The Spanish Blue Division on the Eastern Front, 1941-1945
War, Occupation, Memory
Description
In 1941, the Franco regime established the Spanish Division of Volunteers to take part in the Russian campaign as a unit integrated into the German Wehrmacht. Recruited by both the Fascist Party (Falange) and the Spanish army, around 47,000 Spanish volunteers joined what would become known as the "Blue Division."
The Spanish Blue Division on the Eastern Front, 1941–1945 explores an intimate history of the Blue Division "from below," using personal war diaries, letters, and memoirs, as well as official documents from military archives in Spain, Germany, Britain, and Russia. In addition to describing the Spanish experience on the Eastern Front, Xosé M. Núñez Seixas takes on controversial topics including the Blue Division’s proximity to the Holocaust and how members of the Blue Division have been remembered and commemorated. Addressing issues such as the behaviour of the Spaniards as occupiers, their perception by the Russians, their witnessing of the Holocaust, their commitment to the war aims of Nazi Germany, and their narratives on the war after 1945, this book illuminates the experience of Spanish combatants and occupied civilians.
Reviews
“The Spanish Blue Division on the Eastern Front makes for compelling reading…This accessible book should be read by anyone interested in modern Spain, the Eastern Front, Axis allies, or soldier motivation.”
- Grant T. Harward, US Army Center of Military History
“Núñez Seixas’s illuminating book fills a forgotten niche in the copious literature of World War II…this work helps to address important questions about the soldier-level experiences often ignored by historians.”
- Professor J. Schultz