Spain, A Brief Encounter with the Spanish Civil War – Part 3

If Dante’s Inferno exists then surely one place must have been Europe in the first half of the twentieth century.  Whether we dawdle or speed through the Somme and Normandy in our motorhomes we are reminded that these were places of conflict.  Most of the time, the rules of war and engagement applied.  However, driving through Spain we are oblivious to the battles let alone the genocide.  It is thought that there were 500,000 deaths from all causes with an estimated 200,000 deliberately executed and a further 20,000 Republicans executed after the war, all without trial.

After touring southern Portugal we re-entered Spain via Badajoz, known as the city of horrors. Following a similar pattern of atrocities, that took place in other towns, executions were commonplace. Under the orders of General Juan Yauge, later known as the "Butcher of Badajoz", an estimated 4,000 of the town's inhabitants, both men and women, were taken to the bull ring where they were indiscriminately machine gunned.  

We didn’t stop at Badajoz but there is an aire listed on Club Motorhome. 

The Massacre of Badajoz 

Battle for Badajoz

2nd May Talavera de la Reina

For those of you who remember the Sharpe series on television or have read the books about the peninsular wars, then the name, Talavera de la Reina, will be familiar. The journey from Badajoz is through the region of Extradmura. This is a remote area of mountains, forests, lakes and reserves, including national parks which deserves more than a drive through.  However, we were heading home and that will have to wait for another time. Situated on the banks of the Tagus River, Talavera de la Reina is famed for its pottery. Food is also king in this region and we fully intended to sample what was on offer. Now when looking at menus, Mrs Spinner and I usually plump for something different maybe a fish and a meat dish, a stew or a grill and then exchange halfway through.

Feeling refreshed from a siesta and a shower we wondered off into town for a nose around and to seek out some of this famed regional food. Near the centre we stumbled across the Restaurante la Montearaguena, a traditional looking place with the ubiquitous large screen TV, showing guess what, yep you got it, football.  With no English translation on the menu and white table cloths this was exactly what we were looking for!  After finally dragging the maître d' away from his beloved passion he showed us to our table. Pescado or Carne, I said to the attractive waitress as I pointed to Orejas a la plancha on the menu. Carne she said, and after realising our Spanish was pathetically non-existent, she quickly made an onk onk noise to narrow it down to the specific animal. Probably not to everyone’s taste this turned out to be chopped, crispy fried pigs ear with garlic (you could distinctly make out the Anvil, Stirrup, and the Cochlea) and served with chips, that were cooked in Miss Piggy’s remaining fat. It has to said, this was not the most delicious dish of the trip.  Mrs Spinner had cuttlefish with salad and on this occasion declined the swop. The evening walk back to the aire, listed on Club Motorhome, was warm and pleasant and a good opportunity to digest the Orejas before bedtime.

4th May Segovia

Built of huge Granit blocks the iconic Roman aqueduct with its 160 arches dominates the skyline of Segovia.  Even today, to build a structure on this scale would be a considerable undertaking.  With the backdrop of the Guadarrama Mountains, this UNESCO World Heritage City and the surrounding region is a must. We will be back! Wonder around the alcazar, cathedral, and the old town and I guarantee you will be impressed. We stayed on the aire which is short walk from the centre and not far from the start of the aqueduct.  However, if you want to be out in the sticks, then just a 10 minute drive away on the edge of a small village you will find an alternative.  Again, both aires are listed on Club Motorhome website, which during the course of our trip was our main source for finding stopovers. At an altitude of 1000 metres, the climate is refreshing in summer but the winters are cold and expect temperatures to be in the minuses.

Segovia and the Guadarrama Mountains was the battle line between the Nationalists and the Republicans.  In May 1937 an attack on the Fascists by Republican forces near Segovia failed.  Foreign Correspondent and novalist Ernest Hemingway based his great work ‘For Whom the Bell Tolls’ here. The story follows a Young American who joined the International Brigade attached to a republican guerrilla unit as a dynamiter, he is assigned to blow up a bridge during an attack on the city of Segovia.

Roman Aquaduct, Segovia

 5th May Calatayud

We were heading for Calatayud and continuing northeast we followed the N110 out of Segovia to El Burgo de Osma. As described on Club Motorhome it is a lovely architectural town along the river Ucero and is certainly well worth the visit and a stopover. If you are contemplating motorhoming in Spain and you are not sure where to go then the area of Castile Y Leon should be the top of your list.  Situated north of Madrid and easily accessible from the Spanish ferry ports, Castile Y Leon is an ideal destination, especially for the first timer who wants to dip their toes into real Spain. Beautifully preserved medieval towns and villages, like Medinaceli, spectacular mountain scenery preceded by plains as far as the eye can see, why wouldn’t you put this on your bucket list?

Burgo de Osmo

8th May Belchite - In the old town of Belchite the young will not hear the singing of their fathers.

Fifty kilometres south of Zaragoza rests the village of Belchite.  Left as a testament, the shell shattered structures bear witness to the civil war.  Like the bones of the adversaries and civilians alike the pock marked machine gunned walls of the buildings are in the later stages of decay. You can no longer walk around unescorted, instead you have to get a ticket at the tourist office in the new town. However, this is no Disneyfied tourist trap, be prepared, this is a bomb site.

  A place for Shelter?

Don’t Mention the War!

During our visit we had to shelter in the remains of the church from a heavy rain storm.  There were seven of us in all, a delightful English couple, a Spanish couple and Matea, are well informed guide.  Huddled together, to avoid the falling masonry, I bit the bullet and asked the young Spanish couple if the Civil War was on the school curriculum. The young man looked at me, and after, what seemed a millennium, he said, “it’s mentioned, and we know it took place, but there is no discussion and nobody ever said who was right or wrong”.  With that, the rain stopped and we walked out into the high street which now resembled a river. As it swirled through the blown out walls of the houses and down into the culvert it seemed as if it was trying to wash away the sins of the past and cleanse this shattered town.  Our only way out was to scramble over the rubble, like survivors of an earthquake we found our way to the perimeter and with our help the guide kicked a hole in the fence. We said good bye to our companions and made our way back to our motorhome.

Heading back over the Pyrenees and then through France to Calais we had plenty of time to reflect on our experiences. Comfortable we are and privileged to travel freely, but our conclusion is that without democracy, money and worldly goods are of little consequence. If people do not have the power to vote their leaders in or out then we are doomed to repeat the failings of the past.

Many thanks for reading and getting this far

Happy travels

Mr & Mrs Spinner

 Some further reading

 Further info