The Huesca Offensive was an ill-fated
Republican army thrust toward
Huesca
Huesca (; an, Uesca) is a city in north-eastern Spain, within the autonomous community of Aragon. It is also the capital of the Spanish province of the same name and of the comarca of Hoya de Huesca. In 2009 it had a population of 52,059, almo ...
between 12 and 19 June 1937, 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 ...
. Hungarian writer and communist commander
Máté Zalka was killed in the course of the battle.
Background
In April 1937, the Nationalists
started an offensive against the Republican-held Biscay Province, and by the end of May, the Navarrese troops had reached the eastern side of
Bilbao
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's defenses. The Republican government then decided to launch two diversionary offensives on the
Aragon
Aragon ( , ; Spanish and an, Aragón ; ca, Aragó ) is an autonomous community in Spain, coextensive with the medieval Kingdom of Aragon. In northeastern Spain, the Aragonese autonomous community comprises three provinces (from north to so ...
and
Madrid
Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the second-largest city in the European Union (EU), and ...
fronts in order to divert Nationalist troops.
The Offensive
The Republican government decided to launch an attack against the Nationalist held city of
Huesca
Huesca (; an, Uesca) is a city in north-eastern Spain, within the autonomous community of Aragon. It is also the capital of the Spanish province of the same name and of the comarca of Hoya de Huesca. In 2009 it had a population of 52,059, almo ...
. After the
May Days, the Republican forces in the Aragon front had been reorganized and the Republican government established a new
Army of the East. This force, under the command of General Pozas, was reinforced with the
XII International Brigade, led by General Lukacs, and four brigades from the central front. The Republican forces outnumbered the Nationalist forces besieged in Huesca, but the Nationalist troops were well entrenched and the Republican troops had little artillery and armoured support.
The attack against Huesca started on 12 June, led by Lukács. The Republican troops attacking across open ground were decimated by the machine-gun and artillery fire of the Nationalists. Furthermore, the same day, Lukács was hit by a Nationalist shell and died. The offensive saw the
Rakosi Battalion's first action (with 288 men). The battalion became trapped by machine-gun fire and lost a quarter of its men. Their commander, Ákos Hevesi, and political commissar, Imre Tarr, were both killed as they led from the front.
On 16 June the Republican troops attacked the villages of
Alerre and
Chimillas but the assault was repelled by the Nationalist troops. On 19 June, the Nationalists entered
Bilbao
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and the offensive was called off, after other two days of failed Republican assaults.
Aftermath
The Republican troops had heavy casualties (according to Beevor, 9,000), mainly
anarchist
Anarchism is a political philosophy and movement that is skeptical of all justifications for authority and seeks to abolish the institutions it claims maintain unnecessary coercion and hierarchy, typically including, though not necessa ...
and
POUM members. The failed offensive after the recent
May Days in
Barcelona
Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...
, increased the defeatism and the suspicions among the Republican troops in Aragon.
[Beevor, Antony. (2006). ''The Battle for Spain. The Spanish Civil War, 1936-1939.'' Penguin Books. p.277]
See also
*
*
List of Spanish Nationalist military equipment of the Spanish Civil War
References
Bibliography
*Beevor, Antony. The Battle for Spain. The Spanish Civil War 1936–1939. Penguin Books. London. 2006.
*Thomas, Hugh. The Spanish Civil War. Penguin Books. London. 2001.
{{Use dmy dates, date=June 2017
Battles of the Spanish Civil War
1937 in Spain
Conflicts in 1937
Battles in Aragon
Province of Huesca
June 1937 events