This morning we left Segovia and drove to the Valle de los Caídos (Valley of the Fallen).
An Erie and Somber Sojourn to Valley of the Fallen
"About an hour north of Madrid, nestled in the midst of the beautifully forested Sierra de Guadarrama, is the Valley of the Fallen, a basilica, mausoleum, monument intended to honor those fallen during the Spanish Civil War."
"Everything about it is enormous, imposing, cold and stark. I found it downright spooky. I imagined the slaves (prisoners from the losing side of the civil war) forced to build this monument, by digging granite blocks to make way for the underground basilica and tomb and using them to erect a cross that can be seen for miles. I imagined families coming to grieve those they lost in the Civil War finding no comfort in this monument to power. Even the angels seemed dark and menacing - no exaltation here. The entire place crushed my spirit and only reinforced my notion of the fascist power of Franco. The more I read about the Spanish Civil War, the more I learn that it arose from polarized views of Spain's future and pitted neighbor against neighbor. I hope and pray that we in the US can find a way to narrow and bridge our polarized political differences. Today's visit reminds me that the alternative can be somber and stark. That said, I would strongly encourage a visit here."
As Beth wrote above it is definitely a place of major contradictions. The HUGE cross 152.4 meters (492 feet) is the largest cross in the world. Its arms are oriented north-south and have a width of 47 meters (154 feet). On the base of the cross there are four colossal sculptures 18 meters (59 feet) high depicting the four Evangelists. Saint Luke with a bull, Saint John with an eagle, Saint Mark with a lion and Saint Matthew with a man.
Spanish dictator Francisco Franco ordered the construction of The Valley of the Fallen. The complex was built between 1940 and 1958 and is a monument intended to commemorate all those who died on both sides during the Spanish Civil War (1936-1939). Many people think this is ironic and that it was actually Franco's shrine to victory and a place of mourning exclusively for his followers.
Of course, objectors point out the greatly unequal number of victims buried in the valley. It is estimated that of the more than 11,000 people buried there in 1959 a very small percentage were Republicans (against Franco) while the great majority were Nationalists. Since then the number of people buried has increased to about 34,000, if not more, and the number of Republicans has somewhat increased because mass graves were opened in other parts of Spain and bodies were sent to be buried in Valle de los Caídos. The decision to move those bodies has caused much heartache for families who have never been able to locate their relative and continue to have a lot of doubt about their final resting place. Also at issue is that their loved ones share the site with the tomb of Francisco Franco himself and José Antonio Primo de Rivera, the founder of the Spanish Fascist Party.
Apparently, there have been discussions of removing Franco's body. A government Commission of Experts for the Future of Valle de los Caídos has recommended that his body be moved, because they argued that the memorial was intended for, and should be exclusively for, the fallen of the Spanish Civil War. The problem is that just because the government decided to move his body does not mean it will happen. Because it is the church's decision as the basilica is an official place of worship, so the Catholic Church has the legal power to decide.
There is certainly a lot of discrepancies, controversy and misinformation. Check out this link for some of these questions.
As I have written about previously, Spain seems to sometimes ignore and or not talk about the past, like Guernica or the Inquisition, very much. Pretty much like we do with many of our country's history regarding slavery, racism, etc. Spain even has a Historical Memory Law which is quite interesting to read. There are still many people who support the "Pact of forgetting"
OK now onto much more enjoyable places to visit, things to see and do!
We next drove only a few minutes down the road to visit El Escorial, a historical residence of the King of Spain! El Escorial is a palace, monastery, basilica, seminary, mausoleum, art gallery and a library all rolled into one. It is also known as Royal Monastery of San Lorenzo el Escorial. El Escorial is HUGE, so we decided that we would not spend a lot of time, but simply get a sense of what life would have been like living in this palace.
These are the six Judea Kings, with David and Solomon in the center.
From El Escorial we drove, about 50 minutes and 59 kilometers (36 miles) to Ávila.
Ávila was named a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1985. It is one of the oldest and most beautiful cities in Spain, and it certainly has a lot of competition! What makes it unique amongst all other cities is that it still is completely surrounded by its Walls of Ávila (11th-14th centuries), begun in 1090. The enclosed area is 77 acres with a perimeter of 2,516 meters (2,752 yds), 88 blocks or semicircular towers, 2,500 merlons, curtain walls 3 meters (9 to 10 ft) thick, with a average height of 12 meters (39 ft) and 9 gates. It is the largest fully illuminated monument in the world.
We stayed in our third consecutive Parador hotel. This Ávila Parador. There still stands an ancient mulberry tree in the gardens that was climbed by Saint Teresa (a 16th century mystic nun) when she was a child. The story is that her mother was a relative of the Benavides family whose residence it was then, when it was known as the Piedras de Albas palace, Teresa used to accompany her mother and play in the garden, climbing the tree to pick its sweet fruit.
Just outside the Walls of Ávila I saw this bird nesting I love how it chose the highest point in order to have an excellent view point
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