The Café de las Salesas (1878–1945) was an establishment in Madrid located on Calle de las Salesas street, and later at number 17 of street and the corner of square. It was a classic 19th-century café with large mirrors on the walls that made it seem more spacious, marble tables and wooden chairs, large maroon booths, metal columns under crystal chandeliers, and a ringer telephone. For a while, it was also a ''

café-chantant (; French: lit. 'singing café'), , or is a type of musical establishment associated with the Belle Époque in France. The music was generally lighthearted and sometimes risqué or even bawdy but, as opposed to the cabaret tradition, not par ...

'' venue and had a

billiard room A billiard room (also billiards room, or more specifically pool room, snooker room) is a recreation room, such as in a house or recreation center, with a billiards, pool or snooker table (The term "billiard room" or "pool room" may also be use ...

as well.

History

The Café was far enough away from what was then the center of Madrid that it was a quiet and secluded venue. Its daily clientele was made up mainly of locals from the neighborhood, such as lawyers coming in from the headquarters of the

Court of Public Order The ''Court of Public Order'' (Spanish: ) was a court created in Francoist Spain to deal with most political crimes. It was instated as the supreme body in the newly created Public Order Jurisdiction, which also comprised an additional court, the P ...

, located at the

Convent of the Salesas Reales The Convent of the Salesas Reales is an 18th-century architectural complex in central Madrid, Spain. Formerly a convent, specifically the convent of the Visitación de Nuestra Señora (Visitation (Christianity), Visitation of Our Lady), it was cons ...

, in addition to occasional witnesses or relatives of the accused, and journalists in search of news, especially of gruesome cases such as the

crime of Fuencarral street The crime of Fuencarral street (also known as the murder on Fuencarral street or the case of Fuencarral street) was a murder that took place in 1888 on the second floor, left side, of number 109 of Calle de Fuencarral, Fuencarral Street in Madrid. ...

(which took place in 1888). Another one of the cafe's usual services was to provide the meals served to the detainees. It was also affected by the waiters' strike in Madrid in 1918. As a ', one of the most popular '' tertulias'' held at the Café de las Salesas was that of "Los Salesianos", a meeting that usually took place between 11:00 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. and in which participants stuck to discussing politics. Despite this, they respected the motto "''Discutir sí, pelear no''" (which in the years prior to the

Civil War A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...

was "''No atacar, pero sí defenderse''"), as well as the motto "''Entre hombres de bien no puede haber engaños''". Participants in the ''tertulia'' included journalist Augusto Vivero Rodríguez, who acted as chairman, and attorney Eduardo Ortega y Gasset (older brother to the philosopher

José José is a predominantly Spanish and Portuguese form of the given name Joseph. While spelled alike, this name is pronounced very differently in each of the two languages: Spanish ; Portuguese (or ). In French, the name ''José'', pronounced ...

), or those who endorsed opposing ideologies, such as the militant communist Marino García and diehard right-winger Francisco Olías. In order to be admitted to the ''tertulia'', it was mandatory to use a specific brand of fountain pens. According to journalist , from ''

El País (; ) is a Spanish-language daily newspaper in Spain. is based in the capital city of Madrid and it is owned by the Spanish media conglomerate PRISA. It is the second-most circulated daily newspaper in Spain . is the most read newspaper in ...

'', apart from lawyers and journalists, the Café de las Salesas was also the meeting place of choice for writers such as

Benito Pérez Galdós Benito María de los Dolores Pérez Galdós (; 10 May 1843 – 4 January 1920) was a Spanish Spanish Realist literature, realist novelist. He was a leading literary figure in 19th-century Spain, and some scholars consider him second only to Mi ...

Pío Baroja Pío Baroja y Nessi (28 December 1872 – 30 October 1956) was a Spanish writer, one of the key novelists of the Generation of '98. He was a member of an illustrious family. His brother Ricardo was a painter, writer and engraver, and his ne ...

Enrique Jardiel Poncela Enrique Jardiel Poncela (15 October 1901 – 18 February 1952) was a Spanish playwright and novelist who wrote mostly humorous works. In 1932-33 and 1934 he was called to Hollywood to help with the Spanish-language versions shot in parallel to ...

, and

Ramón del Valle-Inclán Ramón María del Valle-Inclán y de la Peña (born in Vilanova de Arousa, Galicia, Spain, on October 28, 1866, and died in Santiago de Compostela on January 5, 1936) was a Spanish dramatist, novelist, and member of the Spanish Generation o ...

, composer José Padilla, and activist Colombine, among others.

An appointment with Machado

On 8 December 1933, communist journalist set up an appointment with poet

Antonio Machado Antonio Cipriano José María y Francisco de Santa Ana Machado y Ruiz (26 July 1875 – 22 February 1939), known as Antonio Machado, was a Spanish poet and one of the leading figures of the Spanish literary movement known as the Generation ...

at the Café de las Salesas. The event, insignificant in and of itself, would be immortalized by photographer in an image that is considered one of the most representative photographs of Machado. The photograph included a third figure in the scene, that of Braulio, the waiter, reflected in the large mirror alongside the page of a calendar marking the date. The original photograph, which became famous from a cropped fragment, showed the journalist sitting beside the poet at a table in the café, under the waiter's reflection in a mirror. Both the photograph and the interview would not be published until 12 January 1934 by newspaper '' La Libertad'', with the title ''Deberes del arte en el momento actual''.

Notes

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Bibliography

* Former buildings and structures in Madrid Buildings and structures in Justicia neighborhood, Madrid Buildings and structures in Centro District, Madrid Buildings and structures in Madrid {{Restaurants in Spain

History

An appointment with Machado

See also

Notes

References

Bibliography