The international brigades played a crucial role in stopping the fascist advance on Madrid during the Spanish Civil War. Workers and citizens from around the world came together to defend their common values and defeat fascism.
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The fight against fascism and authoritarianism is a timeless truth, as it poses a threat to freedom around the world. Many people, including citizens from Poland and around the world, recognize this and are willing to volunteer to fight against it.
The speaker discusses the atmosphere in Barcelona during the Spanish Civil War and the experience of joining a militia to fight against the military coup. He notes that the British policy of non-intervention meant that many volunteers were actively prevented from joining the fight against fascism in Spain.
Winston Churchill's nephew, Esmond Romilly, joined the international brigades as an unskilled laborer with a public school accent, fueled by coffee and cognac, sailing with a multinational crew.
The term "public school" in England actually means a fancy school, and the students who attend these schools are usually from privileged backgrounds. However, during the fight against fascism, some English public schoolboys identified with unskilled laborers and joined the fight against fascism alongside American volunteers.
The International Brigades played a critical role in stopping fascist advances in Spain, specifically at University City, a college campus that became very famous in history. Meanwhile, Franco's colonial army, including the Spanish Foreign Legion, was airlifted from Morocco to Seville by German planes in an operation Hitler himself named "Operation Magic Fire".