The Battle of Alfambra took place in Alfambra

Alfambra

Alfambra is a municipality located in the province of Teruel, Aragon, Spain. , the municipality has a population of 676 inhabitants....

 between 5 and the 8 February 1938, during the Spanish Civil War

Spanish Civil War

The Spanish Civil WarAlso known as The Crusade among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War among Carlists, and The Rebellion or Uprising among Republicans. was a major conflict fought in Spain from 17 July 1936 to 1 April 1939...

. This battle was a part of the Battle of Teruel

Battle of Teruel

The Battle of Teruel was fought in and around the city of Teruel during the Spanish Civil War in December 1937 – February 1938. The combatants fought the battle during the worst Spanish winter in twenty years. It was one of the bloodier actions of the war. The city changed hands several times,...

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Background.

After the conquest of Teruel by the Republican army on 7 January, the Nationalists started an offensive in order to conquest the high ground around Teruel on 17 January and occupied the heights of La Muela, nevertheless the Republican troops led by Hernandez Saravia and backed by the International brigades, stopped the Nationalist offensive on 27 January.Then, the Nationalists concentrated an army of 100,000 men and 500 guns in the Sierra de Palomera in the north of Teruel, led by the general Juan Vigon, with three army corps (Aranda’s Galicia corps, Yague’s Morocco corps and the Garcia Valiño’s Navarre Corp), the Italian CTV

Corpo Truppe Volontarie

The Corps of Volunteer Troops was an Italian expeditionary force which was sent to Spain to support General Francisco Franco and the Spanish Nationalist forces during the Spanish Civil War...

and Monasterio’s cavalry division. On the other hand, the republican defenses in this part of the front were weak, since most of the republican trops was concentrated in the city of Teruel and the republican troops in this part of the front had never seen action.

Battle of Alfambra.

On 5 February, launched a major offensive towards the Alfambra river, along a front of 30 kilometres. The attack started with a massive cavalry charge of the Monasterio’s division, the last great mounted charge in the western Europe. The three nationalists army corps, broke the republican lines and advanced swiftly towards the Alfambra river. The republican forces were surrounded by the nationalists or fled in disorder. By the 7 february the Nationalists had conquered 500 square miles (1,295 km²) and huge amounts of material (munitions, weapons and ambulances), and aircraft (twelve on 7 February alone). The republicans had suffered 20,000-22,000 casualties, among them 7,000 prisoners.

Aftermath

By the 20 February the republican communications to Valencia from Teruel were threatened by the Nationalists and Hernandez Saravia gave orders for withdrawal from the city., although the republicans managed to form a defense line along the right bank of the Alfambra on 25 February.