Mine Were of Trouble: A Nationalist Account of the Spanish Civil War

by Peter Kemp

The Spanish Civil War ( Guerra Civil Española).
Escalating violence between left- and right-wing political factions boils over. Military officers stage a coup against a democratically elected, Soviet-backed, government. The country is thrown into chaos as centuries-old tensions return to the forefront. Hundreds of thousands of Spaniards choose sides and engage in the most devastating combat since the First World War. For loyalists to the Republic, the fight is seen as one for equality and their idea of progress. For the rebels, the struggle is a preemptive strike by tradition against an attempted communist takeover.
Thousands of foreigners, too, join the struggle. Most fight with the Soviet-sponsored International Brigades or other militias aligned with the loyalist "Republicans". Only a few side with the rebel "Nationalists". One of these rare volunteers for the Nationalists was Peter Kemp, a young British law student. Kemp, despite having little training or command of the Spanish language, was moved by the Nationalist struggle against international Communism. Using forged documents, he sneaked into Spain and joined a traditionalist militia, the Requetés, with which he saw intense fighting. Later, he volunteered to join the legendary and ruthless Spanish Foreign Legion, where he distinguished himself with heroism. Because of this bravery, he was one of the few foreign volunteers granted a private audience with Generalissimo Francisco Franco.
Kemp published his story... one of the only English accounts of the war from the Nationalist perspective, after a prestigious military career with the British Special Operations Executive during the Second World War.

Genres: History

273 pages, Kindle Edition

Published December 19, 2022

Reviews

[Arad · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mine Were of Trouble is a first-person account of the Spanish civil war from a nationalistic perspective, a point of view often forgotten in comparison to the more well-known accounts of Orwell and Hemingway.
While the book is very interesting and adventurous, Kemp - who was a 21-year-old English graduate when he first arrived in the Spanish frontier - turns his book into an overly detailed diary of irrelevant events and encounters. Instead of focusing on the actions, personal misfortunes, adventures and geo-politics, it often gets boring; one example is almost a whole page explaining how he crossed the Franco-Spanish border (spoiler: 3 lines could be enough).
Because of the nature of the book, taking place almost all over Spain, a map now and then would've been useful, as many of the locations mentioned are almost unknown to non-Spaniards (I believe one version of the book indeed contains a map of sorts, judging some footnotes). The locations in which he spent time or fought are crucial for the understanding of the events and experiences he tells us about, but having a map or Google Maps open nearby while reading is not always comfortable.
I did enjoy very much Kemp's vocabulary and wording, and of course reading the accounts of the civil war from an early Cold War perspective. Such qualities may be found only in older books, unfortunately.

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting account of the Spanish Civil War from a Nationalist view point. Recommended to adults.

[Edmond · Rating 4 out of 5]

I wish there was a map so I could see more clearly what areas he was talking about but otherwise an interesting read

[Andrew · Rating 5 out of 5]

A gripping, honest memoir of the Spanish Civil War. Peter Kemp’s account is clear-eyed, courageous, and deeply human. He tells his story without glorifying war or pushing an agenda—just what he saw, felt, and believed. Short, powerful, and unforgettable.