Gaston Delasalle

Major

Gaston Ernest Delasalle
DiedJanuary 1937 (1937-02)
Albacete, Spain
Cause of deathExecution by firing squad
Allegiance Spanish Republic
RankMajor
UnitMarsellaise Battalion
Conflicts

Major Gaston Delasalle (? – January 1937) was a French soldier who served as the commander of the Marseillaise Battalion of the International Brigades of the Republicans during the Spanish Civil War. Following his failure at the Battle of Lopera, he was charged by the André Marty with cowardice and treason and executed by firing squad.

Biography

Prior to the Spanish Civil War, Delasalle served as a French military intelligence officer. In 1919, he allegedly took part in attempts to squash the navy mutiny led by André Marty in the Black Sea.[1][2][3]

Delasalle was sent from France to Spain in 1936. The major was made commander of the Marseillaise Battalion.[1] In 1937 the Nationalists attempted to cut supply lines to Madrid, Delasalle planned to make a diversion by making an attack against the village of Lopera, which was controlled by the Nationalists. The order for the attack was issued on the night of January 3, 1937. He commanded from the rear, issuing orders that were slow and allegedly caused confusion amongst the ranks.[4][5] Despite the defeat at the Battle of Lopera and the large casualty toll, the Delasalle retained his popularity among the International Brigades.[6]

Following the battle, the communist leadership sought a scapegoat for the military failure. Witnesses claimed it was Mieczysław Domanski Dubois, the communist Polish medical chief, who first pointed the finger at Major Gaston Delasalle. André Marty, who was now serving as Political Commissar of the International Brigades, happily laid the blame on Delasalle.[1]

Delasalle was arrested in the nurses' quarters at a nearby field hospital, where a girlfriend of his from Barcelona was volunteering as a nurse. A court-martial was set up to try him in a classroom in Arjonilla where Delasalle was accused of working with anarchists and fascists based out of Catalonia and Albacete. André Heussler, a political commissar who would later be deemed a traitor by the French Resistance during World War II, served as the prosecutor.[1] Joseph Putz, a subordinate of Delasalle, who had fought at Lopera, presided over the court.[7] Marty was chief among Delasalle's accusers, crafting the aforementioned theory and claiming that Delasalle had fascist documentation on his person when he was arrested.[8] He was additionally charged with incompetence and cowardice.[4][9][10]

Delasalle was ultimately found guilty and sentenced to be shot; he protested his innocence up to his execution.[11][12] He was executed in January of 1937 in Albacete by firing squad.[13][14][15] Putz was promoted and given command of the Marseillaise Battalion.[7]

Legacy

In France his execution was received as a scandal, with many criticizing Marty. The death of the popular commander was received by the soldiers as a sign that Marty was a harsh disciplinarian or that this 'absurd' court martial was a biproduct of communist leadership in the International Brigades.[16][17]

Many scholars today doubt that he was working for the Nationalists, although some recognize he may have been working in part for French Intelligence, based in part on his previous affiliation.[11][18][19]

References

  1. ^ a b c d Tremlett, Giles (2020-10-15). The International Brigades: Fascism, Freedom and the Spanish Civil War. Bloomsbury Publishing. ISBN 978-1-4088-5400-6.
  2. ^ Parrilla, Jaime Martínez (1987). Las fuerzas armadas francesas ante la Guerra Civil Española (1936-1939) (in Spanish). Servicio de Publicaciones del EME. ISBN 978-84-505-6807-3.
  3. ^ Rubio, Javier (1985). "Le Parti communiste d'Espagne en exil dans l'immédiate après-guerre civile (1939-1941)". Matériaux pour l'histoire de notre temps. 3 (1): 93–99. doi:10.3406/mat.1985.403927.
  4. ^ a b Cook, Judith (1979). Apprentices of Freedom. Quartet Books. ISBN 978-0-7043-2186-1.
  5. ^ Rowley, Hazel (2013-03-01). Christina Stead. Simon and Schuster. ISBN 978-0-522-86431-1.
  6. ^ Canales, Miguel del Rey y Carlos. Generales y mandos de la Guerra Civil (in Arabic). EDAF. ISBN 978-84-414-3939-9.
  7. ^ a b Tauler Cid, Benito (2022). "The French Presence in the Spanish Military" (PDF). International Journal of Military History (100). Madrid: 247.
  8. ^ Chambers, Colin; Russell, Sam (2022-04-07). I Saw Democracy Murdered: The Memoir of Sam Russell, Journalist. Routledge. ISBN 978-1-000-56663-5.
  9. ^ Beevor, Antony (2006-06-01). The Battle for Spain: The Spanish Civil War 1936-1939. Penguin. ISBN 978-1-101-20120-6.
  10. ^ Baxell, Richard (2004-07-31). British Volunteers in the Spanish Civil War. Routledge. doi:10.4324/9780203357101. ISBN 978-1-134-34577-9.
  11. ^ a b Thomas, Hugh (2013-11-06). The Spanish Civil War: Revised Edition. Random House Publishing Group. ISBN 978-0-8041-5216-7.
  12. ^ Wyden, Peter (1986). The Passionate War. Touchstone. ISBN 978-0-671-25331-8.
  13. ^ Martialay, Félix (2017-01-01). El fútbol en la guerra (II). Documentos oficiales y notas aclaratorias (in Spanish). CIHEFE. ISBN 978-84-945009-2-3.
  14. ^ Bertelli, Sergio; Bigazzi, Francesco (2001). PCI, la storia dimenticata (in Italian). Mondadori. ISBN 978-88-04-48170-6.
  15. ^ Borde, Valérie; de Massy, Bernard (April 2013). "Programmed induction of DNA double strand breaks during meiosis: setting up communication between DNA and the chromosome structure". Current Opinion in Genetics & Development. 23 (2): 147–155. doi:10.1016/j.gde.2012.12.002. ISSN 0959-437X. PMID 23313097.
  16. ^ Historia contemporánea (in Spanish). Departamento de Historia Contemporánea, Universidad del País Vasco. 2007.
  17. ^ Kogelfranz, Siegfried; Plate, Eckart (1989). Sterben für die Freiheit: die Tragödie des Spanischen Bürgerkrieges (in German). C. Bertelsmann. ISBN 978-3-570-04938-9.
  18. ^ Corkill, David; Rawnsley, Stuart J. (1981). The Road to Spain: Anti-fascists at War, 1936-1939. Borderline. ISBN 978-0-906135-03-7.
  19. ^ BURCEA, Mihai (2024-04-01). LUPTÂND PENTRU O ILUZIE: Voluntari români în Brigăzile Internaționale din Spania (in Romanian). Editura Cetatea de Scaun. ISBN 978-606-537-686-1.
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