'עשיתי זאת, כי זו הייתה חובתי': מחויבות אישית ופוליטית של מתנדבות ארץ־ישראליות במלחמת האזרחים הספרדית

During the Spanish Civil War (1936–1939), 150–200 volunteers left Mandatory Palestine to support the Republican cause. Most of them were communist, Jewish,and male; about fourteen of them, however, were women. In this article, we trace the history of four Jewish women who left Palestine to aid the Spanish Republic—three of whom eventually reaching the Iberian Peninsula and one remaining in Paris. Through a close reading of letters, oral and written testimonials, and press sources, we discuss the motives that led these women to volunteer in Spain, the role of social and familial networks in shaping their decision, and the personal costs they paid for their unusual choice. Our analysis of the personal stories of DoraLevin, Adela Botwinska, Ruth Maliniak, and Yael Gerson sheds new light on the little-explored subject of foreign female volunteers in the Spanish Civil War, as well as on the history of volunteers from the Yishuv in Palestine.