70th Division (Spain)
{{Use dmy dates|date=December 2020}}
{{Infobox military unit
| unit_name = 70th Division
| native_name = 70.ª División
| image = Flag of the 70 Division Spanish Popular Army.svg
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| caption = Flag of the 70th Division
| start_date = 23 September 1937
| end_date = March 1939
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| country = {{flag|Spanish Republic}}
| allegiance = Republican faction
| branch = 20px Spanish Republican Army
| type = Infantry
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| size = Division
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| battles = Spanish Civil War:
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The 70th Division was one of the divisions of the Spanish Republican Army that were created during the Spanish Civil War.
History
The 70th Division was formed on 23 September 1937, passing its period of instruction through Almuradiel and Campo de Criptana.{{Sfn | Engel | 1999 | p = 230}} It was initially made up of the 92nd and 95th mixed brigades, although the 32nd, 79th, 94th and 132nd mixed brigades were later also integrated.{{Sfn | Engel | 1999 | pp = 230–231}}
= Battle of Teruel =
At the beginning of the offensive on Teruel on 15 December 1937, it was placed in reserve,{{Sfn | Martínez Bande | 1974 | p = 55}} but it was soon attached to the XVIII Army Corps and entered combat. At the end of December, it was located west of Teruel, in the La Muela sector, defending the accesses to the city against the nationalist counteroffensive on 29 December.{{Sfn | Martínez Bande | 1974 | p = 123}} At first it was driven back by the nationalists divisions,{{Sfn | Martínez Bande | 1974 | p = 131}} but on 1 January, in a counteroffensive, it managed to recover part of the lost ground.{{Sfn | Martínez Bande | 1974 | p = 149}} Shortly afterwards, it was transferred to the rear, and after the Battle of Alfambra, it became part of the XXI Army Corps in the Vivel del Río sector.{{Sfn | Martínez Bande | 1974 | p = 190 }} Between 15 and 17 February, together with the 34th and 35th divisions, it was repelled from Vivel del Río by the nationalist divisions.{{Sfn | Martínez Bande | 1974 | p = 192}}
= Aragon Offensive =
When the rebels began their offensive through the Ebro valley in March 1938, the division was forced to retreat along with the rest of the XXI Army Corps towards the sector. from Ejulve to Rillo.{{Sfn | Martínez Bande | 1975 | p = 149}} It suffered the first attacks, and had to go to the reserve soon due to the losses suffered.{{Sfn | Salas Larrazábal | 2006 | pp = 2285, 2287}}
= Maestrazgo Campaign =
In April it was in Albocácer, in the recovery phase.{{Sfn | Martínez Bande | 1977 | p = 59}} At the beginning of May, nationalist divisions from Morella attacked the areas La Iglesuela del Cid and Villafranca del Cid, an attack that was accompanied by another on Ares del Maestre, a sector defended by the 70th division. This last attack took place on 18 May, which was not only repulsed but also provoked a strong counterattack under a weather of wind, rain and hail that caused heavy casualties and the end of the offensive in said sector.{{Sfn | Martínez Bande | 1977 | p = 84}} This concentration of the nationalist attack led to the creation of the Toral Group on 11 May, under the command of Nilamón Toral, while the 70th division was provisionally commanded by Jose M. Jiménez.{{Sfn | Martínez Bande | 1977 | p = 93}} On 9 June, when the republican front was broken, the 70th division retired to the rear to recover.{{Sfn | Martínez Bande | 1977 | p = 126}}
On 11 June it was used, without success, in a counterattack against the nationalist advances on Borriol.{{Sfn | Martínez Bande | 1977 | p = 127}} Involved in the defense of Castellón, it covered the Sant Joan de Moró sector, resisting attacks on 13 June.{{Sfn | Martínez Bande | 1977 | pp = 130–131}} After Castellón fell on 14 June, it retreated behind the Mijares river, defending the accesses to Burriana and Onda. After containing the rebels in this area, the division began to reorganize itself into the rear {{Sfn | Salas Larrazábal | 2006 | p = 2675}} and to depend on the XXII Army Corps.{{Sfn | Salas Larrazábal | 2006 | p = 2679}} During the nationalist offensive on the XYZ line, the 70th Division remained in reserve.{{Sfn | Salas Larrazábal | 2006 | p = 2684}} With the start of the Battle of the Ebro the nationalist offensive against Valencia ended, and the division enjoyed a period of calm after 8 months of fighting.
In September 1938 it participated in an attempt to cut the railway line from Teruel to Sagunto, together with the 67th Division and a couple of brigades. After the initial success, the rebels recovered their positions after a 6-day fight.{{Sfn | Salas Larrazábal | 2006 | p = 2852}} It also intervened with other divisions in an attack on Nules that began on 7 November and ended four days later. Despite the performance of the Republicans, the offensive was stopped in its tracks.{{Sfn | Salas Larrazábal | 2006 | p = 2854}}
= Battle of Valsequillo =
It also participated in the Battle of Valsequillo, the last republican offensive of the civil war. It intervened from the first day of the offensive, on 5 January, in the second wave,{{Sfn | Martínez Bande | 1985 | p = 47}} occupying various heights. When it tried to progress on day 6, it encountered strong resistance in Mano de Hierro and El Médico that it could not overcome, thus preventing the widening of the rupture zone.{{Sfn | Martínez Bande | 1985 | p = 51}} In later days it tried to overcome this resistance by attacking the rear in Sierra Tejonera, but it was arrested after heavy fighting.{{Sfn | Martínez Bande | 1985 | p = 59}} The operation ended in a failure on 2 February.
Command
; Commanders
- Nilamón Toral (23 September 1937 to 7 December 1938)
- Tomás Centeno Sierra (7 December 1938 to 21 December 1938)
- Miguel Gallo Martínez (21 December 1938 to 5 March 1939)
- Juan Arcas (5 March 1939 until its dissolution in that month){{Sfn | Engel | 1999 | p = 230}}
; Commissars
- Germán Fonseca Vázquez, of the PSOE;{{Sfn | Álvarez | 1989 | p = 181}}
- Luis Díez, of the PCE;{{Sfn | Álvarez | 1989 | p = 189}}
; Chiefs of Staff
- Juan Jiménez Esteban;{{Sfn | Engel | 1999 | p = 231}}
Organization
| class = "wikitable" | |||
| Date | Attached Army Corps | Integrated Mixed Brigades | Battle front |
|---|---|---|---|
| November 1937 | XVIII Army Corps | 92nd, 95th | Aragon |
| March–April 1938 | XXI Army Corps | 32nd, 92nd, 132nd | Levante |
| August 1938 | XXII Army Corps | 32nd, 79th, 92nd | Levante |
| November 1938 | XXII Army Corps | 32nd, 79th | Levante |
| January 1939 | XXII Army Corps | 32nd, 79th, 92nd | Estremadura |
References
{{reflist}}
Bibliography
- {{cite book |first= Santiago |last= Álvarez |title= Los comisarios políticos en el Ejército Popular de la República |publisher= Ediciós do Castro |year= 1989|language=es }}
- {{cite book | last = Engel | first = Carlos | title = Historia de las Brigadas Mixtas del Ejército Popular de la República | year = 1999 | location = Madrid |publisher= Almena | isbn = 84-922644-7-0 |language=es }}
- {{cite book | last = Martínez Bande | first = José Manuel | title = La batalla de Teruel | year = 1974 | location = Madrid | publisher= San Martín | isbn = 84-7140-088-X |language=es }}
- {{cite book | last = Martínez Bande | first = José Manuel | title = La llegada al mar | year = 1975 | location = Madrid |publisher= San Martín | isbn = 84-7140-115-0 |language=es }}
- {{cite book | last = Martínez Bande | first = José Manuel | title = La ofensiva sobre Valencia | year = 1977 | location = Madrid | publisher = San Martín | isbn = 84-7140-142-8 |language=es }}
- {{cite book | last = Martínez Bande | first = José Manuel | title = El final de la Guerra Civil | year = 1985 | location = Madrid | publisher= San Martín | isbn = 84-7140-232-7 |language=es }}
- {{cite book | last = Salas Larrazábal | first = Ramón | title = Historia del Ejército Popular de la República | year = 2006 | location = Madrid |publisher= La Esfera de los libros | isbn = 84-9734-465-0 |language=es }}
{{Divisions of the Spanish Republic|state=expanded}}
Category:Military units and formations established in 1937
Category:Military units and formations disestablished in 1939
Category:Military units and formations of the Spanish Civil War (Republican faction)
Category:Military history of Spain
Category:Armed Forces of the Second Spanish Republic