Spanish Civil War: Teruel & Ebro Battles to Catalonia's Fall

December 1937 to November 1938: The Battle of Teruel

The Republicans initiated a campaign to recover Teruel. It was a long battle; the city was occupied and then reconquered by the Franco regime. The wear suffered by the Republicans allowed the Nationalist forces to reach into Aragon and Valencia, arriving at Vinaroz on the Mediterranean coast. The Republican area was divided in two, and the Republicans were against the ropes. They hoped that the meeting in Munich between France, England, Hitler, and Mussolini would result in intervention against Germany and Italy, stopping aid to the Nationalist side.

The last major Republican offensive resulted in the Battle of the Ebro in July 1938. With more than 100,000 dead, it was the bloodiest battle of the Civil War and ultimately exhausted Republican reserves and morale. The Republic was bankrupt. The International Brigades left Spain.

December 1938 to April 1939: The End of the War - Occupation of Catalonia

After the Battle of the Ebro, the Republicans could not resist the Nationalist campaign in Catalonia. After entering Barcelona, Francoist troops reached the French border in February 1939. There was a massive and pathetic exodus of the population to France; more than 500,000 people fled, where they were placed in concentration camps.

With Catalonia fallen, defeat was imminent. There were internal divisions within the Republican side. The Negrín government, with the support of communist and socialist parties, proposed resistance because they thought it would join the impending war in Europe. In this way, the Republic hoped that the Allies would change the sign of the war. But England and France offered support and recognition to the Franco government. At this time, Azaña irrevocably resigned from the post of president.

General Casado staged a coup against the Negrín government, hoping to reach an agreement with Franco and end the war. Franco did not respond; he did not want any agreement and demanded unconditional surrender. On March 28, Franco's troops entered Madrid, and on April 1, 1939, the bloody war ended, and a dictatorship replaced the Second Republic.