A Trilogy of What "Might Have Been" in the Spanish Civil War
by
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Of all the mysteries of this world, war must be the ultimate one. From cause of origin, to time and mode of onset, through particular occurrences, to outcome, no matter how minutely they be examined, all remain cloudy.
No one wants wars. No one approves of them. And no one understands them.
Superimposed on these large mysteries are numerous little mysteries, each of which remain totally enigmatic.
In the Spanish Civil War of 1936 to 1939 there are three of these “little” mysteries.
First is the account of the “Joy Riders” at the Siege of the Alcazar. A car drove deliberately to the street between the opposing forces. A young woman slowly emerged and sat on the fender lighting a cigarette and calmly awaited the flood of bullets from both sides that destroyed her. Who she was no one knows. Only the car remained as proof of the incident.
Second is the famous offer by Franco of seven thousand Republican prisoners for the return of the Statue of Our Lady of Victory. This was turned down by the Spanish Government, good atheists all, for fear of her effect on the fighting and reported as “lost”. Where was she? No one knows.
Third is the “Massacre” of Badajos, a savage battle true, but only elevated to a “Massacre” by a propagandizing reporter of the Paris Tribune, “the Havas Special Correspondent” who used as an eye witness an American correspondent who was at the time 400 miles away. The Special, whoever he was, scored the biggest propaganda scoop of the war. Setting permanently a false character on the Franco forces in the minds of the world.
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About the Book
From three documented mysteries of the Spanish Civil War of 1936 the author has woven fictional accounts that may explain the mysteries.
First is the account of the ‘Joy Riders’ at the Siege of the Alcazar. A car drove deliberately to the street between the opposing forces. A young woman slowly emerged and sat on the fender lighting a cigarette and calmly awaited the flood of bullets from both sides that destroyed her. Who she was no one knows. Only the car remained as proof of the incident.
The famous offer by Franco of seven thousand Republican prisoners for the return of the Statue of Our Lady of Victory, turned down by the Government, good atheists all, for fear of her effect on the fighting and reported as ‘lost’. Where was she? No one knows.
The “Massacre” of Badajos was a savage battle true, but only elevated to a ‘Massacre” by a propagandizing reporter of the Paris Tribune, ‘the Havas Special Correspondent’ who used as an eye witness an American correspondent who was at the time 400 miles away. It scored the biggest propaganda scoop of the war setting permanently a false character on the Franco forces in the minds of the world.
About the Author
Inflamed by a novel of and during the Spanish Civil War of 1936, titled, “The Kansas City Milkman”, Adam Dumphy searched out and contacted a clandestine enlistment center for the British Ambulance Corps operating there. Clandestine as it was at the time an illegal act to aid either side in the conflict. To Adam that fit the novel and made it all the more interesting to him and more Hemingwayesque.
He ever after felt the British people generally to be biased and intolerant as he was rejected and simply for being only twelve years old.
Still he found himself fascinated by that most peculiar of wars even as some men are towards our American Civil War.
All the books and information he collected then he still has.
His loyalty he has tried to maintain unbiased to either side although it has varied in degree from one side to another from year to year.
Now from the vantage point of eighty years of age the only thing he can decide with certainty about the affair is that both sides got a very “bad press”. But then he believes that is true of most major events.