Roll of honour of Dundee men killed fighting for the International Brigade against fascism in Spain (up to 1937)
William McGuire
McGuire was a Branch Secretary of the Dundee Young Communist League (YCL) who died in Spain. He lived at 15 Tait's Lane, Dundee and was recruited into the YCL by Hugh Sloan. A radio engineer and a member of the Shop Assistants' Union and delegate to the Trades & Labour Council, McGuire left for Spain 27th January 1937 with Tom Clarke.
His death was minuted at a Dundee Trades & Labour Council Executive meeting of March 17th 1937. A letter of condolence was sent to his mother and a minute silence held at full meeting of the council on March 24th. He was one of three Dundee brigaders honoured at a memorial meeting in the Foresters Halls on April 4th
(along with Stalker and Tadden), which was reported in the Dundee
Courier the following day. A programme printed for the meeting carried
photographs and short biographies of the three.
In a letter to the Dependents
Aid Committee, McGuire's mother wrote; "Many thanks for the photograph
of my dear son's grave. I hope the day is not far away when I shall be
able to go and see his last resting place. That day will be when his
comrades have swept the Fascist murderers out of Spain. My family are happy to know that Willie and his comrades are not forgotten."
So intense was Dundee’s support
for its Brigaders that the Jute & Flax Workers Union were promoted
to pass a resolution in March 1937, which demanded “that the speeches
made by Mr Ernest Bevin and Sir Walter Citrine at the recent
International Conference on Spain, be published. We repudiate any
suggestion that they were speaking for our Organisation as we were never
consulted.”
William McGuire became a heroic figure to Dundonians, after he was wounded at the Battle of Jarama on 27th Febuary 1937, dying of his wounds at Tarancon hospital the next day.
McGuire just 22 when died was immortalised by Harry Pollitt, who often spoke and wrote of meeting Brigaders who were badly wounded and in field hospitals in Spain. Of William McGuire, who Pollitt met as he lay dying of wounds sustained in the battle of Jarama, he went on record as saying:
"Another chap, a member of the YCL in Dundee, was obviously dying. He asked me for a pencil and paper, and wrote this little note: 'Please send my watch to my mother. Long Live the YCL!'
William McGuire died on February 28th 1937.
biographical details by Michael Walker & Mike Arnott
