Paper Soldiers ... of the Spanish Civil War

Until relatively recently (the last fifteen years or so) information about the Spanish Civil War was limited. Therefore when I was doing the research that culminated in my book, LA ULTIMA CRUZADA, I used whatever resources I could lay my hands on ... including a set of paper soldiers produced in Spain in 1979.

These were not any old paper soldiers; they were drawn by José María Bueno, who was (as far as I know) the greatest authority on Spanish Military uniforms. They paper soldiers (they were printed in full colour on thick card) were sold in sets of eight sheets, and as far as I known there were six sets. The whole series was entitled EL EJERCITO ESPANOL EN PARADA and showed troops as they would have appeared during the Victory Parade in 1939.

I own three of the six sets, Numbers 1, 3, and 4.

Set 1

• Infanteria
• Tiradores de Ifni-Sahara
• Mehal-la Jalifiana
• Bandera de F.E.T. y de las J.O.N.S.
• Infanteria de Marina
• Escolta mora de S.E. el Generalissimo
• Policia Montada de Sevilla
• Caballeria de las Milicias del Requete

Set 3

• Artilleria de Montana
• Artilleria de Montana, Escalon de Municionamiento
• Primer Tercio del Requete Navarro
• Grupo de Regulares de Melilla Numero 2
• Tabor de Caballeria de la Mehal-la
• Marina
• Servicio de Trabajo de F.E.T. y de las J.O.N.S.
• Bandera de Camisas Negras del la Division 'XXIII de Marzo'

Set 4

• Guardia Civil de Infanteria
• Guardia Civil de Caballeria
• Infanteria
• X Bandera de la Legion
• Mehal-la Jalifiana Infanteria
• Bandera de Falange Espanola
• Compania de 'Bersaglieri' Motorizados
• Compania de Carros Ligeros del C.T.V.

I found these paper soldiers to be invaluable when I was doing my research, and they have pride of place in my collection of books and documents relating to the Spanish Civil War.