to Gijón, and on 15 October Solchaga's troops joined up with Aranda's troops. The Republican government then ordered a general evacuation. On 17 October the Sovereign Council of Asturias decided to start the evacuation, but the Legion Condor sank the Republican destroyer Ciscar, and the Nationalist fleet blocked the Asturian harbours. Only the senior officers managed to escape on gunboats and fishing vessels (Prada, Galán, Segundo Blanco, Belarmino Tomas). On 20 October, twenty-two Republican battalions surrendered, and Colonel José Franco handed over the town of Trubia to the Nationalists. On October 21, the Nationalists entered Gijón, ending the occupation of Asturias. Nevertheless, thousands of Republican soldiers fled to the nearby mountains and started a guerrilla campaign against the Nationalist troops. Aftermath The Nationalist reprisals were harsh. In Oviedo alone, 1,000 republican prisoners were shot. The Republican prisoners were sent to labour battalions or were forced to join the Nationalist army (around 100,000). Furthermore, with the conquest of the North, the Nationalists now controlled 36 per cent of Spanish industrial production, 60 per cent of the coal, and all of the steel-production. See also List of Spanish Nationalist military equipment of the Spanish Civil War List of weapons of the Corpo Truppe Volontarie Condor Legion List of Spanish Republican military equipment of the Spanish Civil War Notes Bibliography Battles of the Spanish Civil War Battles in Asturias 1937 in Spain Conflicts in 1937 September 1937 events October 1937 events