86th International Brigade
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The 86th Mixed Brigade ( es, 86.ª Brigada Mixta), was a
mixed brigade Mixed brigade ( es, brigada mixta) was a basic tactical military unit of the Republican army during the Spanish Civil War. It was initially designed as “pocket division”, an innovative maneuverable combined-arms formation. Because of high sa ...
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 ...
in 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 ...
. It was formed in March 1937 with
battalion A battalion is a military unit, typically consisting of 300 to 1,200 soldiers commanded by a lieutenant colonel, and subdivided into a number of companies (usually each commanded by a major or a captain). In some countries, battalions are ...
s of the ''
Carabineros The was an armed carabiniers force of Spain under both the monarchy and the Second Republic. The formal mission of this paramilitary gendarmerie was to patrol the coasts and borders of the country, operating against fraud and smuggling. A ...
'' corps. Until its demise it operated mostly in the
Sierra Morena The Sierra Morena is one of the main systems of mountain ranges in Spain. It stretches for 450 kilometres from east to west across the south of the Iberian Peninsula, forming the southern border of the ''Meseta Central'' plateau and providi ...
area, at the southern limits of the territory held by the Republic. In January 1938 it was deeply restructured and transformed into an
International Brigade The International Brigades ( es, Brigadas Internacionales) were military units set up by the Communist International to assist the Popular Front government of the Second Spanish Republic during the Spanish Civil War. The organization existed f ...
having 2,338 international fighters which lasted until 1 October the same year.Carlos Engel, ''Historia de las Brigadas Mixtas del E. P. de la República'', 1999; p. 114


History


First phase

A unit known as ''Brigada Móvil de Puertollano'' was established towards the end of 1936 led by Infantry Lieutenant Colonel Ernesto Martín del Castillo. It was organized with two ''
Carabineros The was an armed carabiniers force of Spain under both the monarchy and the Second Republic. The formal mission of this paramilitary gendarmerie was to patrol the coasts and borders of the country, operating against fraud and smuggling. A ...
'' battalions from Requena and Castellón, the 'Pablo Iglesias nr 2 Battalion' from
Valencia Valencia ( va, València) is the capital of the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Valencian Community, Valencia and the Municipalities of Spain, third-most populated municipality in Spain, with 791,413 inhabitants. It is ...
and another ''Carabineros'' battalion that joined the unit in Linares. In March 1937 this military unit became the 86th Mixed Brigade ''(86.ª Brigada Mixta)'' and one of its ''Carabineros'' battalions was replaced by the 20th International Battalion ''(20.º Batallón Internacional)''. The newly-formed battalion had four companies: the First ''(1ª compañía)'' was French; the Second ''(2ª compañía)'' or Anglo-American Company was English-speaking with a Latin-American, an American and a British and Irish section; the Third ''(3ª compañía)'' included Czechoslovak and Polish volunteers; and the Fourth ''(4ª compañía de ametralladoras)'' was made up of Germans and Austrians. ''Las Brigadas Internacionales en Andalucía'' - Comisión histórica de la AABI
/ref>Full text of "International Solidarity with the Spanish Republic (1936-1939)"
/ref> The leader of the new unit was Italian Militia Major Aldo Morandi, who was replaced as head of the 20th International Battalion by Mexican Colonel Juan Bautista Gómez, with German Major Fritz Schiller as Chief of Staff. The reorganized brigade became part of the 24th Division of the Spanish Republican Army. On 10 March the brigade performed poorly in combats around Sierra Mulva. Between 27 March and 13 April it took part in military operations over
Peñarroya-Pueblonuevo Peñarroya-Pueblonuevo is a Municipality located in the province of Córdoba, Spain. According to the 2014 census, the municipality has a population of 385 inhabitants. Its postal code is 14200. It is a mining town located in the Sierra Morena, ...
, attacking
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in the left flank of the campaign. Ramón Salas Larrazábal (2006); ''Historia del Ejército Popular de la República'', pp. 1402-1404 On 22 August the brigade was badly shattered at Puerto de San Vicente. Between 18 and 20 October it took part in the defense of the Sierra de la Noria. In December it was made part of the 63rd Division of the 8th Army Corps and again it suffered a lot of casualties during the attack against Granja de Torrehermosa, so that it was relieved of its duties and sent to
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in order to be reorganized. At this time there were numerous desertions among the remaining members of the wrecked brigade.


International Brigade period

In January 1938, as a result of heavy restructuring, the 20th International Battalion was split into three battalions, the 20th, 21st and 22nd. At the same time three of the ''Carabineros'' battalions were transferred to the 222nd Mixed Brigade so that the only remaining Spanish battalion was the 'Pablo Iglesias nr 2 Battalion'. Thus the 86th Mixed Brigade became one more International Brigade, with 2,338 international fighters of which 57 were leaders and officers and 29 were sub-officers. The newly-formed battalions were led by Militia Majors Ernst Düdel, Paul Odpadlik, Cuni Bernhardt and Adolf Rach, while the
machine gun A machine gun is a fully automatic, rifled autoloading firearm designed for sustained direct fire with rifle cartridges. Other automatic firearms such as automatic shotguns and automatic rifles (including assault rifles and battle rifles) a ...
company was led by Georg Prunzings. The restructured brigade returned to the front line at the Sierra del Castaño and the Peña del Águila, replacing the 103rd Mixed Brigade. It saw action during the attack against the rebel positions at
Villafranca de Córdoba Villafranca de Córdoba is a city located in the province of Córdoba, Spain. References External linksVillafranca de Córdoba- Sistema de Información Multiterritorial de Andalucía Municipalities in the Province of Córdoba (Spain)
covering the front in the
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and Miradero positions. However, in order to satisfy the demands of the
Non-Intervention Committee During the Spanish Civil War, several countries followed a principle of non-intervention to avoid any potential escalation or possible expansion of the war to other states. That would result in the signing of the Non-Intervention Agreement in Au ...
, the foreign members of the brigade were withdrawn on 1 October 1938 and were replaced by battalions of Spanish conscripts. Being composed of local soldiers, thenceforward the 86th Mixed Brigade was wrapped up as an International Brigade.Carlos Engel, ''Historia de las Brigadas Mixtas del E. P. de la República'', 1999; p. 115


End of the unit

In its last phase the 86th Mixed Brigade was initially led by Militia Major Lino Carrasco Ortiz, who was replaced by Militia Major Ramón Lleida Gómez after only a month. The unit saw little action in the intervening months until the final defeat and surrender of the Spanish Republic in March 1939.


See also

*
Mixed Brigades Mixed brigade ( es, brigada mixta) was a basic tactical military unit of the Republican army during the Spanish Civil War. It was initially designed as “pocket division”, an innovative maneuverable combined-arms formation. Because of high sa ...
*''
Carabineros The was an armed carabiniers force of Spain under both the monarchy and the Second Republic. The formal mission of this paramilitary gendarmerie was to patrol the coasts and borders of the country, operating against fraud and smuggling. A ...
''


References

{{Mixed brigades of Spain Military units and formations established in 1937 Military units and formations disestablished in 1939 Mixed Brigades (Spain) Carabineros International Brigades