Wang Wenxian: The International Brigades in Spain and the Chinese United Front Against Japanese Aggression
In the 1930s, Japan openly launched a war of aggression against China; simultaneously, the Spanish Civil War broke out. During almost the same period, these two countries became the Eastern and Western battlefields, respectively, of the world anti-fascist war. The close interaction between these two battlefields profoundly demonstrated that the world anti-fascist war was not an isolated state action, but a global feat of solidarity and collective struggle.
The International Brigades during the Spanish Civil War and the Chinese Chinese-path national united front against Japanese aggression represented two different yet complementary anti-fascist models: the former was a model of transnational internationalist support, while the latter was a model of total national resistance based on local conditions. Although they occupied different geographical regions and historical backgrounds, both held high the common banner of anti-fascism. There were many points of mutual reference between them, fully manifesting the dialectical tension between internationalism and Sinicization, and exerting a far-reaching influence on the final victory of the world anti-fascist war. This year marks the 89th anniversary of the founding of the International Brigades, as well as the 80th anniversary of the victory of the Chinese People's War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression and the World Anti-Fascist War. Deeply reflecting on the international anti-fascist chapters co-written by Spain and China can still provide important spiritual wealth and intellectual resources for humanity to respond to common challenges.
The prelude to the transnational anti-fascist struggle. In July 1936, the Spanish Civil War broke out. Germany and Italy provided equipment to the rebels and directly dispatched troops to participate in the war, while the Soviet Union provided aid to the Republican government. The Spanish Civil War became the first international contest between fascist and anti-fascist forces.
The membership of the International Brigades was highly representative. Under the call of the Comintern [1], more than 30,000 Chinese workers in Europe, overseas students, Communist Party members, and other revolutionaries from over 50 countries rushed to Spain in various ways, including a group of Chinese volunteers living in various parts of the world. International Brigade volunteers signed an oath: "I come here voluntarily to save the freedom of Spain and the whole world; if necessary, I will give the last drop of my blood." They fought heroically on the battlefield, and their spirit of sacrifice has been recorded in the annals of the international communist movement, becoming a symbol of the internationalist spirit. This spirit provided an important example for the later global anti-fascist united front. The Spanish people's anti-fascist struggle lasted until the end of March 1939, and more than 10,000 members of the International Brigades gave their precious lives. Regrettably, the International Brigades failed to effectively integrate local Spanish social forces. This predicament revealed the limitations of internationalist practice—namely, that it is difficult to deal with complex local contradictions once detached from a specific historical environment.
The Chinese national united front against Japanese aggression was an innovation in localized theory. The formation process of the Chinese national united front against Japanese aggression embodied localized characteristics based on China’s national conditions. Following Japan’s occupation of Northeast China, the anti-Japanese enthusiasm of the people across the country was aroused. In July 1935, the Seventh Congress of the Comintern held in Moscow passed the "Resolution on the Establishment of an Anti-Fascist United Front," which clearly put forward the strategic goal of establishing an anti-fascist united front and called on communist parties, social democratic parties, and other forces in various countries to unite against fascism. On August 1, 1935, the delegation of the Communist Party of China (CPC) to the Comintern, in the name of the Central Government of the Chinese Soviet and the Central Committee of the CPC, drafted and published the "Letter to All Compatriots on Resisting Japan and Saving the Nation" (the "August 1st Declaration"), calling on people of all strata, parties, and circles across the country to unite, stop the civil war, and resist Japan in unison. In December of the same year, the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee held an enlarged meeting at Wayaobu [2] in northern Shaanxi. In his keynote speech, Mao Zedong pointed out: "The current situation requires us to bravely discard closed-doorism [3] and adopt a broad united front." The meeting decided to accept the tactical shift of the Seventh Congress of the Comintern and realize the strategic shift of the focus from the domestic revolutionary war to the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression. With the peaceful settlement of the Xi'an Incident [4] and the publication of the "Declaration on Kuomintang-Communist Cooperation" in 1937, the second KMT-CPC cooperation was brought about. This combined internationalist principles with Chinese reality to establish the national united front against Japanese aggression, realizing a total national war of resistance where "no distinction is made between north and south, or between young and old."
Interaction between the Western and Eastern battlefields. Although Spain and China are geographically distant, there were still ideological exchanges and mutual influences between the Spanish Civil War and the Chinese people's War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression. Chinese Communists closely followed the development of the Spanish Civil War and drew resistance strategies from it. Zhu De [5] pointed out in his article "A Letter to the Spanish People" that the Spanish people's war was "not only for the liberation of the Spanish people, but also for world peace," "inspiring us to fight more resolutely against the main enemy of the Chinese nation—Japanese imperialism!" and "You have given the anti-fascist masses throughout the world the most precious experience; you are the finest models of anti-fascism in the world!" The CPC also expressed support for the Spanish Republican cause through public opinion propaganda. In May 1937, Mao Zedong clearly stated in "A Letter from the Chinese Soviet Government to the Spanish People": "The struggle of the Chinese people cannot be separated from your struggle in Spain. The Communist Party of China is now helping and encouraging you, the people of Spain, by fighting against the Japanese fascists."
The composition and dissemination of the song "Defend Madrid" (later "Defending Madrid") was a typical manifestation of this interaction. In the second half of 1936, when Lyu Ji was in charge of the "Song Research Association," he proposed composing a song to support the just struggle of the Spanish people; Mai Xin wrote the lyrics and created "Defend Madrid." Once this song, overflowing with internationalist spirit, was introduced, "amateur choirs" actively mobilized workers, students, and other groups for rehearsals and public performances; the singing floated all the way from rear-area cities to the front-line battlefields.
This interaction was also two-way. The government of the Spanish Republic, the Communist Party, and left-wing organizations condemned Japan's aggression against China and expressed solidarity with the Chinese people through open letters, declarations, and voices in international venues. Although Spain's own situation was difficult, this moral support was of great significance. The two major battlefields jointly constructed the early prototype of the international anti-fascist front.
Chinese volunteers who participated in the International Brigades, such as Xie Weijin, Zhang Ruishu, Liu Jingtian, Chen Wenrao, Zhang Ji, Yang Chunrong, and Chen Agen, either fought bravely on the front lines or actively served in logistics, embodying the Chinese people's support for the international anti-fascist cause. After the International Brigades were disbanded, Xie Weijin, Zhang Ruishu, Liu Jingtian, and others overcame numerous hardships and resolutely returned to their motherland to join the War of Resistance. At the same time, some members of the International Brigades, such as Norman Bethune, Dwarkanath Kotnis (Fu Ladu), and Richard Brown (Bai Lefu)—the "Spanish Doctors"—traveled to China to support the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression. Although there were no Spaniards among them, they brought precious medical experience and the spirit of the anti-fascist struggle.
Deep integration of international solidarity and local mobilization. Both Spain and China proceeded from their own realities, forming anti-fascist strategies with their own characteristics, while simultaneously contributing these experiences to the international anti-fascist cause. The International Brigades of the Spanish Civil War and the Chinese national united front against Japanese aggression were both similar and distinctive in their backgrounds, organizational methods, and strategic objectives.
From the perspective of internationalism, the International Brigades were composed of volunteers from multiple countries, with obvious transnational characteristics; the Chinese national united front was mainly based on its own country, actively mobilizing forces from all strata domestically. From the perspective of organizational form, the International Brigades belonged to a model of "internalizing foreign aid," where external forces directly participated in internal combat; the Chinese national united front was a model of "internal growth with external links," seeking international support on the basis of integrating domestic resources.
The practices of Spain and China showed that an effective anti-fascist struggle must achieve a dialectical unity between local consciousness and a global vision. The Spanish Republican government organized local resistance on the one hand and appealed for international support on the other; while forming the national united front against Japanese aggression, China also actively sought international aid, such as the support of the Soviet Volunteer Group and the American Flying Tigers.
Although the International Brigades failed to reverse the fate of the Spanish Republican government, the symbolic meaning inherent in its spirit is profound and lasting. It embodied the early awakening and resistance of global progressive forces against fascism, accumulating experience for the subsequent formation of the world anti-fascist united front. The Chinese national united front against Japanese aggression condensed the strength of 400 million people to face the national crisis together, building an indestructible Eastern pillar for the world anti-fascist war.
The CPC took the Spanish Civil War as a mirror, summarizing experiences and lessons from this conflict, which was called "a civil war that was not a civil war." In October 1939, in the "Introducing 'The Communist,'" Mao Zedong listed the united front as the first of the "three magic weapons" [6] and summarized the Spanish experience as the theoretical basis for "the weak defeating the strong" and "protracted war," laying the ideological foundation for the War of Liberation [7].
Facts have proved that for the Chinese people to win the victory of the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, there must be a strong and mature party leadership to maintain internal consolidation and unity; the broadest domestic and international united front must be established, but the fundamental principles of independence and self-reliance must never be abandoned.
Historical experience fully demonstrates that only by deeply integrating international solidarity with local mobilization can true change be achieved. In today's era, the world faces brand-new challenges, and this wisdom of organically combining global solidarity with local practice is particularly necessary. Members of the International Brigades once vowed "to save the freedom of Spain and the whole world"; the CPC actively advocates the concept of "a community with a shared future for humanity." Although the two are separated by more than 80 years in time, they are consistent in essence, jointly manifesting humanity's unremitting pursuit of peace and justice.
(The author is a researcher at the Institute of World History, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences) Source: Guangming Daily (October 29, 2025) Web Editor: Huihui