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| unit_name = Mackenzie–Papineau Battalion
| unit_name = Mackenzie–Papineau Battalion
| image = Statue at Confederation Garden Court, Victoria, British Columbia, Canada 07.jpg
| image = Statue at Confederation Garden Court, Victoria, British Columbia, Canada 07.jpg
| caption = Monument to the Mackenzie Papineau Battalion in Victoria, B.C.
| caption = Monument to the Mackenzie–Papineau Battalion in Victoria, B.C.
| dates = 1937–1938
| dates = 1937–1938
| country = {{flagicon|Canada|1921}} [[Canada]]
| country = {{flagicon|Canada|1921}} [[Canada]]
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| mascot =
| mascot =
| battles = [[Spanish Civil War]]
| battles = [[Spanish Civil War]]
⚫
*[[Aragon Offensive]]
*[[Barcelona May Days]]
*[[Barcelona May Days]]
*[[Battle of Belchite (1937)|Battle of Belchite]]
*[[Battle of Brunete]]
*[[Battle of Brunete]]
⚫
*[[Battle of the Ebro]]
*[[Battle of Jarama]]
*[[Battle of Jarama]]
*[[Battle of Teruel]]
*[[Battle of Teruel]]
⚫
*[[Aragon Offensive]]
⚫
*[[Battle of the Ebro]]
| anniversaries =
| anniversaries =
| notable_commanders = [[Edward Cecil-Smith]]
| notable_commanders = [[Edward Cecil-Smith]]
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| ceremonial_chief =
| ceremonial_chief =
}}
}}
The '''Mackenzie–Papineau Battalion''' or '''Mac-Paps''' were a [[battalion]] of [[Canadians]] who fought as part of the [[XV International Brigade]] on the [[Second Spanish Republic|Republican side]] in the [[Spanish Civil War]] in the late 1930s.<ref name="LegionMag">{{cite news |last1=Bowers |first1=Alex |title=Canada and the Spanish Civil War |url=https://legionmagazine.com/canada-and-the-spanish-civil-war/ |access-date=9 May 2024 |work=Legion Magazine |publisher=Royal Canadian Legion |date=10 April 2024}}</ref> Except for France, no other country had a greater proportion of its population volunteer in Spain as did Canada.<ref>Adrienne Clarkson, Governor General of Canada, Speech on the Occasion of the Unveiling of the Mackenzie-Papineau Battalion Monument, Ottawa, October 20, 2001. http://archive.gg.ca/media/doc.asp?lang=e&DocID=1331</ref> The XV International Brigade, made up also of volunteer battalions from the United States and Britain, was involved in the [[Battle of Jarama]], in which nine Canadians are known to have been killed.
The '''Mackenzie–Papineau Battalion''' was a [[Canadian]] military unit that volunteered to fight with the [[XV International Brigade]] on the [[Second Spanish Republic|Republican side]] in the [[Spanish Civil War]].<ref name="LegionMag">{{cite news |last1=Bowers |first1=Alex |title=Canada and the Spanish Civil War |url=https://legionmagazine.com/canada-and-the-spanish-civil-war/ |access-date=9 May 2024 |work=Legion Magazine |publisher=Royal Canadian Legion |date=10 April 2024}}</ref> Except for France, no other country had a greater proportion of its population volunteer in Spain as did Canada.<ref name=Governor_General_speech>{{cite web |url=https://archive.today/20030816165231/http://www.gg.ca/media/doc.asp?lang=e&DocID=1331 |title=Speech on the Occasion of the Unveiling of the Mackenzie-Papineau Battalion Monument |date=20 October 2001 |location=Ottawa |publisher=Governor General of Canada}}</ref> The Canadian soldiers were engaged in some of the fiercest battles of 1937-38 and suffered heavy casualties.<ref name=Canadian_Encyclopedia>{{cite encyclopedia |title=Mackenzie-Papineau Battalion |last1=Howard |first1=Victor |last2=de Bruin |first2=Tabitha |encyclopedia=The Canadian Encyclopedia |date=12 November 2021 |url=https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/mackenzie-papineau-battalion}}</ref>


Because the Canadian government passed Foreign Enlistment Act in 1937 prohibiting citizens from participating in a foreign war<ref name="LegionMag"/>, surviving veterans were not recognized in national military institutions or history. Since the late 20th century, three monuments have been installed in Canada that commemorate this battalion, including one commissioned by the government that was installed in Ottawa in 2001. The names of all the known volunteers are listed there.
After the war, the surviving "'''Mac-Paps'''" faced new struggles. The [[Foreign Enlistment Act 1870#Canada|Canadian Foreign Enlistment Act of 1937]] had prohibited citizens from participating in foreign conflicts.<ref name="LegionMag"/> As a result, Canadian veterans of the Spanish Civil War were investigated as politically suspect by the [[Royal Canadian Mounted Police]]. The veterans were not recognized by national military institutions or in official histories. The prohibition was eventually eased at the end of the 20th century. Three Canadian monuments were erected to honor the Mackenzie-Papineau Battalion, including a monument commissioned by the federal government and installed in [[Ottawa]] in 2001. The names of all known Canadian volunteers are listed there.<ref name=Governor_General_speech/>


==History==
==History==
===Recruitment and mobilization===
⚫
===1937===
It's estimated that three-fourths of Canadian volunteers were either members of the [[Communist Party of Canada]] (CPC) or the [[Young Communist League of Canada|Young Communist League]]. They just needed to approach their local committees to initiate the recruitment process.<ref name="LegionMag"/> Unlike the American and British volunteers who included significant numbers of students and intellectuals, the Canadian contingent was almost wholly [[working class]].{{cn|date=December 2024}} Many had been unemployed and forced into relief camps during the [[Great Depression]].<ref name=Canadian_Encyclopedia/> A sizable percentage were recent immigrants, the two largest groups being [[Finns]] and [[Ukrainians]].
By the summer of 1937, some 1,200 Canadians were involved in the Spanish conflict. The Canadians had traveled secretly to reach Spain; some of the early volunteers were dispatched mainly with the volunteer [[Abraham Lincoln Battalion]] of Americans. Later they traveled with the North American [[George Washington Battalion]], with about forty Canadians serving in each group.


In general, the Canadian volunteers were self-educated about the Spanish conflict and its repercussions for Europe if the pro-fascist Nationalist side prevailed. To raise awareness about the Spanish Republican cause, Canada's leftist political parties created the [[Canadian League for Peace and Democracy#Activities|Canadian Committee to Aid Spanish Democracy]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.vscw.ca/en/node/317 |title=Canada |publisher=Virtual Spanish Civil War |access-date=7 December 2024}}</ref>
⚫
In early May 1937, a separate battalion began to organize for the Canadians in Spain. When it was formally organized at [[Albacete]], [[Spain]] in July 1937, the volunteers named it for [[William Lyon Mackenzie]] and [[Louis-Joseph Papineau]]. These men had led the [[Rebellions of 1837–1838|Rebellion of 1837–1838]] in Canada. They became noted politicians in the 19th century, standing for a clean and responsible government. The Canadian volunteers chose this name as a symbol of their national identity and commitment to the Republican government’s side.


⚫
Canadian volunteers who wanted to serve in Spain had to travel under false pretenses. The Parliament passed the Canadian Foreign Enlistment Act in April 1937,<ref name="LegionMag"/> and applied it to the Spanish conflict in July 1937, prohibiting participation in a foreign war. Even before the prohibition went into effect, recruits assembled and transported themselves in secret to avoid potential prosecution.
⚫
At their first battle at [[Fuentes de Ebro]], the battalion was initially commanded by American [[Robert G. Thompson]]. By November 1937, however, the battalion had its first Canadian commander, [[Edward Cecil-Smith]]. From Toronto, Cecil-Smith was a member of the [[Communist Party of Canada]], an author of the banned play, ''[[Eight Men Speak]]''; a journalist, and a former militiaman. Cecil-Smith commanded the Mackenzie–Papineau Battalion for most of its existence.


⚫
Volunteers usually went first to [[Toronto]], where they met at operation headquarters, located at [[Queen Street West|Queen]] and [[Spadina Avenue|Spadina]] streets. Applicants were screened. For the most part, anyone intending to enlist required a leftist background. Drunken and adventurous types were weeded out, leaving only those who were ardent about fighting [[Fascism in Europe|European fascism]]. These factors, together with the comparatively mature age of the soldiers{{Snd}}61.5% were over thirty{{Snd}}resulted in an ideologically committed Canadian contingent.{{cn|date=December 2024}} From Toronto they traveled to [[Montreal]] or, more frequently, to [[New York City]], where they departed by ship across the [[Atlantic Ocean]] to [[France]]. They then made their way to Spain either by ship or by foot across the [[Pyrenees]].<ref name="LegionMag"/>
The soldiers who made up the Mackenzie–Papineau Battalion came from both Canada and the United States. Initially, there was discussion as to whether a third American battalion should be formed: in the beginning the Americans outnumbered the Canadians 2 to 1. Later, Canadians made up about half of the unit. Unlike volunteers from Britain and the United States, who included a significant number of college students and intellectuals, the Canadian contingent was almost wholly [[working class]]. Labourers had been attracted to the left by the collapse of capitalism during the [[Great Depression]].


⚫
===1937===
Many Canadian volunteers were members of the [[Communist Party of Canada]].<ref name="LegionMag"/> In general, they were self-educated about the conflict in Spain, and about the possible repercussions for Europe and the world. Many other groups also supported the Spanish Republicans and organized the Committee to Support Spanish Democracy. A good percentage of those Canadians who enlisted had been born in Europe, the two largest groups being [[Finns]] and [[Ukrainians]]. As casualties mounted in Spain, many Spanish volunteers and later conscripts were incorporated into the unit.
In February 1937, the XVth Brigade—composed primarily of English-speaking battalions from the U.S., Britain and Canada—fought in the pivotal [[Battle of Jarama]] in which eleven Canadian soldiers were killed.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://albavolunteer.org/2016/06/jarama-series-canadians-in-the-lincoln-battalion/ |publisher=The Volunteer |title=Jarama Series: Canadians in the Lincoln Battalion |last=Brooks |first=Chris |date=15 June 2016}}</ref> By the summer of 1937, an estimated 1,200 Canadians were involved in the Spanish conflict. The first volunteers to arrive were dispatched with the [[Abraham Lincoln Battalion]] of Americans. Later, the Canadians were assigned to the North American [[George Washington Battalion]], with approximately forty Canadians serving in each group.


⚫
In May 1937, a Canadian battalion began to take shape. It was formally mustered into the XVth Brigade on 1 July 1937 at [[Albacete]].<ref name=Canadian_Encyclopedia/> The Canadian soldiers named it after [[William Lyon Mackenzie]] and [[Louis-Joseph Papineau]], who led the [[Rebellions of 1837–1838|Rebellion of 1837–1838]]. They became noted 19th century politicians, standing for a responsive, reform-minded government. The Canadians chose this name as a symbol of their national identity and their commitment to the elected Spanish Republican side against the [[Nationalist faction (Spanish Civil War)|Nationalist insurgency]] headed by General [[Francisco Franco]].
⚫
Canadians who wanted to serve in Spain had to travel under false pretenses. The Parliament had passed the Canadian Foreign Enlistment Act in April 1937<ref name="LegionMag"/>, and formally applied it to Spain in July 1937, prohibiting such volunteering in a foreign war. Even before this prohibition, recruits were generally gathered and transported in secret.


The Mac-Paps came from both the U.S. and Canada. In fact, the Americans initially outnumbered the Canadians 2 to 1, and there was discussion about possibly forming another American battalion. Later, however, Canadians comprised over half of the Mackenzie-Papineau Battalion. As casualties mounted in the unit, it began to incorporate more Spanish-born volunteers and conscripts.{{cn|date=December 2024}}
⚫
Volunteers usually went first to [[Toronto]], where they met at the headquarters for the operation, located at [[Queen Street West|Queen]] and [[Spadina Avenue|Spadina]] streets. Applicants were screened. For the most part anyone intending to enlist had to have had a history of working for the left. Drunken and adventurous types were weeded out, leaving those who were ideologically committed to the politics of the fight against [[fascism]]. These factors, together with the comparatively mature age of the soldiers – 61.5% were over thirty – resulted in a powerful and committed force. From Toronto they traveled to [[Montreal]] or, more frequently, [[New York City]], to depart by ships for travel across the [[Atlantic Ocean]] to [[France]]. They continued to Spain by ship or on foot across the [[Pyrenees]].

⚫
In the fighting at [[Fuentes de Ebro]] in October 1937, the Mac-Paps were commanded by American [[Robert G. Thompson]].<ref>{{cite book |last=Landis |first=Arthur H. |title=Death in the Olive Groves: American Volunteers in the Spanish Civil War 1936-1939 |publisher=Paragon House |location=New York |pages=88-91 |year=1988 |isbn=155778051X}}</ref> By November, the battalion had its first Canadian commander, Captain [[Edward Cecil-Smith]] from [[Toronto]]. He was a CPC member, a co-author of the banned play ''[[Eight Men Speak]]'', a journalist, and a former militiaman. Cecil-Smith commanded the Mackenzie–Papineau Battalion for most of its existence.{{sfn|Landis|1988|p=104}}

Company Three of the Mac-Paps (under Lieutenant Lionel Edwards of [[Edmonton]]) earned distinction at the [[Battle of Teruel]] (December 1937 – February 1938).<ref name=Frank_Rogers_recollections>{{cite web |url=https://albavolunteer.org/2018/11/the-history-of-the-mackenzie-papineau-battalion-by-frank-rodgers/ |publisher=The Volunteer |title=The History of the MacKenzie-Papineau Battalion by Frank Rogers |last=Brooks |first=Chris |date=17 November 2018}}</ref> After withstanding the most intense artillery barrage of the war, the Canadian soldiers held their battered trench position and routed the advancing Nationalist forces. The heroism displayed by the Canadians at Teruel won the praise of American and British war correspondents and military observers: "The Battalion received a special citation of bravery from the Army, and Captain E. Cecil Smith was promoted to the rank of Major for his brilliant leadership in the action."<ref name=Frank_Rogers_recollections/>


===1938===
===1938===
Over the next year, the Mackenzie–Papineau Battalion fought in several major battles, including the [[Battle of Teruel]] (December 1937 – March 1938) and the [[Aragon Offensive]] (March–April), more commonly known to the Republican forces as the "Retreats." The Finnish-American machine gun companies successfully repelled the Nationalist forces, but the collapse of the front on their flanks forced them to join the withdrawal. Their final engagement was the [[Battle of the Ebro]] (July–September). This decisive Nationalist victory broke the back of the Republican forces.
By early 1938, the tide had turned in favor of the Nationalist side, which enjoyed superior manpower and [[materiel]], due in large part to the aid they were receiving from [[Nazi Germany]] and [[fascist Italy]]. The Mackenzie–Papineau Battalion fought in several major 1938 battles, including the [[Aragon Offensive]] (March–April), more commonly known to Republican forces as the "Retreats". The Finnish-American machine gun companies successfully repelled the Nationalists, but the collapse of the front on their flanks compelled the Mac-Paps to join the withdrawal.{{cn|date=December 2024}} Their final engagement was the [[Battle of the Ebro]] (July–September). This decisive Nationalist victory broke the back of the Republican forces.


In the end, [[Prime Minister of Spain|Spanish Prime Minister]] [[Juan Negrín López|Negrín]] ordered the International Brigades withdrawn on September 21, 1938. Madrid fell six months later on March 28, 1939. By the end of the war, 721 had died of the 1,546 Canadians known to have fought in Spain.
In the end, [[Prime Minister of Spain|Spanish Prime Minister]] [[Juan Negrín López|Juan Negrín]] ordered the International Brigades withdrawn on September 21, 1938. Madrid fell six months later on March 28, 1939. By the end of the war, of the 1,546 Canadians known to have fought in Spain, 721 perished.{{cn|date=December 2024}}


The return of survivors to Canada was arduous. The Canadian government continued its policy of ignoring or prosecuting the veterans of Spain, in accordance with the Foreign Enlistment Act. They depended on friends and family to collect the money to get them home; some men were arrested in France. It was not until January 1939 that the government agreed the veteran combatants could return to Canada. Upon their return, many were investigated by the [[RCMP]] because of communist party affiliations. Some were denied employment. A good number of the Mac-Pap veterans fought in the Second World War, but a number were prohibited because of their history.
Returning to Canada was an arduous ordeal for the surviving soldiers, who depended on friends and family to collect the money to get them home; some soldiers were arrested in France. The Canadian government continued its policy of ignoring or prosecuting the veterans of Spain, in accordance with the Foreign Enlistment Act. It was not until January 1939 that the government agreed that the veteran combatants could return to Canada. Upon their arrival, many were investigated by the [[RCMP]] because of their Communist Party affiliations and were denied employment. A majority of Mac-Pap veterans volunteered to fight in [[World War II]], but some were rejected as "politically unreliable".<ref>{{Cite book |last=Howard |first=Victor |last2=Reynolds |first2=Mac |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/j.cttq92bw |title=MacKenzie-Papineau Battalion: The Canadian Contingent in the Spanish Civil War |year=1986 |publisher=McGill-Queen's University Press |isbn=978-0-88629-049-8}}</ref>


==Legacy and commemoration==
==Legacy and commemoration==
Because the Canadian government did not participate in the Spanish Civil War, the volunteers do not have status in military institutions or such national memory. The Canadians who died in the Spanish Civil War are not included in the [[Canadian Books of Remembrance|Books of Remembrance]] in the [[Peace Tower]]. 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.
Because the Canadian government chose non-intervention in the Spanish Civil War, the Mac-Pap volunteers do not have status in military institutions or in the national honoring of veterans. The Canadians who died in the war are not included in the [[Canadian Books of Remembrance|Books of Remembrance]] in the [[Peace Tower]]. Their sacrifice is not commemorated on federal war memorials or in [[Remembrance Day]] services. Those who survived the Spanish conflict were not entitled to veterans' benefits.


[[File:Mac-pap monument ottawa.jpg|right|thumb|Mackenzie-Papineau Monument in Ottawa]]
[[File:Plaque of Mackenzie Papineau Battalion memorial, Victoria, B.C.jpg|right|thumb|Mackenzie-Papineau plaque in [[Victoria, BC]]]]
But since the late 20th century, a group known as the Veterans and Friends of the Mackenzie–Papineau Battalion have gained government permission and installed three monuments to commemorate these veterans. The first monument was erected in Toronto on June 4, 1995 at [[Queen's Park (Toronto)|Queen's Park]]. The monument is a large boulder transported from the battlefield of [[Gandesa]], Spain. Attached to the boulder is a federal plaque from the national Historic Sites and Monuments Board, reflecting the status of the Mackenzie–Papineau Battalion as a National Historic Event.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.web.net/~macpap/monuments.htm |title=HISTORICAL |website=www.web.net |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20041211040050/http://www.web.net/~macpap/monuments.htm |archive-date=2004-12-11}} </ref> A monument to the Mackenzie–Papineau Battalion was unveiled February 12, 2000 in [[Victoria, British Columbia]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.web.net/~macpap/monuments.htm |title=HISTORICAL |website=www.web.net |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20041211040050/http://www.web.net/~macpap/monuments.htm |archive-date=2004-12-11}} </ref>
A partial "thaw" occurred at the end of the 20th century. A group known as the Veterans and Friends of the Mackenzie–Papineau Battalion gained government permission to install three monuments to honor Canada's Spanish Civil War veterans. The first was erected in Toronto on June 4, 1995 at [[Queen's Park (Toronto)|Queen's Park]]. The monument is a large boulder transported from the battlefield of [[Gandesa]], Spain. Attached to the boulder is a federal plaque from the national Historic Sites and Monuments Board, reflecting the status of the Mackenzie–Papineau Battalion as a National Historic Event.<ref name=Mac_Pap_monuments>{{cite web |url=http://www.web.net/~macpap/monuments.htm |title=Ottawa, Ontario |publisher=www.web.net |url-status=dead |archive-date=11 December 2004 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20041211040050/http://www.web.net/~macpap/monuments.htm}}</ref>
[[File:Plaque of Mackenzie Papineau Battalion memorial, Victoria, B.C.jpg|right|thumb|Plaque of the Mac-Pap monument, Victoria]]


[[File:Plaque of Mackenzie Papineau Battalion memorial, Victoria, B.C.jpg|right|thumb|Plaque of the Mac-Pap monument in [[Victoria, BC]]]]
[[File:Mac-pap monument ottawa.jpg|right|thumb|Mackenzie-Papineau monument in [[Ottawa]]]]
A statue to the Mackenzie–Papineau Battalion was unveiled February 12, 2000 in [[Victoria, British Columbia]].
<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.leg.bc.ca/dyl/Pages/Spanish-Civil-War-Memorial.aspx |archive-date=27 February 2022 |title=The Spanish Civil War Memorial |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220227194601/https://www.leg.bc.ca/dyl/Pages/Spanish-Civil-War-Memorial.aspx}}</ref>


⚫
Another monument was erected in [[Ottawa]]'s Green Island Park in 2001.<ref name=Mac_Pap_monuments/> This project was also organized and funded by Veterans and Friends of the Mackenzie–Papineau Battalion. The monument lists the names of 1,546 Canadian volunteers, which includes all Canadians who served in the Mac-Paps or other battalions, plus those who served in the medical, communications, transportation, and translation corps. The monument was designed by architect Oryst Sawchuck of Sudbury, selected in a juried competition by the organizers. It shows a figure of [[Prometheus]] raising his arm towards the Sun, cut out of a {{convert|5|m|ft|adj=mid|-high|spell=in}} sheet of steel. A 12-metre memorial wall is inscribed with volunteers' names.<ref>[https://archive.today/20140803080420/http://www.cmp-cpm.forces.gc.ca/dhh-dhp/nic-inm/sm-rm/mdsr-rdr-eng.asp?PID=4684 Mackenzie-Papineau Battalion monument]</ref>
There is a monument to the Mackenzie–Papineau Battalion in [[Victoria, British Columbia]].[https://www.leg.bc.ca/dyl/Pages/Spanish-Civil-War-Memorial.aspx]


⚫
Dr. [[Norman Bethune]], a key developer of [[Mobile Army Surgical Hospital|mobile army medical units]] for the Republican side, is one of the few Canadians to be officially recognized for his service in Spain.<ref>{{cite journal |journal=The Annals of Thoracic Surgery |url=http://ats.ctsnetjournals.org/cgi/content/full/70/5/1746?maxtoshow=&HITS=10&hits=10&RESULTFORMAT=&fulltext=pneumonectomy&searchid=1&FIRSTINDEX=100&resourcetype=HWFIG |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120216131829/http://ats.ctsnetjournals.org/cgi/content/full/70/5/1746?maxtoshow=&HITS=10&hits=10&RESULTFORMAT=&fulltext=pneumonectomy&searchid=1&FIRSTINDEX=100&resourcetype=HWFIG|last1=MacLean |first1=Lloyd D. |last2=Entin |first2=Martin A. |title=Our surgical heritage: Norman Bethune and Edward Archibald: sung and unsung heroes |date=2000 |volume=70 |pages=1746-1752 |archive-date=16 February 2012}}</ref>
⚫
Another monument to the Mac-Pap veterans was erected in [[Ottawa]] in 2001 on Green Island Park. This effort was also organized and funded by Veterans and Friends of the Mackenzie–Papineau Battalion. The monument includes the names of the 1,546 Canadian volunteers who served in Spain. This number includes all those who served in the Mac-Pap battalion; the medical, communications, transportation and translation corps; or in other brigades. The monument was designed by architect Oryst Sawchuck of Sudbury, selected in a juried competition by the organizers. It shows a figure of [[Prometheus]] raising his arm towards the Sun, cut out of a {{convert|5|m|ft|adj=mid|-high|spell=in}} sheet of steel. A 12-metre memorial wall is inscribed with volunteers' names.<ref>[https://archive.today/20140803080420/http://www.cmp-cpm.forces.gc.ca/dhh-dhp/nic-inm/sm-rm/mdsr-rdr-eng.asp?PID=4684 Mackenzie-Papineau Battalion monument]</ref>


The Canadian folk band, Hudson Valley Sally, recorded a song entitled "The Mackenzie-Papineau Brigade" (note: it should be "Battalion"). The song details the adventures of the Mac-Paps and their fight in [[Spanish Civil War|Spain]].<ref>{{Cite AV media |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XfF-DRE9uzE |title="The Mackenzie-Papineau Brigade" - Canadian International Brigade Song |date=2023-09-25 |access-date=2024-09-13 |publisher=[[YouTube]]}}</ref>
⚫
Dr. [[Norman Bethune]], who greatly developed the use of [[Mobile Army Surgical Hospital|mobile army medical units]] for the Republican side, is one of the few Canadians to be recognized for his service in Spain.<ref>[http://ats.ctsnetjournals.org/cgi/content/full/70/5/1746?maxtoshow=&HITS=10&hits=10&RESULTFORMAT=&fulltext=pneumonectomy&searchid=1&FIRSTINDEX=100&resourcetype=HWFIG#SEC2 Our surgical heritage: MacLean, Lloyd D. and Martin A. Entin, "Norman Bethune and Edward Archibald: sung and unsung heroes," in ''Ann Thorac Surg'' 2000; 70:1746–1752] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120216131829/http://ats.ctsnetjournals.org/cgi/content/full/70/5/1746?maxtoshow=&HITS=10&hits=10&RESULTFORMAT=&fulltext=pneumonectomy&searchid=1&FIRSTINDEX=100&resourcetype=HWFIG |date=2012-02-16 }} [[Society of Thoracic Surgeons]]. Retrieved 28 July 2013.</ref>


==See also==
==See also==
{{Portal|Canada}}
{{Portal|Canada}}
*[[Canadian League for Peace and Democracy]]

*[[International Brigades]]
*[[Spanish Civil War]]
*[[Spanish Civil War]]
⚫
*[[Spanish Republican Armed Forces]]
⚫
*[[Military history of Nova Scotia#Spanish Civil War|Spanish Civil War – Nova Scotia]]
*[[Military history of Canada]]
*[[Military history of Canada]]
⚫
*[[Military history of Nova Scotia#Spanish Civil War|Spanish Civil War – Nova Scotia]]
⚫
*[[Spanish Republican Armed Forces]]


==References==
==References==
Line 86: Line 94:
==Bibliography==
==Bibliography==
*Beeching, William C. ''Canadian Volunteers: Spain 1936–1939''. Regina: U. of Regina, 1989.
*Beeching, William C. ''Canadian Volunteers: Spain 1936–1939''. Regina: U. of Regina, 1989.
*Hoar, Victor and Reynolds, Mac. ''The Mackenzie-Papineau Battalion: The Canadian Contingent in the Spanish Civil War''. Toronto (Copp Clark), 1969. {{oclc| 322528697}}
*Hoar, Victor and Reynolds, Mac. ''The Mackenzie-Papineau Battalion: The Canadian Contingent in the Spanish Civil War''. Toronto (Copp Clark), 1969. {{oclc| 322528697}}
*Howard, Victor, with Reynolds, Mac. ''The Mackenzie-Papineau Battalion: The Canadian Contingent in the Spanish Civil War''. Ottawa: Carleton University, 1986. {{ISBN|9780886290498}} [https://www.jstor.org/stable/j.cttq92bw online]
*Howard, Victor, with Reynolds, Mac. ''The Mackenzie-Papineau Battalion: The Canadian Contingent in the Spanish Civil War''. Ottawa: Carleton University, 1986. {{ISBN|978-0886290498}} [https://www.jstor.org/stable/j.cttq92bw online]


* [https://web.archive.org/web/20131113024336/http://www.ubcpress.ca/books/pdf/chapters/2008/Renegades.pdf Petrou, Michael. ''Renegades: Canadians in the Spanish Civil War''. Vancouver: UBC Press, 2008.]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20131113024336/http://www.ubcpress.ca/books/pdf/chapters/2008/Renegades.pdf Petrou, Michael. ''Renegades: Canadians in the Spanish Civil War''. Vancouver: UBC Press, 2008.]
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Mackenzie-Papineau Battalion}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mackenzie-Papineau Battalion}}
[[Category:Military history of Canada]]
[[Category:Military history of Canada]]
[[Category:Canada in the World Wars and Interwar Years]]
[[Category:Canada in the world wars and interwar period]]
[[Category:International Brigades]]
[[Category:International Brigades]]
[[Category:Communism in Canada]]
[[Category:Communism in Canada]]

Latest revision as of 13:05, 15 December 2024

Mackenzie–Papineau Battalion
Monument to the Mackenzie–Papineau Battalion in Victoria, B.C.
Active1937–1938
CountryCanada Canada
AllegianceSecond Spanish Republic Second Spanish Republic
TypeBattalion – Infantry
RoleHome Defence
Part of XV International Brigade
EngagementsSpanish Civil War
Commanders
Notable
commanders		Edward Cecil-Smith

The Mackenzie–Papineau Battalion was a Canadian military unit that volunteered to fight with the XV International Brigade on the Republican side in the Spanish Civil War.[1] Except for France, no other country had a greater proportion of its population volunteer in Spain as did Canada.[2] The Canadian soldiers were engaged in some of the fiercest battles of 1937-38 and suffered heavy casualties.[3]

After the war, the surviving "Mac-Paps" faced new struggles. The Canadian Foreign Enlistment Act of 1937 had prohibited citizens from participating in foreign conflicts.[1] As a result, Canadian veterans of the Spanish Civil War were investigated as politically suspect by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. The veterans were not recognized by national military institutions or in official histories. The prohibition was eventually eased at the end of the 20th century. Three Canadian monuments were erected to honor the Mackenzie-Papineau Battalion, including a monument commissioned by the federal government and installed in Ottawa in 2001. The names of all known Canadian volunteers are listed there.[2]

History

[edit]

Recruitment and mobilization

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It's estimated that three-fourths of Canadian volunteers were either members of the Communist Party of Canada (CPC) or the Young Communist League. They just needed to approach their local committees to initiate the recruitment process.[1] Unlike the American and British volunteers who included significant numbers of students and intellectuals, the Canadian contingent was almost wholly working class.[citation needed] Many had been unemployed and forced into relief camps during the Great Depression.[3] A sizable percentage were recent immigrants, the two largest groups being Finns and Ukrainians.

In general, the Canadian volunteers were self-educated about the Spanish conflict and its repercussions for Europe if the pro-fascist Nationalist side prevailed. To raise awareness about the Spanish Republican cause, Canada's leftist political parties created the Canadian Committee to Aid Spanish Democracy.[4]

Canadian volunteers who wanted to serve in Spain had to travel under false pretenses. The Parliament passed the Canadian Foreign Enlistment Act in April 1937,[1] and applied it to the Spanish conflict in July 1937, prohibiting participation in a foreign war. Even before the prohibition went into effect, recruits assembled and transported themselves in secret to avoid potential prosecution.

Volunteers usually went first to Toronto, where they met at operation headquarters, located at Queen and Spadina streets. Applicants were screened. For the most part, anyone intending to enlist required a leftist background. Drunken and adventurous types were weeded out, leaving only those who were ardent about fighting European fascism. These factors, together with the comparatively mature age of the soldiers – 61.5% were over thirty – resulted in an ideologically committed Canadian contingent.[citation needed] From Toronto they traveled to Montreal or, more frequently, to New York City, where they departed by ship across the Atlantic Ocean to France. They then made their way to Spain either by ship or by foot across the Pyrenees.[1]

1937

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In February 1937, the XVth Brigade—composed primarily of English-speaking battalions from the U.S., Britain and Canada—fought in the pivotal Battle of Jarama in which eleven Canadian soldiers were killed.[5] By the summer of 1937, an estimated 1,200 Canadians were involved in the Spanish conflict. The first volunteers to arrive were dispatched with the Abraham Lincoln Battalion of Americans. Later, the Canadians were assigned to the North American George Washington Battalion, with approximately forty Canadians serving in each group.

In May 1937, a Canadian battalion began to take shape. It was formally mustered into the XVth Brigade on 1 July 1937 at Albacete.[3] The Canadian soldiers named it after William Lyon Mackenzie and Louis-Joseph Papineau, who led the Rebellion of 1837–1838. They became noted 19th century politicians, standing for a responsive, reform-minded government. The Canadians chose this name as a symbol of their national identity and their commitment to the elected Spanish Republican side against the Nationalist insurgency headed by General Francisco Franco.

The Mac-Paps came from both the U.S. and Canada. In fact, the Americans initially outnumbered the Canadians 2 to 1, and there was discussion about possibly forming another American battalion. Later, however, Canadians comprised over half of the Mackenzie-Papineau Battalion. As casualties mounted in the unit, it began to incorporate more Spanish-born volunteers and conscripts.[citation needed]

In the fighting at Fuentes de Ebro in October 1937, the Mac-Paps were commanded by American Robert G. Thompson.[6] By November, the battalion had its first Canadian commander, Captain Edward Cecil-Smith from Toronto. He was a CPC member, a co-author of the banned play Eight Men Speak, a journalist, and a former militiaman. Cecil-Smith commanded the Mackenzie–Papineau Battalion for most of its existence.[7]

Company Three of the Mac-Paps (under Lieutenant Lionel Edwards of Edmonton) earned distinction at the Battle of Teruel (December 1937 – February 1938).[8] After withstanding the most intense artillery barrage of the war, the Canadian soldiers held their battered trench position and routed the advancing Nationalist forces. The heroism displayed by the Canadians at Teruel won the praise of American and British war correspondents and military observers: "The Battalion received a special citation of bravery from the Army, and Captain E. Cecil Smith was promoted to the rank of Major for his brilliant leadership in the action."[8]

1938

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By early 1938, the tide had turned in favor of the Nationalist side, which enjoyed superior manpower and materiel, due in large part to the aid they were receiving from Nazi Germany and fascist Italy. The Mackenzie–Papineau Battalion fought in several major 1938 battles, including the Aragon Offensive (March–April), more commonly known to Republican forces as the "Retreats". The Finnish-American machine gun companies successfully repelled the Nationalists, but the collapse of the front on their flanks compelled the Mac-Paps to join the withdrawal.[citation needed] Their final engagement was the Battle of the Ebro (July–September). This decisive Nationalist victory broke the back of the Republican forces.

In the end, Spanish Prime Minister Juan Negrín ordered the International Brigades withdrawn on September 21, 1938. Madrid fell six months later on March 28, 1939. By the end of the war, of the 1,546 Canadians known to have fought in Spain, 721 perished.[citation needed]

Returning to Canada was an arduous ordeal for the surviving soldiers, who depended on friends and family to collect the money to get them home; some soldiers were arrested in France. The Canadian government continued its policy of ignoring or prosecuting the veterans of Spain, in accordance with the Foreign Enlistment Act. It was not until January 1939 that the government agreed that the veteran combatants could return to Canada. Upon their arrival, many were investigated by the RCMP because of their Communist Party affiliations and were denied employment. A majority of Mac-Pap veterans volunteered to fight in World War II, but some were rejected as "politically unreliable".[9]

Legacy and commemoration

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Because the Canadian government chose non-intervention in the Spanish Civil War, the Mac-Pap volunteers do not have status in military institutions or in the national honoring of veterans. The Canadians who died in the war are not included in the Books of Remembrance in the Peace Tower. Their sacrifice is not commemorated on federal war memorials or in Remembrance Day services. Those who survived the Spanish conflict were not entitled to veterans' benefits.

Mackenzie-Papineau plaque in Victoria, BC

A partial "thaw" occurred at the end of the 20th century. A group known as the Veterans and Friends of the Mackenzie–Papineau Battalion gained government permission to install three monuments to honor Canada's Spanish Civil War veterans. The first was erected in Toronto on June 4, 1995 at Queen's Park. The monument is a large boulder transported from the battlefield of Gandesa, Spain. Attached to the boulder is a federal plaque from the national Historic Sites and Monuments Board, reflecting the status of the Mackenzie–Papineau Battalion as a National Historic Event.[10]

Mackenzie-Papineau monument in Ottawa

A statue to the Mackenzie–Papineau Battalion was unveiled February 12, 2000 in Victoria, British Columbia. [11]

Another monument was erected in Ottawa's Green Island Park in 2001.[10] This project was also organized and funded by Veterans and Friends of the Mackenzie–Papineau Battalion. The monument lists the names of 1,546 Canadian volunteers, which includes all Canadians who served in the Mac-Paps or other battalions, plus those who served in the medical, communications, transportation, and translation corps. The monument was designed by architect Oryst Sawchuck of Sudbury, selected in a juried competition by the organizers. It shows a figure of Prometheus raising his arm towards the Sun, cut out of a five-metre-high (16 ft) sheet of steel. A 12-metre memorial wall is inscribed with volunteers' names.[12]

Dr. Norman Bethune, a key developer of mobile army medical units for the Republican side, is one of the few Canadians to be officially recognized for his service in Spain.[13]

The Canadian folk band, Hudson Valley Sally, recorded a song entitled "The Mackenzie-Papineau Brigade" (note: it should be "Battalion"). The song details the adventures of the Mac-Paps and their fight in Spain.[14]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c d e Bowers, Alex (10 April 2024). "Canada and the Spanish Civil War". Legion Magazine. Royal Canadian Legion. Retrieved 9 May 2024.
  2. ^ a b "Speech on the Occasion of the Unveiling of the Mackenzie-Papineau Battalion Monument". Ottawa: Governor General of Canada. 20 October 2001.
  3. ^ a b c Howard, Victor; de Bruin, Tabitha (12 November 2021). "Mackenzie-Papineau Battalion". The Canadian Encyclopedia.
  4. ^ "Canada". Virtual Spanish Civil War. Retrieved 7 December 2024.
  5. ^ Brooks, Chris (15 June 2016). "Jarama Series: Canadians in the Lincoln Battalion". The Volunteer.
  6. ^ Landis, Arthur H. (1988). Death in the Olive Groves: American Volunteers in the Spanish Civil War 1936-1939. New York: Paragon House. pp. 88–91. ISBN 155778051X.
  7. ^ Landis 1988, p. 104.
  8. ^ a b Brooks, Chris (17 November 2018). "The History of the MacKenzie-Papineau Battalion by Frank Rogers". The Volunteer.
  9. ^ Howard, Victor; Reynolds, Mac (1986). MacKenzie-Papineau Battalion: The Canadian Contingent in the Spanish Civil War. McGill-Queen's University Press. ISBN 978-0-88629-049-8.
  10. ^ a b "Ottawa, Ontario". www.web.net. Archived from the original on 11 December 2004.
  11. ^ "The Spanish Civil War Memorial". Archived from the original on 27 February 2022.
  12. ^ Mackenzie-Papineau Battalion monument
  13. ^ MacLean, Lloyd D.; Entin, Martin A. (2000). "Our surgical heritage: Norman Bethune and Edward Archibald: sung and unsung heroes". The Annals of Thoracic Surgery. 70: 1746–1752. Archived from the original on 16 February 2012.
  14. ^ "The Mackenzie-Papineau Brigade" - Canadian International Brigade Song. YouTube. 2023-09-25. Retrieved 2024-09-13.

Bibliography

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  • Beeching, William C. Canadian Volunteers: Spain 1936–1939. Regina: U. of Regina, 1989.
  • Hoar, Victor and Reynolds, Mac. The Mackenzie-Papineau Battalion: The Canadian Contingent in the Spanish Civil War. Toronto (Copp Clark), 1969. OCLC 322528697
  • Howard, Victor, with Reynolds, Mac. The Mackenzie-Papineau Battalion: The Canadian Contingent in the Spanish Civil War. Ottawa: Carleton University, 1986. ISBN 978-0886290498 online

Further reading

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