This painting guide covers the three major paramilitary units – Civil Guard, Carabineers, Assault Guards – of the Spanish Civil War. They fought for both sides.
Young
Civil Guard
Civil Guard (Guardia Civil)
Civil Guard fought for both the Republicans and Nationalists. Based on the illustrations in Bueno (1971), the grey-green of the Civil Guard was a lighter shade than that of the Legion, however, the photos on this page suggest it was actually a darker/greener shade. I went for a greener look to make the distinction clear and used Colour Party MA4 Rifle Green for the base uniform (a 50:50 mix of Coat D’arms 508 Olive Drab and 230 Camouflage Green gives much the same effect).
Emblem of
Civil Guard
Branch-of-service badge (Civil Guards Badge)
Red badge with silver GC superimposed, and silver edging (see Bueno, 1971, inset on page LXIV).
Ranking device
presumably the pre-war (Nationalist) ranking devices.
Civil Guard Tricorn
Stylised tricorn (if worn)
Shiny black leather
Fore-and-aft forage cap (if worn)
Grey-green [Colour Party MA4 Rifle Green], piped and tasselled in red, with a broad red band around the bottom.
Civil Guard on parade
Tunic
Grey-green [Colour Party MA4 Rifle Green] with silver buttons, and with Civil Guard badge on the collar. Officers had rank shown on the cuff of the tunic.
Trousers
Grey-green [Colour Party MA4 Rifle Green]
Shoes/boots, belt, ammunition pouches, bayonet sheath
Black wit silver fittings.
Y-braces
Buff (or yellow/gold) [Coat D’arms 228 Buff].
Carabiniers (Carabineros)
The Frontier Guards fought for both the Republicans and Nationalists.
The grey-green of the Carabineros was lighter than that of the Civil Guard; one source described it as “pea” green.
Typical illustrations
Bueno, 1971, fig. 165, 232, 233, 235, 236, 237.
Branch-of-service badge (Carabineros Badge)
Gold crossed rifles on a four-pointed star (see Bueno, 1971, inset on page LXV).
Ranking device
Early: The pre-war (Nationalist) ranking devices.
Late: Republicans adopted the ranking of the Popular Army. Nationalists would have stayed with the original devices.
Peaked cap
Light Grey-green. The Carabineros badge was located at the front of the cap, above the wearer’s rank badge. In the late war, some Republican Carabineros replaced the badge with a red star.
Tunic (if worn)
Light Grey-green with Carabineros badge on the collar. Officers had rank shown on the cuff of the tunic – presumably the pre-war (Nationalist) ranking devices.
Shirt (if seen)
Light Grey-green or white.
Trousers (if worn)
Light Grey-green
Worker overalls (if worn)
Some Republican Carabineros adopted a dark blue or light grey mono.
Shoes, belt, ammunition pouches, bayonet sheath, Y-braces
Black or brown
Assault Guards (Asaltos)
Like the Civil Guard and Carabineros, Assault Guards fought for both the Republicans and the Nationalists, although the majority opted for the Republicans. The base uniform colour was Dark Blue [Coat D’arms 110 Royal Blue] with a light blue shirt [50:50 Coat D’arms 101 White and 206 Light Blue].
Typical Illustrations
Bueno, 1971, fig. 238, 239, 240.
Branch-of-service badge (Assault Guard Badge)
Silver crown over a shield bearing the letters “GS” (I think it was the same emblem as the Civil Guard used).
Ranking device
Early: The pre-war (Nationalist) ranking devices.
Late: Republicans adopted the ranking of the Popular Army. Nationalists would have stayed with the original devices.
Peaked cap (if worn)
Dark blue [Coat D’arms 110 Royal Blue] with black leather peak and chin strap. The Assault Guard badge was located at the front of the cap, above the wearer’s rank badge.
Fore-and-aft forage cap (if worn)
Dark blue [Coat D’arms 110 Royal Blue], piped and tasselled in white. The Assault Guard badge was located at the front of the cap, above the wearer’s rank badge.
Tunic (if worn)
Dark blue [Coat D’arms 110 Royal Blue] with silver buttons, and with Assault Guards badge on the collar. Officers had rank shown on the cuff of the tunic.
Shirt
Light blue [50:50 Coat D’arms 101 White and 206 Light Blue] with white epaulettes
Trousers (if worn)
Dark blue [Coat D’arms 110 Royal Blue]
Worker overalls (“mono) (if worn)
Some Republican assault guards adopted a dark blue [Coat D’arms 110 Royal Blue] or light grey mono [Coat D’arms 231 Mid Grey].
Shoes/shoes, belt, ammunition pouches, bayonet sheath, Y-braces
Black or brown.