Stories of young men drawn to Spain to fight Franco have been told countless times. But Wednesday marks the 60th anniversary of a call to arms for the lesser-known fascist volunteers - including many from the British Isles.

The exploits of ideological young volunteers - George Orwell and Ernest Hemingway, among them - who flocked to Spain to fight for the Republican cause are often celebrated today. But the story of their counterparts on the other side, foreigners drawn to fight for the fascists, is little known.

Volunteers included:

. French fascists for whom the Spanish Republic was an extension of the hated Popular Front in Paris
. White Russians hoping Spain could restage and win the civil war against the Bolsheviks
. a handful of Britons
. 700 Irish fascists.

Alongside them fought a single Australian, sundry Germans and Americans, several Poles and assorted individuals from the Baltic states.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/magazine/5383218.stm