Friday, September 4, 1936: The Florida Hotel
Yesterday I was with the Republican troops in Talavera —Koltsov—. It was a total rout. With people like that, with no military training at all, the war is lost.
—No seamos derrotistas, camarada —dijo
José Díaz
—. Hoy hubo reunión en el
Ministerio de la Guerra
con
Largo Caballero.
Piensan enviar una columna a las órdenes de
Asensio Torrado. Lo han ascendido a general. Es el militar en quien más confía el Gobierno. Y estos franceses que ve se jactan de haber estado ametrallando fascistas todo el día.
—Well —Koltsov glanced at them—. There might have been a hunter from the Malraux squadron supporting the troops. But that’s not enough. Aviation helps, but it is on the ground where positions are won or lost, and the fascists now are superior. The militiamen have heart, but they are poorly trained. Yesterday, comrades, as I was leaving Talavera I saw María Teresa León, Alberti’s wife, running with a pistol from one fugitive to another, exhorting them through tears to return to the front. The very Líster himself kept cursing those who fled the front in buses. But do you know why we lost Talavera?
—Why? —asked La Pasionaria. She was the only woman in the place.
They were at the Florida Hotel bar, in Callao Square. They were having the first drink of the evening. That venue was the most international and revolutionary spot in Madrid. It housed the foreign correspondents and the pilots and engineers of the Malraux international squadron. These were recognizable by their leather jackets and the parabellums in wooden holsters hanging at their belts. At the moment several tables were occupied. Every night there were people coming and going to mingle with the foreigners. Professional aviators were seldom seen. The rest, according to their critics, adventurers and mercenaries, spent the day in the bar, cursing their aircraft, these junk heaps, and cursing the crazy country that was Spain. With them gathered were alcohol and arms traffickers, photographers, reporters, or spies. Many waited for the first prostitutes to appear on the Gran Vía at dusk.
—The militiamen are not yet used to fighting in open ground. They fight under the protection of houses or behind rocks, but in the middle of the plain they feel defenseless and fear takes hold. So much fear existed in Talavera that Líster had two commanders shot for fleeing.
Both communist leaders nodded. Everyone respected Koltsov. Over him hung the aura of being a Stalin man. He had direct communication with Moscow and was aware of the directives of the Soviet Communist Party.
—The worst part is Toledo. We cannot allow that damned Alcázar to remain standing, with all the international press watching. It has become a symbol. It must be demolished.
—We have confirmation that Asturian dynamiters are heading there. They intend to blow up the building —said the Pasionaria—. But the men of Moscardó are like possessed, and they do not yield.
—Damned fascists —muttered Koltsov. He drained a shot of vodka. His head began to feel heavy, and he decided to retire to his room. He had not slept for several days.
Todas las entradas de 1936 día a día
Entrevista con José Ángel Mañas sobre 1936 día a día