Week 21 and 22: 5 – 19 December 1936
December 11
Germany, Italy and Portugal are still helping the Nationalist rebel cause despite signing the Non-Intervention Agreement. Julio Alvarez del Vayo, Spain’s delegate to the League of Nations, gives a speech in Geneva, arguing they must pull out from supporting the rebel cause. He also blasts the democractic nations still holding to the Non-Intervention pact for isolating the elected Spanish government. The committee for non-intervention and its signees are either helping the invaders or sitting back for personal comfort, making the whole situation worse.
December 13
The Aceituna Campaign starts when the Nationalists try to take the town of Andújar, near Jaén in Spain’s south. They attack with 4,000 troops, occupying 2,600 square kilometres and quickly take the small town Lopera. It is the start of a three-week campaign, with the first week seeing little advance as the Nationalists occupy uninhabited country areas in preparation to take protected towns. Part of the campaign includes saving the 1,200 fascists trapped in the Siege of Santuario de Nuestra Señora de la Cabeza, a hilltop monastery which has been a sanctuary since the outbreak of war. By now, troops are around 20 kilometres from the monastery but no help is provided to the civilians inside (though they have been getting air drops of supplies since August).
A great many number of people were displaced around the Andújar region in 1936
December 13
Hot on the heels of the first campaign, The Second Battle of Corunna Road starts north of Madrid. The Nationalists have already tried to cut the Corunna Road so nothing can get in or out of Madrid but failed, and launch another attack. The battle will last for over a month before the Nationalist control the road but still cannot cut Madrid off from the rest of Spain.
Republicans take a break (morale and sanity were low by this time) – Robert Capa
December 14
Troops, tanks and machine guns are used by the Nationalists to take the town of Boadilla del Monte (now a suburb of Madrid), as part of the Battle for Corunna Road. Russian tanks and International Brigades on behalf of the Republicans fight back and take the town back, but are surrounded by the Nationalists. The fighting continues until December 19 when the Nationalists retreat to focus on other areas in the Corunna Road area.
Snipers (wo)manning the Aragon front
December 17
A new government, Consejo de Aragon, is established in the northeast anarchist stronghold of the Aragon region. The front line keeping Aragon safe is an anarchist and socialist coalition. Villages have already started their revolution, changing to live under anarchist ideals, with self-organization, collectives to run farms and factories, and public shared rule. Money is replaced with anarchist approved coupons in some areas, and land and wealth is distributed evenly between all. This area is the most radically changed by self-governing revolution.
Agarian collective workers in Aragon
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This is not a detailed analysis, just a highlight (lowlight?) of the week’s events. Things get lost in translation – Feel free to suggest an addition/clarification/correction below. The more the world remembers, the better. All photos are linked to source for credit.
CAROLINE ANGUS 
