Irish Brigade (Spanish Civil War)

An Irish Brigade fought on the Nationalist side of Francisco Franco during the Spanish Civil War. The Irish politician Eoin O'Duffy, born at Laragh, near Castleblayney, Co. Monaghan in 1892, had previously organised the banned quasi-fascist Blueshirts and Greenshirts, organised an Irish Brigade to fight for Franco in the Spanish Civil War. Despite the declaration by the Irish Government that participation in the war was illegal, 700 of O'Duffy's followers went to Spain. The Irish contingent originally refused Franco's order to fight against the separatist Basques of the Republican side, seeing parallels between their recent struggle and Basque aspirations. General O'Duffy later remarked that they "Have as much right to partition from Spain as the 6 counties of Ulster do from Ireland." They saw their primary role in Spain as fighting for Catholicism, seeing many religious and historical ties in the two country's respective pasts, and to keep down communism and socialism.

An Irish contingent also fought on the leftist Republican side in the International Brigades, see Connolly Column.

For material on the Bandera members visit here
For material on the Irish International Brigade (Connolly Column) members visit here