54th Division (Spain)
54th Division | |
---|---|
54.ª División | |
Active | April 1938–March 1939 |
Country | Spain |
Allegiance | Republican faction |
Branch | Spanish Republican Army |
Type | Infantry |
Size | Division |
Engagements | Spanish Civil War: |
Commanders | |
Notable commanders | Francisco Fervenza Fernández |
The 54th Division was one of the
History
During 1937, on the Northern Front there had already been a division that used this numbering.[n. 1]
In the spring of 1938, within the IX Army Corps, a division was created that was numbered "54". Its first commander-in-chief was Lieutenant Colonel Martín Calvo Calvo. It was made up of the newly created 180th, 181st and 182nd mixed brigades.[4] Some time later it was sent to the Levante front, where it was included in the XIII Army Corps.[5] It participated in the fighting in the Levante, resisting the nationalist offensive against Valencia. During the operations, the unit had an outstanding performance, coming to be congratulated by the republican authorities.[6] On August 11, 1938, command of the unit passed to the anarchist Francisco Fervenza Fernández.[7] During the rest of the war the unit remained inactive on the Levante front.
Command
- Commanders
- Commissars
- Eleuterio Dorado Lanza, of the IR;[9]
- Chiefs of Staff
- José García Benedito;
- Gonzalo Castelló Gómez-Trevijano;
Organization
Date | Attached Army Corps | Integrated Mixed Brigades | Battle front |
---|---|---|---|
April 30, 1938 | IX Army Corps | 180th, 181st and 182nd | Andalusia |
August 1938 | XIII Army Corps | 180th, 181st and 182nd | Levante |
Notes
- ^ This unit, commanded by Eloy Fernández Navamuel, had been created in the summer of 1937 within the XV Army Corps (Santander).[1] It inherited the structure of the old «Santander 3rd Division». [2] The new unit was made up of the 173rd, 174th and 175th mixed brigades,[1] all of them made up of former militias and recruits. The unit had a very short operational life, as it was destroyed during the Battle of Santander. The commander himself, Fernández Navamuel, fled from Spain.[3]
References
- ^ a b Solla Gutiérrez 2010, p. 327.
- ^ Solla Gutiérrez 2010, pp. 324, 327.
- ^ Solla Gutiérrez 2010, p. 337.
- ^ a b Martínez Bande 1981, p. 303.
- ^ Álvarez 1989, p. 188.
Bibliography
- Álvarez, Santiago (1989). Los comisarios políticos en el Ejército Popular de la República. Ediciós do Castro.
- Engel, Carlos (1999). Historia de las Brigadas Mixtas del Ejército Popular de la República. Madrid: Almena. 84-922644-7-0.
- Martínez Bande, José Manuel (1981). La batalla de Pozoblanco y el cierre de la bolsa de Mérida. Madrid: Editorial San Martín.
- Navarro, Ramón Juan (2010). Resistir es vencer. El frente de Viver en la Guerra Civil española. Lulu.com. ISBN 978-1-4466-9664-4.
- Solla Gutiérrez, Miguel Ángel (2010). La República sitiada. Trece meses de Guerra Civil en Cantabria. Santander: Ediciones de la Universidad de Cantabria.