THE WAR IN SPAIN
[To the Editor of THE SPECTATOR] Stu.,—I am all for stripping the Spanish conffict of the partisan exaggeration (on both sides) in which it has been drenched ; and among those who have put up the Franco sign, in par- ticular, there is going to be an uncomfortable process of debamboozlement. But, really, Mr. John Marks is mis- informed if he disputes your contention that " without the support of German and Italian material and men General Franco would not have won [the war] at all."
If the Spanish situation is to be seen in perspective, we must recognise that when the original military pronuncia- aniento failed, defeated by the mad heroism of the common folk of Madrid and Barcelona, General Franco was then faced with the alternative of either admitting failure—a common enough fate for military plots in Spain—or accepting the German and Italian help which had been promised and arranged long before. He chose the latter course—with what disastrous consequences we know.
German and Italian aircraft came in in large numbers from the last week in July, making up the Junta's deficiency in that arm to such effect that when I was in Madrid in the middle of September, 1936, I heard from Don Indalecio Prieto himself the estimate of an air superiority on the Insurgent side of twelve to one! There was also at the beginning of the war the very present help of German and Italian naval units for the transporting of troops from Morocco. Whatever material was sent in to the Government side has never been comparable in quantity with the steady supply of aeroplanes, tanks and medium artillery, together with their foreign tech- nicians from Germany, Italy (and Portugal). The constant air-raids undertaken by German and Italian air armadas, not under the control of General Franco, have undoubtedly been the important factor in the downfall of the Loyalist cause, especially as since the end of January, 1938, the Government have refrained completely from any bombing of civilian centres or towns behind the lines. Claiming to be upholding the cause of all Spaniards—with more justification than the so-called " Nationalists "—Dr. Negrin's Government had no desire to destroy the Spanish heritage: quite apart from the fact that, owing to the Insurgents' endless flow of material, they could not hope to compete in air power.
The League of Nations Commission has in its Provisional Report given us the data with regard to volunteer personnel from abroad assisting the Spanish Government. But when, oh! when, are we going to have reliable figures of the extent of foreign aid supplied to the forces of privilege, which seem once more to be triumphant over the deep and widely-felt democratic aspirations of the Spanish people?—Yours, &c.,
W. HORSFALL CARTER.
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