"Mothers! Women! When the years pass by and the wounds of war are
stanched; when the memory of the sad and bloody days dissipates in a
present of liberty, of peace and of wellbeing...speak to your children.
Tell them of these men of the International Brigades." Dolores Ibarruri,
'La Pasionaria, ' Madrid 1938. Almost 200 Welshmen volunteered to join
the International Brigade and travelled to Spain to fight fascism with
the Republicans during the 1936-1939 Spanish Civil War. Whilst over 150
returned home, at least 35 died during the brutal conflict. You Are
Legend is their remarkable story. Lovingly and thoroughly researched by
Graham Davies, You Are Legend outlines the motives, values, and
actions of the volunteers from Wales by exploring the social, cultural,
religious, and political context of Wales during the 1930s. It also
provides a fascinating insight into who they were and their political
backgrounds, and follows their journeys to Spain and their experiences
in a series of key battles fought by the British Battalion before
documenting their deaths or safe return to Wales. Politically active as
trade unionists, members of the Communist or Labour parties, and hunger
marchers, many were unemployed miners and most were working class with
the fighting spirit of the coalfield and the impoverished. Unprepared
and sometimes incredulous, these volunteers became immersed in a civil
war which created a rupture in the heart of Spain that has never fully
healed. You Are Legend is the first book to fully document all of the
Welsh volunteers.
