Spain in Arms: A Military History of the Spanish Civil War 1936–1939 by E. R. Hooton (review)

In Spain in Arms: A Military History of the Spanish Civil War 1936–1939, Hooton states his intention to write a military history of the Spanish Civil War instead of an ideological or political history of the conflict. Hooton features Spanish sources, and he names José Manuel Martínez Bande as a principle reference. Martínez Bande served in Franco’s army during the Spanish Civil War, and then he worked in the Servicio Histórico Nacional, which gave him access to the archives from the conflict. Most of Martínez Bande’s books are listed in Hooton’s bibliography. However, Hooton presents a balanced perspective by citing the memoirs of many Republican generals like Enrique Líster, Juan Modesto, and Vicente Rojo.

Most of the book’s six chapters are devoted to one of the war’s major campaigns, so there is a chronological progression. The first chapter narrates the events near Madrid with subtitles featuring the battles of the Corunna highway, the Jarama valley, and Guadalajara. Here he cites the number of soldiers in the Spanish army who sided with the Republic, and how many sided with Franco. The army stationed in the Iberian peninsula was split evenly in half, while Spain’s Army of Africa sided with Franco. More than half of the Guardia Civil supported the Republic. The discussion of the battle of Guadalajara reveals how the Soviet military advisors helped the Republic withstand the Italian troops who served Franco.

The second chapter is devoted to the formation of the armies. Hooton summarizes the contribution of the International Brigades to the Republican cause as follows: “For all their heroism and dedication, the International Brigades represented one of the most cynical publicity stunts since the Children’s Crusade, providing cannon fodder to publicize the Republican cause” (55). Hooton names the Republic’s chief Soviet military advisors, and he also offers details about the German and Italian troops on Franco’s side.

The third chapter narrates the Nationalist offensives against the northern Republican enclave of Bilbao, Santander, and Asturias. These Nationalist victories allowed them control of most of Spain’s steel and coal production. In writing about Guernica, Hooton calls the bombardment an accident. He does not deny that the event occurred, nor does he deny the responsibility of the German Condor Legion in the bombing, but he does say the bombs were intended for another target. For many readers, the interpretation of Guernica is a litmus test, an indicator of a historian’s tendency toward the left or right of the political spectrum. Nonetheless, Hooton never betrays extreme bias either way.

Chapter four is about the Republican offensives at Brunete and in Aragon, which were accompanied by Republican political intrigue between Soviets and Spaniards in Valencia, and between Communists and Anarchists in Barcelona. The chapter ends as the Republican government moves from Valencia to Barcelona, and both sides regroup for the battle of Teruel, the subject of chapter five. Hooton is capable of lyrical prose, such as this sentence in his chapter about the battle of Teruel: “It was the only pure cavalry action of the war in a millennium-long tradition that faded from European history within a decade” (168). Chapter six is dedicated to the battle of the Ebro and Franco’s final push to split the Republican bastions of Valencia and Barcelona. Franco’s army finally reaches Barcelona, the industrial center of Spain. The Republic fell soon thereafter.

Hooton’s emphasis on military history results in many catalogs of artillery, tanks, and other weapons as he writes of all the major campaigns. He includes maps, charts, and photographs. Occasionally, Hooton makes astute references to both World Wars to provide context for the Spanish Civil War. Many historians focus on the Spanish Civil War as an isolated conflict, but Hooton situates the Iberian conflict within the continuum of European warfare. Military historians will appreciate Hooton...