Fall of Barcelona

The fall of Barcelona was the capture of Barcelona, until then in the Republican zone, by the Nationalists; it took place on 26 January 1939, during final phases of the Spanish Civil War. The event was part of the Catalan Offensive, which wiped out the Catalan enclave of the Republic. The offensive unfolded since late December 1938; the Republicans were offering some resistance, but they were not in position to mount any larger counter-offensive and there was no major battle fought either in western Catalonia or on approaches to Barcelona.

Initially Republican leaders intended to defend Barcelona, and the ultimate line of resistance was planned along the Llobregat. However, on 20 January, as a contingency option prime minister Juan Negrín ordered preparations for would-be evacuation. On 23 January, when the supreme Republican military commander general Rojo informed the government that effective defence of the Llobregat was unlikely, the evacuation began. The central and the autonomous Catalan governments left Barcelona on 23–24 January and a power vacuum started to emerge. Eventually Barcelona was declared an open city and apart from isolated skirmishes, there was no combat on the streets.

The fall of Barcelona preceded the fall of entire Catalonia, which took place in early February 1939. For the Republicans it marked the loss of vital industrial production and some 200,000 of troops; also, it enhanced the spirit of defeatism, already ruling among most segments of the population. However, the fall of Barcelona and the fall of Catalonia did not mark the end of the Republic. The government moved to the central-southern zone, initially to Madrid, and the war continued until 1 April 1939.