Corunna is the traditional English name of the city of A Coruña in Spain and the surrounding province of A Coruña.
The Battle of Corunna, in Spain known as Battle of Elviña, took place on 16 January 1809, when a French corps under Marshal of the Empire Jean de Dieu Soult attacked a British army under Lieutenant-General Sir John Moore. The battle took place amidst the Peninsular War, which was a part of the wider Napoleonic Wars. It was a result of a French campaign, led by Napoleon, which had defeated the Spanish armies and caused the British army to withdraw to the coast following an unsuccessful attempt by Moore to attack Soult's corps and divert the French army.
Valentín González González, popularly known as El Campesino, was a Spanish Republican military commander during the Spanish Civil War.
Before this period, the Nationalists had already become dominant, yet the outcome of the war was still not certain. This progressively changed as the Nationalist forces notched up several victories.
In 1937, the Nationalists, under the leadership of Francisco Franco began to establish their dominance. An important element of support was their greater access to foreign aid, with their German and Italian allies helping considerably. This came just as the French ceased aid to the Republicans, who continued, however, to be able to buy arms from the Soviet Union. The Republican side suffered from serious divisions among the various communist and anarchist groupings within it, and the communists undermined much of the anarchists' organisation.
The Battle of Somosierra took place on 30 November 1808, during the Peninsular War, when a combined Franco-Spanish-Polish force under the direct command of Napoleon Bonaparte forced a passage through a Spanish Division stationed at the Sierra de Guadarrama, which shielded Madrid from direct French attack. At the Somosierra mountain pass, 60 miles (97 km) north of Madrid, a heavily outnumbered Spanish detachment of regulars, volunteers and artillery under Benito de San Juan aimed to block Napoleon's advance on the Spanish capital. Napoleon overwhelmed the Spanish positions in a combined arms attack, sending the Polish Chevau-légers of the Imperial Guard at the Spanish guns while French infantry advanced up the slopes. The victory removed the last obstacle barring the road to Madrid, which fell several days later.
The Battle of Málaga was the culmination of an offensive in early 1937 by the combined Nationalist and Italian forces, with air and naval support from Nazi Germany, to eliminate Republican control of the province of Málaga during the Spanish Civil War. The participation of Moroccan regulars and Italian tanks from the recently arrived Corpo Truppe Volontarie resulted in a complete rout of the Spanish Republican Army and the capitulation of Málaga in less than a week.
The Second Battle of the Corunna Road was a battle of the Spanish Civil War that took place from 13 December 1936 to 15 January 1937, northwest of Madrid. In December 1936, the Nationalists launched an offensive in order to cut the Corunna Road and isolate Madrid, but a Republican counter-offensive stopped the Nationalist advance. The Nationalists cut the Corunna road but failed to encircle Madrid.
The siege of Madrid was a two-and-a-half-year siege of the Republican-controlled Spanish capital city of Madrid by the Nationalist armies, under General Francisco Franco, during the Spanish Civil War (1936–1939). The city, besieged from October 1936, fell to the Nationalist armies on 28 March 1939. The Battle of Madrid in November 1936 saw the most intense fighting in and around the city when the Nationalists made their most determined attempt to take the Republican capital.
The Battle of Jarama was an attempt by General Francisco Franco's Nationalists to dislodge the Republican lines along the river Jarama, just east of Madrid, during the Spanish Civil War. Elite Spanish Legionnaires and Moroccan Regulares from the Army of Africa forced back the Republican Army of the Centre, including the International Brigades, but after days of fierce fighting no breakthrough was achieved. Republican counterattacks along the captured ground likewise failed, resulting in heavy casualties to both sides.
The XII International Brigade was mustered on 7 November 1936 at Albacete, Spain. It was formerly named the Garibaldi Brigade, after the most famous and inspiring leader in the Italian Independence Wars, General Giuseppe Garibaldi.
The XI International Brigade fought for the Spanish Second Republic in the Spanish Civil War.
The XIV International Brigade was one of several international brigades that fought for the Spanish Second Republic during the Spanish Civil War.
Eduardo Sáenz de Buruaga y Polanco was a prominent Spanish military officer from the Army of Africa and recipient of the Military Medal of Spain along with numerous others military decorations. During the Spanish Civil War, Colonel Sáenz de Buruaga backed General Franco and led elements of the Nationalist Army in the key battles of the Corunna Road, the Jarama, and Teruel.
The First Battle of Valencia was an attack on the Spanish city of Valencia on 26 June 1808, early in the Peninsular War. Marshal Moncey's French Imperial troops failed to take the city by storm and retreated upon Madrid, leaving much of eastern Spain unconquered and beyond the reach of Napoleon.
The First Battle of the Corunna Road took place between 29 November and 3 December 1936 during the Spanish Civil War. The Nationalists tried to isolate Madrid from the west, cutting the Corunna Road, but the Republican army repelled the attack.
Adolfo Prada Vaquero (1883–1962) was a military officer of the Spanish Army. He remained loyal to the Republican government during the Spanish Civil War.
Fernando Barrón y Ortiz (1892–1952) was a Spanish military officer. One of the five commanders of the natives troops in Africa, he supported the military coup of July 1936 which started the Spanish Civil War. Later, he was one of the commanders of the Spanish Army of Africa in its advance towards Madrid. In November 1936 led the nationalist attack against the Madrid's suburb of Carabanchel. In December 1936 he led one of General Varela's mobile columns in the Second battle of the Corunna Road. In January 1937 he led a brigade in the Battle of Jarama. In May 1937, he took part in the nationalist counteroffensive during the Segovia Offensive. In June 1937, he led the 13th division in the Battle of Brunete in August in the Battle of Belchite and in March 1938 in the Battle of Caspe. During the Battle of the Ebro he led the Nationalist defense of the town of Gandesa. After the war, he was a minister of the Francoist government.
The 5th Division was one of the divisions of the People's Army of the Republic that were organized during the Spanish Civil War on the basis of the Mixed Brigades. It was deployed on the Madrid and Levante fronts.
Juan Perea Capulino (1890–1967) was a prominent Spanish soldier, who participated in the Spanish Civil War on the Republican side. Originally a private, he became a General and commanded the Eastern Army in the final phase of the war, an action for which he is most remembered.
