On October 26, 1936, in the resort town of Arcena in the province of Murcia, the first Soviet armored company of 15 Soviet T-26 light tanks was formed to assist the Republican forces. Its commander was Red Army Captain Paul Matisovich Arman, known in Spain by the pseudonym "Greys". The company was to take part in one of the first and most famous combat episodes of using Soviet tanks on the side of the Spanish Republic.
Initially, it was assumed that the tanks would be fully manned by Spanish crews, but the attack by Franco's troops on Madrid forced the vehicles to be sent to the front more quickly. Therefore, the majority of the crews were Soviet military personnel, to which some Spanish cadets were added. Already on October 29, Arman's company entered the battle near Sessania, a settlement in the province of Toledo, about 30 kilometers south of Madrid.