Soon after Montseny took office, on 6 November, the republican government moved to Valencia, fearing that Madrid would fall to the nationalist offensive. Montseny persuaded the anarchist militia leader Buenaventura Durruti to transfer from the Aragon front and defend the capital, where he fought and died at the Battle of Ciudad Universitaria. When the anarchists of Barcelona revolted during the May Days, Montseny appealed on behalf of the government for the militias to lay down their arms. But when she was unsuccessful, the government resolved to put down the anarchists by force, in what Montseny described as "the most terrible and bitter days of my life". By the time that Juan Negrin had consolidated power, Montseny considered the war to have already been lost, and thought the only remaining action would be to save as many lives as possible. Montseny subsequently left the cabinet and attempted to continue her efforts in uniting republican forces, but by 1938, the deterioration of the republican front had forced her to increasingly focus on feeding her family.
