The year was 1936 and the Civil War broke out in Spain. As could not be otherwise, the capital of the country was the epicentre of the conflict and during the three years that the war lasted, until 1939, the people of Madrid had to suffer the effects of the war. Their lives changed completely, cold, fear and hunger became daily hardships and bombings, military parades and violent clashes became their daily reality.
What places and buildings were important during the three years of the conflict? What should we visit in Madrid to take us back to that time?
In this Tour through the Madrid of the Civil War we cannot miss the Barracks, key places in the development of the armed conflict.
The current Templo de Debod was the Cuartel de la Montaña in Madrid during the Civil War. Today you can visit the monument to the fallen in memory of the victims of the conflict. Also important is the Conde Duque barracks, which remained loyal to the Republican side throughout Franco's siege of the capital. Or the current headquarters of the Air Force, the former Model Prison.
In addition to the military buildings, which are always understood to be representative of an armed conflict, there are also open and natural spaces that were the scene of bloody battles, such as the forts of the Parque del Oeste, witness to many skirmishes between both sides, or Cerro Garabitas, from where Franco's side bombarded the nearest targets in Madrid with mortar shells.
In today's urban and contemporary Madrid we can also discover buildings and spaces that will surprise you because of their direct relationship with the Spanish Civil War, such as the Telefónica Building, in the heart of Madrid's Gran Vía, from where the Republican side watched how the Francoist side advanced through the Casa de Campo.
As you can see, there is much of today's Madrid that has a direct relationship with the Madrid of the Civil War, and all these relationships can be discovered in a fun and entertaining tour, full of curiosities, which will reveal an unexpected Madrid hidden under the urban layers of the passage of all these years.
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