After the fall of Primo de Rivera, the Catalan left made great efforts to create a united front under the left-wing independentist leader, Francesc Macià, founder of Estat Català.
The military forces of the Generalitat, partially organized between December 1936 and May 1937 in the People's Army of Catalonia (Exèrcit Popular de Catalunya), were concentrated on two fronts: Aragon and Majorca.