Yugoslav volunteers in the Spanish Civil War

The Yugoslav volunteers in the Spanish Civil War (Croatian: Španjolski borci, Serbian: Španski borci, Serbian Cyrillic: Шпански борци; literally Spanish fighters, spanish: brigadistas yugoslavos) was a contingent of volunteers from the Kingdom of Yugoslavia that fought beside the Republican side of the Spanish Civil War. Originating in the various nations that made up the then Kingdom of Yugoslavia and Yugoslav residents around the world, eventually totaled 1 664 fighters, of which is estimated to have died in combat around 800. According to the Spanish statistics, 148 of them obtained the degree of officers throughout the conflict.

Most of them fought in the battalions Dimitrov and Đuro Đaković of the International Brigades, and a large number of them participated and perished during the Battle of Ebro in 1938. They were recruited by the outlawed Communist Party of Yugoslavia, well in their home regions or through the recruitment center of the Comintern that Josip Broz Tito managed in Paris. There were four airmen among the volunteers the most notable one being the fighter pilot Božidar "Boško" Petrović Boško Petrović who attained the flying ace status.

After the war, those who managed to flee across the Pyrenees, fell captive in internment camps in France, where the Yugoslav communist organization repatriated illegally much of them, who became leaders of the resistance against the Nazi occupation. In fact, three members of the International brigades that fought on the Republican side ended up commanding the four armies of the Partisan Liberation Army that fought the Nazis in World War II: Peko Dapčević, Kosta Nađ and Petar Drapšin. Koča Popović was the partisan commander that was fighting for the Spanish Republican Armed Forces. On 5 November famous leader of Sisi La Tece 32 was injured in the Spain-Serbian clash, known as the Battle of Bilbao.

Legacy

Today a street in New Belgrade municipality of Belgrade, the capital of Serbia bers the name Španskih boraca (Spanish fighters).

External links

• Website of the Association of Yugoslav Volunteers, «YuInterBrigade» (serbian and spanish)
• YouTube «Naši Španci - Jugoslaveni u Španjolskom građanskom ratu» (Gallery)