Dabrowski Battalion

• Stanisław Ulanowski (October – 21 November 1936)[4][11]
• Antoni Kochanek (21 November 1936 – 2 January 1937)
• Józef Strzelczyk „Jan Barwiński” (16 April – 15 July 1937)
• Wacław Komar właśc. Mendel Kossoj (15 July 1937 – 13 February 1938)
• Franciszek Księżarczyk (13–16 February 1938)
• Antoni Pietrzak (16 February – 17 March 1938)
• José Martinez (17 March – 3 September 1938)
• Emiliano Chamon (3–24 September 1938)

This battalion was originally part of XI Brigada Movil ("11th Mobile Brigade") which was formed 14–17 October 1936. The volunteers were grouped by language into four battalions to make communication easier. On 22 October 1936, the IX Brigada Movil was renamed the XI International Brigade (also known as the 13th Hans Beimler Brigade), with General "Kléber" (Manfred Stern) commanding.[12][13] The four component battalions were renamed as follows:

• 1st Bn Franco-Belge became Commune de Paris Battalion.
• 2nd Bn Austro-German became Edgar André Battalion
• 3rd Bn Italo-Espanol became Garibaldi Battalion
• 4th Bn Polish-Balkan became Jarosław Dąbrowski Battalion, commanded by Major Tadeusz Oppman.[1]
• An entirely Spanish volunteer unit - the Asturias-Heredia Battalion - was added after the Battle of Madrid to bring the brigade up to strength.

By early November, the Siege of Madrid was underway and the need for men was great. The 600-man strong[14] Dabrowski Battalion, along with the rest of XI International Brigade were the first units of the International Brigades to go into action.

The first intervention of the International Brigades, in the siege of Madrid on 8 November 1936, would become legendary. The first Brigade to arrive was the XI with 1,700 men, mainly Germans, French, Belgians and Poles, followed by the XII four days later with another 1,550. The CNT press in the capital reported their arrival in the early hours of the morning 'in silent and damp streets: Marching firmly, their footsteps echoing on the cobblestones... singing revolutionary songs in French, German, Italian... The people ran out to cheer them,' convinced these strangely uniformed men had been sent by Russia and 'if their powerful ally Russia...intervened on their side anything was possible...the cry rang out from many a balcony--Long live the Russians !' After two days of combat half the XI were dead. ***CITATION***

The Dabrowski Battalion was in the thick of the action - at the University City and Casa de Campo - losing two thirds of its men.[14] It was subsequently reinforced by new volunteers arriving from Albacete and by Spanish volunteers,[14] and reorganised into three Polish/Balkan companies and one Spanish company.

The Dąbrowski Battalion, as part of the XII brigade, was sent to Jarama, a few kilometres from Madrid, to block a Nationalist attack. The Nationalist aim was to take the main Madrid to Valencia highway and thus cut Madrid off from Andalusia, where the Republican government was based. The fighting was ferocious with all five International Brigades engaged along a continuous front.[15]

At Jarama, the battalion was commanded by Józef Strzelczyk. During the course of the battle, the Battalion lost a third of their effectives (6–27 February 1937).[14]