‘They were heroes’: The Teesside volunteers who fought in the Spanish Civil War

An event to remember thirty Teesside volunteers who fought against fascism in the Spanish Civil War has been held in Hartlepool for the first time.
The Spanish Civil War arose in the 1930s when right-wing General Francisco Franco led a rebel military coup against Spain’s democratically elected government.
Franco’s forces were backed by Adolf Hitler’s Nazi Germany and Benito Mussolini’s fascist Italy. Because of the international context and issues, the civil war is often seen as the ‘first battle’ of the Second World War, which followed.
Thirty Teesside men joined the International Brigade, to fight against General Franco’s forces. Nine of them lost their lives.
People gathered at Heugh Battery Museum today to remember them.
Elaine Spybe’s father, Herbert, travelled to Spain from Middlesbrough in the 1930’s.
She said: “He hitchhiked, borrowing an over coat from his brother, down to Southampton and got a cattle train across France and hiked over the Pyrenees with other international brigades.
“I think he was a hero. It’s at the core of who we are in terms of our beliefs and the importance of maintaining democracy and standing up for what’s correct.”
Otto Esatensen from Redcar also joined the global movement – the International Brigade to fight against General Franco’s forces.
His nephew John Sutherland said: “Its nice to remember these things. It is kind of un heard of isn’t it because because the Second World War came so quickly after it.
“There’s very little said about the Spanish Civil War unless you’re interested in that type of history.”
Tony Fox, from Stockton, helped to organise the Hartlepool event today.
He said: “Speaking to the relatives, they’ve not been able to tell their stories so for the first time there’s people actually interested in these stories and commemorating them.”
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