The Bombing of Granollers took place during the

Spanish Civil War The Spanish Civil War ( es, Guerra Civil Española)) or The Revolution ( es, La Revolución, link=no) among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War ( es, Cuarta Guerra Carlista, link=no) among Carlism, Carlists, and The Rebellion ( es, La Rebeli ...

in 1938. On 31 May 1938, the Italian ''Aviazione Legionaria'' bombed the town of

Granollers Granollers () is a city in central Catalonia, about 30 kilometres north-east of Barcelona. It is the capital and most densely populated city in the comarca of Vallès Oriental. Granollers is now a bustling business centre, having grown from a ...

. There were between 100 and 224 civilian deaths.

Background

On 16 April 1938, the Anglo-Italian pact was signed. Italy accepted to withdraw her troops from Spain once the war was over and the countries agreed to guarantee the status quo in the Mediterranean. Nevertheless, Italy sent three thousand troops to Spain on 11 April and the Italians continued their bombings against the Republican Spain. Franco wanted to eliminate the Republican maritime commerce and destroy the Republican morale. To achieve this, he authorized the ''

Aviazione Legionaria The Legionary Air Force ( it, Aviazione Legionaria, es, Aviación Legionaria) was an expeditionary corps from the Italian Royal Air Force that was set up in 1936. It was sent to provide logistical and tactical support to the Nationalist facti ...

'' and the ''

Legion Condor The Condor Legion (german: Legion Condor) was a unit composed of military personnel from the air force and army of Nazi Germany, which served with the Nationalist faction during the Spanish Civil War of July 1936 to March 1939. The Condor Legio ...

'' to undertake indiscriminate bombings of the Republican cities. Valencia,

Barcelona Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...

Alicante Alicante ( ca-valencia, Alacant) is a city and municipality in the Valencian Community, Spain. It is the capital of the province of Alicante and a historic Mediterranean port. The population of the city was 337,482 , the second-largest in ...

and other Spanish cities were bombed.

The Bombing

On 31 May, five Italian bombers of the ''

'', bombed the city of

. The town, 20 miles north of

, had no military targets. The bombers dropped 40 bombs of 100 kilograms in the city center. There were between 100 and 224 civilian dead (most of them women and children). The British government sent two officers to carry out an enquiry and they reported that the bombing must have been often aimed at non military targets.

Aftermath

The British government and the

Vatican Vatican may refer to: Vatican City, the city-state ruled by the pope in Rome, including St. Peter's Basilica, Sistine Chapel, Vatican Museum The Holy See * The Holy See, the governing body of the Catholic Church and sovereign entity recognized ...

protested to

Burgos Burgos () is a city in Spain located in the autonomous community of Castile and León. It is the capital and most populated municipality of the province of Burgos. Burgos is situated in the north of the Iberian Peninsula, on the confluence o ...

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitu ...

, and

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus ( legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

. Ciano said that Franco ordered the attacks and the Italians were not responsible, but he promised to do what he could, nevertheless he said to the German ambassador that: "Actually, we have, of course, done nothing, and have no intention of doing anything either".Thomas, Hugh. ''The Spanish Civil War.'' Penguin Books. 2001. London. p.804

References

*Preston, Paul. ''The Spanish Civil War. Reaction, revolution & revenge.'' Harper Perennial. 2006. London. *Thomas, Hugh. ''The Spanish Civil War.'' Penguin Books. 2001. London.

Footnotes

External links

Granollers after the bombing.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Granollers, bombing Explosions in 1938 1938 in Catalonia Conflicts in 1938 Strategic bombing operations and battles Mass murder in 1938 Spanish Civil War massacres May 1938 events Granollers