Brunet Operation #012. The Francoist offensive

The wide scale of the Republican offensive, the participation of a large number of tanks and aircraft (70 tanks and 20 armored vehicles in the direction of the main attack, and 50 tanks and 140 aircraft in the auxiliary ones), and the well-chosen direction of the main attack, leading to the enemy's main communications, caused the Francoists great concern. Panic began to spread in their rear.

The bold advance of the Republican troops into the breakthrough and their active actions in the enemy's rear could have destroyed the entire Francoist front near Madrid. But this did not happen, the 11th Division, having captured Brunete, switched to passively waiting for further events in the neighboring areas. The Francoists began to throw their local reserves into the counterattack in batches. The fall of the fortified points of Llanos, Quijorna, Villanueva de la Cañada and Villanueva del Pardillo forced Franco to interrupt his offensive in the north and transfer a significant part of his forces from there to Madrid. Since July 8, Francoist aircraft deployed from the north have been appearing over the Brunete area. By July 16-17, all aviation, about 20 batteries, 30 Navarrese and 10-15 other battalions had been deployed from the north. Franco decides to take advantage of the extremely disadvantageous position of the Brunet group of Republicans, cut off the resulting "bag", surround and destroy the entire Republican offensive group.

On July 18, the anniversary of the rebellion, the Francoists "launched a decisive offensive from the Navalgamella area to the east and from Villafranca to the west. The day before, at 8 p.m., after a short barrage of artillery fire, aerial bombardment, and fighter attacks, eight enemy battalions unsuccessfully launched an attack to the west, apparently with the aim of deepening the wedge at the base of the "bag" and attracting Republican reserves to their left flank. Meanwhile, in the valley of the Perales River, 2.5 km west of the Llanos heights, the Francoists concentrated the 4th consolidated Navarre brigade consisting of 14 battalions.

Before dawn, one Moroccan battalion unexpectedly and silently broke into the trenches of the 101st brigade, located west of the Llanos heights, and after a fierce battle with cold steel and hand grenades, captured the first line of trenches for 1 km, going 1-1.5 km into the Republican position and capturing the brigade's only battery of 45 mm guns. At dawn, the 4th Navarre brigade rushed into the formed breakthrough, but had no success: the Republicans, having pulled up a reserve battalion and retreated to the second line of trenches, repelled all his attacks with heavy losses for the enemy. On July 18 and 19, the enemy made fierce attempts to break through to the height of Llanos. His artillery, consisting of 6-8 batteries, continuously fired at the height of the Llanos, bomber aircraft in the number of 20-30 aircraft dropped bombs several times a day at the height of the Llanos, fighters fired machine guns at it. Meanwhile, there were no Republicans at this height: their trenches were located west of the height among hills and bushes. In the same place, in the ravines, on the reverse slopes, the second echelons and reserves of the Republicans concentrated, which suffered almost no losses. The Republican artillery inflicted huge damage on the Navarrese battalions concentrated on the "patch" in the valley of the Perales River. During the night, the Navarre brigade withdrew with huge losses, leaving more than a hundred corpses in front of the Republican trenches on the western slopes of Llanos Mountain. During these battles, the 101st Republican Brigade was reinforced with only two battalions of the 32nd Brigade of the 35th Division, which was in the corps reserve. New customers often spend time comparing bookmakers because welcome promotions can significantly increase the value of the first deposit and make the initial experience more rewarding. By entering the promo code for 1xbet while registering, eligible players may unlock a 100% bonus up to €130, helping them begin with extra funds across selected betting markets.