Memory of a War

Wednesday, February 4, 2026

The Girona History Musuem has prepared a diverse programme of activities aimed at recovering and disseminating collective memory, dignifying it, repairing it and restoring its legacy, with spaces for reflection, guided tours, itineraries and lectures, all from a gender perspective.

oday marks 87 years since the military occupation of Girona by Francoist troops.
On 4 February 1939, the troops of the IV Navarre Division of the National Army, commanded by General Camilo Alonso Vega, entered the city together with a group of Indigenous Moroccan Regular Troops, supported by soldiers from the 3rd Company, 1st Battalion of the Italian Black Arrows Brigade.

Following the entry of the Francoist army, an enormous apparatus of repression was set in motion through purges, political responsibility courts, confiscations and summary courts-martial. Between 1939 and 1945 this led to the execution of nearly 600 citizens, most of whom were shot against the wall of the old cemetery, after being taken there from the Seminary prison.

During the first half of the year, we have prepared a wide-ranging programme of activities, with many new features, to address "Memory of a War. Stories, lives and vestiges of the Civil War, exile and dictatorship."

These include guided tours of Civil War vestiges in the city and, beyond that, routes through Republican airfields in the Empordà region: Canet de la Tallada and Garriguella.

We will become aware of the importance of radio as the pre-eminent means of communication. From its microphones, the population was warned of the danger of bombings and directed towards air-raid shelters;communiqués were read, distress calls were made, and requests for information about missing persons were broadcast.

Political prisoners of Francoism will play a special role. We will present an immersive activity based on the writings of Josep Turon Mir during his imprisonment in Girona prison in 1940. Without forgetting a more recent episode-the situation of prisoners during late Francoism-we will revisit the route of the Torras-Hostench workers. And, of course, we will address historical memory from a gender perspective, with spaces for reflection and research into the history of women who for many years remained in the shadow of official history.

All information is available on the website, where reservations can be made.

We look forward to welcoming you!