SPAIN
After travelling north of Madrid for some time, we suddenly sighted faintly from the window of the bus, the cross that designated our destination - the Valley of the Fallen.
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Valley of the Fallen |
In February 1936, elections were held in Spain between elements of the Left, including republicans, socialists and communists, versus the monarchists, the Church and army officers. The Republicans won a decisive victory at the polls. Shortly, thereafter, Francisco Franco led an insurrection against the legally elected government. Thus began the Spanish Civil War.
The Spanish Civil War, which lasted from 17 July 1936 to 1 April, 1939, devastated Spain. By some accounts, some 700,000 thousand men were killed and untold numbers of civilians perished in the turmoil that tore the country apart. For nearly three years, the republican or loyalist forces held their own in the combat, but they finally succumbed to the insurgents' superior forces, aided and abetted as they were by the German Luftwaffe. The war ended with the defeat of the Republic. General Francisco Franco dealt ruthlessly with all opposition and founded an authoritarian, fascist-type rule over the exhausted country which lasted forty years. The bitterness and cruelty of the conflict knew no bounds and the inhumanity of Spaniard to Spaniard was to poison relationships within the country for years.
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Burgos - Truce Signed Here by Franco |
After Franco died in 1975 at the age 83, the fascist leaders agreed to a quick shift from dictatorship to democracy, but only providing they would not be punished for any crimes committed during the regime of the dictatorship.
The 1977 Amnesty pardoned the political crimes of both the fascist regime and its communist opponents, and made possible a peaceful transition to a democracy. This accomplishment, called the world's first velvet revolution [non-violent revolution] was so successful, that many Spaniards have steadfastly refused to re-open old wounds by confronting the memories shared between the victims and the victimzers.
However, nations around the world have begun to confront the unpleasantess of their county's past and Spain has joined their ranks. "In countless Spanish villages, the fearsome facts are still quite strong in people's memories. The war is not something that is in the past for them."
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Valley of the Fallen |
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Valley of the Fallen |
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Valley of the Fallen |
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The panels of the Cathedral's Bronze Doors depict the 12 Apostles. |
Begun in the early 1940's and completed in 1959, the Valley of the Fallen is an underground church and tomb topped with a 500 foot stone cross, which can be seen from a distance of 30 miles. Although supposedly honouring all who died in the Spanish Civil war, only two names are commemorated within the cathedral: General Francisco Franco and Jos� Antonio Primo de Rivera, founder of the ultra right Falangist party. Jose died before the mausoleum was started. Critics of this gargantuan memorial, see it not as a post-civil war object of reconciliation, but as "Fascist theatricality." It does not help its cause that it was constructed by 20,000 Republican prisoners, many of whom lost their lives quarrying the huge cavern out of the rock.
The cathedral, carved out of the side of a mountain, has a central chamber larger than St. Peter's Basillica. Its centrepiece is Franco's granite tomb, which is regularly covered by flowers brought by Spaniards paying hommage to his memory. The mammoth structure pays tribute to Franco and his regime, but the present Socialist government of Jos� Luis Rodr�guez Zapatero plans to convert the Valley of the Fallen into a centre to explain the "meaning of the (Franco) dictatorship and its horrors". However, the prime minister may encounter some opposition to his plan from Spain's sovereign, King Juan Carlos I, for when Juan was a young prince, he was apparently like a son to Franco, and the King's fond memory of the man is such that he will not countenance criticism of him in his presence.
Times change as do attitudes and it appears that reconciliation rather than the resting place of the former dictator Franco will eventually mark the mausoleum's main function.
National Post 12 October, 2011
DIGGING UP THE PAST
"Spain is considering exhuming the remains of General Francisco Franco from the mausoleum erected with the forced labour of political prisoners, to convert the site into a mausoleum of reconciliation. The dictator's corpse could be tranferred from the Valley of the Fallen to the El Pardo cemetery in Madrid and buried next to his wife, Carmen Polo. The proposal was made by a commision deciding the fate of a memorial that, 36 years after Franco's death, still casts a shadow over Spain. The Periodico de Catalunya newspaper published the leaked preliminary proposals, which said the commission hoped to win the support of Franco's family."
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Massive Square constructed in front of the Cathedra. |
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Tomb of Franco |
The reconciliation is thought by some to be asymmetrical. The emphasis sppears to be on overlooking fascist crimes against humanity perpetrated by the fascists over a lengthy period of time, in order to ensure a peaceful transition of power from the hard-line dictators to the democratically elected government.
After various local groups began to look into the dark secrets of Spain's past by uncovering mass graves, the government passed the Historical Memory Law, banning fascist memorials, giving compensation to General Franco's victims and requiring all towns to exhume, record and rebury the bodies found in mass graves. One person leading this investigation, presented a Madrid judge with a list of 133,708 names of people who disappeared and were suspected of having been murdered by the Franco regime. The judge ordered the excavation of the burial site, so that DNA tests could reveal the names of those killed. While the judge had the support of the left-wing government, his order disturbed a great many people, who believed implementation of his order would destroy national unity. Other judges of the same court subsequently directed the judge to drop his inquiry. The reasons: he had no jurisdiction to make such an order regarding crimes committed seventy years ago by people who are now dead and criminal actions committed during this period were covered by the amnesty passed in 1977. It appears this ends what promised to be the first criminal investigation into the wrongs committed by the Franco's regime.
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The impressive palace and statute of Phillip III |
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Roman Bridge in Toledo built in 106 AD and dedicated to Emperor Trajan |
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Alcazar (Castle) of Toledo |
Alcazar castle in Segovia, Spain, was first mentioned in records dating back to 1122 as a hill-fort set atop a rocky outcrop between the rivers Bergsma and Clamores. By 1155 this hill-fort became known as "Alcazar", which in Arabic meant royal residence.
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Bull farm where five-year-olds are readied for the ring and then the roaster. |
Ferdinand and Isabella resumed the Reconquest, dormant for more than 200 years and in 1492 they defeated the Moors and captured Granada. Six hundred Christian prisoners in chains, "thin and yellow from hunger" were released from the dungeons, where they had been imprisoned for an extended period. The chains in which Christian prisoners were bound were hung from the walls of the church. This was ordered by Isabella and Ferdinand to symbolize that never again would Moors control Spain.
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Chains and the Church of St. John of the Kings |
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Synagogue of St. Mary the White |
La Sinagoga de Santa Mar�a la Blanca (St. Mary of the White Synagogue) Once the main 12th-century synagogue in Toledo, La Sinagoga de Santa Mar�a la Blanca obtained its present title after its conversion to a church. The building is structurallly similar to a mosque, by virtue of the fact that Muslim craftsmen constructed it. The synagogue has had many uses that include being a convent for 'fallen' women, a Catholic chapel and an army barracks.
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Burgos Cathedral |
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Burgos Cathedral |
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El Cid |
Rodrigo D�az de Vivar is better known to history as El Cid. the name given him by the Moors, rather than El Campeador (Challenger/Challenger), the name given him by the Christians. "El Cid " comes from a Spanish dialect of Arabic, sidi, meaning "Sir or "Lord." He grew up a caballero or military adventurer, fighting for the cause of Christians or Moors, which ever paid more. Being the national hero of Spain, El Cid displayed remarkable military ability in his conquest of Valencia, which he then governed with ability and justice. The great popular hero of the chivalrous age died at Valencia in 1099. Following his death, Jimena, his wife, continued his rule for three years. El Cid became the subject of many legends, stories, and poems, including the 12th-century epic El cantar de m�o Cid (The Song of the Cid) and the movie, El Cid, starring Charlton Heston.
El Cid's remains were first buried in the Monastery of San Pedro de Cardena, a few miles from Burgos, but in 1942 he was reinterred beneath this stone in the Burgos Cathedral, along with his wife, Jimena. His bones at Burgos are revered as those of a saint.
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Tomb of El Cid and his wife, Jimena |
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Burgos Cathedral |
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Christopher Columbus Monument, Barcelona |
At the foot of Las Ramblas, near the Barcelona harbour, there is a huge monument honouring Christopher Columbus, who returned to Barcelona after his historic trip to North America. Visitors can climb to the top of the monument to enjoy a spectacular view of the beautiful city of Barcelona.
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Replica of Columbus's Santa Maria |
'The Santa Mar�a was the largest of the three ships used by Christopher Columbus in his first voyage across the Atlantic Ocean in 1492. Carrying 40 men, she was a small carrack about 70 feet long and used as the flagship for the expedition. The Santa Mar�a was originally named La Gallega ("The Gallician"), probably because she was built in Galicia. It seems the ship was known to her sailors as Marigalante, literally "Dirty Mary." The Santa Mar�a had a deck and three masts. She was the slowest of Columbus' vessels but performed well in the Atlantic crossing. Because of incompetence, she ran aground in Haiti on December 25, 1492. Timbers from the ship were later used to build M�le Saint-Nicolas, which was originally called La Navidad (Christmas) because the wreck occurred on Christmas Day. No authentic contemporary likeness of any of the three ships of the Columbus expedition is known to exist. Several replicas of the Santa Maria have been built, all based solely on conjecture.
Queen Isabella and King Ferdinand gave Columbus a grand reception and confirmed his titles of Admiral of the Ocean and Viceroy and Governor of the Indies. Columbus brought back with him six natives of America whom he called Indians because he thought he had landed in India, They were bapitzed in the royal court.
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Carrara Marble Font in which Columbus had six Natives from America baptized. |
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Plaza of the Saints |
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Monserrat Mountains and Monastery |
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Shrine of Our Lady of Montserrat. |
Since the 12th century, pilgrims have been drawn to the mountain to venerate the miraculous statue of the Black Madonna (La Moreneta). In 1996, 2.6 million visitors, one of whom was the Pope, visit Monserrat to see the Black Madonna. Barcelona Montserrat is a spectacularly beautiful Benedictine monk mountain retreat about one hour North West from Barcelona by train.
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Cathedral of Santa Eulalia |
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Police Geece |
The Cathedral of Santa Eulalia (also called La Seu) is the seat of the Archbishop of Barcelona, Spain. Constructed throughout the 13th to 15th centuries on top of a former Visigothic church, its neo-Gothic fa�ade is from the 19th century. The cathedral is dedicated to Eulalia of Barcelona, co-patron saint of Barcelona, a young virgin who, according to Catholic tradition, suffered martyrdom during Roman times in Barcelona. One story is that she was exposed naked in the public square and a miraculous snowfall in mid-spring covered her nudity. The enraged Romans put her into a barrel with knives stuck into it and rolled it down a street. The body of Saint Eulalia is entombed in the cathedral's crypt. The cathedral has a secluded Gothic cloister where thirteen white geese are kept (it is said that Eulalia was 13 when she was murdered). The cathedral was built throughout the 14th and 15th centuries. We were informed by our guide, that the geece also served as an alarm system with their raucous, squawking when anyone entered.
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Sequovia |
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Bay of Biscay |
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