Mackenzie-Papineau Battalion

The Mackenzie-Papineau Battalion or Mac-Paps were a battalion of Canadians who fought as part of the Fifteenth International Regiment for the Republican side in the Spanish Civil War. A greater proportion of the Canadian population served in the Internationals than of any country other than France: 1,448 from a national population of twelve million.

The first Canadians in the conflict joined the mainly American Abraham Lincoln Battalion and later the North American George Washington Battalion, with about forty Canadians serving in each group. The Lincoln Brigade was involved in the Battle of the Jarama Valley in which nine Canadians are known to have been killed.

In February 1937 the League of Nations Non-Intervention Committee bannned foreign national volunteers. By April of 1937 some 500 Canadians were involved in the conflict and a separate Brigade was formed in early May. Two months later it was named for William Lyon Mackenzie and Louis-Joseph Papineau, who led the 1837 Rebellions.

The soldiers who would make up the Mackenzie-Papineau Battalion came from all parts of Canada. Unlike Britain and the United States where a significant number of students and intellectuals enlisted the Canadian contingent was almost wholly working class. Labourers had been driven to the left by their experiences during the Great Depression. They were organized by leftist groups. The Soviet Union had ordered Communist parties around the world to aid the Spanish Republicans, and the Communist Party of Canada headed this call.

But not only Communists responded: there were also members of the CCF and Liberal parties, and others with no political affiliation. In general, the respondents were self-educated about the conflict in Spain, and about the possible repercussions for democracy in Europe and the world. Many other moderate groups also supported the Republicans and organized the Committee to Support Spanish Democracy. A good percentage of those who enlisted had been born in Europe. The two largest groups being Finns and Ukrainians.

In July 1937 the Canadian government decided that it was illegal for Canadian citizens to serve in the civil war. The Committee to Support Spanish Democracy halted sending troops over, but continued to recruit medics. The recruiting of fighters was left the Communist Party. The government refused to issue passports to those they felt might be going to fight in Spain and sent RCMP officers to spy on the leftist activities.

Therefore, any Canadians who meant to serve in Spain had to travel under false pretenses. For the most part they went first to Toronto, where they met at the headquarters for the operation at the corner of Queen and Spadina. Applicants were screened. For the most part anyone intending to enlist had to have had a history of working for the left. The more drunken and adventurous types who made up part of the European volunteers were also weeded out, leaving those who were well and truly committed to the politics of the fight against fascism. All these factors, along with the comparatively mature age of the soldiers – 61.5% were over thirty – resulted in a powerful and committed force. From Toronto they would go to Montreal, or more frequently New York, across the Atlantic Ocean to France, then by ship or on foot across the Pyrenees to Spain.

After their initial training in Albacete the Canadians, who had been added to the Fifteenth Brigade, entered the war. Their first engagement was at Jarama near Madrid, between February and June 1937, followed by a battle at Brunete in July of that year. The amateur army fought its professional opposition to a standstill, winning an important moral victory. In recognition of their contributions in that battle, and out of a sense of national pride, it was decided to form the Mackenzie-Papineau Battalion as the third battalion of the Fifteenth Brigade.

Over the next year, the Mackenzie-Papineau Battalion fought in three major battles: the Aragon Offensive (August-October 1937), the battle of Teruel (December 1937-April 1938) and finally, the Ebro Offensive in Catalunya and Valencia (July-September 1938). They fought with great enthusiasm and discipline, despite a powerful fascist opposition backed by Nazi Germany and Italy, and despite a complete lack of support from any of the Western democracies.

In the end, Spanish Prime Minister Negrín’s conscience caused him to order the international brigades withdrawn on September 21, 1938. Madrid fell six months later on 28 March 1939. In the battles in which they fought, as well as due to atrocities committed upon them when taken prisoner, 721 of the 1,448 Canadians known to have fought in Spain lost their lives.

The way home was arduous. The Canadian government continued its policy of ignoring or even persecuting the veterans of Spain. Money had to be scratched together to get them home; some were arrested in France. It was not until January 1939 that the government agreed the fighters could return to Canada. Upon their return to Canada, many were investigated by the RCMP and denied employment. Even though Canada went on to contribute vastly to the Allied side in World War II, against the same fascism that the Mac-Paps had fought in Spain, the battalion’s contribution has never been formally recognized. Standard histories of Canada rarely mention the Spanish Civil War. A good number of the Mac-Pap veterans fought in the Second World War, but a number were prohibited due to "political unreliability."

The Canadians who died in the Spanish Civil War are not included in the Books of Remembrance in the Peace Tower and their sacrifice is not commemorated on federal war memorials or in Remembrance Day services. Those who survived the war are not entitled to veterans' benefits. Although the soldiers and the war is largely forgotten, a monument to the Mackenzie-Papineau Battalion can be found in Victoria, BC.

One of the few Canadians to attain recognition for their service in Spain is Dr. Norman Bethune, who developed the first mobile army medical units while fighting on the Republican side.

Bibliography

• Beeching, William C. Canadian volunteers: Spain 1936-1939. Regina: U. of Regina, 1989.
• Howard, Victor, with Mac Reynolds. The Mackenzie-Papineau Battalion: the Canadian contingent in the Spanish civil war. Ottawa: Carleton, 1986.