Part One - Introduction
The bloody civil war is raging for more than two years. During its course, large part of the country and most of the oversea territories fell under control of Franco's Nationalists. To make things worse, enemy offensive earlier this year split the Republican forces in two. As the Nationalists continue to advance, the future of Spain looks rather grim.
Spanish Republican army fields 26 infantry divisions, three of which are militia. They are organized into three armies, with two corps in each one. One corps, the 3rd, is left in reserve. These forces are barely adequate to hold the long defensive line, which has some gaps in the south. Most attention has been given to defense of the capital, Madrid, directly threatened by enemy forces.
Small airforce is divided into two squadrons of tactical bombers, with the task of giving close air support to the ground troops. Spanish navy, comprising one battleship, three light cruisers and several smaller vessels is restricted to defensive duties and is mainly confined to ports, partly because of the very limited fuel reserves.
Republican Army:
1st Army
1st September 1938
The situation with the strategic resources is dire. Small stockpile is rapidly decreasing and will last only until the end of the year. A few trading agreements somewhat improved the situation, but only by a small margin. Already inadequate industrial production is under great threat of running out of resources.
Plan of action
Considering the overall strategic situation, a decision has been made to take over an initiative. The 3rd Corps, currently in reserve, will be deployed to the east and launch an offensive north of Valencia, along with the troops of 2nd Army, with the goal of linking with the troops in the northeast. After the enemy forces in the area are destroyed, the 2nd Army will advance to west, attacking the flank and rear of the enemy line east of Madrid. Hopefully this will cause the collapse of entire north front and fall of Burgos, seat of the rebel government. If successful, the offensive could be the turning point of the war and a serious blow to the Nationalists.
The bloody civil war is raging for more than two years. During its course, large part of the country and most of the oversea territories fell under control of Franco's Nationalists. To make things worse, enemy offensive earlier this year split the Republican forces in two. As the Nationalists continue to advance, the future of Spain looks rather grim.
* * *
Spanish Republican army fields 26 infantry divisions, three of which are militia. They are organized into three armies, with two corps in each one. One corps, the 3rd, is left in reserve. These forces are barely adequate to hold the long defensive line, which has some gaps in the south. Most attention has been given to defense of the capital, Madrid, directly threatened by enemy forces.
Small airforce is divided into two squadrons of tactical bombers, with the task of giving close air support to the ground troops. Spanish navy, comprising one battleship, three light cruisers and several smaller vessels is restricted to defensive duties and is mainly confined to ports, partly because of the very limited fuel reserves.
Republican Army:
1st Army
- 1st Corps
- 2nd Corps
- 6th Corps
- 7th Corps
- 4th Corps
- 5th Corps
1st September 1938
The situation with the strategic resources is dire. Small stockpile is rapidly decreasing and will last only until the end of the year. A few trading agreements somewhat improved the situation, but only by a small margin. Already inadequate industrial production is under great threat of running out of resources.
Plan of action
Considering the overall strategic situation, a decision has been made to take over an initiative. The 3rd Corps, currently in reserve, will be deployed to the east and launch an offensive north of Valencia, along with the troops of 2nd Army, with the goal of linking with the troops in the northeast. After the enemy forces in the area are destroyed, the 2nd Army will advance to west, attacking the flank and rear of the enemy line east of Madrid. Hopefully this will cause the collapse of entire north front and fall of Burgos, seat of the rebel government. If successful, the offensive could be the turning point of the war and a serious blow to the Nationalists.