The Bones in the Forest by Michael Eaude

The mayor of a small village in Aragón is shot dead at night on a lonely mountain road. Nearby, in a forest glade, lie the remains of three republicans, murdered by Francoist forces during the Spanish Civil War. Julia, a distant relative of one of the victims, joins a group who want to exhume their remains and give them a proper burial. They face strong resistance from a hard core of villagers, who are also resentful of outsiders’ attempts to identify the mayor’s killer.

A Gypsy and a Rebel: Lillian Urmston in the Spanish Civil War by Linda Palfreeman and Alicia García López

At the age of nineteen, Lillian Urmston volunteered her services as a nurse in the Spanish Civil War, because she believed it was ‘the right thing to do’. This new biography by Linda Palfreeman and Alicia García López brings alive Lillian’s experience of working in front line field hospitals in Spain and drumming up support for the Republic during her periods of leave back home in Britain.

Perfidious Albion: Britain and the Spanish Civil War by Paul Preston

A new collection of essays discussing the hypocrisy of British foreign policy towards the Spanish Republic, in contrast to the selfless contribution of medical personnel from across the globe, including many doctors and nurses from Britain, Ireland and Commonwealth countries, and assessing the influence of prominent ‘writer-historians’ including George Orwell and Herbert Southworth.

Forged in Spain by Richard Baxell

Between 1936 and 1939 several thousand men and women from Britain left the safety of their homes to participate in another country’s civil war. Drawing substantially on new material, this collection of ten biographies tells the stories of some of those extraordinary men and women, explaining why they went to Spain, what happened to them there and the lasting, often dramatic impact the war had on their lives.

Remembering Spain edited by Joshua Newmark

Essays, Memoirs and Poems on the International Brigades and the Spanish Civil War, selected from the pages of the magazine of the International Brigade Memorial Trust.

Behind the Spanish Barricades by John Langdon-Davies, with a Prologue by Paul Preston.

First published in 1936, this memoir chronicles the early months of the Spanish Civil War through the eyes of a seasoned journalist well acquainted with Spanish and Catalan cultures. Arriving on a second-hand motorbike, he experiences the exuberant atmosphere in Barcelona during its short-lived proletarian revolution, as well as the horrors of war as he visits Toledo during the siege of the Alcázar.

The Last Mile to Huesca: An Australian Nurse in the Spanish Civil War by Judith Keene

THE DIARY OF AGNES HODGSON

The Last Mile to Huesca is a fascinating record of the experiences of an Australian volunteer nurse in a front-line field hospital in Aragón, during the fierce fighting for control of Huesca and other Aragonese towns and villages, during 1937 and 1938. With a fully revised introduction by Judith Keene.

Hotel in Spain – Hotel in Flight by Nancy Johnstone.

A MEMOIR IN TWO VOLUMES

Hotel in Spain is a light-hearted account of a couple who leave their jobs in London and move to Tossa de Mar on the Costa Brava to set up their own hotel, covering the period from 1934 to 1936. Hotel in Flight is the dark sequel, starting in July 1936 as Civil War erupts in Spain and throws the country into turmoil…

Hampshire Heroes: Volunteer Fighters in the Spanish Civil War by Alan Lloyd.

Between 1936 and 1939 some 2,500 men and women from Britain and Ireland volunteered to support the Spanish Republic in its fight against Franco’s insurrection. Around 40 of them had strong connections with Hampshire. Alan Lloyd has painstakingly researched their stories to provide this record of their contribution as soldiers, nurses, doctors and pilots.

Single to Spain & Escape from Disaster by Keith Scott Watson

Keith Scott Watson was a journalist who fought alongside Esmond Romilly in the International Brigades, “resigning” shortly before the Battle of Boadilla, where most of his British comrades were slaughtered. He stayed on in Spain and was one of the first reporters on the scene at Guernica after the bombardment and one of the last to leave Barcelona as Franco’s murderous forces swept in. These memoirs were first published in 1937 & 1940.

In Place of Splendour by Constancia de la Mora, with an introduction by Soledad Fox Maura

Constancia de la Mora was one of the first Spanish women to obtain a divorce under the new laws passed by the fledgling Spanish Republic. When the fascist rebellion broke out in 1936, she became a key figure in the Republic’s international press office. This is her autobiography, first published in 1940.

The Fighter Fell in Love: A Spanish Civil War Memoir by James R Jump, with a foreword by Paul Preston and a preface by Jack Jones

At the age of 21, James R Jump left his fiancée in England and went to Spain to join the International Brigades in their fight against Franco and his fascist supporters. He saw action in the Battle of the Ebro and was mentioned in despatches for his bravery. This is his previously unpublished memoir.

Struggle for the Spanish Soul & Spain in the Post-War World by Arturo & Ilsa Barea, with a foreword by William Chislettt

In Struggle for the Spanish Soul (1941) Barea asserted the imperative for the democracies of Europe to unseat Franco. Similar arguments made in Spain in the Post-War World (1945) also fell on deaf ears. Together, these two essays paint a grim picture of the early years of the dictatorship, which was to endure until Franco’s death in 1975.

Never More Alive: Inside the Spanish Republic by Kate Mangan, with a preface by Paul Preston

Kate Mangan went to Spain in search of her lover, Jan Kurzke, who had joined the International Brigade. She ended up working for the Republic’s Press & Censorship office, visiting battlefronts and meeting a host of characters including Auden, Hemingway, Robert Capa and Gerda Taro. When Jan was injured she helped him escape across the border into France . This is her memoir.

The Good Comrade: Memoirs of an International Brigaderby Jan Kurzke, with an introduction by Richard Baxell

Jan Kurzke was an artist who fled Nazi Germany in the early 1930s and tramped round the south of Spain, witnessing first-hand the poverty of the rural population. When the civil war broke out in 1936, he joined the International Brigade. Many of his fellow volunteers died in the savage battles on the outskirts of Madrid and Jan himself was seriously wounded at Boadilla.

British Women and the Spanish Civil War by Angela Jackson

Why would young British women risk their lives by volunteering to serve in medical units during Spain’s bitter civil war? Why would so many women here in Britain dedicate their energies to raising funds to help people suffering in Spain ? The answers to these and other intriguing questions can be found in this revised and updated paperback edition of Angela Jackson’s classic study.

Firing a Shot for Freedom, The Memoirs of Frida Stewart with a Foreword and Afterword by Angela Jackson

Frida Stewart became involved with Aid for Spain ended up driving an ambulance out to Murcia. She worked for the Republican Press Office in Madrid, visiting the front and “firing a shot for freedom”. She was later in France when the Nazis invaded and was imprisoned in an internment camp, from which she escaped with a friend. This is her story.

Boadilla by Esmond Romilly

The nephew that Winston Churchill disowned describes his experiences fighting with the International Brigade in the Battle of Madrid. Written on his honeymoon in St. Jean de Luz after he eloped with Jessica Mitford.

My House in Málaga by Sir Peter Chalmers Mitchell

Sir Peter retired to Málaga in 1934 at the age of 70, after an eminent career in zoology. Two years later the Spanish Civil War erupted. While most ex-pats fled to Gibraltar, Sir Peter stayed on to “protect his house and servants” from the fascist insurgents. He ended up in prison for sheltering Arthur Koestler from Franco’s head of propaganda, who had threatened to “shoot him like a dog”.

Spanish Portrait by Elizabeth Lake

A brutally honest, semi-autobiographical novel set in San Sebastián and Madrid between 1934 and 1936, portraying a frantic love affair against a background of apprehension and confusion as Spain drifted inexorably towards civil war.

“A remarkable first novel revealing a remorseless interest in emotional truth” – Elizabeth Bowen

The Tilting Planet Poems by David Marshall

David Marshall was born in Middlesbrough in 1916 and volunteered for the International Brigade in 1936. During his long life he was a civil servant, a theatre scenery builder, and Master of the Thames sailing barge “Jock”. This selection of his poems written over the course of his life was first published shortly before he died, in 2005.

Some Still Live by F.G. Tinker Jr

Tinker was a US pilot who signed up with the Republican forces because he didn’t like Mussolini. He was also attracted by the prospect of adventure and a generous pay cheque. Once in Spain, Tinker became the Republic’s ace pilot. In his free time he roamed the bars and hotels of Madrid in search of champagne and a hot bath, and getting drunk with Ernest Hemingway This is his memoir.