The Spanish Civil War Collection

The Spanish civil war was a call to arms for 2,300 British volunteers, of which over 500 were from Scotland. The first book of its kind, Homage to Caledonia examines Scotland's role in the conflict, detailing exactly why Scottish involvement was so profound. The book moves chronologically through events and places, firstly surveying the landscape in contemporary Scotland before describing volunteers' journeys to Spain, and then tracing their every involvement from arrival to homecoming (or not). There is also an account of the non-combative role, from fundraising for Spain and medical aid, to political manoeuvrings within the volatile Scottish left.

Using a wealth of previously-unpublished letters sent back from the front as well as other archival items, Daniel Gray is able to tell little known stories of courage in conflict, and to call into question accepted versions of events such as the 'murder' of Bob Smillie, or the heroism of 'The Scots Scarlet Pimpernel'. 

Homage to Caledonia offers a very human take on events in Spain: for every tale of abject distress in a time of war, there is a tale of a Scottish volunteer urinating in his general's boots, knocking back a dram with Errol Flynn or appalling Spanish comrades with his pipe playing. For the first time, read the fascinating story of Caledonia's role in this seminal conflict.

Reviews: 

As seen on STV Documentary The Scots Who Fought Franco:

Daniel Gray has done a marvellous job in bringing together the stories of Scots volunteers - in [this] many-voiced, multi-layered book. SCOTLAND ON SUNDAY

...moving and thought-provoking. THE HERALD

A new and fascinating contribution. SCOTTISH REVIEW OF BOOKS

Book of the week - Gray deserves applause for shining a light on a lesser-known aspect of the nation's character of which we should all be proud. PRESS & JOURNAL

About the Author:

DANIEL GRAY graduated with a politics and history degree from Newcastle University where he focussed in particular on foreign intervention in the Spanish civil war. Daniel has researched Scotland's role in the Spanish Civil War since 2006, and lectured throughout Scotland on the topic. He has also written on the topic for Discover magazine and the Scotsman. He is currently employed as an archivist in the National Library of Scotland, working on 19th century literary manuscripts contained within the John Murray Archive and lives in Edinburgh.

There was no good speaking of the menace of fascism, and not going to fight it myself.

JAMES MALEY, GLASGOW

It was an atmosphere I will never forget – there was the sense of freedom in the air, of workers’ power.

DONALD RENTON, PORTOBELLO

You fight for your beliefs, not medals.

GEORDIE WATTERS, PRESTONPANS

There have been reports that [when we were released] we shouted ‘Long Live Franco’. Not on your life!

ARCHIBALD CAMPBELL McASKILL WILLIAMS, PORTSMOUTH

A resonant piece of working-class history, this book is a living link to four extraordinary stories. Why did these young men put their lives on the line and go to Spain to fight with the International Brigades?

How did they all end up in the same prison cell?

And what is their legacy today?

Reviews: 

This wonderful and moving book adds something completely original to the Spanish Civil War narrative. - DANIEL GRAY, from the foreword

An extraordinary example, and an unforgettable, essential book. - ANGUS REID, The Morning Star

Such openness connects us readers to the vulnerabilities of a family, life in all its complexity and difficulty. This is a virtue of all four accounts in Our Fathers Fought Franco… What comes through persistently in ‘Our Fathers Fought Franco’ is a sense of how much we have to learn from the past. - ALAN RIACH, The National

Part first-person history, part war memoir, part working-class polemic, it is a valuable addition to the canon. - RB, The Scottish Field

Too often their experiences went unrecorded. - THE PENNILESS PRESS

Each of the authors calls us to read the signs for our own times in the legacy of these men of the IB. This book is a fine tribute to them and their comrades. - LESLEY ORR, Bella Caledonia

About the Authors:

WILLY MALEY is Professor of English Literature at the University of Glasgow. A critic, editor, teacher and writer, he was co-founder with the late Philip Hobsbaum of the Creative Writing Masters in 1995. The Lions of Lisbon is one of seven plays Willy has written collaboratively. A season ticket holder in the Lisbon Lions Stand, Willy was a columnist for The Celtic View during seasons 2003-2005. Maley also contributed essays to Celtic Minded volumes 1-3, and his poem ‘Perfect Passing’, a tribute to the late great Tommy Burns, was published in The Celtic Opus (2010). His most recent publication, also with Luath Press, is Scotland and the Easter Rising, co-edited with Kirsty Lusk.

TAM WATTERS is the son of George Watters. Tam retells his father’s story in Our Fathers Fought Franco through a prison notebook, newspaper reports, stills cut from newsreels, interviews, anecdotes, and memories with a foreword by Daniel Gray.

JENNIE RENTON is a secondhand bookseller and publishing freelancer in her home city of Edinburgh. As founder-editor of Scottish Book Collector she produced over 80 issues of the magazine; she also edited Folio for the National Library of Scotland.

LISA CROFT lives in Lancashire and was a Library Assistant for over 20 years. She writes this account on behalf of her mother, Rosemary Nina Williams, who was born when her father was imprisoned in Spain, and for her aunt, Jennifer Talavera Williams, who is named after that Spanish jail’s location.