorate of Morocco, manned by ordinary conscripts. Ordinary soldiers did not want to fight and were looking for any way to evade the fighting. In such a situation, the Spanish command had to increasingly rely on parts of the regulars recruited from local residents. The Moroccans were wonderful warriors, but there was one problem.
Unlike Britain or France, who could send their native soldiers to fight on the other side of vast colonial empires, Spain's Moroccan soldiers had to fight on their own soil. Their loyalty was highly dependent on the very intricate relationships of various clans and tribes. Often, hundreds of soldiers left a unit before an operation against a rebellious tribe with which their native tribe had strong ties, only to return to the unit a few weeks later and fight bravely against another tribe with which they were separated by centuries of bloody feud.
Starting in 1917, the Spanish military increasingly spoke of the need to form shock units like regulars, but staffed with professional soldiers from Spain. Nevertheless, the project of creating such units caused a lot of criticism from politicians: the left was afraid of turning such professional units into an instrument of terror against the labor movement, and the right was afraid that these units would become a refuge for numerous revolutionaries and anarchists.
One of the first recruiting posters of the Foreign Tercio, 1921
As a compromise, a project was put forward to create a Spanish analogue of the French Foreign Legion, fortunately in Europe that had just survived the Great War there was no shortage of experienced veterans who did not lose their desire to fight. It was to study the situation on the spot that Lieutenant Colonel Milyan Astray went to Algiers.
Most of all, during the trip, Milyan Astray was struck by the fact that up to a quarter of the French legionnaires he met were Spaniards. Many of them regretted that there was no such unit in their home country. So gradually, Milyan Astray came to understand that the unit being created should be “super-Spanish”, reviving the glorious traditions of the thirds of the golden age of the Spanish Empire. But for the general public they continued to tell stories about "Spanish Foreign Legion", and the word "foreign" for political reasons, it was included in the first name of the military unit.
Birth of the Legion
On January 28, 1920, King Alfonso XIII signed a decree establishing the Foreign Tercio as part of the Spanish army ( Tercio de Extranjeros), intended for operations in the protectorate of Morocco. Its first commander was Lieutenant Colonel Milyan Astray. Together with a group of young officers - like him, "Africans", that is, veterans of the war in Morocco: majors Francisco Franco, Adolfo Vara de Rey, captains Justo Pardo, Camilo Alonso Vega - Milyan Astray created a new unit from scratch, which was supposed to revive "the spirit of superiority that distinguished the Spanish soldiers in the fields of Flanders". The drums for the new unit were modeled after the drums of the old thirds kept in the army museum in Madrid, and the flags of its units copied the banners of the Spanish units from the time of the Duke of Alba and Don Juan of Austria. In contrast to the bright and impractical uniforms characteristic of the Spanish army of that era, a simple and comfortable uniform was created for the new third, whose distinctive feature was the characteristic cap - "gorilla", or "chapiri", with red hanging tassels and piping.
Legionnaire 1920s
In September 1920, the recruitment of the first legionnaires began. Men between the ages of 18 and 40 were called up to the new unit, they were paid 4 pesetas 10 centavos per day, which was much higher than the average Spanish salaries of that time, with a one-time bonus of 350 pesetas. “No document is required, no proof is needed, except for the doctor’s verdict “fit.” Name, status, past? Any - real or fictional ... The Legion calls and welcomes men, without asking who they are or where they come from ”, - wrote Milyan Astray.
On October 16, 1920, the first 200 legionnaires arrived at the Dar Riffen military camp, which became the cradle of the unit, 6 km from Ceuta, on the way to the capital of the Spanish protectorate, Tetuan.
Major Franco with a group of first legionnaires, 1921
The foreign third was formed as part of three banderas - the equivalent of infantry battalions. Each bandera consisted of two rifle, one machine-gun and one training and staff companies. Major Francisco Franco became the first commander of the 1st Bandera.
Milyan Astrai paid a lot of attention to creating a special spirit of the Legion. He wrote the legionnaire's creed and several manuals, including table manners: “The bread lies to the left of the plate, it is torn off with hands, in no case with a knife”. Milyan Astrai also came up with the most famous slogan of the Legion: "Long live Death!". Because of this, the nickname stuck to the legionnaires "constricted Deaths".
Official ceremony at the Dar Riffen camp, 1927
True, and here it is not so simple. The Legion still tells the story of its founder and a young lieutenant who wanted to join the ranks of the unit. Milyan Astrai asked the romantic young man why he wants to join the Legion.
Yes, my colonel, to die!
Who told you this? He deceived you!
My colonel, I...
No. People come here to work day and night, dig trenches, sweat in summer and freeze in winter, fight tirelessly, drag wounded and fallen comrades, and only after all this, if necessary, die!
Reef War
The baptism of fire for the Foreign Tercio was the Rif War of 1921-1927 in Northern Morocco. In March 1921, the 8th company of the 3rd Bandera, under the command of Captain Ortiz de Zarate, entered the battle for the first time. In May, the 1st and 3rd Banders of the Legion became part of the column of General Sankhurho, who set off to storm the main stronghold of the rebellious leader Raysuni in western Morocco. The offensive was interrupted by the Anval disaster, when in July 1921 the reef rebels defeated the main forces of the Spanish army in eastern Morocco and there was a threat of capturing the remaining defenseless Melilla, the oldest Spanish colony in Africa.
Two Banderas under the command of Milyan Astray covered 96 km in an accelerated march to Ceuta, from where they were transferred by sea to Melilla. When the legionnaires landed in the city, panic reigned there, the population was ready to flee. But Milyan Astrai was able to cheer up the crowd. His fighters took up positions in the immediate vicinity of the city and held them for 15 days until the first reinforcements arrived from Spain.
The rescue of Melilla made the legionnaires real heroes of Spain and caused a large influx of volunteers. By 1926, eight Banderas had already been formed.
The foreign third quickly became the main striking force of the Spanish army in Morocco. The specific tactics of the legionnaires was born in the local mountains: under the cover of artillery and machine gun fire, and later tanks, they got as close as possible to enemy positions and then launched a bayonet attack. The officers of the Legion not only dined with their subordinates at the same table, but also personally led them into the attack.
Legionnaires in Morocco with an FT-17 tank, 1920s
Milyan Astrai was wounded four times and lost an arm and an eye. Lieutenant Colonel Rafael de Valenzuela y Urasais, who replaced him as commander of the Foreign Tercio, died in action on June 5, 1923. The third commander of the Legion was Lieutenant Colonel Francisco Franco: it was he who commanded his units in the main operation of the Rif War - the landing in Alhucemas in September 1925.
Lieutenant Colonel Franco at the position of legionnaires in Wad Lau, 1925
Under him, on February 16, 1925, the Foreign Tercio was renamed the Moroccan Tercio. Despite the presence of some colorful foreigners like the German Sergeant Fricke, the mighty New York negro Williams, or a certain Russian count, the unit was of an exclusively Spanish character.
The Reef War ended in 1927. During this time, the legionnaires participated in 505 battles, 1,987 legionnaires died, 6,094 were wounded, 18 earned the highest military award in Spain - the Laureada San Fernando Cross.
On the fields of the Civil
After the end of the Rif War, legionnaires continued to carry out garrison service in Morocco. New challenges awaited the Legion after the fall of the monarchy in April 1931. Relations with the new authorities did not work out from the very beginning. On March 7, 1932, in Ceuta, under circumstances that were not completely clarified, the commander of the third, Colonel Juan Mateo y Perez de Alejo, was killed, who was in conflict with Manuel Azana, the prime minister, who simultaneously held the post of minister of war. The Republican authorities reduced the Legion to six banderas, numbering 1,500, dividing it into two separate units stationed in Ceuta and Melilla.
In October 1934, when the leftists made an attempt to arrange a revolution in Spain, on the initiative of General Francisco Franco, who led the operations against the revolutionaries, legionnaires from Morocco were attracted to them, as the most reliable and trained units of the army. One arrival of the 2nd and 3rd Bandera in Barcelona and their march through the city was enough to put an end to the separatist uprising in Catalonia. Then they went to Asturias, where, in the battles against the revolutionary miners, they were joined by two more Banders of the Legion - the 5th and 6th. Under the command of Lieutenant Colonel Juan Yagüe Blanco, they played a major role in crushing the workers' uprising in Oviedo.
Legionnaires of the 3rd Bandera with banners on the streets of Barcelona, October 1934
The bloody events in Asturias in the autumn of 1934 became the prologue to the Civil War. In an atmosphere of the deepest split in Spanish society, the legionnaires and the "African" officers who led them resolutely took the side of the nationalists. On the morning of July 17, 1936, Lieutenant Colonel Yagüe gathered legionnaires on the parade ground of the Dar Riffen military camp and made a short speech:
"Knights of the Legion! Spain, our Spain has risen against her worst enemies! The hour has come when we must show the whole world that we are able to regain our homeland! Forward, to the sacred land of Castile!.
It was the legionnaires who became the decisive force in the uprising of the nationalists in Morocco, ensuring their quick victory. And then we went to Spain.
The transfer of legionnaires to Spain by air, 1936
During the Civil War, the legionnaires became the main striking force of the nationalist army, participated in all decisive battles, being invariably at the forefront of the main blow. Even during the war, on May 8, 1937, the Legion finally acquired its modern name: it was renamed from the Moroccan Tercio to the Spanish Legion.
Legionnaires go on the attack on the Madrid front, 1937
Formally, General Yagüe remained the commander of the Legion during the Civil War, but Bandera usually acted separately as part of various divisions and nationalist brigades. The Legion expanded rapidly, the number of Banderas grew from six to nineteen. Each Bandera now consisted of 750 legionnaires, had four rifle and one machine gun companies, as well as a mortar section. The most brave and devoted to the cause of the nationalists fighters served here. It was in the Legion that the foreign volunteers who came to the aid of Franco served, mainly Russian white émigrés, Irish and French.
Legionnaire in winter uniforms on the Teruel front, 1938
In February 1938, all the armored units of the nationalists were consolidated into a separate armored bandera as part of the Legion, led by Lieutenant Colonel Pujales Carrasco. By the end of the war, at the expense of captured Soviet T-26s, it had grown to the size of a full-fledged tank brigade.
The Legion took part in 3,042 combat operations, 7,645 legionnaires were killed in battles, including the commanders of six banderas, 28,973 soldiers were wounded and 776 were missing. Ten legionnaires have earned the Laureada San Fernando Cross, including one Italian, Lieutenant Giuseppe Borghese.
World War and the Blue Division
After the end of the Civil War, the Legion was reduced and reorganized. The armored units were withdrawn from the Legion: they became the basis of the four armored regiments of the Spanish army. The number of banders was reduced to eleven. They were divided into three thirds (regiments) based at Ceuta (Dar Riffen camp), Melilla (Tauima camp) and Larache (Crimda camp). Most units of the Legion returned by the end of 1939 in Morocco.
Legionnaires of the 3rd third "Don Juan of Austria" at the parade in Tetouan, 1951
Two Bandera remained in Spain. The 1st Bandera continued to participate in operations against the Republican partisans in the Pyrenean regions of Galicia and Leon. The 3rd Bandera, just in case, was stationed in a camp near the British colony of Gibraltar. Toward the end of World War II, in February 1945, the 3rd Bandera was also transferred to northern Spain. Together with the 1st Bandera, she formed a group of the Pyrenean mobile reserve under the command of Colonel Mance. The group was stationed in Lleida and was intended to support the operations of the Civil Guard units against the Republican partisans. By the end of 1947, the guerrilla war in northern Spain subsided, and both banders returned to Morocco.
Legionnaires on patrol in northern Spain, 1940s
Legionnaires also took part in the battles of World War II as part of the Blue Division. True, the widespread opinion that they formed its basis is far from the truth. The Spanish command did not welcome the weakening of the most combat-ready units of its army, therefore, in the first part of the "Blue Division" there were only nine officers of the Legion, including two lieutenants of Russian origin - Goncharenko and Krivoshey, who joined the unit during the Civil War. "Hero of Badajoz" Colonel Holse Vierna Trapaga, commander of the 2nd Tercio of the Legion, became the first commander of the 262nd Regiment of the Blue Division.
Nevertheless, in the future, due to the reduction in the number of volunteers, more and more legionnaires went to fight in Russia. As a result, they amounted to 16.4% of the personnel of the Blue Division. One of these legionnaires, Captain Jesus Andujar, distinguished himself on February 10, 1943 in the battles for Krasny Bor and was awarded the Laureada Cross. Several legionnaires, including the owner of the Cross of the Laureate of the Civil War, Captain Juan José Orozco Massio, earned Iron Crosses in Russia.
End of the colonial empire
After the end of World War II, the Legion continued to play the role of the Spanish colonial army. In 1950, a new reorganization of the unit followed with an increase in the number of banders to twelve. Now the Legion consisted of four thirds, bearing the names of the great Spanish commanders of the past: the Great Captain, the Duke of Alba, Don Juan of Austria and Alessanlro Farnese. Each third included three banderas. In the 1960s, the banders of the Legion also acquired their own names - for example, the 1st received the name "Generalissimo Franco".
The 6th Bandera was now stationed in the Spanish Sahara. In 1956, in another Spanish enclave in Morocco, Ifni, a new 13th Bandera was formed.
Morocco gained independence in 1956. Spain left the north of the country. But the refusal to give up the enclave of Ifni and the Sahara led in 1957 to an armed conflict, which in Spain is usually called the "Last Colonial War". Legionnaires also actively participated in the hostilities. The 6th Bandera operated in the Ifni region, the 4th, 9th and 13th - in the Spanish Sahara. It was the 13th Bandera that took part in the bloodiest battle of that war, which took place on January 13, 1958 near Edchera. 48 legionnaires died in it, and Brigadier Sergeant Francisco Fadric Castramonte and Private Juan Maderal Oleaga were posthumously awarded the San Fernando Laureada Crosses. To date, this remains the last presentation of this award in Spanish military history. During the Ifnian War, the 11th company of the 9th Bandera was commanded by Captain Nicomedes Baho, behind whom there were three decades of service in the Legion and participation in all the Legion's military campaigns: the Rif War, Asturias, the Civil War and World War II in the ranks of the Blue Division ".
The feat of the legionnaires in the battle of Edcher. Modern painting
After the end of the war, the legionnaires left Morocco. In 1961, the native home of the Legion, the Dar Riffen camp, was also abandoned. The number of Legion banders was reduced to eight, divided into four thirds. Each third included two banderas, a group of light cavalry and a battery of field artillery. The 1st and 2nd thirds were located in the Spanish enclaves in the north of Morocco - Melilla and Ceuta, and the 3rd and 4th thirds were relocated to the Spanish Sahara. It was they who, in 1974-1975, had to participate in the brown events in Western Sahara, which ended the history of the Spanish colonial empire.
Since the 1990s, legionnaires have represented Spain in various peacekeeping missions, for example in the Balkans and Congo. In the 21st century, legionnaires formed the basis of the Spanish contingents in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Queen Sofia of Spain presenting the new flag of the 2nd Tercio to the "Duke of Alba", 1982
Legion on the verge of centenary
In the 1990s, the Legion underwent a reform aimed at unifying it with the rest of the Spanish army. The Legion-specific sergeant rank system was abolished, but ordinary legionnaires are still called "knights" (caballeros). The annual colorful processions of legionnaires on Maundy Thursday in Malaga invariably attract many spectators.
Procession of Legionnaires on Maundy Thursday
The Legion currently has 2,875 troops. The 1st Tercio "Great Captain Gonzalo Fernandez de Cordova" and the 2nd Tercio "Fernando Alvarez de Toledo, Duke of Alba" represent the garrisons of the Spanish enclaves in Morocco - Melilla and Ceuta. Each third has one light infantry bandera (the 1st, which since 2017 is no longer officially called "Major Franco", and the 4th "Cristo de Lepanto") with support units.
Spanish legionnaires, our days
The rest of the legionnaires were brought together in the 2nd legionary brigade "King Alphonse XIII", stationed in the town of Viator in the province of Almeria. It is part of the rapid reaction of the modern Spanish army. The brigade includes:
- headquarters bandera;
- lightly armored cavalry group "Catholic Kings";
- 3rd third "Don Juan of Austria" as part of the 7th bandera "Valenzuela" and the 8th bandera "Colon";
- 4th Tercio "Alessandro Farnese, Duke of Parma" as part of the 10th Bandera "Milyan Astray", field artillery groups, engineers and logistics.
Basic training lasts four months and takes place in the army training centers in Caceres and Cadiz. Then a two- or three-year contract is signed. After a training course, a recruit joins one of the units and undergoes additional training there, including the traditions of the Legion.
Girls in the most famous parts of the Spanish army - legionnaires (left) and regulars
Women now serve in the Legion as well. The first appeared in 1990, and since 2000 women have been accepted into combat units. One of them, artillery sergeant Puri Ehposito, was once asked by a journalist:
Are you the bride of death?
Yes. This is the essence of the Legion: to go where it is necessary, no matter what.
Literature:
- Wayne, H. B. A military history of modern Spain: from the Napoleonic era to the international war on terror / H. Bowen Wayne, Jose' E. Alvarez. - Praeger Security International, Westport, CT, 2007.
- Jose Vicente Herrero Perez. The Spanish Military and Warfare from 1899 to the Civil War / José Vicente Herrero Pérez. - Palgrave Macmillan, 2017.
- La Legion Espanola: 75 Anos de Historia (1920–1995). - Tomo 1–III. - Viator, Brigada de Infanteria Rey Alfonso XIII de la Legion, 2001.
- Jose Luis Rodriguez Jimenez. A mi La Legion! De Millán Astray a las misiones de paz / José Luis Rodríguez Jiménez. - Planeta, Madrid, 2005.
- Luis Eugenio Togores. Historia de La Legion Española. La infanteria legendaria. De Africa a Afghanistan / Luis Eugenio Togores. - La Esfera de los Libros, Madrid, 2016.
- Luis Eugenio Togores. Millán Astray, legionario / Luis Eugenio Togores. - La Esfera de los Libros, Madrid, 2003.
Today, the Legion is an elite part of the armed forces, belonging to the rapid reaction forces, distinguished by high technical training and the highest morale of the legionnaires. He is in constant readiness to act to carry out any combat missions. The Legion takes part in peacekeeping missions under the control of the UN and NATO. But first things first.
Birth of the Legion
MILIAN Astray, to whom the Spanish Foreign Legion owes much of its creation, was born in La Coruña on July 5, 1879. The father wanted his son to become a lawyer, but at the age of 15 Milyan entered the Infantry Academy in Toledo and a year and a half later received the rank of second lieutenant.
Astray, a 16-year-old second lieutenant, served in the Philippines, where he gained notoriety and popularity when, with thirty more soldiers, he held off an attack by a large number of rebels in the town of San Rafael. Astray himself lost an eye and a hand in one of the battles. This incident convinced him of the need to use professional soldiers in external wars and predetermined the creation of the Legion.
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In 1919, Milyan Astray came up with the idea of organizing a corps intended for service in Morocco and consisting of civilian soldiers. His task was to pacify the territories acquired by Spain and restore order there.
Previously, Astray decided to see how the French legionnaires live. Still, by the time the Spanish Legion was formed, it was already 88 years old. After studying the methods of organization and training, Astray decided to create a slightly different model of the Foreign Legion.
In the French Legion, the doors were open to almost all foreigners. The legion was, as it were, a separate state, and the legionnaires swore allegiance primarily to their regiment. The Frenchman could not become a legionnaire.
The future legionnaires of Miljan Astrai were mainly to divide their feelings between Spain and Catholicism. Foreigners were accepted, but in limited numbers. Astray wanted the majority to be Spaniards. In fact, the term "foreign", which is used to refer to the Spanish Legion, is most likely based on a misinterpretation of the Spanish word extranjero which means "foreign", "foreign". And the expression Legion Extranjera does not mean a legion of foreigners, but a legion performing tasks in foreign territories.
After the return of Milyan Astrai, he officially presented his project for the creation of the Legion. It was based on the following principles:
1. The Legion will embody the virtues of our victorious infantry and our invincible army.
2. The Legion will serve as the base of the colonial army.
3. The Legion will save many Spanish lives, as the legionaries will be ready to die for all the Spaniards.
4. The Legion will consist of volunteers of all nationalities who will sign the contract in their real or fictitious name, removing any responsibility for this decision from the state.
5. The competitive spirit created by the presence of recruits of different nationalities will lead to an increase in the morale of the Legion.
6. Legionnaires will sign a contract for a period of 4 or 5 years, and remaining in long-term service, they become real soldiers.
7. Tramps, delinquents and criminals expelled from their countries are not allowed in the Legion (here we note that these restrictions did not apply to residents of Spain).
8. For those who have no shelter, those who yearn for military glory, the Legion will give bread, shelter, family, homeland and a banner under which to die.
The most surprising thing is that the project was accepted, and the necessary funds were allocated for the implementation of the project. And this despite the fact that at that time there was powerful anti-colonial propaganda in Spain.
Corruption, abuse and theft flourished in the army, which had compulsory military service. The rich exempted their children from military service, sending young men from poor families to serve in the army instead of them. Without sufficient training, soldiers in military conflicts died by the thousands. The number of victims was so great that riots broke out in Barcelona and other Spanish cities.
There was a need to create professional army units capable of resisting the Moroccan troops, to carry out the most complex and risky operations. And these tasks were assigned to the legionnaires.
It is worth noting that from the very beginning, Miljan Astrai made sure that the uniform of the legionnaires was attractive and at the same time comfortable. The founder of the Legion settled on the form of the Spanish land forces in the golden ages (XVII-XVIII) in order to distinguish his warriors through uniforms and various additions. Therefore, in photographs and illustrations depicting Spanish legionnaires, we see wide-brimmed hats that fell on the shirt collar, pants tucked into boots, special covers for boots, and gloves. Naturally, the specifics of the climate where it was necessary to act was taken into account. And on the emblem of the legionnaire were depicted a peak, a crossbow and an arquebus.
Later, already in the 40s, the regulations established that the legionnaires must wear the same uniform as the ground forces. However, the regulations were not taken into account, and the Legion continued to flash its uniform, slowly accepting all sorts of changes. The uniforms of the officers of the Legion were always different from the uniforms of other troops.
Miljan Astrai and Francisco Franco
WE NOTE that Astray was not alone in the formation of the Legion. Few people know that Francisco Franco, who established a dictatorship in Spain over the years and ruled the country until his death in 1975, was directly related to the Legion. Together with Astray, he stood at the origins of the organization. And when, on January 28, 1920, Milyan Astray received the rank of lieutenant colonel and was appointed head of the newly formed Spanish Foreign Legion, he immediately offered his associate Major Franco the post of deputy commander. He went without looking back to Africa.
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As commander of the first battalion of the Legion, the young Major Franco had to create a combat-ready unit from the common criminals, social outcasts, losers and outcasts that he had brought with him from Spain. When Franco's unfortunate recruits arrived in Ceuta, they were greeted by Milian Astray, who immediately began to give instructions rather energetically: "You escaped the clutches of death and remember that you were already dead, your life was over. You came here to start a new life which you must pay with death. You have come here to die! Long live death!" Then came a stern reminder: "From the moment you crossed the Strait of Gibraltar, you no longer have a mother, a girlfriend, or a family. From now on, the Legion will replace all of them for you."
In 1941, the writer Arturo Barea, who served in the African Corps in the twenties, described how the commanders of the Legion treated their people: "Milyan's whole body was hysterical. His voice broke into screams and howls. He threw all the dirt in the faces of these people, the abomination and obscenity of their lives, their shame and crimes, and then, in a fanatical fury, aroused in them a sense of chivalry and nobility, urging them to give up every dream except for a heroic death that would wash away their shameful past.
Nevertheless, it was the cold-blooded Franco, and not the hot and quick-tempered Milyan, who insisted on the introduction of the death penalty to maintain discipline among the staff. As the well-known writer Gabriella Hodges writes in her book about Franco, “one day he without hesitation ordered to shoot a legionnaire on the spot, who threw a plate with an inedible dish in the officer’s face, and then ordered the slain soldier’s stricken comrades to march after his body. Neither Milyan nor his deputy did not try to somehow limit the atrocities of the legionnaires against the local population, even when they cut off the heads of the prisoners and paraded them as a trophy.
Morocco. Eternal problem. Spain
The SPANISH Foreign Legion was formed in April 1920, during the war in Morocco. According to international agreements concluded in 1906 in Algeciras, Morocco was divided into two zones, one of which was under the protectorate of Spain, and the other - of France. In Morocco, liberation movements periodically arose, the purpose of which was to expel foreigners from the country. The most famous rebel leaders were Mohammed Ameziane, who seized the iron mines in the Reef, and Abd el-Krim, who united under his command groups of Moroccans who had once fought among themselves. Abd el-Krim operated mainly in the Spanish zone. His goal was to create an independent state of the European type in the north of Morocco.
It should be noted here that Spain has always had tense relations with the state of Morocco bordering in the south. Recently, to a greater extent, they are associated with a powerful flow of illegal immigration of Moroccans to Spain. In earlier times, as we see, it even reached armed conflicts. The Spanish Foreign Legion has repeatedly fought in Morocco. It is not surprising that after the formation of the Legion, it was immediately baptized by fire here.
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Although the Legion was in its infancy and ill-equipped, the first and second battalions were thrown into action and recaptured a number of small settlements. Most of the conquered settlements were soon surrounded again, and without any hope of salvation. Once, when an avalanche of reefs stormed the Spanish positions, the commander of the encircled Spaniards, a young lieutenant, sent the last message on the heliograph: "I have 12 rounds. When you hear the last one, direct your fire at us so that at least the Spaniards and the Moors die together ".
In another, even more distant village, a Legion garrison fought until food, water, and ammunition were used up. Shocked by this heroism, Abd el-Krim sent a proposal to the defenders, in which he promised to save their lives if they threw out the white banner. As for the head of the garrison, the very young lieutenant replied that he and his men had sworn to defend their positions to the death and that they would not break the oath.
The war could continue like this for a very long time. Abd el-Krim received significant human reinforcements (mercenaries, Europeans, fighters against colonialism). But success and public attention turned the head of the reef leader, and in 1925 he made a fatal mistake by attacking the French zone, where he advanced to the old capital of Fez. And in 1926, Abd el-Krim had to fight against the combined Spanish army and the French expeditionary force with a total of 100,000 people under the leadership of Marshal Pétain.
Everything ended very quickly. On May 26, after a short but fierce campaign, Abd el-Krim surrendered to Colonel André Korapp. At the end of the war, 8 battalions were created. Only 9 percent of the "suitors of death" were foreigners. The legionnaires fully justified their motto: 2000 were killed, of which 4 battalion commanders, and 6096 were seriously wounded.
After the conclusion of peace, the rather battered battalions were put in order. There was talk of recruiting new units, but the coup that changed the monarchy to a republic put an end to this.
Civil War. Russians on both sides of the barricades
The civil war in Spain in the 30s, of course, also could not but affect the legionnaires. Not without the participation of our compatriots. Moreover, they fought both on the side of Franco (as part of the Legion), and against him.
The fact that the Spanish Foreign Legion repeatedly defeated the best communist units of the Republicans - the International Brigades and Soviet volunteers, speaks of the serious fighting qualities of this unit. In the words of Russian volunteers, "perhaps, among all the current troops - all that are in the world today, the Spanish Legion is the most glorious and most famous army."
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In the end, Franco's forces managed to cut off a significant part of the Republicans from the French border and sharply limit Soviet aid to them by sea. This was one of the main reasons for the defeat of the Republicans. In March 1939, the Republican government of Spain fell. The victorious troops of Franco, including the Spanish Foreign Legion, entered Madrid, which they tried unsuccessfully to take for two and a half years. Russian volunteers paid dearly for this victory: out of 72 volunteers, 34 died in battle, that is, almost half.
Our compatriots had to fight not only against the Legion, but also as part of it. General Franco personally had a very great sympathy for the Russian legionnaires and insisted on their mandatory participation in the victory parade in Valencia on March 18, 1939. According to the recollections of the participants of this event, all those participating in the parade were given brand new uniforms, officers were given white gloves. Tassels were attached to the scarlet berets - shofres, their color depended on the rank of the legionnaire. The Russian detachment, marching on the right flank of the combined battalion of the Spanish Foreign Legion with the national tricolor, attracted everyone's attention. What respect the Russians enjoyed among the legionnaires is evidenced by the fact that, according to the Spanish military tradition, an officer should carry the banner of the battalion of the legion. However, the officers of the legion insisted that Ali Gursky carry the banner of the battalion at the parade as the best legionnaire, although he did not have an officer's rank.
After the end of hostilities, Franco did not demobilize the Russian detachment, but left it entirely as a sign of special gratitude as part of the Spanish armed forces, which was nonsense for Spain and its army. The Russians, almost all of whom became officers in the Spanish Legion, reached great heights here and continued to faithfully serve Franco. So, the Russian volunteer Boltin rose to the rank of colonel and died in 1961. The fact that a Russian person was given such a high honor - the introduction of a foreigner to such a high rank in the Spanish army, which was previously forbidden, testifies to the highest professional qualities of Russian officers who ended up in Spain. Russian volunteers entered the history of the Spanish Foreign Legion forever and contributed to the creation of the high authority of the Russian name.
In the future, legionnaires had to participate in multiple campaigns and wars. Including in World War II (as part of the well-known "blue division"). And also in Western Sahara, where they carried out tasks to destroy the rebels, and later the partisans. There they remained until the loss of the status of a colony in this territory in 1976. Numerous operations in which the legionnaires took part often ended in their successful implementation. And one of the main reasons with confidence can be called the high morale of the legionnaire.
Los novios de la muerte
"Married to Death" (Spanish)
HOW was the fighting spirit of the legionnaire brought up, without which there would be neither victories nor glory?
Viva la muerte ("Long live death!") was the battle cry of the legionnaires. It was invented by Milian Astray, and legionnaires are still called Los novios de la muerte ("married to death").
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As we have already said, special importance was attached to strengthening the morale of the legionnaire. When creating the Legion, Milyan Astrai wanted the soldiers to have their own hymns and songs, which, as he said, "shorten kilometers and reduce fatigue. All the time, until sunset, these songs should be sung solemnly and always, always the Legion will pay tribute to the dead ". The three most famous songs of the legionaries are El novio de la muerte ("Groom of Death"), Tercios Heroicos ("Heroic Regiments") and Cancion del legionario ("Song of the Legionary"). The first of these was taken as the legionnaires' own song. Initially, she had a higher rhythm, but she gained fame when she performed in the rhythm of a march. The refrain of the song translates roughly as follows:
I am a man whose luck
Wounded by the paw of a wild beast;
I am the groom of death
And bind myself with strong bonds
With this faithful friend.
Astray himself, brought up in the spirit of bushido (the old code of ethics of the samurai, which required absolute loyalty to the boss, restraint and self-control), created the so-called legionnaire's creed. The cult of camaraderie, courage, friendship, unity, endurance, discipline, death and love for the battalion - these are the main points in the legionary creed. Without them, the Legion would just be a community of people motivated by money. Needless to say, the Legion still does not deviate from traditions, today's legionnaires adhere to all the same values and sing all the same hymns. This can be called another hallmark of the Spanish Legion.
The first to enroll in the Legion was a Spaniard from Ceuta. From the end of September 1920, 400 people arrived from all over Spain to volunteer; they assembled at Algeciras, then boarded a steamer, where they waited to be sent to Ceuta. A herd in rags and rags, they were the dregs of cities. Among them, the majority were Spaniards, but there were foreigners, among whom were three Chinese and one Japanese.
The transformation of this picturesque rabble into an elite corps is due primarily to the efforts of Astray and Franco. Interestingly, from the very beginning, participation in hostilities was extremely successful, the legionnaires of Milyan Astray are recognized by all as extraordinary soldiers. In the future, legionnaires are already beginning to count seriously. And today the Legion is an elite part of the Spanish army, in which it is extremely prestigious to serve.
However, in recent times there have been many questions about the importance of the existence of this organization, up to the dissolution of the Legion. However, new international obligations bring back to life the reasons that served as the prerequisites for the creation of the Legion. Difficulties with the employment of available military personnel leads to the creation of professional units from volunteers. There is an example of this: the operation in Alpha Bravo, in Bosnia and Herzegovina, where the Legion occupies a certain territory.
For more than 80 years of the existence of the Legion, the losses amounted to more than 40 thousand people, the last losses were in missions under the control of the UN while fulfilling the obligations given by Spain. Today, the role of Spain in the international community is quite large. Close relations with Latin America, with which it is historically and culturally connected, open up new opportunities for the Legion to operate. The actions of Spain as a mediator in various world conflicts change the role of the Legion, which is more used in various peacekeeping missions conducted under the auspices of the UN. According to some estimates, the Legion now has about 4 thousand people, among whom there are many women, mostly Hispanics.
Today, the legionnaire is the pride of the Spanish army: a highly trained soldier ready for any mission. His hallmarks are ultimate dedication, devotion, loyalty and teamwork. Moreover, missions can be completely different: military, humanitarian, and even civil protection. And he will always be ready to give everything for his country, his battalion and will always help others, risking his life. After all, he is the "bridegroom of death." His name is a Spanish legionnaire!
Mikhail SMYSHLYAEV
Illustrations from the author's archive
Strange as it may seem, but we still know almost nothing about the life of the foreign legions of different countries. More than others known French. About the same as the English, Dutch, Spanish foreign legions, we know very little. Therefore, let's talk today about the Spanish Legion. Although it is significantly smaller in strength than the French, this unit can by no means be called a smaller copy of it. If the French were noted in various countries - from Mexico to Indochina, then the Spaniards do not have such a rich combat biography. The fact is that by the beginning of the 19th century Spain had lost most of its colonies and needed not so much to acquire new possessions, as France had at that time, but to keep the remnants of its former power under its rule. For this reason, the number of the French Foreign Legion increased more and more, and the Spanish gradually decreased.
For Spain in the 19th century, an important task was to keep its possessions in Morocco, allowing it to control the exit from the Mediterranean to the Atlantic. For a long time, the power of both the Spaniards and the French in Morocco was nominal and extended only to large cities and the coastal strip. The inhabitants of the interior - Arabs and Berbers - refused to obey the conquerors
The war with them in the mountains was very difficult and bloody. Therefore, the main burden of the fight against the Moroccans was assumed by the foreign legions of France and Spain, used by their masters as cannon fodder and thrown into the most disastrous areas. A special test for both the French and Spanish legions was the war against the Moroccan leader Abd-El-Kerim in 1921-1926. However, this is the subject of a separate article.
We will tell you about the most significant war in which the Spanish Legion had to take part - the Spanish Civil War of 1936-1939. Until now, the Russians knew that thousands of Soviet soldiers and officers took part in this war on the side of the Republicans against the supporters of General Franco. Few people know that many dozens of our compatriots fought on the other side of the barricades, under the banners of national Spain and the tricolor Russian flag, incl. and in the ranks of the Spanish Foreign Legion.
Legion - stronghold of General Franco
Before the events of 1936 - the pro-communist government came to power in Spain and the uprising against it on July 18, 1936 of the army, incl. and the Spanish Legion, there were few Russians living in this country compared to other European territories. True, it is known that at least four of our compatriots who left Russia after the events of 1917 served in the Spanish Legion even before the civil war in this country since 1932. They took part in the Spanish Legion in the suppression of the October pro-communist uprising of 1934 in Asturias, where Moscow, by the hands of the Communist International (Comintern) - an international organization created to overthrow capitalist governments around the globe, was already trying to arrange a revolution to spread it to other countries. With this, the Spanish Foreign Legion earned the communists the glory of one of the most hated units of Franco. The failure, which cost many lives of the legionnaires and even more of the rebellious workers, did not stop the ideologists of communism from the USSR. In 1936 they managed to bring their own government to power. However, an attempt to further expand the revolution ran into resistance from the Spanish army. Perhaps the most serious stronghold of General Franco against the leftists who took power in Madrid was the Spanish Foreign Legion, whose soldiers and officers were among the first to rise up to fight against the communists.
The events in Spain were perceived by Russian emigrants as a continuation of the civil war and the struggle against communism, which had recently been waged in the expanses of the Motherland. Franco was called in the White Guard press of that time the Spanish Kornilov, and the Francoists were called White Guards and Kornilovites. Indeed, much of what happened in Spain was painfully reminiscent of the civil war in Russia: the devastation of churches, the red terror of state security against the intelligentsia, the wealthy sections of the population, officers, the bloody excesses of communists and anarchists, the socialization of women, the arrests and executions of opponents of the Republicans, the same international rabble, who came to the civil war to rob, rape, and kill under the banner of fighting the Nazis. Franco's slogans also strongly resembled the ideology of the white generals: "For a united and indivisible country", an uncompromising struggle against the communists, a free choice by the population of the future structure of the state. Dozens and hundreds of Russian volunteers were sent to help General Franko. These were mainly White Guards living in France, associated with the Russian All-Military Union (ROVS). However, the EMRO could not provide large-scale assistance to General Franko. The semi-socialist government of France, having learned about the help of the Russian White Guards to the anti-communist forces of Spain, closed the border for them and did not allow them to help the Francoists. However, this ban did not apply to military supplies, including tanks and planes, as well as to the red volunteers of the Comintern, who were transported by the thousands across the border and joined the red international brigades. At first, Franco's position was very difficult: the uprising he raised was only partially successful, because. failed to achieve its main goal - the rapid overthrow of the pro-communist government. In addition, the capital of Spain remained in the hands of the left. Most countries of the world, including the United States, hypocritically speaking about non-interference in Spanish affairs, secretly helped the communists and their allies.
For the first six months of the struggle, almost no one seriously helped Franco's movement. Germany and Italy recognized the Franco government with great hesitation only in November 1936, since Hitler and Mussolini did not consider him "in spirit" to be kindred to them. Practical assistance to him began to be carried out only from the end of the same year. This happened only when they realized that Franco was better than the communists.
At this time, the attitude towards Russians in Spain was ambiguous. However, almost everyone associated the word "Russian" with the word "communist". It got to the point that there were often cases when Russian volunteers who had come a long way and spent substantial sums of money on the road were sent back by the Francoists, suspecting them to be agents of the Communists. In general, even among the Spanish intelligentsia, little was known about Russia and Russians, and the majority of the population believed that there "the tsar and the tsarina named Rasputin expelled the former tsar Trotsky, who killed Lenin."
By the beginning of the civil war, the Spanish Foreign Legion was divided into banderas (battalions). Bandera consisted of campaigns (companies) - three rifle (rifle) and one machine gun. The machine gun company had 12 heavy machine guns of 7.65 mm caliber. In addition, each rifle company had 6 light machine guns of 6.5 mm caliber. According to the testimony of the English captain Kempt, thirty machine guns were not enough for Bandera, because. machine guns often failed.
In dangerous directions
During 1936, the Spanish Foreign Legion, being in the most dangerous directions, suffered heavy losses in continuous battles. Many of the Russian volunteers were transferred here from other parts of the Francoists to replenish the legion. However, there were not enough foreigners. A way out was found in giving the legion of Spanish volunteers - the Falangists (an extreme right-wing party) and the Carlists - supporters of the monarchy. The detachments of these volunteers did not have heavy weapons and therefore were attached as auxiliary forces to the legion, which by that time had technical units, incl. armored vehicles and heavy artillery. Subsequently, due to the lack of foreigners, the legionaries began to actively enroll Spaniards, both mobilized of several ages, and volunteers. According to the legionnaire Shinkarenko, "many Spaniards prefer to volunteer in the foreign legion, because there is a much more perfect organization." Unlike France, where serving in a foreign legion was considered a disgrace, since for many years those who had the gallows replaced by an army were sent there to serve, in Spain public opinion treated the legion differently: many of the prominent public and political figures went through this unit, including. h. and the governor of the city of Alcazar, famous for his heroic defense against the Republicans, as well as General Franco himself. For this reason, already at the beginning of 1937, foreigners of the Spanish Legion made up only a quarter of the total number of its personnel. It should be noted that subsequently the replenishment of the Spanish Foreign Legion by the Spaniards became a tradition, and today, to the chagrin of many who want to become mercenaries, the admission of foreigners to this unit is practically stopped.
"Wine doesn't count, it's instead of water"
When conducting military operations, Franco took into account the experience of the civil war in Russia. He immediately paid special attention to the logistics of his troops, rightly believing that the poor organization of the rear by the White Guard generals was one of the main reasons for their defeat. The Russian legionnaires were surprised at how wonderfully the Francoists organized their rear. Testimony of one of them: “Each captured piece of land is cleared, put in order, supplies are organized, the prisoners fix the road, and only then we again capture and recapture a new piece of land from the Reds. Thanks to this, we always have good food and a sufficient amount of equipment, and where we need water tankers too. Everything is really well organized." As a result, according to Russian volunteers, the Spanish Foreign Legion was supplied with everything necessary in the best possible way. In this he favorably differed from the French. In the French Legion, the supply was so poor, and the salary so small, that, judging by the letters of the legionnaires and their friends, in Tunisia, for example, one could see first-year legionnaires picking up abandoned cigarette butts in the streets. In Spain, despite wartime conditions, the legionnaires received provisions in excess. So, cabo (sergeant) Ali Gursky, a former Russian officer, writes: “I get a soldier’s ration for sure and I have everything that is needed. The food here is so good that we can be envied by restaurants, of course, average ones, and in some cases and all of you who are left in peace today lunch - noodle soup seasoned with garlic, tomatoes, onions, beans with pieces of meat and cauliflower, with boiled potatoes, cuttlefish fried in its juice, a piece of veal with fried potatoes, a handful of dates (yesterday - walnuts), a glass of wine. And this is in the trenches, at the front, on top of a mountain, distant lands from the nearest city. And also big white bread. I never eat everything, and in the evening I often don’t have dinner, I drink only coffee And this is what we got for Christmas: appetizer - on a toothpick - 1 olive, anchovy, a piece of lobster, a piece of pickle, a piece of something else tasty and a piece of bread; a glass of vermouth, shell pilaf, shrimp and cuttlefish with tomato sauce; scrambled eggs with roasted peppers, a piece is smoked oy ham, riesling, fillet with chips, oranges and apples, biscuits, steak; coffee, cigar-havana; red wine does not count, it is instead of water. "A characteristic feature of the Spanish Foreign Legion was that the soldier's and officer's rations were no different. In general, there was no concept of an officer's ration here, in the Spanish legion they knew only the concept of a soldier's or legionnaire's ration. According to the general opinion of the legionnaires, the food here was at that time better than in any other army in the world.
Madrina - military godmother of a legionnaire
Moreover, a feature of the Spanish Foreign Legion was that each legionnaire had his own madryna - i.e. military godmother. In reality, almost none of the legionnaires knew their madryna. Often the military authorities themselves advertised in the newspaper that such and such a defender of the homeland from the legion did not have his own madryna, and asked girls and women to become one, or the representatives of the beautiful half of humanity themselves, who wanted to help the legionnaires, gave their addresses to newspapers. Sometimes madryns were appointed by political parties at the request of the legionnaires themselves. Madryns, according to custom, sent everything that their wards needed. However, many Russians simply corresponded with their madryns, lacking female attention, not accepting gifts from them for the reason that they had everything they needed.
The only thing that the Russian legionnaires in Spain suffered from was due to poor awareness of what was being done at home and among the white emigration. This problem was soon partly solved - some White Guard newspapers and magazines began to send copies of their publications to Russian legionnaires at the front.
It is worth mentioning the uniform of the Spanish Foreign Legion, a distinctive feature of which at that time was a uniform green shirt. According to one Russian legionnaire, "everyone - from generals to ordinary privates - now walk in these green shirts, they wear sleeves rolled up above the elbow. It's very hot. We have a lot of people walking in knee-length pants, like underpants" In the Spanish Foreign Legion they wore and special epaulettes, a characteristic feature of this unit: a patch-emblem in the form of a connected halberd, musket and crossbow. This emblem was taken by the leadership of the legion to emphasize its continuity from units created from Europeans from different countries under the famous Duke of Alba, when Spanish troops went on campaigns throughout almost all of Western Europe. In summer, legionnaires wear scarlet berets - slaughterhouses, in cold weather - a special gorro cap, scarlet or protective color. Legionnaires did not wear helmets in principle. Firstly, tradition did not allow, and secondly, this was not done because of the heat, and thirdly, because of a kind of competition with the Moors, who wore only cloth turbans, and because of the desire to flaunt each other. According to Russian legionnaires, each bandera of the Spanish Legion had its own priest. "Priests wear officer uniforms here - the same khaki and the same gorro cap on their heads. And a cross."
Particular attention, according to the letters of the Russian legionnaires, in the Spanish Legion was paid to "salute. And when without a gorro - then in a new way, hand up."
How to get another rank?
According to the white general Shinkarenko, who arrived in Spain as an ordinary volunteer to fight against the communists and became a legionnaire, all Russians who by that time were in the Spanish Foreign Legion enjoyed great sympathy with legionnaires, both privates and officers. A characteristic feature of the Spanish army and the Spanish Foreign Legion was the extreme length of production in the next rank. So, a Russian legionnaire described: "my good friend, who began his officer service in the legion under the command of Franco, told me that before receiving the captain's galloon, he "blew" a lieutenant for 9 years. This is in the order of things. There is no accelerated production in the Spanish army. " However, unlike the French Legion, the Russians here "grew" very quickly. So, Shinkarenko in his letters says that those four Russians who served in the Legion by the time the civil war in Spain began, rose to junior officer ranks in 5 years of their service. An indicator of the fighting qualities of Russian legionnaires is that many of them earned non-commissioned officers and even officer ranks for a year and a half of participation in the Spanish Civil War. For military merit, General Franco himself personally promoted Shinkarenko to the officers of the Spanish army. According to Shinkarenko, one of the Russian officers, a former cavalryman, not only became the commander of the Bandera, but also, as a sign of the highest gratitude from the command of the Francoists, was seconded to occupy a high post in the Francoist Phalanx party.
According to the letters of the Russian legionnaire Shinkarenko, by the beginning of 1937, the Spanish Legion had established itself as one of the best units of the Francoists: "the participants in the battles speak very highly of the Banderas of the Spanish Foreign Legion, which have a good command staff. The officers are all Spaniards"
Armor is weak. And the tank has already stalled
The main competitors of the legionnaires in "obtaining military glory" were the Moroccans. This was the paradox: the communists for many years and not without success kindled the flames of anti-colonial struggle in Morocco, setting the Moroccans against the Spaniards and the French. In the 1920s, the war in Morocco almost did not stop. It seemed that a little more - and the agents of the Comintern would win here. However, this did not happen. The Spanish foreign legion successfully coped with the tasks assigned to it, and after fierce fighting, the Moroccans were defeated. In 1936, when the Spaniards were busy with the civil war, it seemed that the Moroccans had the most favorable situation to strike at the parts of the legion that were in Morocco, and the Francoists, who defended the idea of the indivisibility of Spanish possessions. The calculations of the communists did not materialize: the Moroccans preferred to fight with weapons in their hands in commonwealth with their former sworn enemies, the legionnaires, against the communists, whose actions in Spain against religion they regarded as a manifestation of satanism.
In battle, both the legionnaires and the Moroccan Moors had their advantages. And if, according to the opinions of Russian volunteers, the legionnaires had no equal in attack, then they were often inferior in stamina to the Moors in defense. In addition, at that time a special competition between the Moors and the legionnaires took place in the fight against the tanks of the Republicans. The fact is that at first the tanks of the Republicans were a real scourge for the Francoists: they had almost no tanks of their own, and the Italian and German vehicles that arrived in 1937, often armed only with machine guns and pierced by a bullet from a rifle, could not compete with the Soviet tanks. The anti-tank armament of the Francoists was also very weak: anti-tank rifles were ineffective, and anti-tank artillery was small and had insufficient firing range. For a long time, the Francoists failed to achieve air superiority, and therefore it was impossible to effectively fight enemy tanks with the help of aviation. Under these conditions, the legionnaires developed their own tactics: machine-gun and rifle fire cut off enemy infantry from armored vehicles, and self-made bottles of gasoline with an ignited wick flew into approaching tanks. Soviet technology of that time had so many combustible materials that it was often enough to hit one such bottle with a Molotov cocktail for a formidable armored vehicle to turn into a pile of burnt scrap metal. Often the fight against tanks was facilitated by the fact that they simply got stuck in the trenches and became easy prey: a stalled tank was surrounded on all sides, demanding the surrender of the crew, threatening otherwise to burn it along with the crew. If the legionnaires had more destroyed enemy tanks, then the Moors had a larger percentage of captured armored vehicles. The fact is that the Soviet tanks of that time BT and T-26, according to Russian legionnaires, suffered from defects, due to which it happened that they stalled at the most inopportune moment and became easy prey for the Francoists. According to legionnaire Shinkarenko, by March 1937, legionnaires and Moors had only captured 42 Soviet tanks. This allowed the Francoists to replenish their own fleet. Soon, in support of the offensive, legionnaires began to be given tank sections of 8 tanks - 6 German (machine-gun) and 2 cannon-machine-gun captured (Soviet).
Legion and "international brigades". Who will win?
However, the most serious opponent of the legionnaires was not the tanks and aircraft of the Republicans, but the international brigades of communist volunteers from different countries, among which there were especially many citizens of the USSR, Latin American states and France. In their stamina and perseverance, the International Brigades and the Spanish Legion competed with each other. It could be said with a high degree of certainty that in those areas where legionnaires and Moors were advanced, the republicans would put up international brigades. The battles between the international brigades and the legion cost both sides great sacrifices, and this struggle was fought with bitterness and with varying success. Legionnaires achieved a major success on July 24, 1937 in a battle near Madrid, where 2 battalions of the Lister International Brigade were almost completely mowed down by machine-gun fire.
In turn, the communists also had success. Geographically, many Russians in 1937 were on the Northern, Biscay front in the Dona Maria de Molina unit. Having failed in the rapid capture of the capital, Franco decided to gradually eliminate the pockets of resistance of the Republicans and cut off the part of Spain they occupied from the French border in order to stop their replenishment from the outside and make it difficult to deliver military supplies to them. In this regard, at the end of the summer of 1937, Franco began an operation to liquidate the Northern Front, in which Russian volunteers and the foreign legion took an active part. Squeezed in a relatively small area in northern Spain, the Republicans of the Biscay Front not only stubbornly defended themselves, but also launched fierce counterattacks themselves. During one of them at the end of August 1937, they defeated Franco's troops, breaking through the front line. During this battle, in the area of the village of Kintai, one of the companies of the Francoists was almost completely destroyed. Its remnants, led by officers of the Spanish service, who had gone from private to lieutenant - the former General of the White Army Fok and the artillery officer of the famous Markov division Polukhin, took refuge in the local church, fighting off with rifles, pistols and captured "Maxim" for two weeks from invading communists. They unsuccessfully tried to help out, although help was close. Every day, Franco pilots dropped pennants on the roof of the church, which said that help was nearby and that they needed to hold out a little more. However, it was not possible to save them: according to one source, the communists, annoyed by the unsuccessful attacks on the church, smashed its walls with shells. At the same time, all the defenders were buried under its ruins, with the exception of one of these Russian officers, who, being wounded and not wanting to surrender to the enemy, shot himself. According to other sources, during the attack of the internationalists, when the cartridges of the defenders in the church were running out, and only a few wounded and exhausted by continuous battles survived, Fok somehow caused the fire of the Francoist artillery "on himself", under which they died and defenders and attackers. One way or another, but the Russian volunteers fought to the end. This was caused, firstly, by their uncompromising attitude towards the communists and their unwillingness to fall into the hands of their opponents alive. They knew the sad example of the Russian volunteer A. Kutsenko, who was captured by the Republicans: he was brutally tortured, castrated, and his head was crushed with a stone.
The story of General Fock is interesting in that he unsuccessfully tried several times to volunteer for Franco's army. His services were refused because of the venerable age of the general, which was 57 years old, but then the Spaniards accepted him into their ranks. It should be noted that Generals Fok and Shinkarenko, having good earnings before the start of the war, left everything and joined the Spanish army as privates in order to fight the enemies every second, risking their lives. The death of Polukhin, a former staff captain who survived the memorable battle of the Russian Civil War, when a significant part of the Markov division was cut down by the Budyonnovists, and who died in battle with the communists on distant Spanish soil, was mourned by many white émigrés. Shortly after this tragedy, Kintai was liberated by the Francoists. All the defenders of the church who died in battle were found under the ruins, but Polukhin and Fok could not be identified, their bodies turned out to be so mutilated. All those who died in that battle were buried in two mass graves, separately - officers and soldiers, but not divided by nations.
The Spanish Civil War was the center of attention at the time. General Nissel, an outstanding French strategist who distinguished himself in the First World War, commenting on these battles, highly appreciated the actions of the Spanish Foreign Legion. According to him, "the initial practical superiority of the nationalists (Francoists), which allowed them to liberate Toledo and Oviedo, approach the gates of Madrid, interrupting the communications of their opponents with the French territory in Biscay, is due to the fact that on their side were solidly equipped and trained units of the Spanish of the legion, which at first met with a militia of volunteers without any military training. Their superiority over the militia of the Reds, poorly disciplined and even less trained, is beyond doubt - during the first weeks of operations the same superiority was over the regular units, on the side of the Reds, but deprived of their officers"
A common feature of the foreign legions of France and Spain was a very severe discipline. According to the Russian legionnaire, this did not bother the Spaniards who served in it: "Spanish democracy is one of the deeply rooted national properties and therefore it not only finds its natural reflection in the army, but very easily gets along with the ferocious discipline of the legion"
"The attitude towards me in Bandera is exceptional"
In addition to Russians and Spaniards, there were many representatives of other nationalities in the Spanish Legion: Germans, Italians, Belgians, French, British, etc. The main competitors of the Russians in terms of military glory were the French, whose representatives were regularly noted among the sergeants of the Spanish Legion, and the British, some of whom reached officer ranks. For example, in England, the fact that Captain Kempt took part in the Spanish Legion for two years in the civil war, who returned home in 1938, gained great fame. The attitude towards the Russians, not only of the Spaniards, but also of representatives of other nations, was the most remarkable. Ali Gursky testifies to this: “The attitude towards me in Bandera is exceptional, on the part of both officers and soldiers. progress in the language.When I was in the village, one legionnaire threw himself on my neck: "Friend, brother, let's go drink wine!" I ask him: "Why am I your brother?" - "So you are Russian, and I am Italian , both in the legion, which means they are now brothers!" I had to agree. "But since you are a good Russian, then pay for the wine." He drank - and he drank, and in the evening I took him to his company. A very nice person!"
According to a letter from one Russian legionnaire, “we, Russians, have proven ourselves here in such a way that everyone appreciates us as a combat element, from the head of the legion, General Yague, to a simple legionnaire. This explains why we are not kept in one Bandera. But almost all Russians in Bandera were appointed chiefs in "lasses" - personal orderlies. During very serious battles, commanders order orderlies to be with them and are not sent anywhere anymore. The captain knows that the Russian orderly will not leave him to the end even in case of injury or death will always bring you out of the fire." The example of the feat of the Russian legionnaire Kempelsky once again proved this. Kempelsky, being appointed orderly to the commander, was on the offensive in the battalion of the foreign legion. The Reds opened heavy rifle and machine-gun fire on the legionnaires. Here and there the wounded and the dead fell. At this time, Kempelsky saw that his commander was wounded, and a company of legionnaires, unable to withstand the destructive fire, retreated and lay down. The wounded commander remained lying on the "neutral". Kempelsky, grabbing a light machine gun, ran far ahead and shouted: "Legionnaires! Take out your captain, I'll cover you!" - Began to water the Republicans out of it. They focused all their fire on him. After a few minutes of the battle, he fell, wounded, but rose again and continued to shoot, covering the retreating legionnaires with a wounded commander, until he fell, riddled with enemy bullets, dead. Russian legionnaires wrote that the captain, who owed his life to Kempelsky, recovered, "and when they now introduce a Russian to him, he takes off his cap, comes up, shakes his hand, saying:" Thank you for Kempelsky, who sacrificed himself to save his captain. Every Russian is a native member of my family!"
Near Madrid
And here are pictures of the battles of the Spanish Legion in 1936 - 1937 near Madrid. After separate parts of the legionnaires participated in the capture of the suburbs of the Spanish capital - the University campus, they had the hardest task of holding it. Here, for six and a half months, the legionnaires fought the most stubborn street battles, during which the Spanish Legion lost 650 people. According to the standards of the then war, as Russian legionnaires testify, "this was considered small." Here, in the piles of ruins, the legionnaires fought desperately against enemy tanks, machine guns and mortars. The enemy trenches were only 30 paces from each other, so that the enemies often threw "goodies" in the form of hand grenades to each other. According to the testimony of a Russian legionnaire, the persistence of the fighting near Madrid was evidenced by the fact that during the six and a half months of the presence of the Spanish Legion there, even the remains of the buildings turned into a pile of rubble. Here is a brief characteristic diary entry about the battles in this area of a Russian legionnaire: "They shoot little. And they do more. This is the Madrid Front."
The fact that the Spanish Foreign Legion has repeatedly won victories over the best communist units of the Republicans - the International Brigades and Soviet volunteers, says a lot. And most importantly - about the serious fighting qualities of this unit. In the words of Russian volunteers, "perhaps, among all the current troops - all that are in the world today, the Spanish Legion is the most glorious and most famous army."
Way to relax - like sardines in a box
And here is a description of the officers of the Spanish Legion given to them by a Russian legionnaire: "9th Bandera. It is commanded by Major Jose Peñarredondo. Young, although older than our colonels used to be. And he very elegantly wears a wound on his face - a not ugly scar above the corner of his mouth , next to a shaved mustache. The former, African wound. Others are very nice officers. And the priest in our bandera is a very young Jesuit who volunteered to come from Belgium "
And here are pictures of the battles on the Aragonese front. An interesting entry about the conditions of fighting in the Spanish mountains in winter conditions: “I haven’t washed for about 20 days. It’s very cold. The mountains are covered in snow. This is the coldest place in Spain. We used to imagine Spain as a burning sun, palm trees, but I assure you that cold it is not inferior to the north of Russia. I remember how in June (1937) during the Amboracin offensive, we were shivering at night on the mountains from the cold! When I was wounded near Teruel, we advanced at 15 degrees of frost! Knee-deep snow! In the hospital Nikolai Bibikov, a Russian volunteer, was lying with frostbitten legs. Our bandarin (signner) was also lying there. They cut off his foot in my presence, and when I left, they had to cut off the other one. He frostbitten them during the attack. We are dressed warmly, but it is natural that when "If you spend day and night in the open air, then your toes and fingers get cold, no matter how you wrap them up. At the front, you have to sleep on damp ground. The legionnaires' way of resting - like sardines in a box, for warmth - is avoided by me. I don't want to feed strangers with myself." "pets x", enough of their own. The captain allowed me to settle down separately from the campaign and as I wish, freeing me from roll call in the mornings and evenings.
Battle of Cuesta de la Reina
Among the many battles won by the Spanish Legion, the battle near Cuesta de la Reina on October 13, 1937 should be especially noted. Lieutenant Shinkarenko describes it like this: "the Moors went Then - the legion: our bandera We turn around shortly and each company - not in chains, but in small packs Legionnaires - in short winter jackets with open collars and wide collars of green shirts, the same shirts with sleeves rolled up above the elbow.
Legion's song... About the readiness to die for a free Spain, about the valor of the legion. It's brilliant to go on the attack with it. The 1st, 2nd and 3rd companies went. Everything is equal. All bullets, bullets, bullets. And the field is such that there is nothing that could at least a little delay at least one beating bullet, rifle and machine gun. And also artillery - ours and theirs, of all calibers, from three to six and a half inches (75 - 155 mm). All grenades, shrapnel. Stretcher with the wounded. From everywhere. More from us, from Bandera. Fire, fire and fire. The Moors attacked the enemy lightly, rescued us. Our Bandera attacked the enemy's thickest, into the very fire. Attacked bloodily, leaving 6 officers and 150 legionnaires on the battlefield. This is for a small battalion. But here our Bandera took the Casa Colorado from the Reds.
In this battle, I did not see a single legionary who would go back healthy or under any pretext. And the wounded - almost not a single groan. And the officers! The commander of one of our Banderas, Lieutenant Goldin, was severely wounded in the leg and did not allow himself to be carried out and continued to command. And he was killed. Another lieutenant is Viyolba. He has his own, special misfortune: he has a father-general who serves as a red, they have an important face. Vijolba was wounded in both legs by two or three bullets. He was bandaged in front of me. And when the orderlies raised the stretcher to carry it to the rear, Viyolba shouted loudly so that everyone could hear: "Long live the legion!"
Padre Val, our priest is a Jesuit. And now he is in battle, everywhere. In all companies, in the fire itself, at death And, in addition, helps, like a brother of mercy, like a nurse
Fight, fight and fight. The Reds have tanks, 3 or 4 Soviet vehicles. They are cautious, fearful. Afraid of bottles of gasoline, or what? ..
Suddenly, news was received that everyone had taken it, that the "comrades" (the derisive name of the Reds since the civil war in Russia by the Whites) were thrown back, Cuesta de la Reina was bailed out. Comrades who were crushed today - party communists from the 14th international brigade, they were beaten along with their tanks.
Teruel operation
Further, Ali Gursky writes about the participation of the Spanish Foreign Legion in the famous Teruel operation, the outcome of which largely predetermined the further development of the war in Spain. The foreign legion went to Teruel to attack the International Red Brigade. The legionnaires went into this battle, wearing all their orders and badges. On January 4, 1938, they attacked the Republicans, pushing them back 5-6 kilometers with a fight. "The Reds retreated, but they snarled great, but we almost ran forward, not letting them come to their senses, through the snow and hills. We were very tired. By evening, we approached the main position of the Reds and lay down behind a hillock, and spent the night right there, right on the snow."
The next day, with the support of artillery and aviation, the legionnaires hit the Republicans. "The Reds, who brought up all their reserves and a lot of machine guns, defended themselves to failure and even fought back with hand grenades when ours were already closer than 20 meters, and only then they retreated and opened fire again. At 12, our Bandera again went on the attack against the Reds on the mountain ", and so, when our campaign went upstairs, I was horrified. We had to attack them on a plane as flat as a table of up to one and a half thousand meters. A flat field in the snow, strewn with stones the size of a human head. We began to run from stone to stone. The Reds opened a hurricane of fire from machine guns, we suffered heavy losses, but moved forward. The Reds also fired from a four-gun battery on the squares. And then there was a deafening explosion, something threw me up, hit my head with terrible force, and I fell. After 10-15 minutes I heard, that someone was creeping up behind me. It was one of the legionnaires. He began to shout: "Ali is wounded!" - and suddenly I felt that he pulled off my blanket (the legionnaires wrapped themselves in them, fleeing from a terrible x cold) and pulls off my bag with things. Calmly, having calculated my strength, I raised my leg and hit the dashing legionnaire in the stomach. After such an argument, he agreed with me, left my things alone and began to call the paramedic. Soon the paramedics came up with a stretcher and carried us back across this field, under machine-gun fire. How none of us were wounded during these 400 meters, only God knows. In general, there were a lot of wounded legionnaires. They showed me my woolen helmet - covered in blood, with a hole in the front from a fragment and pierced by bullets in six places! I even knew about it!
All the positions of the Reds were taken, although we suffered heavy losses. I was wounded at the beginning of our strike, but already one number of taken tanks and downed Red airplanes - tired to the point of madness, not counting the thousands of prisoners who surrendered in crowds - are very significant. " , where the wounded were demolished, there were already 45 people from Ali Gursky's Bandera by the time he himself was delivered there.
Further, Ali Gursky describes the hospital of the Spanish Foreign Legion in Zaragoza. There, each wounded legionnaire received cookies, cakes, chocolates, port wine, oriental sweets, nuts, cigars, 3 packs of cigarettes and 5 pesetas for personal needs.
At the final stage of the war in Spain, according to the records of Sergeant Ali Gursky, the following pictures could be observed: "About 12 o'clock in the afternoon - suddenly some screams. Everyone is running from the village to the posts. The Reds in the trenches stood up, raised their hands and became something screaming. Some of them ran to us without weapons. They, of course, were not allowed into the trenches and sent truce envoys and an officer to them. It turns out that they congratulate us on the brilliant victory in Asturias and the end of the Northern Front, they talk about the imminent end of the war, about "They don't want to fight, and they asked for our newspapers. About a dozen of them generally ran over to us. They repeat such things often, but the latter turned out to be not so prosperous. The Reds, as always, stood in the trenches and began to ask them to give them our newspapers. Of course, sent them to them. Both sides, out of curiosity, poured out of the trenches and began a roll call. I, fortunately, remained in the trench, because the Reds suddenly began to pour machine guns on ours. The picture is interesting and instructive for the legionnaires. Imagine the result themselves."
Dear win price
These lines already refer to the end of 1938, when the war ended. In the end, Franco's forces managed to cut off a significant part of the Republicans from the French border and sharply limit Soviet aid to them by sea. This was one of the main reasons for the defeat of the Republicans. In March 1939, the Republican government of Spain fell. The victorious troops of Franco, including the Spanish Foreign Legion, entered Madrid, which they tried unsuccessfully to take for two and a half years. The Russian volunteers paid dearly for this victory: out of 72 volunteers, 34 died in battle, i.e. almost half. Among the dead after Polukhin and Fok, the most famous was Sergeant Major Nikolai Ivanov, an old-timer of the Spanish Legion, who went through the African campaign and suppressed the uprising of the Communists in Asturias. There were various rumors about his heroic death throughout Spain. He died at the beginning of 1939 on the Catalan front, when only a few days remained before the victory over the communists. Most of the others were wounded. So, legionnaire Nikolai Petrovich Zotov was wounded 5 times. Due to the last injury, one leg became much shorter than the other. For this reason, he was declared unfit for further service, but he begged the authorities to allow him to return to the legion, where he enjoyed an exceptional reputation and, due to personal courage, was set as an example to the already brave legionnaires. "Another legionnaire, a former officer of the Russian service Georgy Mikhailovich Zelim -Beck, was wounded by an explosive bullet in the jaw and was also declared unfit for further service, but begged the legionary authorities to leave him in the ranks Lieutenant Konstantin Alexandrovich Konstantino, company commander in the Spanish army, a former Russian service officer, a Georgian by nationality and sergeant Ali Konstantinovich Gursky was wounded three times, the first losing one eye.Russian legionnaires played an important role in this war.The largest number of Russians - 26 - was concentrated in the Dona Maria de Molina company under the command of Lieutenant Nikolai Evgenievich Krivoshey, a former officer of the Markov White Guard division.
General Franco personally had a very great sympathy for the Russian legionnaires and insisted on their mandatory participation in the victory parade in Valencia on March 18 (31), 1939. According to the participants in this event, everyone who participated in the parade was given new uniforms, officers - white gloves. Tassels were attached to the scarlet berets - shbofry, officers - gold, chief officers - silver, sergeants - green, privates and corporals - red. The Russian detachment, marching on the right flank of the consolidated bandera of the Spanish Foreign Legion with the national "tricolor", attracted everyone's attention. What respect the Russians enjoyed among the legionnaires is evidenced by the fact that, according to the Spanish military tradition, an officer should carry the banner of the Bandera Legion. However, the officers of the legion insisted that Ali Gursky carry the banner of Bandera at the parade as the best legionnaire, although he did not have an officer's rank.
After the end of hostilities, Franco did not demobilize the Russian detachment, but left it entirely as a sign of special gratitude as part of the Spanish armed forces with extraordinary production, which was nonsense for Spain and its army. The Russians, almost all of whom became officers in the Spanish Legion, reached great heights here and continued to faithfully serve Franco. Thus, the Russian volunteer Boltin rose to the rank of colonel and died in 1961. The fact that a Russian person was given such a high honor - an introduction to such a high rank of a foreigner in the Spanish army, which was previously prohibited, testifies to the highest professional qualities of Russian officers who fell into Spain.
The participation of Russian volunteers in the hostilities on the side of Franco showed that the white emigration remained capable of actively fighting against communism. The very fact of the participation of dozens of Russians in this war on the side of Franco made it possible to partly dispel the image of Russians in the West in the form of destroyers of peaceful life under the red flag and show that among them there are active opponents of Lenin's ideas. In addition, Russian volunteers inscribed their names in golden letters with their own deeds in the history of the Spanish Foreign Legion and contributed to the creation of a high authority for the Russian name.
* Bandera - battalions in the Spanish Foreign Legion.
In the ground forces, special forces are part of the Spanish Foreign Legion (FIL), which is part of the Spanish Rapid Reaction Force, as well as in three special operations groups and two separate teams.
Spanish Foreign Legion
Spanish Foreign Legion(Tercio De Extraueros) was created in 1920. Unlike French, which is recruited mainly from citizens of other countries, FIL can only formally be called foreign, since throughout its history it has consisted mainly of Spanish citizens, and there were only about 20% of foreigners in it. At present, almost all of the legion's volunteers are recruited from the inhabitants of Spain.
Getting to serve in the IIL is quite simple - just ask for help from any police officer who will tell you the address of the recruiting office, where the arrival will immediately be shown a film about the life of the legion and will be interviewed. After that, the candidate for legionnaires decides for himself whether he really needs to serve in the Legion, and, if he agrees, signs a contract. The recruit is then sent to the Legion's training center in Rhonda, where a brutal selection process takes place.
The Spanish Foreign Legion owes its creation to José Milian Astray, the legendary general who showed miracles of courage on the battlefield and lost an arm and an eye in battle. It was to him, the hero of the war in Morocco, who invariably fought in the forefront and personally raised the fighters to attack, that the phrase “Long live death, and let the mind perish!” belongs to history! (“Viva la muerte, y muera la inteligencia!”).
The first part of it is "Long live death!" is the battle cry of the Legion.
Today, the Legion is an elite part of the armed forces, belonging to the rapid reaction forces, distinguished by high technical training and the highest morale of the legionnaires. He is in constant readiness to act to carry out any combat missions. The Legion takes part in peacekeeping missions under the control of the UN and NATO. But first things first.
Birth of the Legion. Milian Astray, to whom the Spanish Foreign Legion owes much of its creation, was born in La Coruña on July 5, 1879. The father wanted his son to become a lawyer, but at the age of 15 Milyan entered the Infantry Academy in Toledo and a year and a half later received the rank of second lieutenant.
Astray, a 16-year-old second lieutenant, served in the Philippines, where he gained notoriety and popularity when, with thirty more soldiers, he held off an attack by a large number of rebels in the town of San Rafael. Astray himself lost an eye and a hand in one of the battles. This incident convinced him of the need to use professional soldiers in external wars and predetermined the creation of the Legion.
In 1919, Milyan Astray came up with the idea of organizing a corps intended for service in Morocco and consisting of civilian soldiers. His task was to pacify the territories acquired by Spain and restore order there.
Previously, Astray decided to see how the French legionnaires live. Still, by the time the Spanish Legion was formed, the French Legion was already 88 years old. After studying the methods of organization and training, Astray decided to create a slightly different model of the foreign legion.
In the French Legion, the doors were open to almost all foreigners. The legion was, as it were, a separate state, and the legionnaires swore allegiance, primarily to their regiment. The Frenchman could not become a legionnaire.
The future legionnaires of Miljan Astrai were mainly to divide their feelings between Spain and Catholicism. Foreigners were accepted, but in limited numbers. Astray wanted the majority to be Spaniards. In fact, the term "foreign", which is used to refer to the Spanish Legion, is most likely based on a misinterpretation of the Spanish word extranjero, which means "foreign", "foreign". And the expression Legion Extranjera does not mean a legion of foreigners, but a legion performing tasks in foreign territories. After the return of Milyan Astrai, he officially presented his project for the creation of the Legion.
It was based on the following principles:
1. The Legion will embody the virtues of our victorious infantry and our invincible army.
2. The Legion will serve as the base of the colonial army.
3. The Legion will save many Spanish lives, as the legionnaires will be ready to die for all the Spaniards.
4. The Legion will consist of volunteers of all nationalities who will sign the contract with their real or fictitious name, removing any responsibility for this decision from the state.
5. The spirit of rivalry created by the presence of recruits of different nationalities will lead to an increase in the morale of the Legion.
6. Legionnaires will sign a contract for a period of 4 or 5 years, and remaining in long-term service, they become real soldiers.
8. For those who have no shelter, those who yearn for military glory, the Legion will give bread, shelter, family, homeland and a banner under which to die.
The most surprising thing is that the project was accepted, and the necessary funds were allocated for the implementation of the project. And this despite the fact that at that time there was powerful anti-colonial propaganda in Spain.
Spanish Legion infantry fighting vehicle
Corruption, abuse and theft flourished in the army, which had compulsory military service. The rich exempted their children from military service, sending young men from poor families to serve in the army instead of them. Untrained soldiers in military conflicts died by the thousands. The number of victims was so great that riots broke out in Barcelona and other Spanish cities.
There was a need to create professional army units capable of resisting the Moroccan troops, to carry out the most complex and risky operations. And these tasks were assigned to the legionnaires.
It is worth noting that from the very beginning, Miljan Astrai made sure that the uniform of the legionnaires was attractive and at the same time comfortable. The founder of the Legion settled on the uniform of the ground forces
Spain in the Golden Ages (XVII-XVIII) to distinguish its warriors through uniforms and various additions. Therefore, in photographs and illustrations depicting Spanish legionnaires, we see wide-brimmed hats that fell on the shirt collar, pants tucked into boots, special covers for boots, and gloves. Naturally, the specifics of the climate where it was necessary to act was taken into account. And on the emblem of the legionnaire were depicted a peak, a crossbow and an arquebus.
Later, already in the 40s, the regulations established that the legionnaires must wear the same uniform as the ground forces. However, the regulations were not taken into account, and the Legion continued to flash its uniform, slowly accepting all sorts of changes. The uniforms of the officers of the Legion were always different from the uniforms of other troops.
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| Franco, Francisco |
Miljan Astrai and Francisco Franco. It should be noted that Astray was not alone in the formation of the Legion. Few people know that Francisco Franco, who established a dictatorship in Spain over the years and ruled the country until his death in 1975, was directly related to the Legion. Together with Astray, he stood at the origins of the organization. And when, on January 28, 1920, Milyan Astray received the rank of lieutenant colonel and was appointed head of the newly formed Spanish Foreign Legion, he immediately offered his associate Major Franco the post of deputy commander. He went without looking back to Africa.
As commander of the first battalion of the Legion, the young Major Franco had to create a combat-ready unit from the common criminals, social outcasts, losers and outcasts that he had brought with him from Spain.
When Franco's unfortunate recruits arrived in Ceuta, they were greeted by Milian Astray, who immediately began to give instructions rather energetically: “You escaped from the clutches of death and remember that you were already dead, your life was over. You have come here to start a new life, which you must pay with death. You have come here to die! Long live death!” Then came the stern reminder: “From the moment you crossed the Straits of Gibraltar, you have no mother, no girlfriend, no family. From now on, the Legion will replace all of them for you."
In 1941, the writer Arturo Ba-rea, who served in the African Corps in the twenties, described how the commanders of the Legion treated their people: “Milyan's whole body was hysterical. His voice broke into screams and howls. He threw into the faces of these people all the dirt, abomination and obscenity of their lives, their shame and crimes, and then, in a fanatical fury, aroused in them a sense of chivalry and nobility, urging them to give up every dream except for a heroic death that would wash away their shameful past".
And, nevertheless, it was the cold-blooded Franco, and not the hot and quick-tempered Milyan, who insisted on the introduction of the death penalty to maintain discipline among the staff. As the well-known writer Gabriella Hodges writes in her book about Franco, “Once, without hesitation, he ordered a legionnaire to be shot on the spot, who threw a plate with an inedible dish in the officer’s face, and then ordered the slain soldier’s stricken comrades to march after his body. Neither Milyan nor his deputy tried in any way to limit the atrocities of the legionnaires against the local population, even when they cut off the heads of the prisoners and put them on display as a trophy.
Morocco. The eternal problem of Spain. The Spanish Foreign Legion was formed in April 1920, during the war in Morocco. According to the international agreements concluded in 1906" in Algeciras, Morocco was divided into two zones, one of which was under the protectorate of Spain, and the other - of France.
In Morocco, liberation movements periodically arose, the purpose of which was to expel foreigners from the country. The most famous rebel leaders were Mohammed Amesiane, who seized the iron mines in the Reef, and Abd el-Karim, who united under his command groups of Marcans that had once fought among themselves. Abd el-Karim operated mainly in the Spanish zone. His goal was to create an independent state of the European type in the north of Morocco.
It should be noted here that Spain has always had tense relations with the state of Morocco bordering in the south. Recently, to a greater extent, they are associated with a powerful flow of illegal immigration of Moroccans to Spain. In earlier times, as we see, it even reached armed conflicts. The Spanish Foreign Legion has repeatedly fought in Morocco. It is not surprising that after the formation of the Legion, it was immediately baptized by fire here.
Although the Legion was in its infancy and ill-equipped, the first and second battalions were thrown into action and recaptured a number of small settlements. Most of the conquered settlements were soon surrounded again, and without any hope of salvation. Once, when an avalanche of reefs stormed the Spanish positions, the commander of the encircled Spaniards, a young lieutenant, sent the last message on the heliograph: “I have 12 rounds. When you hear the last, direct your fire on us so that at least the Spaniards and the Moors die together.
In another, even more remote village, a Legion garrison fought until food, water, and ammunition were used up. Shocked by this heroism, Abd el-Karim sent a proposal to the defenders, in which he promised to save their lives if they threw out the white banner. As for the head of the garrison, the very young lieutenant replied that he and his men had sworn to defend their positions to the death and that they would not break the oath.
The war could continue like this for a very long time. Abdel-Karim received significant human reinforcements (mercenaries, Europeans, fighters against colonialism). But success and public attention turned the head of the reef leader, and in 1925 he made a fatal mistake by attacking the French zone, where he advanced to the old capital of Fez. In 1926, Abdel-Karim had to fight against the combined Spanish army and the French expeditionary force with a total of 100,000 people under the leadership of Marshal Pétain.
Everything ended very quickly. On 26 May, after a short but bitter campaign, Abd el-Karim surrendered to Colonel Andre Korapp. At the end of the war, 8 battalions were created. Only 9% of the "suitors of death" were foreigners. The legionnaires fully justified their motto: 2000 were killed, of which 4 battalion commanders, and 6096 people were seriously wounded.
After the conclusion of peace, the rather battered battalions were put in order. There was talk of recruiting new units, but the coup that changed the monarchy to a republic put an end to this.
Civil War. Russians on both sides of the barricades. The Spanish Civil War in the 1930s, of course, also affected the legionnaires. Not without the participation of our compatriots. Moreover, they fought both on the side of Franco (as part of the Legion), and against him.
The fact that the Spanish Foreign Legion repeatedly defeated the best communist units of the Republicans - the International Brigades and Soviet volunteers, speaks of the serious fighting qualities of this unit. In the words of the Russian volunteers, "perhaps, among all the current troops - all that are in the world today, the Spanish Legion is the most glorious and most famous army."
In the end, Franco's forces managed to cut off a significant part of the Republicans from the French border and sharply limit Soviet aid to them by sea. This was one of the main reasons for the defeat of the Republicans. In March 1939, the Republican government of Spain fell. The victorious troops of Franco, including the Spanish Foreign Legion, entered Madrid, which they tried unsuccessfully to take for two and a half years. Russian volunteers paid dearly for this victory: out of 72 volunteers, 34 died in battle, that is, almost half.
Our compatriots had to fight not only against the Legion, but also in its composition. General Franco had a very great sympathy for the Russian legionnaires and insisted on their mandatory participation in the victory parade in Valencia on March 18, 1939.
According to the recollections of the participants of this event, all those participating in the parade were given brand new uniforms, officers were given white gloves. Tassels were attached to the scarlet berets - shofres, their color depended on the rank of the legionnaire. The Russian detachment, marching on the right flank of the combined battalion of the Spanish Foreign Legion with the national tricolor, attracted everyone's attention.
What respect the Russians enjoyed among the legionnaires is evidenced by the fact that, according to the Spanish military tradition, an officer should carry the banner of the battalion of the legion. However, the officers of the legion insisted that Ali Gursky carry the banner of the battalion at the parade as the best legionnaire, although he did not have an officer's rank.
After the end of hostilities, Franco did not disband the Russian detachment, but left it entirely in the Spanish armed forces, as a token of special gratitude, which was nonsense for Spain and its army. The Russians, almost all of whom became officers in the Spanish Legion, reached great heights here and continued to faithfully serve Franco.
So, the Russian volunteer Boltin rose to the rank of colonel and died in 1961. The fact that a Russian person was given such a high honor - the introduction of a foreigner to such a high rank in the Spanish army, which was previously forbidden, testifies to the highest professional qualities of Russian officers who ended up in Spain. Russian volunteers entered the history of the Spanish Foreign Legion forever and contributed to the creation of the high authority of the Russian name.
In the future, legionnaires had to participate in multiple campaigns and wars. Including in the Second World War (as part of the well-known "blue division"), as well as in Western Sahara, where they performed tasks to destroy the rebels, and later the partisans. There they remained until the loss of the status of a colony in this territory in 1976. Numerous operations in which the legionnaires took part often ended in their successful implementation. The main reason for the victories with confidence can be called the high morale of the legionnaires:
How was the fighting spirit of the legionnaire brought up, without which there would be neither victories nor glory?
Viva la muerte ("Long live death!") - this was the battle cry of the legionnaires. Legionnaires are still called "Los novios de la muerte" (Spanish) - "Married with death."
As we have already said, special importance was attached to strengthening the morale of the legionnaire. When creating the Legion, Miljan Astrai wanted the soldiers to have their own hymns and songs, which, as he said, would “shorten kilometers and reduce fatigue. All the time, until sunset, these songs must be sung solemnly, and always, always, the Legion will honor the fallen."
The three most famous songs of the legionaries are "El novio de la muerte" ("The Bridegroom of Death"), "Tercios Heroicos" ("Heroic Regiments") and "Cancion del legionario" ("Song of the Legionnaire"). The first of them was taken as their own song (anthem) of the legionnaires.
Initially, she had a higher rhythm, but she gained fame when she performed in the rhythm of a march.
The refrain of the song translates roughly as follows:
I am a man whose luck Wounded by the paw of a wild beast; I am the bridegroom of death, And I will bind myself with strong bonds With this faithful friend.
Astray himself, brought up in the spirit of "bushido" (the old code of ethics of the samurai, which required absolute loyalty to the boss, restraint and self-control), created the so-called legionnaire's creed. The cult of camaraderie, courage, friendship, unity, endurance, discipline, death and love for the battalion - these are the main points in the legionary creed. Without them, the Legion would just be a community of people motivated by money. Needless to say, the Legion still does not deviate from traditions, today's legionnaires adhere to all the same values and sing all the same hymns. This can be called another hallmark of the Spanish Legion.
The first volunteer to enroll in the Legion was a Spaniard from Ceuta. From the end of September 1920, 400 people arrived from all over Spain to volunteer; they assembled at Algeciras, then boarded a steamer, where they waited to be sent to Ceuta. In rags and rags, this herd of volunteers was the dregs of the cities. Most of them were Spaniards, but there were also foreigners - three Chinese and one Japanese.
The transformation of this picturesque rabble into an elite corps is due primarily to the efforts of Astray and Franco. Interestingly, from the very beginning, participation in hostilities was extremely successful, the legionnaires of Milyan Astray are recognized by all as extraordinary soldiers. In the future, legionnaires are already beginning to count seriously. And today the Legion is an elite part of the Spanish army, serving in which is extremely prestigious.
However, there have been many questions lately about the importance of the Legion's existence, up to and including its dissolution. However, new international obligations bring back to life the reasons that served as the prerequisites for the creation of the Legion. Difficulties with the employment of available military personnel lead to the creation of professional units from volunteers. There is an example of this: the operation in Alpha Bravo, in Bosnia and Herzegovina, where the Legion occupies a certain territory.
Over the more than 80-year history of the Legion's existence, its losses amounted to more than 40 thousand people, and the last losses were in missions under the control of the UN while fulfilling the obligations given by Spain. Today, the role of Spain in the international community is quite large. Close relations with Latin America, with which it is historically and culturally connected, open up new opportunities for the Legion to operate.
The actions of Spain as a mediator in various world conflicts change the role of the Legion, which is more used in various peacekeeping missions conducted under the auspices of the UN. According to some estimates, the Legion now has about 4 thousand people, among whom there are many women, mostly Hispanics.
Today, the legionnaire is the pride of the Spanish army: a highly trained soldier ready for any mission. His hallmarks are ultimate dedication, devotion, loyalty and teamwork. Moreover, missions can be completely different: military, humanitarian, and even civil protection. And he will always be ready to give everything for his country, his battalion and will always help others, risking his life. After all, he is the "wife of death." His name is a Spanish legionnaire!
Today's Legion is not for the weak. The training is very rough and the punishment is that the trainees are severely beaten by the instructors. The training process is surprisingly short and takes only 3-4 months. Recruits sign a 3-year contract, which is as difficult to break as the contract of the French Foreign Legion. Brutal training and the hardest marches are said to make real soldiers. This combat course is one of the most difficult in the world. During its passage, recruits are constantly subjected to rough treatment, beatings and other punishments, act in the conditions of the use of military weapons on them, when they shoot under their feet and over their heads. If during this course the recruit was not killed or injured, then they say that he was "very lucky."
According to other sources, the IIL has approximately 7-8 thousand people, and only men serve in it. The legion consists of four regiments (Tercios), each of which consists of four battalions (Banderas). One of these regiments (4 Tercio Alejandro Famesio) is dedicated to special operations and based in Ronda. This regiment includes two battalions: parachute and operational (BOEL), which at one time was abbreviated as OLEU.
BOEL Battalion
BOEL Battalion(Banderas de Operaciones Especiales) has 500 personnel and is divided into three operational teams (COE 1, 2 and 3).
The personnel of the battalion is trained for operations at sea (including the use of light diving equipment), in the mountains and the Arctic, for sabotage and explosive work, parachuting (including from high altitudes with a delay in opening a parachute), deep reconnaissance , counter-terrorism operations, sniping, search and rescue, the use of light combat vehicles.
BOEL Battalion armed with mostly the same weapons as the entire legion: 5.56 mm CETME rifles, 9 mm Star assault rifles and pistols, 7.62 mm Ameli machine guns and 40 mm grenade launchers. As light combat vehicles, vehicles of the Land Rover, Hammer, BMR600, Nissan and other American and English-made vehicles are used.
IIL soldiers wear the same camouflage uniforms as other Spanish army forces, and only the red tassel on their headgear distinguishes them from other military personnel.
GOE Special Operations Groups
Spanish Special Forces in Afghanistan. 2005 year.
Special Operations Groups(GOE - Grupos de Operaciones Especiales) are based: GOE II - in Granada (consists of two teams - COE 21 and COE 22), GOE III - in Alicante (as part of COE 31 and COE 32), GOE IV - in Barcelona (in composition of COE 41 and COE 42). Two separate special operations teams are based: COE 81 - in Santa Cruz de Tanarife, COE82 - in Las Palmas.
Navy Special Operations Forces
Navy Special Operations Forces are part of the marine corps (TEAR - Infanteria de Marina "s Tescio de Armade) and are known as a special operations detachment ( UOE - Unidad de Operaciones Especiales). The detachment is directly subordinate to the Spanish Admiralty. According to official documents, the main task of the UOE is to "perform deep special reconnaissance and offensive direct combat operations against important strategic and heavily fortified objects."
Soldiers of the Spanish special forces in Djibouti, during the mission "enduring freedom"
Some of the many tasks performed by UOE units are: long-range reconnaissance before the main body is engaged, intelligence gathering, surveillance, target designation and forward artillery fire control, disruption of enemy lines of communication, direct combat operations (strike, raids, naval blockade operations and capture ships), operations to rescue people at sea, as well as the search and rescue of crews of aircraft shot down behind enemy lines.
The UOE Detachment was formed in 1952 as an all-volunteer amphibious assault company, intended for surprise strikes in the first amphibious assaults to capture any coastal targets.
The detachment specializes in conducting combat operations against heavily fortified objects of the coastal defense system and capturing territorially inaccessible targets.
After studying the nature of the use of similar units of NATO countries, the Spaniards came to the conclusion that it was necessary to expand the operational capabilities of the UOE and create a detachment capable of performing a wide range of tasks of conventional and special warfare. In 1967, following the guidance of the US Navy SEALs and the British SBS, the UOE was assigned new missions, including underwater explosions, aerial landings, and direct sabotage strikes.
The detachment received its first operational baptism in 1969, when it led the evacuation of Spanish subjects from the former Spanish colony - Equatorial Guinea. In 1985, the unit was renamed the amphibious special commando detachment (COMANFES - Comando Anfibio Especial), but in the 1990s it was returned to its former name UOE.
The UOE detachment was actively used against the terrorist organization ETA inside Spain, in the former Yugoslavia, as part of the Spanish IFOR and SFOR contingent, while performing the tasks of both the Spanish and the joint command. The UOE detachment is based in San Fernando and has 169 personnel. The commander of the detachment has the rank of lieutenant colonel, and his deputy - major. The detachment includes a small headquarters section and four platoons (Stol): command and service, two special operations and combat swimmers. Platoon commanders have the rank of captain.
The command and maintenance platoon is responsible for daily operations, material and medical support, communications, etc., as well as for operational selection and training courses for newly assigned personnel to the detachment. A special operations platoon includes 34 people and is divided into two divisions of 16 people each and a command element consisting of two people. Special operations divisions consist of four-man teams designed to carry out airborne landings, direct combat operations and reconnaissance. A platoon of combat swimmers specializes in the use of light diving equipment, small watercraft and performs reconnaissance tasks in amphibious operations.
UOE Detachment Operator candidates are recruited from experienced Marine Corps personnel who have served at least one year in a Marine Operations Detachment. Strict selection is intended to weed out those who do not meet the required standards of the squad. Applicants are subjected to a series of physical and mental tests. In the course of this selection, they are subjected to pressure to the limit of their physical capabilities.
The training of candidates for the UOE unit is aimed at assessing how special forces perform tasks under fire, verbal abuse, intense physical exertion, their endurance on marches over long distances with heavy backpacks, reaction to any events and introductory. Conducted fire drills are designed to find out if the trainees do not give in to panic or indecision at critical moments in the battle. During the most intense selection phase, candidates go through three lengthy survival tests, during which the largest number of candidates is eliminated. In case of successful completion of the selection, students proceed to operational training.
First of all, they go to a parachute school, where they receive basic knowledge of parachute operations, after which they return to the UOE unit and make several parachute jumps into the water, including in the open ocean.
Next is the study of the basic skill of commandos. tactics of penetration behind enemy lines by land and from the sea (by swimming, by landing craft and from submarines), raids, ambushes, control of small boats and landing, hand-to-hand combat without weapons and using cold weapons, map reading and land navigation, water survival, combat medicine, helicopter landing, rapid descent and ascent on ropes, etc. Those who successfully complete this phase acquire more specialized skills.
During this phase, parachuting from high altitudes with and without delay in opening the parachute, jumping from low altitudes, combat diving, sniper shooting are also carried out, and the use of explosives is practically practiced. Officers and sergeants, in addition to these trainings, are also trained in the Army Special Operations Command Course.
In addition to training and exercising with other Marine units, UOE personnel interact with counter-terrorism and special forces such as the National Police GEO, GAR and National Guard UEI, and are also subdivided into the Navy UEBC, Air Force EZAPAC and Army PRP. Squad UOE regularly conducts exercises with foreign units of special operations forces (US Navy SEAL, Portuguese DAE, Italian COMSUBIN, French Commandos Marine and Commando Hubert).
To ensure the activities of the UOE detachment, Spanish military surface ships, submarines and aircraft are widely involved. and the enclosed type Humeda of the MEDAS series), underwater tugs, inflatable boats of the Zodiak type and double kayaks of the Klepper type.
VHF and HF radio stations are used for communication, and for navigation - Magellan and Slugger receivers of GP satellite navigation! For scuba diving, there is standard light diving equipment with wet and dry suits. The detachment uses laser designators to target Spanish naval aircraft.
The armament of the UOE unit includes both domestic and foreign weapons, including:
Liania 82B 9mm pistols with laser aiming and silencer
5.56 mm CETME rifle mod. 1 (soon to be replaced by 5.56mmNK G-36)
Silenced 9mm Patchett/Sterling MK.5 submachine guns upgraded for laser guidance
7.62 mm Mauser SP66 sniper rifles
Ameli light 5.56 mm machine guns of local production
7.62 mm American M-60 GPMG machine guns.
In addition, the unit has various locally produced Commando daggers.
Air Force Special Operations Forces - EZAPAC
Air Force Special Operations Forces represented by a small but well-trained elite group known as the Parachute Engineer/Sapper Squadron (Eskadrilla de Zapadores Paracaidistas. EZAPAC for short). A squadron of 300 company personnel is prepared to perform the following tasks: selection and designation of air landing and airborne landing zones, visual and electronic control of their aircraft from the ground, advanced air control and guidance of fighter aircraft from the ground, collection and transmission of intelligence data from the territory enemy, detection and destruction of enemy air navigation facilities, strengthening the EADA (Escadrilla de Apoya al Despliegue Aero) squadron, providing additional protection for Air Force facilities, providing combat search for the rescue of crews of aircraft shot down behind enemy lines, training Air Force and Navy pilots in survival skills and evading captivity.
Operating under the direct control of the Air Force Response Force, it is divided into several sections, each of which specializes in performing specific tasks. The unit is fully air transportable, all personnel are parachute trained, and many of its operators are capable of landing from low altitudes and from high altitudes with a parachute opening delay.
Was formed as 1st Battalion of the Airborne Forces(Primera Bandera de Tropas de Aviacion del Ejercito del Aire) in the style of the German parachute battle groups, which had great success during the Second World War. The battalion units were trained at the Four Winds and Culvert airfields, and the first parachute jump was made in September 1948 at Alcala de Henares. In 1952, the battalion was relocated to its base of operations at Alcala de Henares.
Starting in 1957, the battalion participated in a number of conflicts and in 1958 arrived at its new base in Madrileniar On September 9, 1965, the battalion was reorganized and received its current name Escadrilla de Zapadores Paracaidistas - EZAPAC, inheriting the tasks of the former unit, its personnel, materiel and armament. Subsequently, the squadron was transformed and came under the operational control of the tactical aviation headquarters, and then redeployed to Murcia. Between 1971 and 1974, the squadron was relocated to Cobut, but due to logistical problems, they returned to Murcia again.
In 1975, the squadron was used in the Canary Islands during the evacuation of the Spanish from the Spanish Sahara. In 1989, EZAPA operated in Namibia as part of the UN peacekeeping force stationed in that country, providing protection for a Spanish Air Force unit carrying humanitarian aid to refugees. From August 1993, the squadron supported Bosnia's NATO IFOR and SFOR operations. Together with other functions, the squadron teams in the Balkans ensured the operation of tactical aviation control posts.
Between September 1994 and April 1995, EZAPAC units were used during the bloody civil war in Rwanda. The squadron's personnel provided escort for cargo planes delivering humanitarian aid and< местонахождения лагерей беженцев, разбросанных по окраинам страны.
The training of newcomers to the EZAPAC squadron is carried out for four years and begins at the parachuting school. Students must master a series of basic tasks such as survival, communications, first aid, stealth and others. In addition, they improve parachute training, study advanced air guidance, air traffic control, and other tasks using guidance. After completing the basic training course, new operators are awarded the Green Berets of the Spanish Special Operations Forces and are assigned to an operational team, where they continue specialized training, improving their combat skills.
The EZAPAC squadron regularly participates in exercises with similar units of NATO countries, such as the American special tactics teams, the French "Commando de I Air" and the Portuguese RESCOM CSAR.
Equipment of the Spanish paratrooper
In Spain, there are several anti-terror units of central subordination: in the police and in the gendarmerie. Among them, experts distinguish two, whose effectiveness of actions has been repeatedly confirmed in practice. The first is the Special Intervention Unit of the Spanish Gendarmerie. The second is abbreviated as GEO and is part of the National Police. GEO (Gruppos Especiale de Operaciones - Special Operations Group) is one of the main tools in the fight against terrorism by the Spanish authorities.
On March 11, 2004, the whole world learned about the terrible terrorist attack in Madrid, which killed more than 190 people. To the credit of the Spanish intelligence services, they quickly managed to identify the organizers and performers. No one doubted that the capture operation would be entrusted to the special forces of the national police GEO.
GEO (Gruppos Especiale de Operaciones - Special Operations Group)
History of creation. The attack, committed by the Islamists, was the first of its kind for Spain. But not the first in history. The idea of creating an anti-terrorist unit arose after a series of terrorist attacks in Europe in the mid-1970s. Compared to most European states, Spain was in a more difficult position, as it had to resist not only international terrorism, but also domestic. After all, for several decades the secret services of this country have been waging war against the Basque organization ETA.
The idea of creating a special squad belongs to Captain Ernesto Romero and several other high-ranking police officers. In 1977, Romero filed a report on the need to create such a unit. His opinion was listened to, and a special unit was created. Given that by that time only France and Germany had experience in anti-terrorist operations in Europe, the Spaniards took such units as the German GSG9 and the French GIGN as a model. In the same 1977, recruitment into the group began. For this purpose, policy documents were sent to all police departments, which set out the requirements for candidates. All willing police officers were invited to take part in the competition to join the new unit.
The first candidates were only 400 people. As a result of detailed tests, developed by captains Ernesto Garcia-Cuijada and Jean Senso Galan, about 70 people were selected from the total number of applicants. Some time later, their number was reduced to 50. Testing took place in Guadallar, in the barracks that belonged to the armed forces of the police.
Particular attention was paid to the applicants' ability to handle weapons, their level of physical fitness. Candidates were also required to possess the skills of hand-to-hand combat, parachute training, be able to swim and know the basics of mine-blasting.
The first course was completed on January 19, 1979, after which the subsequent stages of the training program immediately began. In the winter of 1979, demonstration exercises were held in the presence of the King of Spain. His Majesty was pleased with what he saw. In 1979, GEO began to be involved in hostage rescue operations, the storming of hijacked aircraft, and the suppression of drug trafficking. From the very beginning, one of the main tasks of the unit was the fight against the Basque terrorist organization ETA. In addition to activities on the territory of the country, GEO divisions performed tasks outside the country. They provided security for Spanish diplomats and were sent as instructors to Guinea, Ecuador, Algeria, Mexico and Egypt.
Since then, about 400 officers have served in GEO, but there are still no more than 10% of the total number of candidates.
Selection. Squad selection takes place once a year. Lyceum officers who have served for several years are allowed to it, mostly officers. This stage lasts several days. Candidates undergo traditional medical and psychological tests, then they are tested for physical readiness.
A former veteran of the detachment said that experienced instructors then carefully monitor how candidates behave under the weight of loads, whether they retain clarity of mind, whether they succumb to provocations.
Each candidate is asked to lead a group. It is checked whether he has commanding skills, whether he can find a common language with other people. After all, candidates may have different ranks, but HI all have the opportunity to normally adapt to an extraordinary situation, for example, if a lieutenant begins to command the captain.
Those who pass the selection enter the training center, where they are divided into teams.
The main course of study lasts seven months. The initial stage includes physical training, running, hand-to-hand combat, swimming, the study of weapons and work with them, mine-blasting. Further, study becomes more difficult. In shooting training, flash shooting exercises are performed, both single and in pairs or teams. Here is what a veteran of the detachment, who has served in the group for more than five years, says: “No one drives recruits, no one puts pressure on them.
Training GEO fighters requires a serious, step-by-step approach. First you need to make sure that he is well controlled with the main weapon - a pistol, an assault rifle, knows how to quickly move from a calm state to a combat one, does not lose concentration. Only after this, the tasks become more complicated and instead of static shooting, moving targets appear - one, two, three. The fighter also does not stand still, he must be able to hit the target after running, from the car, in bad or clear weather, because no one can know where we will have to act next.”
At the next stages, work in teams begins. Here, too, a gradual approach is practiced. It all starts with an elementary study of an ordinary room. The future fighter must explain how he would act if he had to carry out an operation in this building. The instructor then explains how he would act.
Penetration training begins with elementary things. For example, a beginner must master the opening of the door in the so-called "dry" way, that is, without the use of special equipment. Then the movement of the fighter inside the premises is practiced. After that - the same thing happens in the group. Then - training methods of penetration with the help of special equipment. Again, gradually. First, the entrance is worked out from one side, for example, through the doors. Next, there is a group that works, for example, from the side of windows. Having brought these actions to automaticity, the cadets practice simultaneous penetration into doors, windows and from the roof, using explosives or shotguns, special ropes and other means of penetration. GEO works out the release of hostages on trains and on water transport, in vehicles and on airplanes.
Many trainings take place in conditions close to real, that is, with the conduct of "live" fire. As the veteran of the detachment explained, this allows the fighters to quickly get used to the situation, learn to control their emotions.
In addition to anti-terrorist training, the fighters also undergo army training. For example, they study how to operate in the mountainous part of the country, where a high level of physical ability is required, the ability to move and shoot in the mountains. The relief of Spain is such that many places can only be reached by helicopter or boat, which also requires special skills. To do this, all fighters go through skiing, light diving, landing courses. After completing the main stage, the police get into combat teams, where they continue their training, receiving additional specialties.
In total, no more than 10% of the total number of applicants for admission to the group pass the selection. According to the French specialized website, out of 130 candidates, 7-9 people are selected. After graduation, each fighter signs a three-year contract. Most people extend it.
Dislocation, structure and tasks. The base of the group is located in the city of Guazallara, which is about 50 kilometers from Madrid.
GEO has the following tasks:
- preparation and conduct of antiterrorist operations;
- implementation of force cover for police operations;
- seizure of criminals and dangerous goods (drugs);
- protection of dignitaries.
The group is divided into two sections: operational and support.
The operational section includes operational groups. Three of these are operational action groups commanded by inspectors.
Operational Action Teams are in turn divided into three sub-teams commanded by sub-inspectors. The subgroups are also divided into two commando divisions. Each commando unit consists of five people: two snipers, a demoman, a diver and an expert in special systems.
The next task force is a special task force. O consists of ten people. This unit is responsible for developing special courses for GEO candidates, conducting tests and training with them, as well as conducting instructor sessions with foreign partners. In addition, this group organizes and conducts regular training sessions with the personnel of operational action groups.
Another operational group is the experimental and technical operational group. It also consists of ten people and is responsible for studying the implementation of the testing of new materials, the development of new technology and operational procedures, and also prepares reports to the leadership on the possible goals of operations. In addition, the group studies the experience of foreign colleagues, analyzes the reasons for unsuccessful actions, and prepare reports and recommendations on this basis.
The personnel of the support section are responsible for the serviceability of weapons and transport, communications, medical care, security issues, warehouses and headquarters. The group also deals with logistics, performs administrative and technical support.
Operations. The detachment carried out several serious operations, including the release of hostages in banks (1981) and apartments, participated in the neutralization of prisoners who rebelled in one of the prisons. In 1981, GEO passed a serious test during the storming of the Central Bank in Barcelona, captured by 24 ultra-rightists. Despite the fact that heavily armed terrorists held 200 hostages, only one person died during the operation. It was GEO fighters who took part in the arrest of the main suspects in organizing the March terrorist attacks.
But the main operations, of course, are related to the capture of ET militants
Unfortunately, there are no details of these operations, which is quite understandable, so it remains only to list their dates and places of action. 1982 - neutralization of the ETA armed link, which planned and carried out a number of terrorist attacks. The GEO fighters promptly prepared and carried out the detention, achieving the main goal - capturing the militants alive.
In 1987 GEO conducted a number of operations in conjunction with the French special forces, in which the top of the ETA was arrested. Similar operations took place in 1992 and 1995. In 2004, the group carried out a complex joint operation with the French, which resulted in the arrest of the leaders of the ETA combat cells and the seizure of a huge amount of weapons and ammunition.
To be sure, ETA are not suicidal Islamic fanatics, but almost all the operations assigned to the unit involve capturing well-armed and experienced terrorists who are not easy to surprise. Surprise is one of the main components of success in such captures. As a result of studying the details of some operations that we cannot talk about in the open press, we can conclude that they were all planned and carried out at the highest professional level.
It wasn't until March 2004 that the group suffered its first loss.
Surrounding the house where the terrorists who organized the “Madrid terrorist attack” sat down, the fighters then entered it, but at that time an explosion occurred. A soldier was killed and 11 people were injured. Later, the veterans of the detachment criticized the leaders of the operation. In their opinion, if GEO had been allowed to work immediately, and not ordered to surround the house and start negotiations with the terrorists for surrender, the death of a fighter could have been avoided.
Cooperation. Like all European special forces, GEO has established serious cooperation with colleagues from Germany, Italy, France, and England. The British CAC has made a significant contribution to the development of GEO after the completion of its formation.
Here is what the GEO veteran says about the need for international cooperation: “We have the opportunity to improve our skills, take something new from our colleagues, because the same French GIGN or RAID have a lot of experience and perform dozens of operations every year.” But the veteran of the detachment did not mention that GEO conducts not only joint training, but also operations. With the same GIGN or RAID. In addition, close cooperation has been established with other special forces of Spain itself - UZARPAC, UAE. This allows you to significantly enrich the training of fighters, increase their universalism.
In turn, GEO provides assistance to anti-terrorist units in countries such as Mexico, Ecuador, Honduras, Guinea, Algeria and Egypt.
Armament and equipment. GEO fighters are dressed in special black overalls with knee pads and elbow pads. In their equipment and equipment - devices for carrying ammunition, special helmets with a protective mask.
GEO is armed with SIG Sauer P226 pistols, H&K MP5 (SD5, A4) submachine guns with silent and flameless firing devices, target designators and illumination, BHHTOBKI SSG-2000, SSG-3000, H&K PSG-1 sniper guns, Mossber and Remington shotguns, with night vision burrs, stun grenades, gas grenades, plastic explosives. Each fighter is equipped with a Motorola MX-2000 radio.
The group has various vehicles in its fleet: minivans, motorcycles, buses, Zodiac inflatable boats and even a helicopter.
GAR (Grupos Antiterroristas Rurales)
GAR (Grupos Antiterroristas Rurales)- The Grupos Antiterroristas Rurale (GAR) are units of the Civil Guard and operate exclusively in the north of the country against the Basque separatists.
UEI (Unidad Especial de Intervencion) is also a division of the Civil Guard, its tasks are to free hostages in case of capture
The UEI military special forces are not as well known as the GEO civilian special forces, which are more similar to SWAT police special forces units. The UEI was also created in 1978 when there was a spike in the escalation of terrorism in Spain. The training of this detachment is distinguished by multilateral requirements for cadets. These are the tactics of conducting combat operations as part of a unit, methods of conducting guerrilla warfare, explosives, fire training, mountaineering, scuba diving, physical training - from crosses to various types of martial arts.
The six-month training ends with the fact that, in accordance with his inclinations, each graduate becomes a narrow specialist in one of the many disciplines, but, in addition, he can do the work, replacing any other member of the detachment;
Cadets go through a training cycle, which would be the envy of students of theatrical universities of the scenario departments. Together with the teacher, future special forces conduct game role-playing classes on various scenarios for the development of events in a combat situation. Among the future employees of the detachment, a special group is being trained, which has the ability to conduct lengthy and intricate negotiations with terrorists.
In the future, this group improves their abilities with psychologists and psychiatrists, learn to influence the mind and psyche of various categories of criminals: terrorists, criminals, drug addicts. In the event of an unsuccessful outcome of the negotiations, these same employees are obliged to create the most favorable conditions for a sudden assault and interact with the capture group during the assault.
The physical training of the Spanish special forces is based on the possession of oriental martial arts. Moreover, in training, strikes are delivered at full strength, and therefore, although special protective equipment is used, cases of injury are not uncommon. All employees of the unit have a "black belt" in karate.
The following details are known about the armament and technical equipment of the special intervention unit. All employees have regular rifles of the Mauser-Eb-Sp system with an optical sight, Cetmes 5.65 mm revolvers made of light alloys, American-made guns with high lethal force, as well as firearms adopted by the Civil Guard.
The special intervention unit was created to carry out operations to localize and suppress terrorist acts in urban areas. Moreover, the main area of action is Madrid.
In February 1965, an airborne brigade known as the Brigada Paracaidista (BRIPAC) was created.
This brigade has its own special forces group called the Unidad de Patrulias de Reconocimientoen Profundidad (UPRP). Being directly subordinate to the control company, these special forces are intended mainly for conducting deep reconnaissance and collecting the necessary data in the interests of the brigade.
If necessary, the military personnel of this unit can operate behind enemy lines. To achieve success, special forces are divided into several detachments or teams, called PRP (Patrulias de Reconocimiento en Profundidad), the type of which may vary depending on the tasks performed (engineering, communications, artillery, etc.) The standard special forces group consists of five military personnel who are professional military personnel who have served at least five years in tactical-level units in brigades.
The main purpose of special forces groups (UPRP) is to conduct deep reconnaissance and collect the necessary information. Each standard five-man squad can simultaneously deploy two two-man observation posts on the ground. In this case, the radio stations are located in the rear of both posts, at a safe distance, but in the visibility zone.
Special Forces Battle Groups operate exclusively as tactical-level units, and the duration of their actions rarely exceeds 7-10 days. The area of operations is approximately 150-200 km, which corresponds to the area of responsibility of the brigade. The area of operations of the PRP is noticeably reduced due to the lack of helicopters designed for special operations in the depths of enemy defenses.
In addition to conducting reconnaissance in the interests of the brigade, the military personnel of the special forces groups are also capable of conducting two types of operations: direct actions against important objects and the evacuation of the civilian population during peacekeeping operations. These are the main areas of activity of the special forces of the Spanish army. It should be noted that the presence of special forces groups allows the brigade to constantly have a unit consisting of high-level professionals who can perform a wide range of tasks without the involvement of additional ground forces.
See also Spetsnaz.org:
