Spanish Testament
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''Spanish Testament'' is a 1937 book by
Arthur Koestler Arthur Koestler, (, ; ; hu, Kösztler Artúr; 5 September 1905 – 1 March 1983) was a Hungarian-born author and journalist. Koestler was born in Budapest and, apart from his early school years, was educated in Austria. In 1931, Koestler join ...
, describing his experiences during 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, lin ...
. Part II of the book was subsequently published on its own, with minor modifications, under the title ''
Dialogue with Death ''Dialogue with Death'', a book by Arthur Koestler, was originally published in 1937 as a section (Part II) of his book ''Spanish Testament'', in which he describes his experiences during the Spanish Civil War. Part II of the book was subsequent ...
'' (see below). Koestler made three trips to Spain during the civil war; the third time he was captured, sentenced to death and imprisoned by the Nationalist forces of
General Franco Francisco Franco Bahamonde (; 4 December 1892 – 20 November 1975) was a Spanish general who led the Nationalist forces in overthrowing the Second Spanish Republic during the Spanish Civil War and thereafter ruled over Spain from 193 ...
. Koestler was at that time working on behalf of the
Comintern The Communist International (Comintern), also known as the Third International, was a Soviet Union, Soviet-controlled international organization founded in 1919 that advocated world communism. The Comintern resolved at its Second Congress to ...
and as an agent of the Loyalist Government's official news agency, using for cover accreditation to the British daily ''
News Chronicle The ''News Chronicle'' was a British daily newspaper. Formed by the merger of '' The Daily News'' and the ''Daily Chronicle'' in 1930, it ceased publication on 17 October 1960,''Liberal Democrat News'' 15 October 2010, accessed 15 October 2010 be ...
''. The book was published in London by
Victor Gollancz Sir Victor Gollancz (; 9 April 1893 – 8 February 1967) was a British publisher and humanitarian. Gollancz was known as a supporter of left-wing causes. His loyalties shifted between liberalism and communism, but he defined himself as a Christ ...
Ltd. The 'Contents' of the book is in two parts: Part I describes the context in which he was captured, divided into IX chapters, each with its own title. Part II, titled ''
Dialogue with Death ''Dialogue with Death'', a book by Arthur Koestler, was originally published in 1937 as a section (Part II) of his book ''Spanish Testament'', in which he describes his experiences during the Spanish Civil War. Part II of the book was subsequent ...
,'' describes Koestler's prison experiences under sentence of death. This part was written in the late autumn of 1937 immediately after his release from prison, when the events were still vivid. In the second volume of his autobiography ''
The Invisible Writing ''The Invisible Writing: The Second Volume Of An Autobiography, 1932-40'' (1954) is a book by Arthur Koestler. It follows on from '' Arrow in the Blue'', published two years earlier, and which described his life from his birth in 1905, to 1931, ...
,'' written by Koestler fifteen years later, the following footnote appears:


Contents

INTRODUCTION (by Katharine Atholl) AUTHOR'S FOREWORD PART I I. Journey to Rebel Headquarters II. Historic Retrospect III. The Outbreak IV. The Background V. The Church Militant VI. Propaganda VII. The Heroes of the Alcázar VIII. Madrid IX. The Last Days of Malaga PART II Dialogue with Death EPILOGUE


Background

Koestler had taken an ill-considered decision to stay at
Málaga Málaga (, ) is a municipality of Spain, capital of the Province of Málaga, in the autonomous community of Andalusia. With a population of 578,460 in 2020, it is the second-most populous city in Andalusia after Seville and the sixth most pop ...
in southern Spain when the Republican forces withdrew from it. He had only narrowly escaped arrest by
Franco Franco may refer to: Name * Franco (name) * Francisco Franco (1892–1975), Spanish general and dictator of Spain from 1939 to 1975 * Franco Luambo (1938–1989), Congolese musician, the "Grand Maître" Prefix * Franco, a prefix used when ref ...
’s army on his previous sojourn into Nationalist territory, when on his second day in Nationalist-held
Seville Seville (; es, Sevilla, ) is the capital and largest city of the Spanish autonomous community of Andalusia and the province of Seville. It is situated on the lower reaches of the River Guadalquivir, in the southwest of the Iberian Peninsula ...
he was recognised by a former colleague of his from Ullstein’s in Berlin, who knew that Koestler was a Communist. This time he was less fortunate and was arrested, summarily sentenced to death and sent off to imprisonment in Seville. The episode is recorded in detail in the memoirs of
Sir Peter Chalmers Mitchell Sir Peter Chalmers Mitchell (23 November 1864 – 2 July 1945) was a Scottish zoologist who was Secretary of the Zoological Society of London from 1903 to 1935. During this time, he directed the policy of the Zoological Gardens of London and c ...
, a 72 year old retired zoologist (and the driving force behind the creation of Whipsnade Zoo) who was providing Koestler with safe haven at the time and who was also arrested.'' My House in Málaga'' by
Sir Peter Chalmers Mitchell Sir Peter Chalmers Mitchell (23 November 1864 – 2 July 1945) was a Scottish zoologist who was Secretary of the Zoological Society of London from 1903 to 1935. During this time, he directed the policy of the Zoological Gardens of London and c ...
. Faber & Faber, London, 1938. Republished by
The Clapton Press The Clapton Press is an independent publisher based in London E5, established in 2018. Spanish Civil War Although its publication list is not restricted to any particular theme, The Clapton Press has a strong interest in Spain and Latin America. ...
, London, 2019.
The second half of the book is devoted to Koestler's time in the prison, in the company of numerous political prisoners – most of them Spanish Republicans. Prisoners lived under the constant threat of
summary execution A summary execution is an execution in which a person is accused of a crime and immediately killed without the benefit of a full and fair trial. Executions as the result of summary justice (such as a drumhead court-martial) are sometimes include ...
without trial, without warning and without any evident logic in the choice of victims. Every morning, prisoners would wake to find that some of their number had been executed during the night. The daily routine in the prison until the moment of execution was quite comfortable, and conditions were better than in many British jails at the time. As Koestler notes, the Seville Prison was established just a few years before, during the brief period of the
Second Spanish Republic The Spanish Republic (), commonly known as the Second Spanish Republic (), was the form of government in Spain from 1931 to 1939. The Republic was proclaimed on 14 April 1931, after the deposition of Alfonso XIII, King Alfonso XIII, and was di ...
, when liberal reformers wanted to make of it a model for the humane treatment of prisoners. After taking over the city, the Nationalist forces made little change to the prison regulations and routine, and kept on much of the original staff – except for adding their execution squads in the prison courtyard. The contradiction between relatively humane daily treatment and the constant threat of summary execution forms a central theme of the book. It seems to have created a feeling of dislocation and disorientation, and Koestler spent much of his time in some kind of mystical passivity. He alternated between using the well-stocked prison library, to whose books he was given access, and going on hunger strikes. After some time, it became evident to Koestler and his fellow-prisoners that he was in an exceptional situation and that his captors were reluctant to carry out the execution order against him. Although he did not know it at the time, the British Foreign Office was taking an interest in his case, and their inquiries made the Spanish reluctant to execute him. Koestler quotes a message he got from three other prisoners, Republican militiamen: "Dear comrade foreigner, we three are also condemned to death, and they will shoot us tonight or tomorrow. But you may survive; and if you ever come out you must tell the world about all those who kill us, because we want liberty and no Hitler." The three were executed shortly afterwards. Koestler considered his book, written after he was released and returned to Britain, to be the testament of the three men and his other fellow prisoners who did not survive.


Influence on later work

Koestler's prison experience contributed to his acute psychological insight in his portrayal of events in ''
Darkness at Noon ''Darkness at Noon'' (german: link=no, Sonnenfinsternis) is a novel by Hungarian-born novelist Arthur Koestler, first published in 1940. His best known work, it is the tale of Rubashov, an Old Bolshevik who is arrested, imprisoned, and tried f ...
'' (1941), an
anti-Communist Anti-communism is Political movement, political and Ideology, ideological opposition to communism. Organized anti-communism developed after the 1917 October Revolution in the Russian Empire, and it reached global dimensions during the Cold War, w ...
novel which became a best-seller and gained him international attention.


References

{{Arthur Koestler Books by Arthur Koestler Spanish Civil War books Memoirs of imprisonment 1937 non-fiction books Seville Arthur Koestler