José Miaja Menant (20 April 1878 – 14 January 1958) was a General of the

Second Spanish Republic The Spanish Republic (), commonly known as the Second Spanish Republic (), was the form of democratic government in Spain from 1931 to 1939. The Republic was proclaimed on 14 April 1931 after the deposition of Alfonso XIII, King Alfonso XIII. ...

Early life

He entered the Infantry Academy at Toledo in 1896. His first post was in Asturias. Miaja was later transferred to

Melilla Melilla (, ; ) is an autonomous city of Spain on the North African coast. It lies on the eastern side of the Cape Three Forks, bordering Morocco and facing the Mediterranean Sea. It has an area of . It was part of the Province of Málaga un ...

where he served in the Moroccan War of 1900, achieving the rank of major comandante in 1911, and rising to

General A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air force, air and space forces, marines or naval infantry. In some usages, the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colone ...

in 1932. Despite Miaja's membership of the right-wing

Unión Militar Española Unión Militar Española (Spanish Military Union) was a pro-fascist secret society of officers of the Spanish Republican Armed Forces involved in a conspiracy to bring about the restoration of the monarchy during the 1930s. The majority of members o ...

, in 1935 conservative minister of War,

José María Gil-Robles y Quiñones José María Gil-Robles y Quiñones de León (Salamanca, 27 November 1898 – Madrid, 13 September 1980) was a Spanish politician, leader of the CEDA, and a prominent figure in the period leading up to the Spanish Civil War. He served as ...

, sent him to

Lérida Lleida (, ; ; ''#Name, see below'') is a city in the west of Catalonia, Spain. It is the capital and largest town in Segrià, Segrià county, the Ponent, Ponent region and the province of Lleida. Geographically, it is located in the Catalan Cent ...

, a relatively obscure posting far from the capital, an indication that he did not have the full confidence of the government.

Spanish Civil War

At the start of the military rebellion that led to the

Spanish Civil War The Spanish Civil War () was a military conflict fought from 1936 to 1939 between the Republican faction (Spanish Civil War), Republicans and the Nationalist faction (Spanish Civil War), Nationalists. Republicans were loyal to the Left-wing p ...

, he was stationed in

Madrid Madrid ( ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in Spain, most populous municipality of Spain. It has almost 3.5 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 7 million. It i ...

, remaining loyal to the Republican government, and was appointed Minister of War. In November 1936, he was named commander of the '' Junta de Defensa de Madrid'' (Madrid Defense Council), when the government evacuated the capital before the imminent arrival of fascist troops. With Vicente Rojo Lluch as chief-of-staff, he managed to halt the Nationalists at the river Manzanares at the Battle of Madrid. As a

Spanish Republican Army The Spanish Republican Army () was the main branch of the Spanish Republican Armed Forces, 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 República'' ...

commander of the Central Zone, he directed the battles of the Jarama,

Guadalajara Guadalajara ( ; ) is the capital and the most populous city in the western Mexican List of states of Mexico, state of Jalisco, as well as the most densely populated municipality in Jalisco. According to the 2020 census, the city has a population ...

and Brunete. He later supported the

rebellion Rebellion is an uprising that resists and is organized against one's government. A rebel is a person who engages in a rebellion. A rebel group is a consciously coordinated group that seeks to gain political control over an entire state or a ...

led by Segismundo Casado against the government of prime minister

Juan Negrín Juan Negrín López (; 3 February 1892 – 12 November 1956) was a Spanish physician and politician who served as prime minister of the Second Spanish Republic. He was a leader of the Spanish Socialist Workers' Party (, PSOE) and of the le ...

in March 1939, serving as President of the National Defence Council ''(Consejo Nacional de Defensa)''. He was awarded the Laureate Plate of Madrid for his role during the

Siege of Madrid The siege of Madrid was a two-and-a-half-year siege of the Second Spanish Republic, Republican-controlled Spain, Spanish capital city of Madrid by the Nationalist faction (Spanish Civil War), Nationalist armies, under General Francisco Franco, ...

Exile

After the end of the Civil War, he went to

Gandia Gandia (, ) is a city and Municipalities of Spain, municipality in the Valencian Community, eastern Spain on the Mediterranean. Gandia is located on the Costa de Valencia, south of Valencia, Spain, Valencia and north of Alicante. Vehicles can ...

, where he boarded a plane to

Oran Oran () is a major coastal city located in the northwest of Algeria. It is considered the second most important city of Algeria, after the capital, Algiers, because of its population and commercial, industrial and cultural importance. It is w ...

that took him into exile, first to

French Algeria French Algeria ( until 1839, then afterwards; unofficially ; ), also known as Colonial Algeria, was the period of History of Algeria, Algerian history when the country was a colony and later an integral part of France. French rule lasted until ...

and

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

, then to

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

, where he died on 14 January 1958.

References

Bibliography

* Alpert, Michael ; ''El Ejército Republicano en la Guerra Civil'', Siglo XXI de España, Madrid, 1989 * * Carlos Engel, ''Historia de las Brigadas Mixtas del Ejército Popular de la República'', Ed. Almena. Madrid 1999, * Ramón Salas Larrazábal, ''Historia del Ejército Popular de la República''. La Esfera de los Libros S.L. * Suero Roca, M. Teresa; ''Militares republicanos de la Guerra de España''. Ediciones Península Ibérica, Barcelona, 1981. * Thomas, Hugh. ''The Spanish Civil War.'' Penguin Books. 2001. London {{DEFAULTSORT:Miaja, Jose 1878 births 1958 deaths People from Oviedo Spanish anti-communists Spanish generals Spanish military personnel of the Rif War Spanish military personnel of the Spanish Civil War (Republican faction) Spanish monarchists Spanish nationalists Exiles of the Spanish Civil War in Mexico Armed Forces of the Second Spanish Republic Exiles of the Spanish Civil War in France Proto-fascists