Fighting Against the Enemy of the World

On 12 June 121939, a documentary proudly showcasing Germany’s decisive military involvement in the Spanish Civil War produced by UFA premiered in Germany. The film was the feature-length Im Kampf gegen den Weltfeind (“In Struggle Against the Enemy of the World”), directed by Karl Ritter, a World War I aviator and a filmmaker with a well-established career in war fiction cinema. It was made with the collaboration of Hermann Göring’s Ministry of the Air Force, which provided access to a large amount of valuable footage shot in Spain by the German army itself. The editing also included material from previously released newsreels and reports.

The documentary has three clearly defined parts. The first explains the causes and development of the Spanish Civil War, highlighting the violence and destructive capacity of communism and the need to rely on patriotic forces capable of preventing it. The second and longest part addresses the film’s main objective: to provide a detailed account of the German armed forces’ contribution to the Francoist victory and to demonstrate their effectiveness on the battlefield. Finally, in a third part, the film shows how, following the Francoist victory, the Condor Legion takes part in the Victory Parade in Madrid, is seen off by Franco in León, welcomed by Göring in Hamburg, and ultimately parades before Hitler in Berlin on 6 June.

Fighting Against the Enemy of the World reached the screens as a display of strength and militaristic pride at a crucial moment for Hitler’s expansionist plans, which is why the circumstances of its premiere were exceptional. The final footage was shot and the definitive edit completed between 6 and 12 June. During that same period, the promotional campaign, censorship review, and the production of more than forty prints were carried out. The censorship office classified the film as having “educational for the people” and being “of interest to state policy.” On 12 June, a wave of premieres and special screenings began across the Reich, attended by German, Spanish, and Italian dignitaries, as well as officers and soldiers of the Condor Legion.

The importance of these events accelerated the production of Condor Legion, a full-length drama in which Ritter and UFA were also involved. However, the signing of the German-Soviet Pact on 23 August 1939, interrupted the filming, which had begun just a few days earlier.

MNM