The 25th Division was one of the divisions of the

Spanish Republican Army The Spanish Republican Army ( es, Ejército de la República Española) was the main branch of the Armed Forces of the Second Spanish Republic between 1931 and 1939. It became known as People's Army of the Republic (''Ejército Popular de la Repú ...

that were organized during the

Spanish Civil War The Spanish Civil War ( es, Guerra Civil Española)) or The Revolution ( es, La Revolución, link=no) among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War ( es, Cuarta Guerra Carlista, link=no) among Carlists, and The Rebellion ( es, La Rebelión, lin ...

on the basis of the Mixed Brigades. It participated in the battles of Huesca,

Belchite Belchite is a municipality and town in the province of Zaragoza, Spain, about 40 km southeast of Zaragoza. It is the capital of Campo de Belchite ''comarca'' (administrative region) and is located in a plain surrounded by low hills, the highe ...

Teruel Teruel () is a city in Aragon, located in eastern Spain, and is also the capital of Teruel Province. It has a population of 35,675 in 2014 making it the least populated provincial capital in the country. It is noted for its harsh climate, with a ...

and Levante.

History

The division was created in April 1937, within the incipient Eastern Army. It was organized from the old Jubert Division, which in turn had been the former Ortiz Column of anarchist militiamen. The new unit was made up of the 116th, 117th, 118th mixed brigades, and a few weeks later was integrated into the also recently created 12th Army Corps. In June it participated in the Huesca Offensive. On the night of June 9–10, troops from the 25th Division began a diversionary action on the enemy front, occupying various positions; The general operation, however, did not yield the desired results and would eventually fail. At the end of August some of its units took part in the Zaragoza Offensive —especially, the 116th Mixed Brigade, standing out significantly during the Battle of Belchite. However, the commander of the division,

Antonio Ortiz Ramírez Antonio Ortiz Ramírez (Barcelona, April 13, 1907 – April 2, 1996) was a prominent member of the National Confederation of Labor and the Iberian Anarchist Federation. He dedicated himself to woodworking throughout his life, held various posit ...

, was dismissed after the battle of Belchite and replaced by

Miguel García Vivancos Miguel García Vivancos (April 19, 1895 in Mazarrón, Region of Murcia – January 23, 1972 in Córdoba) was a Spanish Naïve painter and anarchist. He was a member of the National Confederation of Labor ( es, Confederación Nacional del ...

. In December, during the Battle of Teruel, it was integrated together with the 11th Division into the 22nd Army Corps. The forces of the 25th Division managed to conquer the Old Cemetery, the Hermitage of Santa Bárbara and the position of «El Mansueto» , although they came out of the fighting very broken. After the battle was over, the unit was placed in the rear as a reserve force. During the Aragon Offensive, in March 1938, the unit was forced to withdraw due to enemy pressure. It ended up retreating to the south of the

Ebro , name_etymology = , image = Zaragoza shel.JPG , image_size = , image_caption = The Ebro River in Zaragoza , map = SpainEbroBasin.png , map_size = , map_caption = The Ebro ...

, after the Republican zone was cut in two. During these weeks the division was attached to various army corps. Later it was integrated into the 17th Army Corps, together with the 40th and 65th divisions. Between May and July it intervened very actively in the

Levante Offensive The Levante Offensive, launched near the end of March 1938, was an attempt by Nationalist forces under Francisco Franco to capture the Republican held city of Valencia during the Spanish Civil War. The Nationalists occupied the province of Castel ...

, taking outstanding action during the republican defense of

Caudiel Caudiel is a municipality in the ''comarca'' of Alto Palancia, Castellón, Valencia, Spain. Geography The surrounding municipalities are Benafer, Fuente la Reina, Gaibiel, Higueras, Jérica, Montán, Pavías, Pina de Montalgrao, Villanueva de V ...

. For the remainder of the war, the unit remained at rest, not participating in any further interventions.

Leaders

;Commanders *

; *

; * Manuel Cristóbal Errandonea; * Eusebio Sanz Asensio; * Víctor Álvarez González ;Commissars * Saturnino Carod Lerín; * Antonio Ejarque Pina ;Chief of Staff * Alfredo Navarro Sanganetti

Battles

Notes

References

Bibliography