2025-11-18
26 分钟This BBC podcast is supported by ads outside the UK.
Asia-specific, coming soon with me, Mariko Oi.
This is the documentary from the BBC World Service, this week from Spain,
marking the 50th anniversary of the death of the dictator, Francisco Franco.
I'm Linda Presley with assignment.
We're driving up the road to...
What was once known as Valle de los Caídos,
value of the falling, that's now renamed as Valle de Cuelga Muros.
This pine tree side of the road, we've seen there.
It's a very cloudy day.
This road was badly built by political prisoners right after the Spanish Civil War.
That's the BBC's producer in Spain, Esperanza Escribano.
We're an hour's drive northwest of Madrid and we're climbing towards the monument Franco began building in 1940 The civil war had just ended a bloody conflict triggered by Franco's military coup against Spain's elected Republican government For many the valley that includes a basilica or church represents his nationalist victory in the war This is Esperanza's first visit here Wow as a Spanish person I knew about this place but what I didn't know is the dimension of it it's just massive there's this huge explanade then this grey stone arcade built around the foot of the rocky hill in the middle there's the entrance to the basilica tunnel through the hill and on top of it the largest cross in the world is stretching 150 meters into the sky.
In this week's assignment we're exploring the symbolism and future of the valley.
Was it a place of reconciliation between Spain's once-warring factions, as some claim?
Spain's socialist government doesn't think so,
and it's embarked on an ambitious project to redefine the site.
Some history.
After winning the Civil War, Francisco Franco ruled Spain with absolute power.
Thousands of Republicans were executed, many more went into exile.