Customer Reviews

Durruti in the Spanish Revolution

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Abel Paz's biography of Buenaventura Durruti is probably the best work ever written about the life of the famous Spanish anarcho-syndicalist militant. And I say this because I have read a few. One possible problem will be for people who already have a good understanding of Spanish culture, history and politics and especially the Spanish Civil War period already. I say this because Paz diverts from Durruti's life story often with lengthy digressions about the politics and history of Spain and Europe during this period, (1880-1938), and which some might find tedious or overly detailed, especially if they already are familiar with them. However, the newbie reader will find these facts and insights invaluable for understanding the context of Durruti's life, actions, and politics, if they are not.

It is very clear that Paz greatly admires Durruti and so he puts everything he does in the very best possible light, and which is okay, since there doesn't seem to be that many "bad" (as in evil) things that Durruti did. And even when Durruti did make errors in judgment or mistakes, unlike many of his contemporaries in the anti-Fascist movement, that's all they amounted to; errors and mistakes. Durruti never initiated purges, massacres, torture, or resorted to terrorism, as some others on the Republican side did.

Durruti was a true militant however, (and a hard-core one at that), who committed robberies to obtain funds, attempted to assassinate the Spanish monarch Alphonso XIII, and was arrested and imprisoned both in Spain and France for possession of arms and explosives. Durruti's time in prison never broke him either, no matter how badly his conditions of confinement were. The details Paz gives of Durruti's frequent jailings are quite revealing about Durruti's strength of character and his commitment to his cause.

Paz covers the range of conspiracy theories of how Durruti met his end and he seems to feel that the two best explanations are that Durruti was hit by a stray bullet from his own side (i.e., "friendly fire") or more darkly, was deliberately assassinated by a Soviet intelligence operative. The details Paz provides about this are very interesting and there is easily enough plausible evidence for either conclusion. But Paz leaves it up to the reader to decide for themselves. Just as with the JFK assassination, it'll be discussed endlessly by those who wonder if Durruti's end was just his fate or a conspiracy to eliminate him.

I recommend this book to those interested in the life of Buenaventura Durriti, the Spanish Civil War and or anarcho-syndicalism.

This is THE definitive biography of Buenaventura Durruti as well as a comprehensive study of Spanish anarchism and the Spanish Civil War. No other work has--or ever will--treat this leading anarchist in such detail.