| 86th Mixed Brigade 86.ª Brigada Mixta | |
|---|---|
 Military flag of the Popular Army | |
| Active | 1937–1939 |
| Country | .svg) Spain |
| Branch | Spanish Republican Army - Infantry International Brigades (January - October 1938) |
| Type | Mixed Brigade |
| Role | Home Defence |
| Size | Fourbattalions: The 341, 342, 343 and 344 |
| Part of | 24th Division (1937) 63rd Division (1937 - 1939) |
| Garrison/HQ | Puertollano |
| Engagements | Spanish Civil War |
| Commanders | |
| Notable commanders | Aldo Morandi |
The86th Mixed Brigade (Spanish:86.ª Brigada Mixta),[1] was amixed brigade of theSpanish Republican Army in theSpanish Civil War. It was formed in March 1937 withbattalions of theCarabineros corps. Until its demise it operated mostly in theSierra Morena area, at the southern limits of the territory held by the Republic.
In January 1938 it was deeply restructured and transformed into anInternational Brigade having 2,338 international fighters which lasted until 1 October the same year.[2]
A unit known asBrigada Móvil de Puertollano was established towards the end of 1936 led by Infantry Lieutenant Colonel Ernesto Martín del Castillo. It was organized with twoCarabineros battalions fromRequena andCastellón, the 'Pablo Iglesias nr 2 Battalion' fromValencia and anotherCarabineros battalion that joined the unit inLinares.[2]
In March 1937 this military unit became the 86th Mixed Brigade(86.ª Brigada Mixta) and one of itsCarabineros battalions was replaced by the20th International Battalion(20.º Batallón Internacional). The newly-formed battalion had four companies: the First(1ª compañía) was French; the Second(2ª compañía) or Anglo-American Company was English-speaking with a Latin-American, an American and a British and Irish section; the Third(3ª compañía) included Czechoslovak and Polish volunteers; and the Fourth(4ª compañía de ametralladoras) was made up of Germans and Austrians.[3][4]
The leader of the new unit was Italian Militia MajorAldo Morandi, who was replaced as head of the 20th International Battalion by Mexican ColonelJuan Bautista Gómez, with German MajorFritz Schiller as Chief of Staff.[3] The reorganized brigade became part of the24th Division of the Spanish Republican Army.[2]
On 10 March the brigade performed poorly in combats aroundSierra Mulva. Between 27 March and 13 April it took part in military operations overPeñarroya-Pueblonuevo, attackingPozoblanco in the left flank of the campaign.[5] On 22 August the brigade was badly shattered atPuerto de San Vicente. Between 18 and 20 October it took part in the defense of theSierra de la Noria. In December it was made part of the63rd Division of the8th Army Corps and again it suffered a lot of casualties during the attack againstGranja de Torrehermosa, so that it was relieved of its duties and sent toVillanueva de Córdoba in order to be reorganized. At this time there were numerous desertions among the remaining members of the wrecked brigade.[2]
In January 1938, as a result of heavy restructuring, the 20th International Battalion was split into three battalions, the 20th, 21st and 22nd. At the same time three of theCarabineros battalions were transferred to the222nd Mixed Brigade so that the only remaining Spanish battalion was the 'Pablo Iglesias nr 2 Battalion'. Thus the 86th Mixed Brigade became one more International Brigade, with 2,338 international fighters of which 57 were leaders and officers and 29 were sub-officers. The newly-formed battalions were led by Militia MajorsErnst Düdel,Paul Odpadlik,Cuni Bernhardt andAdolf Rach, while themachine gun company was led byGeorg Prunzings.[2]
The restructured brigade returned to the front line at theSierra del Castaño and the Peña del Águila, replacing the103rd Mixed Brigade. It saw action during the attack against the rebel positions atVillafranca de Córdoba covering the front in theGuadalmellato andMiradero positions.[2] However, in order to satisfy the demands of theNon-Intervention Committee, the foreign members of the brigade were withdrawn on 1 October 1938 and were replaced by battalions of Spanish conscripts. Being composed of local soldiers, thenceforward the 86th Mixed Brigade was wrapped up as an International Brigade.[6]
In its last phase the 86th Mixed Brigade was initially led by Militia MajorLino Carrasco Ortiz, who was replaced by Militia MajorRamón Lleida Gómez after only a month.[1] The unit saw little action in the intervening months until the final defeat and surrender of the Spanish Republic in March 1939.[6]