- note – this is just a very short introduction to the most commonly repeated names over the course of the war, not an exhaustive list
SOCIALISTS (PSOE & UGT)
The Spanish Socialist Workers’ Party (PSOE) was one of the largest political parties supporting the Republic in 1936. Founded in the nineteenth century, it sought to improve the lives of workers through social reform, workers’ rights and democratic politics. Within the party there were both moderate and radical factions. Some leaders wanted gradual reform through parliament, while others believed Spain needed far more sweeping social and economic change.
The General Union of Workers (UGT) was the trade union closely linked to the PSOE. It represented hundreds of thousands of workers across Spain, including factory workers, miners, railway employees and agricultural labourers. While the PSOE was a political party that contested elections, the UGT was a labour organisation focused on protecting workers’ interests through strikes, negotiations and political activism. In practice, many people belonged to both organisations. During the Civil War, UGT members helped organise militias, support the war effort and keep industries operating in Republican-held territory. Together, the PSOE and UGT formed one of the most important pillars of the Republican side.
Julián Besteiro Fernández – Socialist leader and intellectual
Side: Republic / PSOE – A moderate socialist who increasingly opposed revolutionary politics. During the final months of the war he argued that defeat was inevitable and supported efforts to negotiate an end to the conflict. Unlike many Republican leaders, he refused to leave Spain and was captured by Francoists and imprisoned where he died of ‘illness’ in 1940, Carmona Prison in Seville.
Wenceslao Carrillo Alonso – PSOE and UGT Leader; Government Minister
Affiliation: PSOE / UGT – Wenceslao Carrillo was one of the senior figures of the Spanish Socialist movement during the Second Republic and Civil War. A long-time member of both the Socialist Party (PSOE) and the General Union of Workers (UGT). Lived in exile in Belgium, dying in 1966.
Ramón González Peña – UGT leader
Side: Republic / PSOE – A veteran of the 1934 Asturias uprising and one of Spain’s best-known labour leaders. During the war he served in government positions and remained influential within the Socialist movement. Imprisoned after the Asturias uprising, he escaped during Civil War period, and died in exile in 1952, Mexico.
COMMUNIST PARTY (PCE)
The Communist Party of Spain (PCE) was a revolutionary Marxist party that supported the Republic during the Civil War. In July 1936 it was much smaller than the Socialists or the anarchist CNT, with only a few tens of thousands of members. However, the outbreak of war and later Soviet support for the Republic allowed the party to grow rapidly. The PCE argued that defeating the military rebellion had to come before any social revolution, and it favoured a disciplined army, a strong central government and coordinated wartime administration.
Pedro Checa Godoy – Organisational Secretary of the PCE
Affiliation: Communist Party of Spain (PCE) – One of the most important organisational figures within the Communist Party during the Civil War. Became one of the key figures responsible for maintaining party discipline and coordinating activity between the leadership and local organisations. Lived in exile in Mexico City, dying in 1942.
Santiago Carrillo Solares – Communist Youth Leader; later Senior PCE Leader
Affiliation: Communist Party of Spain (PCE) – The son of Socialist leader Wenceslao Carrillos. Increasingly influential political figure in Madrid and within the Communist movement. Controversial figure of the Republican side because of continuing historical debates regarding his role during the Paracuellos killings in late 1936. Lived in exile in France after the war, but returned after Franco’s death to become General Secretary of the Communist Party and played a major role during Spain’s democratic transition after Franco’s death, helping steer the party toward Eurocommunism and parliamentary democracy. Died in 2012, Madrid.
José Díaz Ramos – General Secretary of the PCE
Leader of the Communist Party during its transformation from a relatively small movement into one of the Republic’s most influential political forces. Lived in exile in Soviet Union and died in 1942, Tbilisi.
Jesús Hernández Tomás – Communist leader; Minister of Education
One of the best-known Communist politicians of the war. After 1939 he eventually broke with Soviet-aligned Communism and became a critic of Stalinist influence in Spain. Lived in exile in Mexico dying in 1971.
Dolores Ibárruri Gómez – Communist deputy and orator
Known worldwide as La Pasionaria. Multiple arrests before the war. One of the most famous voices of the Republican cause and a symbol of resistance during the defence of Madrid. After the war she spent decades in exile in the Soviet Union and returned to Spain following Franco’s death and died in 1989, Madrid.
Vicente Uribe Galdeano – Minister of Agriculture
One of the most senior Communist politicians in Republican Spain. He served as Minister of Agriculture under both Largo Caballero and Negrín, making him one of the longest-serving Communist ministers of the war. He was also a member of the PCE’s highest leadership circles and helped shape Communist strategy throughout the conflict. Lived in exile in the Soviet Union after the war and died in 1961 in Prague.
CNT–FAI ANARCHISTS AND ANARCHO-SYNDICALISTS
The CNT (Confederación Nacional del Trabajo) was Spain’s largest anarchist trade union and one of the most powerful workers’ organisations in the country. Closely associated with the FAI (Federación Anarquista Ibérica), it believed that workers should control society directly rather than through political parties or governments. CNT members argued that factories, farms and services should be run collectively by workers themselves, without bosses, landlords or a central state. By 1936 the CNT had hundreds of thousands of members, particularly in Catalonia, Aragón and parts of Andalucía, making it a major force in Spanish politics and labour relations. The CNT–FAI followed the principles of anarchism and anarcho-syndicalism. Anarchism sought a society without authoritarian government, while anarcho-syndicalism believed trade unions could both defend workers in the present and eventually replace the state altogether. When the military uprising began in July 1936, CNT and FAI members were among the first to take up arms in cities such as Barcelona, helping defeat the rebels there. During the war they organised militias, collectivised factories and farms, and ran many local services in Republican territory. Important figures included Buenaventura Durruti, Federica Montseny and Juan García Oliver. Although they fought on the Republican side, the anarchists often disagreed with Socialists and Communists over how the war should be conducted and what kind of society should emerge from it. The anarchist movement was arguably the most distinctive political force of the Spanish Civil War. Through the CNT (Confederación Nacional del Trabajo) and the FAI (Federación Anarquista Ibérica), anarchists mobilised hundreds of thousands of workers and peasants. In July 1936 they were instrumental in defeating the military uprising in Barcelona and much of eastern Spain. Unlike the Communists or Socialists, many anarchists were deeply suspicious of government authority. The movement spent much of the war wrestling with a contradiction of how to fight a modern war while remaining true to anti-state principles.
Sinesio Baudilio García Fernández, better known as Diego Abad de Santillán – -Economist, writer, CNT–FAI intellectual
One of the most influential anarchist theorists in Spain. Spent much of the war dealing with practical questions of production, supply and administration. As Communist influence grew within the Republic, Santillán became increasingly critical of government centralisation and Soviet involvement. Lived in exile in Argentina and died in 1983.
Francisco Ascaso Budría – CNT–FAI militant leader
One of the most famous anarchist activists of the pre-war years and a close associate of Durruti and García Oliver. When the military uprising reached Barcelona in July 1936, Ascaso fought in the street battles against rebel troops. On 20 July he was killed near the Atarazanas Barracks in Barcelona during some of the most intense fighting in the city. His death immediately elevated him to martyr status within the anarchist movement.
José Buenaventura Durruti Dumange – Militia Commander; leader of the Durruti Column
The most famous anarchist of the Civil War and perhaps the most famous anarchist in modern history. After helping defeat the uprising in Barcelona, he led thousands of volunteers toward Aragón in an attempt to capture Zaragoza. His column became one of the best-known militia formations of the war. In November 1936 he travelled to Madrid during the city’s desperate defence against Nationalist assault. On 20 November he was mortally wounded. The exact circumstances remain disputed; historians have proposed enemy fire, accidental discharge and friendly fire. His funeral in Barcelona drew hundreds of thousands of mourners.
Juan García Oliver – CNT–FAI leader; Minister of Justice
One of the most influential anarchists of his generation. Before the war he belonged to the radical activist group Los Solidarios alongside Durruti and Ascaso. After the uprising he became one of the leaders of revolutionary Barcelona. Despite a lifelong hostility to government institutions, he accepted a position as Minister of Justice in Largo Caballero’s government, a decision that caused fierce debate within anarchist circles. Following defeat he spent decades in exile in Mexico and died in Guadalajara, Mexico.
Juan López Sánchez – CNT leader; Minister of Commerce
A prominent syndicalist who became one of the CNT representatives in the Republican government. Following the war he went into exile but later adopted increasingly moderate political views and eventually returned to Madrid and died in 1972.
Federica Montseny Mañé – CNT leader; Minister of Health
One of the most remarkable political figures of the war. A writer, journalist and activist, she became the first woman ever to serve as a cabinet minister in Spain. As Minister of Health she promoted programmes involving childcare, public health, maternity care and social welfare. After 1939 she fled to France and was briefly imprisoned by Vichy French authorities, before continuing political activism for decades and died in 1994, Toulouse, France.
Joan Peiró Belis – Syndicalist leader; Minister of Industry
Leading moderate voice within Spanish anarchism. During the war he served as Minister of Industry and attempted to coordinate industrial production for the Republican war effort. After the war he was arrested by German authorities in occupied France and handed over to Francoist Spain. Despite offers to cooperate with the regime, he refused and was executed by firing squad in 1942, Paterna, Valencia.
Ángel Pestaña Núñez – Syndicalist politician
One of the most important labour leaders in Spain before the Civil War. Although originally a major CNT figure, he broke with the movement over questions of revolutionary strategy and founded the Syndicalist Party. Pestaña did not live long enough to play a major role during most of the war. An accomplished writer, he had struggled with poverty throughout his life and died in 1937 in Barcelona as a result of lifelong struggles with poverty and illness.
Mariano Rodríguez Vázquez -National Secretary of the CNT
One of the most important CNT leaders during the Civil War. In 1937 he became National Secretary of the CNT, effectively making him one of the highest-ranking anarchist leaders in Spain. Following the Republican collapse in 1939 he fled to France with thousands of other refugees. His death in La Ferté-sous-Jouarre, having drowned in the Marne river near Paris in June 1939, aged 30, remains controversial. The official explanation was accidental drowning, although rumours circulated within anarchist circles for years and some contemporaries suspected foul play.
Ricardo Sanz García – CNT militia commander
A veteran anarchist militant and close associate of Durruti. After Durruti’s death, Sanz assumed command of the Durruti Column. He remained active throughout the war and led the offensive to save Zaragoza and Huesca in April 1937 and later spent many years in exile and died in France in 1982.
CAROLINE ANGUS 