Foreign involvement in the Spanish Civil War Contingent. While not supported officially, many American volunteers such as the Abraham Lincoln Brigade fought for the Republicans. 'Spain' became the cause célèbre for the left-leaning intelligentsia across the Western world, and many prominent artists and writers entered the Republic's service. As well, it attracted a large number of foreign left-wing working class men, for whom the war offered not only idealistic adventure but also an escape from post-Depression unemployment. Among the more famous foreigners participating on the Republic's side was George Orwell, who went on to write about his experiences in "Homage to Catalonia". Orwell's novel "Animal Farm" was
The Spanish Civil War and the British Left The Spanish Civil War and the British Left The Spanish Civil War and the British Left: Political Activism and the Popular Front is a 2007 book by Lewis H. Mates. Mates uses archival research and an analysis of local newspapers to offer an account of the effects of the Spanish Civil War on North East England. Though the North East did not historically have a significant radical left presence, it nonetheless saw a significant mobilisation in support of the Spanish Republic. Mates uses the case study of the North East to test assumptions about the British response to the Civil