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The Siege of the Alcazar
In July 1936, at the outbreak of the Spanish Civil War, 1800 Nationalists barricaded themselves in the Alcazar, Spain's chief military academy, in Toledo. For 10 weeks, cut off from help and outside supplies, they resisted a Republican siege in one of modern history's most extraordinary demonstrations of stubborn courage. This book is an engrossing objective chronicle of human velour and resourcefulness.
- GenresSpainMilitary History
242 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1965
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January 10, 2021
"The wounds of the Spanish Civil War will be healed when the Alcázar is at last remembered not as a Nationalist victory or a Republican defeat but as a monument to man's determination to survive."
So ends "The Siege of the Alcázar" by Cecil D. Eby.
I enjoyed this book for the same reason that I enjoyed the film, "Titanic." The suspense, drama, and tragedy is breathtaking. But instead of 2,400 passengers scrambling for life on a sinking ship for two hours and forty minutes, you have 1,800 defenders of an ancient fortress surrounded by the enemy under the most desperate of circumstances for an agonizing ten weeks. That number includes hundreds of women and children who retreated into the Alcázar to save their lives after the Republicans took the city of Toledo. Five nuns made it into the Alcázar, but all of the priests in Toledo were killed. Over the course of six months, almost 7,000 priests and nuns were killed across Spain, and in some places the corpses of long dead nuns were exhumed and put on public display for desecration and derision.
Some readers may want to dismiss the defenders of the Alcázar because of their association with Spanish Nationalism. Although I would prefer to focus on the suspense, drama, and tragedy of the siege, unfortunately I may have to say something about politics...
To be clear, the Spanish Civil War was a war of coalitions. The Nationalist coalition called the Republicans "Marxists," and the Republican coalition called the Nationalists "Fascists," but unfortunately in war one tends reduce one's enemy to a caricature.
The Republican coalition was made up mostly of Republicans, who were moderates, as well as Socialists, Communists, and Anarchists, who were extremists and revolutionaries. They were not all Communists, but they were supported by Stalin's Soviet Union, and cries of "Viva Rusia" could sometimes be heard from their members - in contrast with the "Viva España" of the Nationalists.
This Nationalist coalition was made up mostly of Monarchists, who were called "Carlists" after the Carlist dynasty, as well as Conservative groups, Catholic groups, and the Spanish fascists, called the Falange.
But it needs to be said that the Falange were the smallest group in the Nationalist coalition, and they were disliked by the largest group, the Carlists, which makes sense because monarchy is conservative while fascism is revolutionary. In the beginning, the Nationalist coalition almost did not happen because these two groups did not want to work together. But in the end they were forced to do so because they had a common enemy: "the Reds."
For this reason, you'll notice that the relatively small number of Falangists who made their way into the Alcázar were initially treated coldly by the man in charge: Colonel José Moscardo, a Don Quixote-like figure. Nevertheless, they managed to prove their courage throughout the siege.
It must also be said that Spanish fascists were unlike German fascists in that they did not have the same obsession with anti-Semetism and blood purity. That was an innovation of the Nazis. Even in the heyday of Spanish anti-Semetism, the prejudice was not racial, but religious. For the Nazis, on the other hand, it was racial. While Spaniards may have Visigothic (that is, "Aryan" ) blood, they also have Moorish blood and Jewish blood. For this reason, blood purity was not an obsession of the Spanish Fascists.
(Neither was it an obsession of the Italian Fascists. Initially, Mussolini had Jews working for him in his government, and he even had a Jewish mistress. Of course, the Nazis eventually tried to impose anti-Semitic policies onto their Italian allies. They wanted the same in Spain, but Franco opened the border to tens of thousands of Jewish refugees from Nazi occupied France and elsewhere.)
All this is to say that Spanish Nationalists were not Nazis. Although they did receive Nazi military aid, Franco did not return the favour after the Spanish Civil War was over - to Hitler's great frustration. After negotiations with Franco, Hitler reportedly told Mussolini that he would rather have "four of his teeth pulled" than to have to speak with "that little man" again, whom he also derided as "Jesuitical."
Franco's detractors may say that he refused to work with Hitler in WW2 because 1) Hitler didn't meet Franco's demands, or 2) Franco did not want Spain to become the enemy of the English, and the Nazis were likely to fail. But Franco's advocates will point out that although he surely appreciated Hitler's anti-Communism, he found other aspects of Nazi ideology to be extreme and repugnant. First and foremost, Franco saw himself as an anti-Communist Catholic Crusader. Hitler, on the other hand, hated the Church.
Getting back to the book... It may be difficult for some readers to set aside politics and focus on this story of "man's determination to survive." But if you are tempted to dismiss the defenders of the Alcázar for political reasons, ignoring the fact that atrocities were committed on both sides, then you will be missing out on one of the greatest stories of courage the world has ever known.
At one point, Colonel Moscardo learned that his son was being held hostage by the enemy. They were allowed to speak together on the phone, and Colonel Moscardo was forced to choose between the life of his son and the lives of the men in the Alcázar. His choice was the stuff of legend.
At another point, the inhabitants of the Alcázar began running out of food, and they resorted to eating their horses. When the horses were almost eaten, God sent bread from heaven. Colonel Moscardo would later say that everything that happened in the Alcázar was a miracle.
At yet another point, the inhabitants of the Alcázar started hearing strange underground noises. They soon discovered that two mines were being dug to blow up the Alcázar from below with TNT. There was almost nothing they could do. In order to avoid bad press, then Republicans gave the women and children of the Alcázar a window of opportunity to abandon ship; but the women, being even braver than the men, refused the offer.
Colonel Moscardo asked for a priest to hear confessions and celebrate mass before the inevitable. The Republicans agreed but sent the most Republican priest they could find. During the homily, he preached that should they refuse to submit and the bombs explode, they would be equally culpable for the blood of innocents that would be spilt. Still, the men and women of the Alcázar refused to abandon her.
At the climax of the siege, the mines exploded and the western wall of the ancient fortress was brought down. But everything that happened in the Alcázar was a miracle, and the wall collapsed outward such that a barrier was formed, preventing the enemy from advancing.
Soon after, Franco's army of Moors finally arrived in Toledo. This detour almost cost Franco Madrid, but apparently he could not bring himself to abandon the brave defenders of the Alcázar. The Moors, who were once the conquerors of Spain, were now Toledo's liberators. Wearing turbans, they fought their way to the ancient fortress, where they embraced its inhabitants and were warmly embraced by them in return. Colonel Moscardo and the men, women, and children of the Alcázar emerged with emaciated figures and gaunt faces. Colonel Moscardo reported that although the Alcázar was destroyed, it's honour remained intact.
So ends "The Siege of the Alcázar" by Cecil D. Eby.
I enjoyed this book for the same reason that I enjoyed the film, "Titanic." The suspense, drama, and tragedy is breathtaking. But instead of 2,400 passengers scrambling for life on a sinking ship for two hours and forty minutes, you have 1,800 defenders of an ancient fortress surrounded by the enemy under the most desperate of circumstances for an agonizing ten weeks. That number includes hundreds of women and children who retreated into the Alcázar to save their lives after the Republicans took the city of Toledo. Five nuns made it into the Alcázar, but all of the priests in Toledo were killed. Over the course of six months, almost 7,000 priests and nuns were killed across Spain, and in some places the corpses of long dead nuns were exhumed and put on public display for desecration and derision.
Some readers may want to dismiss the defenders of the Alcázar because of their association with Spanish Nationalism. Although I would prefer to focus on the suspense, drama, and tragedy of the siege, unfortunately I may have to say something about politics...
To be clear, the Spanish Civil War was a war of coalitions. The Nationalist coalition called the Republicans "Marxists," and the Republican coalition called the Nationalists "Fascists," but unfortunately in war one tends reduce one's enemy to a caricature.
The Republican coalition was made up mostly of Republicans, who were moderates, as well as Socialists, Communists, and Anarchists, who were extremists and revolutionaries. They were not all Communists, but they were supported by Stalin's Soviet Union, and cries of "Viva Rusia" could sometimes be heard from their members - in contrast with the "Viva España" of the Nationalists.
This Nationalist coalition was made up mostly of Monarchists, who were called "Carlists" after the Carlist dynasty, as well as Conservative groups, Catholic groups, and the Spanish fascists, called the Falange.
But it needs to be said that the Falange were the smallest group in the Nationalist coalition, and they were disliked by the largest group, the Carlists, which makes sense because monarchy is conservative while fascism is revolutionary. In the beginning, the Nationalist coalition almost did not happen because these two groups did not want to work together. But in the end they were forced to do so because they had a common enemy: "the Reds."
For this reason, you'll notice that the relatively small number of Falangists who made their way into the Alcázar were initially treated coldly by the man in charge: Colonel José Moscardo, a Don Quixote-like figure. Nevertheless, they managed to prove their courage throughout the siege.
It must also be said that Spanish fascists were unlike German fascists in that they did not have the same obsession with anti-Semetism and blood purity. That was an innovation of the Nazis. Even in the heyday of Spanish anti-Semetism, the prejudice was not racial, but religious. For the Nazis, on the other hand, it was racial. While Spaniards may have Visigothic (that is, "Aryan" ) blood, they also have Moorish blood and Jewish blood. For this reason, blood purity was not an obsession of the Spanish Fascists.
(Neither was it an obsession of the Italian Fascists. Initially, Mussolini had Jews working for him in his government, and he even had a Jewish mistress. Of course, the Nazis eventually tried to impose anti-Semitic policies onto their Italian allies. They wanted the same in Spain, but Franco opened the border to tens of thousands of Jewish refugees from Nazi occupied France and elsewhere.)
All this is to say that Spanish Nationalists were not Nazis. Although they did receive Nazi military aid, Franco did not return the favour after the Spanish Civil War was over - to Hitler's great frustration. After negotiations with Franco, Hitler reportedly told Mussolini that he would rather have "four of his teeth pulled" than to have to speak with "that little man" again, whom he also derided as "Jesuitical."
Franco's detractors may say that he refused to work with Hitler in WW2 because 1) Hitler didn't meet Franco's demands, or 2) Franco did not want Spain to become the enemy of the English, and the Nazis were likely to fail. But Franco's advocates will point out that although he surely appreciated Hitler's anti-Communism, he found other aspects of Nazi ideology to be extreme and repugnant. First and foremost, Franco saw himself as an anti-Communist Catholic Crusader. Hitler, on the other hand, hated the Church.
Getting back to the book... It may be difficult for some readers to set aside politics and focus on this story of "man's determination to survive." But if you are tempted to dismiss the defenders of the Alcázar for political reasons, ignoring the fact that atrocities were committed on both sides, then you will be missing out on one of the greatest stories of courage the world has ever known.
At one point, Colonel Moscardo learned that his son was being held hostage by the enemy. They were allowed to speak together on the phone, and Colonel Moscardo was forced to choose between the life of his son and the lives of the men in the Alcázar. His choice was the stuff of legend.
At another point, the inhabitants of the Alcázar began running out of food, and they resorted to eating their horses. When the horses were almost eaten, God sent bread from heaven. Colonel Moscardo would later say that everything that happened in the Alcázar was a miracle.
At yet another point, the inhabitants of the Alcázar started hearing strange underground noises. They soon discovered that two mines were being dug to blow up the Alcázar from below with TNT. There was almost nothing they could do. In order to avoid bad press, then Republicans gave the women and children of the Alcázar a window of opportunity to abandon ship; but the women, being even braver than the men, refused the offer.
Colonel Moscardo asked for a priest to hear confessions and celebrate mass before the inevitable. The Republicans agreed but sent the most Republican priest they could find. During the homily, he preached that should they refuse to submit and the bombs explode, they would be equally culpable for the blood of innocents that would be spilt. Still, the men and women of the Alcázar refused to abandon her.
At the climax of the siege, the mines exploded and the western wall of the ancient fortress was brought down. But everything that happened in the Alcázar was a miracle, and the wall collapsed outward such that a barrier was formed, preventing the enemy from advancing.
Soon after, Franco's army of Moors finally arrived in Toledo. This detour almost cost Franco Madrid, but apparently he could not bring himself to abandon the brave defenders of the Alcázar. The Moors, who were once the conquerors of Spain, were now Toledo's liberators. Wearing turbans, they fought their way to the ancient fortress, where they embraced its inhabitants and were warmly embraced by them in return. Colonel Moscardo and the men, women, and children of the Alcázar emerged with emaciated figures and gaunt faces. Colonel Moscardo reported that although the Alcázar was destroyed, it's honour remained intact.
March 20, 2025
Day by day account of the craziest event in modern military history.
November 24, 2013
the start of the Spanish civil war in 1933. I had just read another book about the Franco Years and as this was his Nationalist groups biggest victory to date and the real beginning of Franco as the main leader. Of course Franco his self had little to do with the Story here. The nationalist were just as bad as the Republicans and the Antarchist, and the communist and all of them. But you can not help but admire the guts of those trapped in the Alcazar for those 10 weeks.
April 14, 2016
One sided story of the event. Perhaps accurate portrayal of the events but does not educate readers about the big picture of the Spanish Civil War.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews