The Betrothed of Death: The Spanish Foreign Legion During the Rif Rebellion, 1920-1927

by Alvarez, Jose E.

• ISBN13: 9780313306976
• ISBN10: 0313306974
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2001-01-30
• Publisher: Greenwood Pub Group

Summary

Following her defeat in the Spanish-American War of 1898, Spain shifted her colonial focus to her Protectorate in northern Morocco. When Spanish conscripts began to fight and to die by the thousands, political fallout forced the government to create a new unit of professional soldiers. This unit would serve the dual function of providing fighting men for Moroccan service, while sparing the lives of conscripted men. Under its founder, Jose Millan Astray, and his deputy, Francisco Franco, the Spanish Foreign Legion would quickly become the spearhead for Spain's army in Africa. This is the story of the creation, organization, and combat role of the Legion in its formative years from 1919 to 1927. Based upon archival sources in Madrid, Segovia, and Ceuta, this is the first and most complete history in English or Spanish of the early years of the Spanish Foreign Legion. The unit was instrumental in crushing Abd-el-Krim's rebellion against Spanish colonial authority. When the Riffians annihilated the army of General Silvestre at Annual in 1921 and were poised to attack the Spanish enclave of Melilla, it was the arrival of the Legion that pacified its panic-stricken citizens. The force would be in the vanguard of all major offensives undertaken in recapturing the territory lost in 1921, and its amphibious landing at Alhucemas Bay in 1925 marked the beginning of the end for the Rif Rebellion.

Author Biography

JOSE E. ALVAREZ is Assistant Professor of History at the University of Houston-Downtown. Born in Marianao, Cuba, he came to the United States in 1961. He is a member of the Society for Military History and the Society for Spanish and Portuguese Historical Studies.

Table of Contents

Illustrations	ix
Chronology	xi
Abbreviations	xiii
Preface	xv
Acknowledgments	xvii
Introduction	1	(12)
Creation of the Legion, 1919-1920	13	(24)
First Operations of the Legion, 1921	37	(38)
Legion Operations, 1922-1923	75	(38)
Xauen, 1924	113	(50)
The Alhucemas Bay Landings and Abd-el-Krim's Defeat	163	(28)
The Finale: Ajdir, Targuist, and Peace, 1926-1927	191	(28)
Conclusion and Epilogue	219	(6)
Appendix A: Organization of the Legion	225	(10)
Appendix B: Table of Battle Casualties	235	(2)
Appendix C: The Legion's Creed	237	(2)
Appendix D: Songs of the Legion	239	(6)
Appendix E: A Brief Biography of Jose Millan Astray y Terreros	245	(2)
Appendix F: A Brief Biography of Francisco Francisco Franco Bahamonde	247	(4)
Appendix G: Chart of Enlistment Bonuses	251	(2)
Appendix H: List of All Forces at Alhucemas Bay, September 1925	253	(4)
Bibliography	257	(10)
Index	267