For articles about the American drama critic, see: George Jean Nathan

George Jean Nathan

George Jean Nathan was an American drama critic and editor.-Early life:Nathan was born in Fort Wayne, Indiana...

George Montague Nathan (1895-1937) was a British volunteer in the International Brigades

International Brigades

The International Brigades were military units made up of volunteers from different countries, who traveled to Spain to defend the Second Spanish Republic in the Spanish Civil War between 1936 and 1939....

 in Spain. He initially commanded the British Company of the otherwise French Marseillaise Battalion  but was appointed battalion commander in early 1937 following the execution of his predecessor (Major Gaston Delasalle) for espionage.

He later became Chief of Staff of the XV International Brigade

XV International Brigade

The XV International Brigade fought for the Spanish Second Republic in the Spanish Civil War as a part of the International Brigades. It was mustered at Albacete in Spain, in January 1937, comprising many English-speaking volunteers - arranged into a mostly British British Battalion and a mostly...

 and was killed on 16 July 1937 at the Battle of Brunete

Battle of Brunete

The Battle of Brunete , fought 15 miles west of Madrid, was a Republican attempt to alleviate the pressure exerted by the Nationalists on the capital and on the north during the Spanish Civil War...

. Even though he had been turned down for Communist Party

Communist party

A political party described as a Communist party includes those that advocate the application of the social principles of communism through a communist form of government...

 membership - either because of his "sexual orientation" or because of his unwillingness to "pretend great political enthusiasm" - Comintern

Comintern

The Communist International, abbreviated as Comintern, also known as the Third International, was an international communist organization initiated in Moscow during March 1919...

 observers admired him for his "cool arrogance under fire".

During the First World War, he fought in the British Army

British Army

The British Army is the land warfare branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces in the United Kingdom. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdom of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England...

 on the Western Front

Western Front (World War I)

Following the outbreak of World War I in 1914, the German Army opened the Western Front by first invading Luxembourg and Belgium, then gaining military control of important industrial regions in France. The tide of the advance was dramatically turned with the Battle of the Marne...

. He rose from private to company sergeant major and "after three years and 334 days in the service, he was commissioned in the field on 9 April 1917" to become "the only Jewish officer in the Brigade of Guards". Little is known about his activities between 1918 and 1936, though there have been suggestions that he was responsible for the Limerick Curfew Murders, whilst working undercover for British intelligence with the Black and Tans

Black and Tans

The Black and Tans was one of two newly recruited bodies, composed largely of British World War I veterans, employed by the Royal Irish Constabulary as Temporary Constables from 1920 to 1921 to suppress revolution in Ireland...

 in Limerick

Limerick

Limerick is the third largest city in the Republic of Ireland, and the principal city of County Limerick and Ireland's Mid-West Region. It is the fifth most populous city in all of Ireland. When taking the extra-municipal suburbs into account, Limerick is the third largest conurbation in the...

. He is said to have discussed this with Irish Connolly Column

Connolly Column

The Connolly Column was the name given to the Irish volunteers who fought for the Second Spanish Republic in the International Brigades during the Spanish Civil War. They were named after James Connolly, the executed leader of the Irish Citizen Army...

 volunteers in Spain in February 1937, saying "We have all grown up politically. We are Socialists together now". Apparently, "the meeting responded to the spirit of his speech and clapped him".

Sources

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  Antony Beevor
  Antony James Beevor, FRSL is a British historian, educated at Winchester College and Sandhurst. He studied under the famous military historian John Keegan. Beevor is a former officer with the 11th Hussars who served in England and Germany for five years before resigning his commission...
  
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• Bennett, Richard, "Portrait of a Killer", New Statesman
  New Statesman
  New Statesman is a British centre-left political and cultural magazine published weekly in London. Founded in 1913, and connected with leading members of the Fabian Society, the magazine reached a circulation peak in the late 1960s....
  
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• Gurney, Jason
  Jason Gurney
  Jason Gurney was a British sculptor who fought in the Spanish Civil War.He was with the International Brigades from December 1936 to August 1937. During that time, he served in the British Battalion, the Lincoln Battalion and XIV International Brigade staff. He was wounded in the right hand by a...
  
  . Crusade in Spain, 1974. ISBN 978-0571103102
• Copeman, Fred
  Fred Copeman
  Fred Copeman OBE was an English volunteer in the International Brigades during the Spanish Civil War, commanding the British Battalion...
  
  . Reason in Revolt, 1948. Blandford Press
• McGarry, Fearghal. Irish Politics and the Spanish Civil War, 1999, Cork University Press. ISBN 978-1859182390
• Monks, Joe. With the Reds in Andalusia, 1985, John Cornford Poetry Group.
• Szurek, Alek. The Shattered Dream, 1989. Columbia University Press. ISBN 978-0880331609
• Thomas, Hugh
  Hugh Thomas
  Hugh Thomas , is a British historian and life peer.Hugh Thomas may also refer to:* Hugh Thomas , American choral conductor, pianist and educator* Hugh Thomas , Australian rules football coach...
  
  . The Spanish Civil War, 1961. 1st ed.
• Thomas, Hugh
  Hugh Thomas
  Hugh Thomas , is a British historian and life peer.Hugh Thomas may also refer to:* Hugh Thomas , American choral conductor, pianist and educator* Hugh Thomas , Australian rules football coach...
  
  . The Spanish Civil War, 2003. 4th Rev. Ed