The first attempt to occupy the Corunna Road was made by the "Agrupacion de Columnas y Tropas" under General Varelas's command on November 29th 1936.The aim was to hold the main Corunna road from the point at Las Rosas to the Iron Gates due East where the road enters Madrid and so occupy the line Colonia de la Paz ( a chalet neighbourhood), Pozuelo, Pozuelos Railway station, Aravaca, Cuesta de las Perdices (a Corunna Road height), and Cerro del Aguila.

The attack was leaded by Garcia Escamez who divided the troops in three columns:

a) a Cavalry column under Lieutnat Col. Gavilan (seven cavalry squadrons, a sapper platoon and two infantry platoons)

b) an infantry column "Casa de Campo column"under Col. Bartomeu (V Bandera del Tercio -Foreign legion-, II tabor of Regulares de Ceuta, II tabor of Mehal-la de Larache, IV Infantry Btn. de Toledo, a 65 mm battery and a 75 mm battery, a tank section from the first PzI Tank Company and a sapper section); and

c) an infantry column under Ltnant.Col. Siro Alonso command (called del "Ventorro del Cano Column" due to its original deployment) who had the main task, (VII Bandera del Tercio -Foreign legion-, I tabor of Regulares de Alhucemas, II and V tabores of Regulares de Larache, II tabor of Regulares de Tetuan, and one tabor of Mehal-la from Rif, two 65mm batteries and two 75mm batteries, two companies of PzI tanks (save a section with Bartomeu's forces) and the Pak-36 AT gun company. Support artillery was a 75mm.battery, two of 105mm and two of 155 batteries.

As you all know a Tabor is the Moroccan name for a Btn size unit. That addition a total force of around 7000 nationalists . The attack was to be made south to north, Bartomeu fixing the republican forces in the Casa de Campo, and the cavalry surrounding Pozuelo at the left flank going north east.

Republican forces were the III Mixed Brigade under the command of Captain of Carabineros Gal n in the Pozuelo area, and X Mixed Brigade in Aravaca under Army Commander Palacios totalling around 3700 men.

Galan was heavily fortified in an area full of stone summer "chalets", with plenty of stone walls and trenches. At dawn on the 29th these forces were taken by surprise and driven from the sanatorio (hospital) de Bellas Vistas, and Somosaguas, up to Pozuelo's cemetery. Kleber asked General Rojo urgently to send reinforcements, and General Palacios sent Krivoshen's T-26 tanks, the XII International Brigade (Garibaldi and Dombrowski Btn., but were used as reserve, except for a MG section which finally fought. Communist and Nationalist propaganda sources insist on the International units being decisive for the outcome ofthe battle). Also the Republican Btn."Nosotros" (CNT), "Pestana" (libertarian sindicalyst) and "Cavada"were sent as reinforcements.

The 1st Attack

The reduction of Humera , this was a small village in the casa de campo , 3 miles south of Aravaca and the main road . which was a village of small red brick buildings in a little grove of olive trees and a sanitorium ( hospital De Bella Vistas) - surrounded by difficult country of dark scrub oak and fields of silvery olive trees .

The Sanitorium was captured first , then the village , until the villas surrounding the railway station at Pozuelo . - these forces were counter attacked on 3 sides by the reds forcing the rebels to fall back on the railway line to the heights (entrenched ) north and west of Humera .

The next day (30th) the ( early A.M ) reds counter attacked with 16 T26b's around Pozuelo station , they found little opposition as the rebels had withdrawn - the tanks moved East to Humera village with small pockets of men following each tank in the first line , the 2nd line & 3rd line contained infantry with supporting MMG's ( one tank was hit and lost to a stray HE shell).

The Republican's met a hail of fire from the heights outside Humera , the rebels had 2 anti tank guns - 2 T26's were destroyed and 2 damaged and 11 turned and ran.

There was little sign of the Republican infantry , the rebels counter attacked with 11 PZ1 's , they found the infantry who had halted at the start of the dead ground in front of the heights , casualties were high , and the Republican units ran in disorder .

Nationalist cavalry had difficulties west of Pozuelo against well positioned MG positions which did not allow them to pass through.

Of Interest was the fight between PzI and T-26 (25 Russian tanks following ) with a result of five PZ 1 destroyed PzI in the first encounter (3 from 1st Co. and 2 from 2nd Co.) against one T-26 destroyed by the Pak-36 AT company. The attack on the 30th against Pozuelo and Humera made aresult of two PzI destroyed (2nd Co.) and 2 T-26 due to AT fire. The PzI could not cope against the T-26.

There is no trace of air supports in the different sources I've looked at. Only mentioned as reinforcements at a counter attack on December 4th by the Republicans.

The map for should be as follows: Pozuelo cemetery in the middle of the map; 1 km north: Pozuelo; 2 km south east: sanatorio Bella Vista; 2 km north east Humera. From Pozuelo: 1 km north east Pozuelo's railway st. and two more km same direction is Aravaca. El Escorial is 35 km.away north west, so better forget it.

The Battlefield

I've seen a few 1936 photos of the place. It looks like a dense populated zone with lots of isolated and gardened "chalets" two flats, surrrounded by stone walls. Pozuelo should be a usual Spanish village with lots of influence of Madrid's neighbourhood.

Sources

"La lucha en torno a Madrid" by Martinez Bande,
"Operaciones Militares de la guerra de Espana" by Lojendio, "Historia del Ejercito Popular e la Republica" by Salas Larrazabal and the 1999 J. Mazarrasa book on SCW tanks.
There is also an excellent narrative on the battle and the campaign that follow in Harold Cardozo's book 'March Of A Nation' .

More Battle of La Corunna Road: 1936

Historical Battle
OOB Using Command Decision Rules
OOB Using Rapid Fire/ Rompan El Fuego Rules
Wargame
Wargame After-Action Battle Report