Workers' Party of Marxist Unification

The Workers' Party of Marxist Unification (POUM, Partido Obrero de Unificación Marxista) was a Spanish Trotskyite political party around the time of the Spanish Civil War. They were formed as a Communist party in opposition to Stalinism in 1935 by Andres Nin and Joaquin Maurin. They were heavily influenced by the thinking of Leon Trotsky, in particular his Permanent Revolution thesis.

They were not a large organisation, but did take part in the Spanish Popular Front initiated by the leader of Acción Republicana, Manuel Azaña. The POUM tried to see through some of its radical policies as part of the Popular Front government but these were resisted by the more moderate factions. This political disagreement would cause Nin to leave the government.

During the Spanish Civil War the party began to grow in popularity and effectively controlled much of Catalonia. The British author George Orwell, a member of the Independent Labour Party fought alongside POUM forces in the civil war.

The POUM's support of Trotsky and opposition to Josef Stalin caused huge ruptures between them and the Communist Party of Spain, still unswervingly loyal to the Third International. These divisions often manifested itself in actual fighting between their supporters.

These divisions between the forces supporting the Popular Front greatly aided Francisco Franco in winning the civil war.