In Memory of Austrian volunteers in the Spanish Civil War
A group of Austrian voluteers -- image from an exhibition remembering Austrian volunteers who fought in the Civil War held in Spain in 2017
Austrian volunteers in the Spanish War
Contribution by Otto Bruckner, President of the PdA, at the event organised by the Party of Labour of Austria to mark the 90th anniversary of the outbreak of the Spanish War and the formation of the International Brigades: ‘90 Years of the Spanish War: Proletarian Internationalism, the Popular Front and Revolution’.
Comrades, friends,
We have gathered here today to keep the memory of the Spanish War alive and to commemorate those Austrians who fought on the side of the Republic during the Spanish War between 1936 and 1939.
We honour people who understood that history is not neutral, but — as Marx and Engels wrote at the beginning of the Communist Manifesto — ‘The history of all hitherto existing society is the history of class struggles.’.
This sentence is not merely a theoretical starting point. It is also the key to understanding the Austrian fighters in the Spanish Civil War. Their decision to go to Spain was no coincidence, no romantic adventure, no escape from everyday life. It was the logical consequence of the class struggles that had influenced the Austrian labour movement since the end of the First World War.
The historical school of the Austrian working class
The Austrian volunteers in the Spanish Civil War came from a generation that had not only experienced the great struggles of the interwar period but had also played an active part in shaping them.
They had been part of the Red Guard of 1918, founded under Egon Erwin Kisch, when the working class attempted to defend the revolution against reactionary forces and social democracy.
They had supported the Hungarian Soviet Republic in 1919, when 1,200 Austrian communists led by Leo Rothziegel marched into Hungary to fight side by side with their Hungarian comrades.
They had witnessed the July Revolt in the wake of the scandalous verdict on the Schattendorf murders in 1927, when the bourgeois state had 84 people murdered — a massacre that radicalised the working class and deepened the divisions between reformist and revolutionary forces.
And they had led the February Uprising of 1934 — the first armed anti-fascist resistance in Europe. After the February struggles, the workers' movement was never the same again. Under conditions of illegality, thousands of socialists defected to the previously small Communist Party, whilst the mainstream Social Democrats were defeated first by green and then by brown fascism.
These struggles were the school from which those emerged,who later went to Spain. They had learnt that fascism does not arise out of thin air, but is the most brutal form of capitalist rule. They had learnt that, in times of crisis, the bourgeoisie is prepared to destroy any democratic façade in order to secure its power. And they had learnt that the working class is strong only when it relies not on bourgeois parties, but on its own organised strength.
Fascism as an expression of the imperialist crisis
Lenin described imperialism as the ‘highest stage of capitalism’ — a stage in which monopolies, finance capital and colonial expansion determine the political agenda.
Spanish fascism was not an isolated phenomenon. It was part of a European trend stretching from Italy through Germany to Austria. It was the bourgeoisie’s response to the crisis of capitalism, to the strength of the workers’ movement, and to the possibility of revolutionary change.
The Austrian fighters in Spain understood this. They did not see Spain as a ‘distant conflict’, but as the continuation of February 1934 by other means. They knew that a victory for Franco would be a victory for Hitler and Mussolini — and thus a defeat for the international working class.
The Communist International: Theory and Practice of Proletarian Internationalism
The Communist International was the only organisation that correctly analysed the situation. It recognised:
that fascism is an international phenomenon,
that the struggle against it must be waged internationally,
that the working class must not place its hopes in the bourgeoisie,
and that the defence of the Spanish Republic was a central component of the global class struggle.
The International Brigades were the military expression of this analysis. For the first time in history, workers from over 50 countries formed a united military force that fought not on behalf of a state, but on behalf of the international working class.
The Austrian volunteers formed a particularly strong contingent. Around 1,400 Austrians joined the Brigades — an exceptionally high proportion for a country with a population of just 6.7 million at the time. Over 70 per cent of them were Communists.
The Communist Party of Austria (KPÖ), which was illegal and persecuted at the time, organised their travel arrangements and provided documents, money and contacts. This was proletarian internationalism in action — not just a slogan, but a reality.
The role of the Soviet Union: internationalism as state doctrine
Comrades,
No tribute to the anti-fascist struggle in Spain is complete without acknowledging the role of the Soviet Union.
The Soviet Union was:
the only state to provide substantial military aid to the Spanish Republic,
the only state to send weapons, aircraft, tanks and military instructors,
the only state to support the brigades politically, organisationally and logistically,
and the only state to view the defence of the Republic as part of the global struggle against fascism.
Whilst the bourgeois democracies — France, Britain and the USA — pursued a policy of ‘non-intervention’, which in reality amounted to intervention in favour of Franco, the Soviet Union made it clear:
The victory of fascism in Spain is a victory of fascism in Europe.
Soviet support was not without its flaws, but it was essential. Without the Soviet Union, the Republic would not have been able to sustain the war for three years. Without the Soviet Union, there would have been no International Brigades. Without the Soviet Union, the anti-fascist resistance in Spain would have remained isolated.
The Austrian brigade members knew this. Many of them saw the Soviet Union as the only country that had not betrayed the working class, the only country in which the working class had held power since the October Revolution of 1917; indeed, for quite a few of them, the Soviet Union had become a second home after 1934, and they had come to Spain from there.
The battles: Madrid, Jarama, Guadalajara, Brunete, Teruel, Ebro
The Austrian volunteers fought in the fiercest battles of the war:
in Madrid, where the Republic withstood the fascist attack,
at the Jarama, where the brigades halted the advance of Franco’s troops,
in Guadalajara, where the Italian fascists suffered their first major defeat,
in Brunete and Belchite, where the brigades suffered heavy losses,
in Teruel, where the winter campaign pushed the fighters to the limits of their endurance,
and on the Ebro, where the Republic’s final major offensive took place.
The Austrian ‘12 February’ Battalion — named after the Austrian workers’ uprising — at times numbered almost 1,200 men. It was one of the strongest battalions in the Brigades and a symbol of the Austrian working class continuing its struggle on an international scale.
Women in the anti-fascist struggle
It is often forgotten that women also played a significant role — in Spain as well as in Austria.
They were:
medics,
couriers,
organisers,
fighters,
and political activists.
Many Austrian women supported the brigades whilst operating illegally, organising escape routes, providing documents, raising funds, writing reports and maintaining the structures of the Communist Party of Austria (KPÖ). At the Interbrigade contact point in Paris, too., an Austrian comrade was among the most important organisers.
The contribution of women was indispensable — and it shows that the anti-fascist struggle was always a struggle of the entire working class.
Sacrifice, persecution, continuity of the resistance
Many of the fighters in Spain fell. 256 Austrians died in battle. 458 were later deported to concentration camps by the German fascists, and 84 were murdered there.
Others continued to fight after 1939:
in the underground,
in the Red Army,
in Yugoslav partisan units,
in Austrian resistance groups and in the Austrian Freedom Battalion.
Many were deported to French internment camps following the Republic’s defeat, where they struggled to survive under disastrous conditions. And many returned to Austria after 1945 — often facing distrust, political persecution or social exclusion.
The significance of their legacy today
Comrades,
The history of the Austrian fighters in the Spanish Civil War is not merely a matter of remembrance — it is a mission.
It shows us that the working class must act internationally when it faces attacks on an international scale. It shows us that fascism is not defeated by appeals, but by steadfast resistance. It shows us that the communists — and no one else — formed the main force of the anti-fascist struggle.
And it shows us how history is written: for decades, bourgeois and social-democratic historiography has distorted or concealed the role of the communists. People preferred to speak of ‘interference’ rather than of victims. They preferred to speak of alleged ‘crimes’ rather than of those who fought against fascism whilst others capitulated.
But we say this clearly: the Austrian fighters in the Spanish Civil War were fighters for the freedom of Spain and Austria. They were internationalists who understood that the struggle against fascism and capitalism is one and the same struggle. They were part of the international workers' movement — and their legacy belongs to us.
The Party of Labour of Austria today
Comrades,
When we commemorate the Austrian fighters in the Spanish Civil War today, we are not merely honouring the past — we are speaking about our present and our future. Their legacy is not a museum piece, nor a historical memento to be dusted off once a year. Their legacy is a mission, a yardstick, a corrective, a compass for today’s Party of Labour.
The Spanish Civil War fighters show us:
that the working class is only strong when it is organised,
that internationalism consists not of words but of deeds,
that the struggle against fascism is inextricably linked to the struggle against capitalism,
that the vanguard of the working class needs a party that is clear, disciplined and theoretically grounded,
and that the Communists — and no one else — bear the historical responsibility for leading the working class, because they are an uncompromising class-based party.
Never forget: the International Brigades are among the best that the workers' movement in Austria and Europe has ever achieved.
For today’s Party of Labour, this means:
Theoretical firmness
The fighters in the Spanish Civil War were no adventurers. They were people who had understood that Marxism-Leninism is not merely an analysis, but a guide to action. The PdA must preserve and deepen this theoretical clarity — against all attempts to undermine or depoliticise Marxism.
Consistency in the class standpoint
The brigadists knew that the working class needs no ‘middle ground’, no ‘reconciliation’, no ‘social partnership compromises’. It needs a party that serves its interests — uncompromisingly, independently, clearly.
Internationalism in practice
Today, this means:
Solidarity with all peoples fighting against imperialism,
A clear stance against the EU as an imperialist, warmongering alliance,
Rejection of any policy of war; the main enemy lies within our own country and in the EU!
And the building of international relations with communist parties and workers’ organisations.
4. The struggle against fascistisation and militarisation
We are witnessing once again:
The militarisation of the EU,
Rearmament,
restrictions on democratic rights,
repression of left-wing movements.
The PdA must be the clear voice here, declaring: Fascism is not an opinion, but the terrorist rule of capital.
However: not everything associated with the right-wing bourgeoisie is fascist. The inflationary use of the term ‘fascism’ is wrong and reflects a lack of analytical capacity.
Building the Party
The PdA must grow — not for the sake of size, but for the sake of its historic task. It must:
Improve and expand the distribution of the Zeitung der Arbeit,
Increase its influence,
Recruit new members,
Deepen political education,
Use Marxism-Leninism as an analytical tool,
strengthen its structures, internal solidarity and cohesion,
organise the working class.
Practise and promote proletarian internationalism. As part of the world communist movement, the European Communist Action, shoulder to shoulder with parties such as the Party of the working class of Spain, the Communist Party of the Workers of Spain, whose representative, Comrade Eva García de Madariaga, will be speaking to us today.
6. The courage to face the truth
The brigadists fought because they knew that the truth does not depend on majorities, but on historical necessity. They were actors and subjects of history, not objects to be harassed and oppressed at will.
The PdA must preserve and carry forward this courage.
Comrades,
Most of the Austrian fighters in the Spanish Civil War were Communists who understood that history is shaped by class struggles — and that one must decide which side one is on.
They chose the working class. They chose socialism. They chose internationalism. They chose the struggle.
And this choice is ours too.
Today’s Party of Labour stands in their tradition — not as a nostalgic memory, but as a living commitment. We carry their banner forward, not because we romanticise them, but because we know that their struggle is our struggle.
For one thing remains true, then as now:
For the freedom of Spain and Austria — for the freedom and victory of the working class throughout the world!
For socialism. For international solidarity.
Venceremos!
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