Soviet Strategy in the Spanish Civil War, 1936-39

This book examines the influence and strategic efforts of the Comintern, the agency created in 1919 by Lenin to promote world revolution, during the Spanish civil war. The author explores how Soviet actors took control of the War Commissariat and the Republican Government’s foreign radio broadcast service, in order to craft and diffuse an interpretation of the conflict that would serve Soviet foreign policy interests. This effective infiltration and control, contrary to a significant scholarly consensus, was not an accidental by product, but the result of careful planning and execution. Challenging dominant interpretations of the Spanish Civil War, the author reveals how the Comintern's internal assessment of the nature of the war was in fact, in stark contrast with the evolving public narrative it promoted from July 1936. Rather than a genuine effort to combat fascism and ‘defend the democratic republic,’ the strategy of the Soviet government in the Spanish Civil War was specifically designed to drive a wedge between capitalist and 'imperialist' powers, thereby hindering the formation of a much-feared 'all-imperialist, all-capitalist' military alliance against the USSR. With chapters delving into key topics such as the manipulation of public narratives, the strategic deployment of propaganda, and the construction of memory, this book presents new insights for scholars of the Spanish Civil War, the Soviet Union, and collective memory studies.

Gustavo Martín Asensio is an independent scholar based in Spain. Previously, he studied at Surrey University in the UK, and Regent College, the University of British Columbia, Canada. Gustavo has published several books and articles on contemporary history including The Comintern in Spain before the Civil War (2024).

Chapter 1. Introduction.- Part I. Potemkin's Peace: The Spanish Civil War and the Erosion of the Soviet Anti-Fascist Collective Security Narrative.- Introduction to Part I.- Chapter 2. Démarches in the Hall of Mirrors: Ideology, Diplomacy, and the Evolving Soviet Narrative of the Spanish Civil War.- Chapter 3. A Paroxysm of Intimacy: The Resurgence of Poland and the Implausibility of the Soviet Anti-Fascist Narrative in 1938.- Part II. The Nature of our Fight: The Commissariat and Communist Hegemony over the Popular Army of the Republic and its Story.- Introduction to Part II.- Chapter 4. Standard Bearers of the Popular Front: The War Commissariat and the Struggle over Communist Control of the Popular Army and its Story.- Chapter 5. The Globalization of the Narrative: The Commissariat of the Lincoln-Washington Battalion and Spain-s 'Second War of Independence'.- Appendix. Commissars versus Cadets: Class Warfare in the Lincoln Battalion.- Part III. Putsch on the Global Ether: The Comintern's Takeover of 'the Voice of Republican Spain'.- Introduction to Part III.- Chapter 6. Kurt Hager-s Gambit: The German Communist Party takes over the Voice of Republican Spain.- Chapter 7. Teruel as Valley Forge: The CPUSA's Voice of Republican Spain, October 1937 – May 1938.- Appendix. The Americans in the Foreign Broadcast Service of the Popular Front Government, November 1936 - March 1939.- Part IV. Epiologue - Manufacturing Collective Memory: The Comintern's Orchestration of the International Brigades' Farewell Ceremonies.- Chapter 8. Conclusion.