Battle of Ciudad Universitaria

The Battle of Ciudad Universitaria was a belligerent confrontation at the start of the defense of Madrid in the Spanish Civil War. This battle happened in the new campus area of the Ciudad Universitaria from the 15 to the 23 of November 1936 leaving a stable front until the end of the war. The republican militias' objective was "the defense of the capital at all costs", and for that, it was necessary to stop the advance of general Valera's troops and the fall of Madrid. On the other side, the attackers had as an objective to "conquer the city" as fast as possible. The persistence and tenacity of both sides in the battle meant an inflection point on the Spanish Civil War, partly because it was the first time that Franco's troops were stopped. The campus was also one of the most long-lasting confrontation points during the Spanish Civil War. The resistance shown in Madrid raised the morality of other fronts amongst the Gobierno de la República's controlled zone. The end of the battling period on the 23 of November 1936 was because of a change in strategy on part of the attackers. Between the main characteristics of this confrontation, it is worth mentioning the entrance to battle, for the first time in this war, of the varied troops that belonged to the International Brigades, just like the heavy military material of Soviet origins. The attackers received material and troops from Germany and Italy, being also one of the first times in history in which aerial bombing against the civil population was used.

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