Belchite, a remnant of the Spanish Civil War
Belchite, a remnant of the Spanish Civil War

Belchite, a remnant of the Spanish Civil War

Belchite, a remnant of the Spanish Civil War

Visit of ruins

Belchite, Spain

We are in September 1937 in the small village of Belchite located about 50 kilometers from Zaragoza. The Spanish Civil War has been raging for a year already and thousands of Spaniards died. By the end of the conflict in April 1939, they will be more than 500,000 deads.

While the village is the site of many battles between nationalists and republicans, Belchite will be conquered and reconquered throughout the Spanish Civil War. On April 1, 1939 while the noise of the bombs stopped, the village is completely destroyed, a victim of the madness of soldiers.

The new dictator, Francisco Paulino Hermenegildo Teódulo Franco y Bahamonde, or simply Franco decided to leave the ruins untouched and rebuild the village few meters away. His goal? Give his people a live monument of the civil war. The latter is also used symbolically this place as irrefutable proof that the Republicans was the cause of this horror.

Today, the site is open to the public and guided tours are possible. The area have also been the scene of shooting various films, such as The Adventures of Baron Munchausen by Terry Gilliam (Brazil, The Fisher King, etc.) and Pan's Labyrinth directed by Guillermo del Toro .

Related content

Handelsbeurs, the first exchange of History
Anvers, (Belgium)

Opened in 1531 in Anvers to replace the old stock exchange in Hofstraat, the "Handelsbeurs" (New Exchange) was designed by the Antwerp architect, Domien De Waghemakere (1460-1542) and burnt down on two occasions, in 1583 and 1858. After the last...

The abandoned theater
Montréal, Quebec (Canada)

This is the story of a rehabilitation project who won't die. A long path of a non-profit organization that has been fighting for three years to find the funds for the renovation of a theater that is part of the cultural landscape of Montreal...

The Negro Community Center
Montréal, Quebec (Canada)
The origins of the building

Despite the many changes made to the building by the Negro community center, it is clear that the original building was a church. Plans are signed by Sidney Rose Badgley (1850-1917), an architect from Ste.Catherine,...

Fort Rodney
Pigeon Island, Gros-Islet (Saint Lucia)

Okay, Fort Rodney is more a tourist place than abandoned, conducive to exploration. Besides, I wasn't sure about these photos on this website. Well, they are published, but I'm still not convinced to keep them all on Urbex Playground.

Not...