The 5th Division was one of the
divisions of the
People's Army of the Republic
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, link ...
on the basis of the
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 ...
. It was deployed on the
Madrid
Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the Largest cities of the Europ ...
and
Levante fronts.
History
The unit was created on 31 December 1936, within the
Madrid Army Corps. It covered the second sector of the Madrid front, from the El Pardo wall to the
Manzanares river
The Manzanares () is a river in the centre of the Iberian Peninsula, which flows from the Sierra de Guadarrama, passes through Madrid, and eventually empties into the Jarama river, which in turn is a right-bank tributary to the Tagus.
In its ...
. It had its headquarters in the
Palace of El Pardo. The division was made up of the
5th
Fifth is the ordinal form of the number five.
Fifth or The Fifth may refer to:
* Fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution, as in the expression "pleading the Fifth"
* Fifth column, a political term
* Fifth disease, a contagious rash tha ...
,
38th and
39th mixed brigades, with 8,166 troops and nine pieces of artillery.
The 5th Division played an important role during the
Third Battle of the Corunna Road, defending the accesses to Madrid, the
San Fernando Bridge and the El Pardo mountain. Later the unit became part of the
II Army Corps, and later in the
VI Army Corps, remaining at the Madrid front.
In the spring of 1938,
José Miaja
José Miaja Menant (20 April 1878 in Oviedo, Asturias – 14 January 1958 in Mexico) was a General of the Second Spanish Republic.
Early life
He entered the Infantry Academy at Toledo in 1896. His first post was in Asturias. Miaja was later tr ...
sent it to the Levante front to reinforce the republican forces that were resisting the
nationalist
Nationalism is an idea and movement that holds that the nation should be congruent with the state. As a movement, nationalism tends to promote the interests of a particular nation (as in a group of people), Smith, Anthony. ''Nationalism: Th ...
offensive. The 5th Division, located between the
25th
25 (twenty-five) is the natural number following 24 and preceding 26.
In mathematics
It is a square number, being 52 = 5 × 5. It is one of two two-digit numbers whose square and higher powers of the number also ends in the same last t ...
and
39th, maintained its defensive positions and managed to avoid the defeat of the republican units deployed in the Maestrazgo area. The unit maintained the resistance in this area for several weeks, suffering severe wear and tear. Subsequently, the 5th Division went to the
XIX Army Corps
The XIX Army Corps ( German: ''XIX. Armeekorps'') was an armored corps of the German Wehrmacht between 1 July 1939 and 16 November 1940, when the unit was renamed Panzer Group 2 (German: ''Panzergruppe 2'') and later 2nd Panzer Army (German: ''2. P ...
, standing out in the resistance against the nationalist Army Corps de Navarra in
Campillo.
During the rest of the war, it did not take part in relevant military operations.
Command
;Commanders
*
Juan Perea Capulino;
*
Miguel Palacios Martínez;
*
José Penido Iglesias;
;Commissars
*
Tomás Sanz Asensio, of the
CNT;
;Chiefs of Staff
* Joaquín Martí Sánchez;
* Francisco Garrido Romero;
* Paulino García Puente;
* Juan Miguel Mari;
Organization
References
Bibliography
*
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{{Divisions of the Spanish Republic, state=expanded
Military units and formations established in 1936
Military units and formations disestablished in 1939
Divisions of Spain
Military units and formations of the Spanish Civil War
Military history of Spain
Armed Forces of the Second Spanish Republic
1936 establishments in Spain
1939 disestablishments in Spain