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The Spanish Civil War |
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A Democratic Republic was established in Spain in 1931. When the National Radicals, led by General Franco, rose against the Republic in 1936 a civil war ensued. Many Welsh people sympathised with the Spanish Republic and there are many examples of individuals and communities in Wales assisting the Republican cause. Lewis Jones was one of the most effective organisers of the Communist Party in Wales. He was a councillor in the Rhondda and was elected as a member of the Welsh Communist Party committee in 1931. He arranged protests and marches in London to show support for the Spanish Republic. |
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The British branch of the International Brigade was established in December 1936. By the end of the Civil War 177 Welshmen had fought over the Spanish Republic and 33 had been killed. Many Welshmen were taken hostage in Spain and one of these was Tom Jones from Rhosllanerchrugog. He had been secretary of the Rhos Peace Council until he joined the International Brigade. He was taken prisoner in Spain in September 1938 and wasn't released until March 1940, after the British government agreed to sign a trade agreement that was, according to some, worth £2,000,000. |
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There were many attempts by the Welsh to break through the blockade that Franco had put around Spain to prevent aid coming in for his opponents. Captain David John Jones from Swansea tried to break through the blockade with a ship full of potatoes and he thus became know as 'Potato Jones'. On 26 April 1937 German bombers sent by Hitler destroyed the town of Guernica in the Basque country. It was a busy market day in the town and thousands of people were killed. A fund was set up in Wales to raise money for the Basque children. Houses were set up for them in Caerleon, Swansea, Brechfa and Old Colwyn, and local families adopted some of the children. |
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| Recruitment and the First World War | Pacifism | CND |
| The Spanish Civil War | The Second World War | |
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