The Monument to the Fallen (

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Can ...

: ''Monumento a los Caídos'') is a monument in

Plaza de España Plaza de España (Square of Spain) may refer to: In Spain * Plaça d'Espanya, Barcelona in Barcelona * Plaça d'Espanya (Palma) in Palma, Mallorca * Plaza de España, Madrid in Madrid * Plaza de España (Pontevedra) in Pontevedra * Plaza de Es ...

, near the sea front of Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Spain. It is one of the several erected monuments across the Spanish geography that serve as memorial to the victors in the

Spanish Civil War The Spanish Civil War ( es, Guerra Civil Española)) or The Revolution ( es, La Revolución, link=no) among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War ( es, Cuarta Guerra Carlista, link=no) among Carlists, and The Rebellion ( es, La Rebelión, link ...

History and description

The idea of the monument was conceived after the 1936–1939 Civil War and promoted by the Captain General of the Canary Islands . It was formulated as a "Monument to the Fallen of Santa Cruz de Tenerife in the War of National Liberation" . The architectural project was authored by Tomás Navarro, while the sculptures are the work of Enrique Cejas Zaldívar and Alonso Reyes Barroso, and it consisted of a high cross-like obelisk, a basement and a crypt, while incorporating a series of sculptural features. It has four major sculptural elements: an allegory of the ''Fatherland'' holding the fallen soldier, a winged female figure representing ''Victory'', and two soldiers wielding a sword, representing the civic and the military value. The sculptures are either made of bronze or

basalt Basalt (; ) is an aphanitic (fine-grained) extrusive igneous rock formed from the rapid cooling of low-viscosity lava rich in magnesium and iron (mafic lava) exposed at or very near the surface of a rocky planet or moon. More than 90 ...

. The monument also features some lateral reliefs by Cejas Zaldívar. It was unveiled on 17 February 1947 during a ceremony attended by García-Escámez;

Domingo Pérez Cáceres Domingo Pérez Cáceres (November 10, 1892, Güímar, Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain) - August 1, 1961, San Cristóbal de La Laguna, Tenerife) was a Spanish ecclesiastic, eighth Bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of San Cristóbal de La Laguna ...

;

Luis Carrero Blanco Admiral-General Luis Carrero Blanco (4 March 1904 – 20 December 1973) was a Spanish Navy officer and politician. A long-time confidant and right-hand man of dictator Francisco Franco, Carrero served as the Prime Minister of Spain and i ...

and the Mayor of Santa Cruz Cándido Luis García Sanjuán. The building works reportedly made use of forced labour via

political prisoners A political prisoner is someone imprisoned for their political activity. The political offense is not always the official reason for the prisoner's detention. There is no internationally recognized legal definition of the concept, although nu ...

. According to a study commissioned by the local government in 2019, the monument violates the

Law of Historical Memory Law 52/2007 That recognises and broadens the rights and establishes measures in favour of those who suffered persecution or violence during the Civil War and the Dictatorship (in Spanish: ''Ley 52/2007 por la que se reconocen y amplían derecho ...

, and it needs to undergo a "resignification" process.

References

;Citations ;Bibliography * * * * {{Authority control Francoist monuments and memorials in Spain Buildings and structures in Santa Cruz de Tenerife Outdoor sculptures in the Canary Islands Obelisks in Spain Monuments and memorials in the Canary Islands