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So during the Spanish Civil War, the nationalists relied largely on their Moroccan subjects for manpower during the early stages of the war. The Republicans therefore had some interest in disrupting Spanish Morocco and there was a plan to promise to recognise Moroccan independence if there was a large scale Moroccan Rebellion in 1936. The French however told the Republicans that they were entirely opposed to this and so the plans to smuggle weapons into Morocco largely died. The Catalan leader apparently threated to withdraw his forces from the front lines entirely if the Republicans weren't willing to give morocco independence but if looks like his bluff was called and nothing happened as a result.
The longer the war went on, the more desperate the Republicans got and the more likely however there was to be independent action in Morocco. In 1938, there was an apparently unauthorised planned raid into Morocco from Tangiers that was foiled by the nationalists and at least one Spanish rebel did move into Morocco to attempt to raise up a revolution but with no success.
In early 1937 Pierre Besnard of the French Anarchi-Syndicalist League proposed that the easiest way to start a rebellion in Spanish Morocco was to bring back the anti colonial rebel Abd el Krim, the leader of the Rif Republic, who had humiliated the Spanish at Annual. He was currently being held at the French island of Reunion and Besnard proposed that if the Spanish Republicans could agree on a deal, Besbard could visit reunion, deliver a proposed agreement and break el Krim out of prison if the latter accepted it.
This is a very bold plan given it involves basically attacking the neutral country you have the longest border with and unsurprisingly Largo Cabalerro said fuck off. Which seems to be the big flaw in all these plans. It's impossible to disrupt Spanish Morocco without also disrupting French morocco and by and large noone was willing to risk pissing off the French.
But to an extent a rebellion did break out in Morocco would that have been a game changer? Was it a possible war winning tactic?
The longer the war went on, the more desperate the Republicans got and the more likely however there was to be independent action in Morocco. In 1938, there was an apparently unauthorised planned raid into Morocco from Tangiers that was foiled by the nationalists and at least one Spanish rebel did move into Morocco to attempt to raise up a revolution but with no success.
In early 1937 Pierre Besnard of the French Anarchi-Syndicalist League proposed that the easiest way to start a rebellion in Spanish Morocco was to bring back the anti colonial rebel Abd el Krim, the leader of the Rif Republic, who had humiliated the Spanish at Annual. He was currently being held at the French island of Reunion and Besnard proposed that if the Spanish Republicans could agree on a deal, Besbard could visit reunion, deliver a proposed agreement and break el Krim out of prison if the latter accepted it.
This is a very bold plan given it involves basically attacking the neutral country you have the longest border with and unsurprisingly Largo Cabalerro said fuck off. Which seems to be the big flaw in all these plans. It's impossible to disrupt Spanish Morocco without also disrupting French morocco and by and large noone was willing to risk pissing off the French.
But to an extent a rebellion did break out in Morocco would that have been a game changer? Was it a possible war winning tactic?