Spanish Civil War labourers, and parts of the middle class. The conservative, strongly Catholic Basque country, along with Catholic Galicia and the more left-leaning Catalonia, sought autonomy or independence from the central government of Madrid. The Republican government allowed for the possibility of self-government for the two regions, whose forces were gathered under the People's Republican Army ("Ejército Popular Republicano", or EPR), which was reorganized into mixed brigades after October 1936. A few well-known people fought on the Republican side, such as English novelist George Orwell (who wrote "Homage to Catalonia" (1938), an account of his experiences in the war) and Canadian thoracic
The Spanish Labyrinth “What is remarkable about Brenan’s account of the Second Republic of 1931-6” is the fairness that has enabled it to stand the test of time… his account stands out as surprisingly impartial.” The Spanish Labyrinth The Spanish Labyrinth (full title: "The Spanish Labyrinth: An Account of the Social and Political Background of the Spanish Civil War") by Gerald Brenan, is an account of Spain's social, economic and political history as a background to the Spanish Civil War. First published in 1943, it has stayed in print, with repeated reissues. Together with works by noted Hispanists such as Paul Preston, Raymond