The fall of Barcelona was the capture of Barcelona, until then in the Republican zone, by the Nationalists; it took place on 26 January 1939, during the final phases of the Spanish Civil War. The event was part of the Catalan Offensive, which took the Catalan enclave of the Republic. The offensive unfolded from late December 1938; the Republicans offered some resistance, but they were not in a position to mount any larger counter-offensive and there was no major battle fought either in western Catalonia or on the approaches to Barcelona.
Initially, Republican leaders intended to defend Barcelona, and the ultimate line of resistance was planned along the Llobregat. However, on 20 January, as a contingency option prime minister Juan Negrín ordered preparations for a would-be evacuation. On 23 January, when the supreme Republican military commander General Rojo informed the government that effective defence of the Llobregat was unlikely, the evacuation began. The central and the autonomous Catalan governments left Barcelona on 23–24 January and a power vacuum started to emerge. Eventually Barcelona was declared an open city and apart from isolated skirmishes, there was no combat on the streets.
The fall of Barcelona preceded the fall of all of Catalonia, which took place in early February 1939. For the Republicans, it marked the loss of vital industrial production and some 200,000 troops; also, it enhanced the spirit of defeatism, already ruling among most segments of the population. However, the fall of Barcelona and the fall of Catalonia did not mark the end of the Republic. The government moved to the central-southern zone, initially to Madrid, and the war continued until 1 April 1939.
Catalonia offensive
Following 30 months of the civil war, in late 1938 the Republican-held part of Spain (one-third of national territory) was inhabited by almost 9 million population, compared to almost 15 million in the Nationalist-held zone. The Republican part was divided into 2 separated zones. The larger one, some 130,000 km2 and almost 6.5m people, comprised the southern part of the Mediterranean coast, part of New Castile, La Mancha and eastern Andalusia, with 10 provincial capitals. The smaller one, Catalonia except its western belt, already controlled by the Nationalists, was some 25,000 km2. Nominally it hosted some 2.5 million people, yet including refugees the figure was probably higher; the area comprised 3 provincial capitals, Barcelona, Tarragona and Girona. Since October 1937 Barcelona had hosted key Republican state structures, including the government, the president and the rump parliament; besides, it was home to the autonomous Catalan government and the exiled autonomous Basque government. Also, the supreme Republican military command was based in Barcelona.
In early November 1938 the Battle of the Ebro terminated with Nationalist troops regaining all territory lost since July. Though at that point there was some lack of clarity in their high command as to the direction of the future offensive, later that month it was already agreed that the next target should be Catalonia, with the objective of overrunning the entire enclave. Before December the first sketchy plan of the campaign was already in place, worked out the details during the following weeks. The Nationalists were organized in 2 armies, North (commander Fidel Dávila, 19 divisions) and Levante (Luis Orgaz, 9 divisions), 28 divisions in total; the overall command was with Francisco Franco. Official intendancy data listed 332,000 troops, including reserve units. Initial plans envisioned the start of the offensive around 15 December, yet it was postponed a few times. It is not clear when the Nationalist general staff envisioned the seizure of Barcelona or the end of the campaign.
Republican troops in Catalonia were organized in Grupo de Ejércitos de la Region Oriental (GERO) under the command of Juan Hernández Saravia; however, its operations were under direct supervision of the overall commander of Republican army, general Vicente Rojo, who also resided in Barcelona. GERO was composed of 2 armies, East (Juan Perea Capulino, 9 divisions) and Ebro (Juan Modesto, 11 divisions), 20 divisions in total. Nationalist intelligence estimated that GERO numbered some 150,000 soldiers in 65 mixed brigades (comparable to regiment) or 260 battalions; present-day historian offers similar estimates, with the overall strength of 220,000 troops and 140,000 in frontline combat units. The Nationalists enjoyed a great advantage in terms of armour and aviation, but it was massive especially in the case of firepower: in terms of artillery pieces and mortars they outnumbered the Republicans 5:1. Also, Republican divisions were mostly under strength. Geography favoured the defenders; numerous hilly ranges and mid-size rivers, high waters at this time of the year, formed natural obstacles.
The Nationalist offensive in Catalonia commenced on 23 December 1938; Balaguer, the point closest to Barcelona, held by the Nationalists, was some 120 km away. Operations commenced in the extreme western Republican salient projecting into Nationalist lines in-between the Segre and the Ebro. Most fighting took place along a 50-km long frontline in the county of Garrigues. Until the year-end the Nationalists overran the salient; it was only at this point that in the first days of 1939 another offensive was launched north-east of Lleida, in the county of Noguera. By 5 January the Republican front collapsed, and the Nationalists broke into operational space. Re-organised Republican troops were not in position to mount a counter-offensive and were capable merely of slowing down the enemy advance; it progressed in the course of numerous minor engagements, but with no major battle fought. Though after 2 weeks of combat the Nationalists were still no closer than 110 km to Barcelona, their offensive was now progressing along a 150-km long frontline from Tremp at the Pyrenean foothills in the north to Tortosa on the Mediterranean coast in the south.
Barcelona, 5 to 15 January
In the very first days of 1939 daily life in Barcelona did not differ much from the earlier wartime period. Catalan industry, since the summer of 1936 on a revolutionary footing, was in decline, yet a contemporary scholar concluded that "the Catalan war industry continued functioning very well until the very end of the conflict". In late 1938 its output was some 40% of the pre-war period; most factories kept operating, in some cases with production ongoing until mid-January. Like everywhere in the Republican zone, food was subject to rationing; some authors claim that Barcelona dwellers until then lived rather comfortably, but some claim that the city was suffering from hunger and there are accounts featuring teenage girls approaching strangers in cafeterias and offering themselves in exchange for food. The annual inflation rate was some 260%, but given there was little to buy and food was to large extent purchased on the black market anyway, monetary problems did not matter much. Municipal services kept operating and newspapers were being issued. Cinemas remained open, with screenings of pre-war foreign (e.g. Beloved Enemy with David Niven) or Spanish (e.g. Rinconcito madrileño with Luis Prendes) movies.
The press were fairly accurately reporting frontline developments, yet contrary to facts they claimed that their own troops were doing well, remained in excellent spirits and kept inflicting heavy losses upon the enemy. Popular Front parties started publishing repeated calls for males to volunteer for either combat troops or fortification units, though with at best a moderate response on the part of the population. To enhance the spirit of resistance, some newspapers published horror stories of hundreds of thousands people already murdered in political purges in the Nationalist zone. Defeatism was treated as an offence; on 8 January a well-known writer Eduardo Zamacois was sentenced to 6 years in prison for the spirit of derrotismo in his novels. To introduce a more serene tone, on 6 January the president declared an amnesty for all prisoners above 60 years of age.
Nationalist troops were reportedly taking hundreds of prisoners every day and the strength of the Republicans was dwindling dramatically. On 5 January the Republican Ministry of Defence issued a decree which broadened conscription to males born in 1901 ("quinta de 1922") and these who complete 18 years of age in the first quarter of 1939, even though they had not undergone any military training at all; they would form part of a theoretical "quinta de 1942". It is not clear how many new conscripts were pressed into service, yet it is known that many of those called defaulted or went into hiding, usually in their relatives' premises. For these who did show up, there were not many rifles available, as even frontline units reported shortages of arms and munitions. Nationalist intelligence estimated that Republican human reserves in Catalonia were 45,000 men aged 37–41 and 34.000 men aged 41–44.
Around 10 January the situation at the front became so dire that the Republican command started to fear total breakdown and collapse of organised military resistance. On 12 January the government broadened conscription even further, to "reemplazos de 1915 a 1921", effectively calling to arms men in their mid-40s. All war-related industry was declared militarised, rearguard units were to be subject to review to send all fit men to frontline units, Batallones de Obras y Fortificaciones were dissolved and their members incorporated into infantry. Retired governmental employees were called to service in public sectors with labour shortages. Trade unions called women to fill vacancies created by males departing for the front. Young activists, e.g. from the JSU, roamed the streets and called to arms, e.g. interrupting music in cafeterias or showings in cinemas.
In early January it was clear to Republican officials that the Nationalist advance was not a local offensive to gain some territory, but an attempt to overrun the entire Catalan enclave. All active political forces represented in Barcelona seemed united behind the governmental policy of resistance and there were no official voices of dissent heard, e.g. about commencing talks on truce or surrender. On 8 January the Barcelona CNT-UGT liaison committee recommended mobilising all industry workers except these who were absolutely necessary to ensure military production. The Communists focused on recruitment to army units, the Anarchists talked rather about their own militia. PSUC declared all their members mobilised under their military discipline. Some propaganda squabbles between the Communist and Anarchist press continued. On the other hand, on 13 January the executive committees of the Socialist UGT and the Anarchist CNT had their first ever joint sitting; both declared total support for governmental efforts.
Last days of Republican Barcelona
Sunday, 15 January
The Nationalists seized one of 3 Catalan provincial capitals still controlled by the Republicans, Tarragona, located some 80 km away from Barcelona. At that moment the closest point to Barcelona they controlled was Santa Coloma de Queralt, already some 65 km away from the capital. The news was made public the same day and had enormous impact on the population. Until that day some had tended to trust official propaganda and though probably very few, if any, believed in Republican victory, they might have calculated that it was months before the Nationalists might reach Ciutat Comtal, or even that the Republican resistance might lead to some kind of truce. The fall of Tarragona marked a dramatic change and most residents realized that Barcelona was now under direct threat. In some political groups, e.g. within the Catalanist ERC, the idea that the fall of Catalonia was not only inevitable but also imminent, started to take root.
For the first time, parties and unions began to talk not about defending Catalonia, but rather about the need to fortify the city, anticipating the expected siege of the Catalan capital. Both civilian (Negrín) and military (Rojo) leaders started to consider mounting an ultimate defence line along the Llobregat river, in its lower section flowing directly at the outskirts of Barcelona. However, in parallel and still rather as a contingency, in utmost secrecy Negrín commenced work on evacuation schemes. Newspapers doubled their propaganda efforts. The Nationalists were usually referred to as foreign invaders on Spanish soil, with a focus on Moroccan, Italian and German units. The local Republican advance in Extremadura, commenced on 5 January some 800 km away, was put on an equal footing with the Nationalist one in Catalonia and at times even occupied more space in the papers. Following a few months of no arms supplies from the USSR, on 15 January the first Soviet ship with additional deliveries, requested by Negrín's envoy to Moscow Hidalgo de Cisneros in early December, arrived in Bordeaux; some weapons would reach Catalonia before its fall, but it is not clear whether they reached Barcelona.