MADRID DURING THE SPANISH CIVIL WAR

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On 18 July, 1936, General Franco led a right wing military uprising against the elected Republic. For the next two years Madrid was under siege from fascist bombers and artillery. We start the tour in downtown at the very corner where a Republican officer was gunned down. (in retaliation a leading right wing politician was immediately assassinated thus sparking the start of the civil war). We reach the Gran Via and the hotel which has on view Hemingway's writing table used during his stay in 1937. There are many anecdotes to tell you about the young men who came to join the International Brigade, life in the city under siege and General Mola´s mysterious "Fifth Column".. You will have a panoramic view of Casa del Campo where most of the fighting took place, visit the original bunkers and cellars where priests hid from the dreaded Reds death squads and, just in

case this talk of death and war make you a little uneasy, we take refreshments in taverns where Ernest Hemingway wrote many articles and short stories as bombs exploded in the streets nearby! This and much more awaits you on this exciting tour that you cannot find anywhere else.

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The Wellington Society of Madrid

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