Building Islamic Spaces during the Spanish Civil War
Résumés
Pendant la guerre civile espagnole, des hôpitaux, des mosquées et des cimetières ont été construits pour répondre aux besoins des soldats musulmans qui combattaient avec les rebelles pour renverser le gouvernement de la Seconde République. Bien que l’Espagne ait été gouvernée pendant de nombreux siècles par des musulmans qui avaient mis en œuvre une architecture islamique, aucun espace islamique n’avait été construit depuis plusieurs siècles. Les rebelles, dirigés par Francisco Franco, promouvaient une identité nationale catholique pour l’Espagne, ce qui n’empêcha pas le recrutement de soldats musulmans. Les rebelles ont rapidement commencé à créer des hôpitaux et des cimetières pour les soldats musulmans, ainsi que des espaces de prière. Cet article s’intéresse à la construction d’espaces islamiques dans les zones tenues par les rebelles pendant la guerre civile espagnole, analysant non seulement le style, mais aussi les motivations et les messages véhiculés par ces espaces.
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- 1 Sebastian Balfour, Deadly Embrace: Morocco and the Road to the Spanish Civil War, Oxford, Oxford U (...)
1The Morábito Mosque (Fig. 1), located in a park near downtown Córdoba, Spain, was built in 1938. Colloquially known as the Franco Mosque, it is one of the few surviving Islamic spaces constructed by rebel forces during the Spanish Civil War (1936-39). These spaces were created especially for the approximately 80 000 Muslims soldiers, most of whom were from Morocco, who fought with them. There is a long history in Spain, beginning with the Umayyads in the 7th century, of the patronage of Islamic architecture but with the 1492 defeat of the Nasrid dynasty by the Catholic Monarchs, Isabella I of Castile and Ferdinand II of Aragon, and the subsequent expulsion of the Muslim community, new spaces for Muslim prayer were no longer commissioned. However, during the Civil War, the rebels, led by Francisco Franco, not only built mosques but also hospitals and cemeteries. While the rebels promoted a Catholic national identity for Spain and Franco attributed his victory in the Civil War to “divine favor”1 this did not preclude their recruitment of Muslim soldiers and the creation of Islamic spaces. Indeed, early in the war, Franco already was accompanied by his personal Moroccan guard, a practice that continued until the end of the Spanish Protectorate of Morocco in 1956.
- 2 Studies have focused largely on the military and political aspect of Muslim troops in the Civil Wa (...)
- 3 I also am interested in what the spaces meant to the Moroccan soldiers who used them and how they (...)
2The existence of rebel-built Islamic spaces seems to be largely forgotten; little of the architecture remains today having been destroyed or left to fall into disrepair. Scholars, such as María Rosa de Madariaga and others, have written about the Moroccan soldiers and their role in the Civil War.2 My interest is in the spaces that were created for them. Architecture can be used to shape ideas about people and events. The Morábito Mosque and the larger building program raise numerous questions regarding the intent of the spaces, the motivations that drove their creation, as well as the styles that were used and the locations that were chosen. Furthermore, prior to the Civil War, much of the Protectorate era rhetoric cast Moroccans in a negative light. How did the message shift such that Moroccan soldiers were not only recruited but then provided for with the hospitals, mosques and cemeteries that were created? In this essay, I will discuss the types of space that were created, the styles of the two extent mosques (the Morábito Mosque and another in Galicia), and possible motivations and messages associated with the spaces and styles.3
- 4 Richard S. Fogarty, Race and War in France: Colonial Subjects in the French Army, 1914-1918, Balti (...)
- 5 Ibid. For more information on the Nogent Mosque, see Maureen G. Shanahan, “Battles for Hearts and (...)
3While Franco’s building campaign, directed towards the Muslims soldiers fighting for the rebel cause, may seem incongruous with his ideology of National Catholicism, it is not without precedent. During World War I, both the French and Germans built mosques such at the Nogent Mosque, inaugurated in 1916 in Nogent-sur-Marne, near Paris, France, and the mosque at Crescent camp, completed in 1915, in Wünsdorf-Zossen, near Berlin, Germany to garner favor among the thousands of Muslim soldiers who fought. The Germans sought to recruit Muslim prisoners of war, who had been fighting for the French, to be their agents as well as appeal to their loyalty to the Ottoman sultan and thus against the French and their allies. In addition to a mosque at Crescent camp, an Algerian deserter wrote about how well Muslims prisoners in Germany were treated noting there was culture-specific meals, “Moorish cafés”, as well as facilities to study the Quran.4 The French also constructed mosques, appointed imams to serve at hospitals and oversee burial procedures, as well as accommodate dietary and other religious needs.5 In doing so they tried to show their Muslim subjects that they valued religious freedom and respected their religion. Like the Germans and the French, Franco also sought to accommodate the needs of his Muslim soldiers and gain their support for his cause while reshaping the narratives regarding the Moroccan people so that they, too, could support the Catholic Nationalism he promoted.
Moroccan Soldiers, the Spanish Protectorate in Morocco, and the Civil War
- 6 Sebastian Browne, Medicine and Conflict: The Spanish Civil War and Its Traumatic Legacy, London, R (...)
- 7 Moroccan troops can be divided into four categories, “the mehallas of the Makhzen; the groups of R (...)
- 8 Valentín Álvarez Martínez, David Expósito Mangas and David González Álvarez, “El cemeterio moro de (...)
4Moroccan soldiers proved to be extremely important to the success of the self-proclaimed Nationalist rebels from the start of the Civil War. It is estimated that approximately 80 000 Muslim soldiers were involved, the majority from Morocco, with some from Algeria and Tunisia.6 At the start of the Civil War, parts of Morocco were governed under the Spanish Protectorate (1912-56). Even before this time, starting in 1911, infantry units of Moroccan soldiers under the command of Spanish officers, known as Regulares, had been created and formed part of the Spanish Army of Africa.7 They were used not only in Protectorate Morocco but also in Spain, for example, during the 1934 uprisings in Asturias.8 It was in the Spanish Army of Africa that key members of the rebellion, such as Francisco Franco, established their military careers.
- 9 Eduardo Caballero de Puga, España y Marruecos. Ayer, Hoy y Mañana, Madrid, R. Velasco, 1921, p. 27 (...)
- 10 One officer, after the 1921 disaster at Annual, stated, “there must be no other solution than thei (...)
- 11 Elisabeth Bolorinos Allard, My Enemy or My Brother? Spanish Representations of Muslim and Jewish C (...)
- 12 Ibid., p. 85.
5While Moroccan soldiers served in the Spanish army of Africa, during the early 20th century, negative attitudes towards Moroccans, often highlighted in the Spanish press, were prevalent. The colonial rhetoric of the era often described the Moroccan people as inferior and in need of protection.9 Furthermore, the devastating Spanish losses in the Rif war of the 1920s heightened negative press regarding Moroccans.10 Also, this was the early era of photojournalism; the Spanish media published graphic war photos which further heightened negative attitudes, vilifying Moroccans.11 In addition, Spain’s medieval history that included crusades against Muslims continued to shape ideas of conflict between Muslims and Christians. The media made references to the colonial war as a “Reconquest”,12 reinforcing the idea that Spanish identity was tied to Catholicism.
- 13 Josep Lluís Mateo Dieste, La “hermandad”…, op. cit., p. 252; Sebastian Browne, Medicine and Confli (...)
6Even so, the leaders of the Nationalist rebellion, including Franco as the commander of the Army of Africa, depended upon Moroccan soldiers and built spaces for them during the war. Even before the Civil War began, some Africanists, seeking to legitimize the Spanish intervention in Morocco, promoted a narrative that highlighted a shared past between the Spanish and Moroccan people as well as a dedication to their respective religious beliefs. Similar ideas also were being used in the context of tourism. During the Civil War, rebels spoke and wrote about the connection between Spaniards and Moroccans as a brotherhood. In this way, they attempted to reconcile the image of Moroccans as the enemy to loyal champions of their cause. Furthermore, they transformed the crusade mentality of the medieval period such that Christians and Muslims were united as people of faith against atheist and communist Republicans.13
- 14 Sebastian Balfour, Deadly Embrace…, op. cit., p. 281.
- 15 Ibid.
- 16 Mustapha El Merroun, Las Tropas Marroquíes…, op. cit., p. 41. It is also interesting to note that (...)
7The Nationalist rebel rhetoric that cast Franco as a supporter and defender of Islam also aimed to encourage Moroccans to join the rebel cause. Numerous speeches by Franco and others emphasized the connection between the two countries and called upon Moroccans to defend people of faith. For example, in a speech in 1937 in Larache, Morocco, General Antonio Aranda, declared, “Those who fight against Spain on national territory wish to destroy all religions, and in general, all religions of the world…”14 He continued, “never have the Spanish authorities nor the Spanish soldiers carried out the slightest attack on the prestige and respect due to the saintly Muslim religion, which has always been respected by the true Spain, always defended and protected by us against its enemies.”15 While some may have been persuaded to join the rebels in order to defend religion, certainly for others the promise of a regular salary was appealing; a drought beginning in 1934 had left many desperate for work.16
Hospitals and Prayer Spaces
- 17 Archivo Provincial de la Diputación de Cádiz, L-3083 (1935-1936), Libro Registro de Ingresos y Alt (...)
- 18 Francisco Javier Hernández Navarro and Antonio Prieto Barrio, “Los Distintivos y las Medallas Crea (...)
8Within a few months of the start of the Civil War, the rebels began responding to the specific needs of their Muslim soldiers. For example, at the beginning of the War, Moroccan and Spanish wounded were treated together at local hospitals. The patient registry at the Mora Hospital (Hospital de Mora) in Cádiz, which opened 1904, indicates that Moroccan soldiers were admitted starting in November of 1936, as well as members of the public.17 In August of 1937, the hospital became the Moroccan Military Hospital (Hospital militar marroquí) as the rebels began establishing wards or entire hospitals designated specifically for Moroccan or Muslim soldiers throughout the territories under their control.18 These hospitals were typically referred to as a Moroccan hospital (hospital marroquí), a hospital for Muslims (hospital para musulmanes) or a hospital for “Moors” (hospital para moros).
- 19 Martín de Frutos Herranz, Hospitales de Burgos Durante la Guerra Civil (1936-39), Burgos, Ayuntami (...)
9Often, the rebels transformed schools into hospitals. In Sevilla, while Spanish soldiers were sent to the Military Hospital, a new hospital, the Barzola Military Hospital (Hospital de la Barzola), was created specifically for Moroccan soldiers at the site of a school that was under construction. The school, which had been intended to be named Queipo de Llano after the prominent Nationalist military leader, instead was adapted to serve as a hospital to treat Moroccan wounded. It opened in February of 1937 under the direction of Sebastián Lazo García. A similar example is the hospital in Griñón (Madrid) which was created within La Salle School (Colegio La Salle).19
- 20 Archivo General Militar de Ávila (AGMAV), c. 2396, 190, 14 #2, Hospitales para moros. Informe acer (...)
- 21 AGMAV, c. 2331, 59, 86 #2, Correspondencia relativa a la prohibición que se trata de convertir al (...)
- 22 Martín de Frutos Herranz, Hospitales de Burgos…, op. cit., p. 110.
10In addition to the physical hospital spaces, official orders from Franco and others outlined the requirements for the Muslim hospitals. They were to be staffed by individuals to care for both religious and personal needs, including an imam to lead prayer and act as head of the religious staff, a notary for official documents, a “kateb” (writer) to help with correspondence as many could not read or write, and a “munadif al-mauta” (cleaner of the dead) to prepare the deceased for burial.20 Also, they had to provide appropriate food to ensure that the soldiers’ dietary requirements were fulfilled and any attempt to convert the soldiers to Christianity was forbidden.21 At some hospitals, Christian imagery such as Saint James the Moor-slayer, the legendary hero of the Battle of Clavijo who led the Christians to victory over the “Moors,” was covered so as to not distress the Muslim patients.22
- 23 Miguel Guirao Gea, “Hospital Musulmán Universitario”, Boletín de la Universidad de Granada, no 9, (...)
11Furthermore, within the hospital complexes, the rebels created places of prayer for the Moroccan soldiers. At some hospitals a small prayer space was integrated into the building while at others, free-standing mosques were built. For example, at the start of the war, in Granada the wounded were sent to the Hospital of San Juan de Dios. But soon, in conjunction with visits from important Moroccan visitors, a plan to create a space where the Moroccan soldiers could be together, provided with appropriate food, a familiar atmosphere, and other amenities was implemented. The result was that a hospital under construction at that time was modified so that there would be a specific section for the Moroccan soldiers: that is the Muslim Hospital of Granada (Hospital marroquí de Granada).23
- 24 En breve fecha se inaugurará el Hospital Marroquí de Granada, que es único en España. El Ideal. Di (...)
- 25 Sebastian Browne, Medicine and Conflict…, op. cit., p. 47; Ali Al Tuma, “Moros y Cristianos…”, art (...)
12The hospital was located next to the University of Granada’s school of medicine. The director of the hospital, Miguel Guirao Gea, was a professor there as were several other doctors. In addition to the medical facilities, the complex housed a small prayer space. A photograph of the space shows that it included a miḥrāb in the form of a horseshoe arch made of carved plaster and decorated with vegetal designs and bands of Arabic calligraphy, similar to the miḥrāb-s of medieval mosques in North Africa such as the Ben Youssef Madrasa in Marrakech, Morocco and the Great Mosque of Tlemcen, Algeria. The lower portions of the wall, however, were covered with tile ornamentation in geometric patterns. In addition to the prayer chamber, there was a Moroccan style café, kitchen and slaughterhouse.24 At times, musicians and other performers entertained the patients while also ensuring that religious requirements, such as the avoidance of alcohol, could be maintained.25 The separation of Muslim soldiers and their particular requirements emphasized to the Spanish that the Moroccan soldiers were devout people of faith.
- 26 “La ciencia médica de Granada puesta al servicio de la causa nacional… los hermanos de Marruecos… (...)
- 27 “cuando todavía llamaba a los moros de Granada ‘sus fieles y bien amados súbditos’”, ibid.
13Newspaper articles announcing the inauguration of the hospital in June of 1937 praised it as a first of its kind. For example, in El Ideal, the author noted that, “The medical science of Granada is put to the service of the national cause” while also commenting on their “brother Moroccans”, who with “Spanish heart” had “joined us in the struggle to save Spain.”26 The same article also referred to Isabella the Catholic’s dream of Convivencia when she “still called the Muslims in Granada ‘her faithful and beloved subjects.’”27 Furthermore, the hospital was praised as having all the latest technologies and services.
- 28 Sebastian Browne, Medicine and Conflict…, op. cit., p. 22.
- 29 Nationalist newspapers forbade foreign journalists from any reference to Moroccan troops other tha (...)
- 30 “los hombres de la Raza gemela […] los hermanos musulmanes” (Antonio Olmedo, “Acompañado por su Br (...)
- 31 “la participación de los marroquíes en la obra actual de Reconquista de España” (Córdoba Recibe al (...)
- 32 Josep Lluís Mateo Dieste, La “hermandad”…, op. cit., p. 252; Sebastian Browne, Medicine and Confli (...)
- 33 AGMAV c. 2331, 59, 87, #6 Correspondencia relativa a la designación de un barco para la peregrinac (...)
14The hospitals and their mosques were often featured in newspaper articles in the Nationalist press. They noted visits by dignitaries from Morocco and their impressions of the hospitals and mosques they visited, and usually featured high praise for the care the soldiers were receiving. While press coverage was directed primarily towards Spaniards, reports of the high level of care for the Moroccan soldiers also would help to maintain support for the Protectorate and for continued recruitment there.28 Frequently the brotherhood between Moroccans and Spaniards and the closeness of their faiths also were featured, reinforcing the idea that Muslim Moroccans were pious co-defenders of the faith.29 For example, mentions of Moroccan soldiers often referred to them as “men of the twin race […] and Moroccan brothers,”30 as well noting “Moroccan participation in the current work of the Reconquest of Spain.”31 The Reconquest in this context was not Christian against Muslim but rather Christian united with Muslim to defeat the atheists and communists (as the rebels described the Republicans).32 On a similar note, in January of 1937, Franco provided a ship for Moroccans to travel to Mecca for the pilgrimage. This event, as well as another in 1938, also were highlighted, broadcasting the message that Franco was a friend to Muslims.33
Free Standing Mosques
- 34 I am still attempting to determine whether any others also are extant. While telegrams and other d (...)
- 35 Martín de Frutos Herranz, Hospitales de Burgos…, op. cit., p. 127.
- 36 Ana Miragaya López, Vida del Dr. Vidal Ríos: Testimonio de una época, A Coruña, Fundación VR, 1999 (...)
15In addition to incorporating prayer chambers at hospitals, the rebels at times also constructed free-standing mosques. It is unclear how many mosques were built and why free-standing mosques instead of the prayer chambers like the one in the hospital in Granada were sometimes constructed, but sources I have found indicate there were free-standing, purpose-built mosques in Guitiriz (Galicia), Vigo (Galicia), and Burgos in the north, and in Cordoba, Sevilla, and Jerez de la Frontera (Andalucía) in the south. The mosques in Córdoba and Guitiriz are still standing.34 Of the two extant mosques, the one in Guitiriz is the oldest. The mosque was built at the site of a hospital which opened October 14, 1936 for all soldiers and then shifted to caring only for Muslim soldiers.35 Here, the hospital was created on the grounds of a popular spa with a natural spring of medical mineral water. The spa, Balneario de Guitiriz, opened in 1908 and was converted into a hospital during the war to serve Moroccans who were injured fighting on the Asturian front.36
16The mosque (Fig. 2) is a symmetrical structure with an entrance gate at the center; at each end are two domed cubes with a small courtyard space that connects the two. The walls are unadorned and painted white. The doorways are in the form of a horseshoe arch constructed with red bricks and there are horseshoe arch shaped windows. One of the domed structures includes a tiled basin that runs around the interior wall suggesting it was the ablution area while the domed structure at the other end appears to be the prayer chamber.
- 37 Shortly after the hospital’s closure, during the 1938-39 school year, the site was used as a Jesui (...)
- 38 Joan Serrallonga, “Main Military Medical Organisations in the Rebel Army, 1936-1939”, Revista Univ (...)
17The hospital closed on October 31, 1937 due to poor conditions, including insufficient space to accommodate its 400 patients.37 The patients were then transferred to the Bella Vista Military Hospital in Vigo (Hospital Militar de Bella Vista). This hospital also had a small, free-standing mosque, which was inaugurated in July of 1937 but since has been destroyed.38 I have not determined who the architects for either project were or how they chose the form for the mosque, a question I will return to below.
- 39 The building functions as a mosque today. It has had a variety of functions since the War. For mor (...)
- 40 Entrega de la Mezquita Construida por el Ayuntamiento en la Plaza de Colón. Diario de Córdoba, 30 (...)
18The other extant mosque, in Córdoba (Fig. 1), was inaugurated in July of 1938,39 commissioned by the local government, designed by a municipal architect, Carlos Sáenz de Santa María, and located near the Muslim hospitals.40 Like the mosque in Guitiriz, the Córdoba mosque, known as El Morábito, has little exterior ornamentation. It is a domed cuboid, rather than the two domed cubes connected by a courtyard found in Guitiriz. It included an ablution area as well as a space for preparing the deceased for burial. The interior is decorated with tiles in geometric patterns.
- 41 For more information, see Jennifer Roberson, “From Dictatorship to Democracy…”, art. cit., p. 128- (...)
19The city of Córdoba is well known for its historic mosque, the Great Mosque of Córdoba (8th-10th centuries), which like many medieval mosques in Spain, was re-consecrated as a church (in this case, the Cathedral of Córdoba). In contrast to the geometric, white-washed form of the Morábito mosque, the Great Mosque of Córdoba was a hypostyle mosque, that is a large hall with numerous columns, and its exterior unpainted stone. It is curious that the Morábito was not modelled on the Great Mosque of Córdoba, considering its proximity and historic significance. The Great Mosque was well known to Muslim visitors from Morocco and other countries during the Civil War and after, as it was a featured stop for dignitaries visiting Córdoba. While it was the functioning Cathedral of Córdoba, these important visitors were allowed to pray inside the Mosque-Cathedral, a practice that continued throughout the Franco era, but an activity which is no longer allowed.41
20At the inauguration of the Morábito mosque, there was a great deal of fanfare. There were numerous speeches that again highlighted the importance of Islam and religion in general as well as the close relationship between Spain and Morocco. The imam noted his appreciation for the mosque stating:
- 42 “El nuevo Gobierno español, en demonstración del cariño que siente por el pueblo musulmán, no cesa (...)
The new Spanish government, in demonstration of the affection it feels for the Muslim people, does not cease contributing and promoting sacred places where it believes convenient for us to fulfill our religion. In almost all the cities of liberated Spain, there are hospitals expressly for Muslims, staffed by religious people, with the intent that we don’t lack any of our religious customs and we should be very grateful for these attentions.42
21Again, these types of events were highlighted in the Nationalist press and helped to emphasize the rebel-Nationalist narrative of the shared goal to support people of faith over the atheist and Communist-led government that they were seeking to overthrow.
Architectural Forms
- 43 I have found one photograph of a mosque at the King’s Hospital (Hospital del Rey) in Burgos. It ap (...)
- 44 In an article about the inauguration, the mosque is referred to as a Morábito, as well. Entrega Of (...)
22With only two extant examples it is difficult to draw conclusions about what the Civil War era mosques were like in terms of form and ornamentation. Furthermore, I have not found any documentation discussing how stylistic decisions were being made and by whom. However, there are similarities worth noting in these two examples. In both cases, the mosques are small, domed white-washed structures.43 This type of structure does not appear related to the historic hypostyle mosques that were common in both Spain and Morocco. Rather, the domed cube/cuboid form, often white-washed, is more common for saint shrines (or morábito, in Spanish) found in Morocco, and historically, in Spain. The name of the Córdoba mosque, El Morábito, suggests an awareness of the building type.44
- 45 Eduardo Gallego, “Nuevas mezquitas en nuestra zona de Marruecos”, La Construcción Moderna, no 13, (...)
- 46 Antonio Bravo Nieto, Arquitectura y Urbanismo Español en el Norte de Marruecos, n.p.: Junta de And (...)
- 47 Stones from the battlefields of Toledo, Oviedo and Teruel were included in the construction of the (...)
23While domed cubes were typical for saint’s shrine, interestingly the earliest mosque built in Morocco by the Protectorate Administration also was a domed cube and may have acted as a model for the later Civil War mosques. The mosque was designed by military engineer Joaquín Salinas and built in Río Martín (present Martil) in 1914.45 Located near Tetuán, the capital of the Spanish Protectorate, Río Martín was Tetuán’s port and connected the cities via rail line. Presumably, the “shrine-type” Protectorate mosque was visible to many travelers (civil and military) who passed through the region.46 The Protectorate Administration constructed many mosques in Morocco but not all in the shrine format. For example, the Mosque of Muley el-Mehdi, begun in 1938 and inaugurated in 1940, after the conclusion of the war, was a gift from Franco to the people of Ceuta. It conforms to the hypostyle lay-out that was frequently used for mosques in the western Mediterranean. The Muslim community in Ceuta at this time would have been considerably larger than the ones in Córdoba or Guitiriz. Perhaps the shrine-type form was merely a response to the need for a smaller building.47
- 48 Zeynep Çelik, Displaying the Orient: Architecture of Islam at Nineteenth-Century World’s Fairs, Be (...)
24The distinct form of saints’ shrines appears to have been a well-known and easily recognizable type of Moroccan architecture during the Protectorate era in Spain. Not only was the first Spanish-built mosque in Morocco built in this form but also a white-washed domed cube was included in the Morocco pavilion at the 1929 Ibero-American Exposition in Sevilla. Designed by Spanish architect José Gutiérrez Lescura, Director of the School of Arts and Trades in Tetuán, and decorated by Spanish artist Mariano Bertuchi, its exterior façade suggested it was a religious structure with horseshoe-arch doorways and a minaret. Zeynep Çelik has noted that expo pavilions often featured mosques or structures that appeared religious to act as a symbol of Islam.48 In this case, while the structure included a minaret, suggesting the existence of a mosque, the interior was modeled on a luxurious home with a courtyard. The interior also served as a commercial space where Moroccan goods were sold, showcasing Protectorate Morocco to the Spanish public.
- 49 María Luisa Bellido Gant, “Promoción turística y configuración de la imagen de Marruecos durante e (...)
- 50 Luis Ángel Sánchez Gómez, “África en Sevilla: La Exhibición Colonial de la Exposición Iberoamerica (...)
- 51 The Morocco Pavilion at the 1947 Barcelona Fair is just one example.
- 52 María Luisa Bellido Gant, “Promoción turística…”, art. cit., p. 52-66.
- 53 Shanahan also notes connections between expo pavilions and the WWI French built Nogent Mosque in F (...)
25This also was a period of growing interest in tourism. It was hoped that the pavilion would be a tourist attraction in the future based on its popularity during the expo.49 Expanding tourism in Spain as well as in Protectorate Morocco was a priority, so the pavilion was designed to appeal to the Spanish public and encourage interest in Morocco.50 In this era, and earlier (late 19th century) expo pavilions often were designed by drawing from various structures in order to lend what was considered a touch of “authenticity” while also fulfilling the visitors’ expectations. Events like 1929 Ibero-American Exposition continued after the Civil War and those in Spain often featured similar architecture for the Morocco Pavilions.51 It also is noteworthy that Carlos Sáenz de Santa María, the architect of the Morábito Mosque in Córdoba, designed the Córdoba Pavillon for the 1929 Ibero-American Exposition in Sevilla so likely saw the Morocco pavilion.52 It is possible that he was inspired in some part by the Morocco Pavilion in his work on the Morábito Mosque.53
- 54 Enrique Arias Anglés, “La visión de Marruecos a través de la pintura orientalista española”, Mélan (...)
- 55 Elisabeth Bolorinos Allard, My Enemy or My Brother?…, op. cit., p. 65.
26An additional possible source of inspiration for the ‘shrine-type’ mosque was the work of artist Mariano Bertuchi, who designed the surface ornamentation of the Morocco Pavilion at the 1929 Ibero-American Exposition in Sevilla. Originally from Granada, Bertuchi moved to Tetuán, Morocco, in 1930. He was well-known as a painter of the people and landscape of Morocco. He was particularly influential in Tetuán where he served as the director of the School of Indigenous Arts and the Fine Arts Preparatory School, among others.54 His work was featured on postage stamps, tourism posters, as well as magazines and often included saints’ shrines. In particular, his work was frequently featured on the cover of Revista de Tropas Coloniales, a journal established by General Queipo de Llano and then Lieutenant Coronel Francisco Franco. The journal promoted the Africanist colonial ideology and included sections on Moroccan history and culture.55 As his work was published in sources intended for both the public and the military, his imagery was wide spread and familiar, and likely had an impact on how Protectorate era Spaniards envisioned Morocco and its architecture.
27It seems likely, then, that the domed cube/cuboid format for the two extant Civil War era mosques was inspired by Moroccan saints’ tombs and imagery of them created by artists and architects like Mariano Bertuchi and José Gutiérrez Lescura. The reason the rebels chose this form and who, specifically was responsible for the design of the buildings, is unclear. However, it is evident that the shrine form would have been familiar to the Spanish public and appears to have been considered an iconic Moroccan structure that could attract tourists as well as identify a space as Islamic.
Cemeteries
- 56 Javier Rodríguez Barberán, in his discussion of the cemetery in Sevilla, notes that Muslims could (...)
- 57 Valentín Álvarez Martínez, David Expósito Mangas and David González Álvarez, “El cemeterio moro…”, (...)
28In addition to prayer spaces and hospitals, one final type of space the rebels created for their Moroccan troops were burial spaces. Shortly after the start of the War the rebels were faced with the issue of where to bury Muslims soldiers who died in battle or from other causes. Like the hospitals, soon they created cemeteries designated specifically for Moroccan troops.56 Similar to the mosques, the cemeteries often were created in conjunction with a hospital. The location of these cemeteries has largely been forgotten, unless the cemetery is still being used such as in Griñon (Madrid), Granada and Sevilla. In Guitiriz, where the spa was converted into a hospital and a free-standing mosque was constructed, there was also a cemetery. In another example, as rebel troops advanced from Galicia into Asturias, they built a hospital in the village of Luarca and a cemetery nearby, in Barcia. The entrance gate to the cemetery at Barcia, in the form of a horseshoe arch, still stands (Fig. 3) as do some of the walls. However, the site has largely been abandoned and is in ruins. It is estimated that approximately 400-500 people were buried there.57 In Sevilla, the rebels created the Muslim cemetery as part of the municipal cemetery so that Muslim burial rituals could be observed. Francisco Pérez Bergali, a municipal architect, designed a similar entrance gate to the one in Barcia in that it is a horseshoe arch, this time pointed rather than rounded. Also, it has small geometric designs on the spandrels and two small crescent moons projecting upwards from spires on the corners. Like the shrine format for the mosques, the horseshoe arch marked the space as an Islamic one. Also, it visually marked the presence of an Islamic community, in this case, soldiers fighting for the rebels. This is another example of the religion of the Moroccan soldiers being highlighted. Rather than being considered infidels, as in the medieval crusades, their beliefs were to be respected as they were fighting together with the rebels, according to the Francoist narrative, for all people of faith.
Conclusion
29Throughout rebel-controlled regions of Spain, spaces were created to separate Moroccan soldiers from Spanish ones. The message that was highlighted throughout was that Moroccans and Spaniards had a shared past that united them, just as they were united in the present struggle, as people of faith, against the government of the Second Spanish Republic. As such, the religious needs of Moroccan soldiers were to be cared for so that they could fulfill their religious duties. This was a significant shift from views regarding Morocco and Islam that were often highlighted in the press prior to the Civil War, especially following the Rif War of the 1920s.
30With few extant Islamic spaces and little documentation regarding their forms and decoration, it is challenging to draw conclusions about what messages were intended through the architecture and its ornamentation. However, the details of the spaces discussed above suggest that the building types and architectural forms chosen were likely thought to be representative of both Morocco and Islam by Spaniards of this time. Given the similarities to expo pavilions and tourism imagery, the rebel-constructed Islamic spaces appear to address the needs of the Moroccan soldiers while also appealing to the general public and encouraging support for the Protectorate of Morocco.
- 58 Jordi Moreras, Musulmanes en Barcelona: Espacio y Dinámicas Comunitarias, Barcelona, CIBOD Edicion (...)
31The end of the war brought an end to the patronage of Islamic spaces. Despite the importance of Muslim soldiers to the success of the rebel Nationalists and the rhetoric of brotherhood between Spain and Morocco, after the war Catholicism was the only recognized religion in Franco-era Spain until 1967.58 Perhaps it is not surprising then, that these Islamic spaces are largely forgotten and abandoned. However, they are an important example of how Franco and his collaborators used architecture to re-shape the narratives about the relationship between Spain and Morocco, and Christians and Muslims during the Civil War. Clearly, they were aware of the potency of the symbolism of these spaces and used it to their advantage.
Notes
1 Sebastian Balfour, Deadly Embrace: Morocco and the Road to the Spanish Civil War, Oxford, Oxford University Press, 2002, p. 5.
2 Studies have focused largely on the military and political aspect of Muslim troops in the Civil War, as well as stereotypes and perceptions regarding them. Maria Rosa de Madariaga, Los Moros que Trajo Franco, Madrid, Alianza Editorial, 2015; Mustapha El Merroun, Las Tropas Marroquíes en la Guerra Civil Española 1936-1939, Madrid, Almena Ediciones, 2003; Sebastian Balfour, Deadly Embrace…, op. cit.; Abdelmajid Benjelloun, La Participación de los Mercenarios Marroquíes en la Guerra Civil Española (1936-1939), Madrid, Impr. Taravilla, 1988; Josep Lluís Mateo Dieste, La “hermandad” hispano-marroquí. Política y religión bajo el Protectorado español [1912-1956], Barcelona, Ediciones Bellaterra, 2003.
3 I also am interested in what the spaces meant to the Moroccan soldiers who used them and how they might have interpreted the architecture. These questions are part of on-going research.
4 Richard S. Fogarty, Race and War in France: Colonial Subjects in the French Army, 1914-1918, Baltimore, Johns Hopkins University Press, 2008, p. 189-190.
5 Ibid. For more information on the Nogent Mosque, see Maureen G. Shanahan, “Battles for Hearts and Minds: The Nogent Mosque During World War I”, African Arts, vol. 52, no 4, 2019, p. 18-33.
6 Sebastian Browne, Medicine and Conflict: The Spanish Civil War and Its Traumatic Legacy, London, Routledge, 2019, p. 21.
7 Moroccan troops can be divided into four categories, “the mehallas of the Makhzen; the groups of Regulares; the Native Police; and the auxiliary units”: Maria Rosa de Madariaga, Los Moros…, op. cit., p. 68.
8 Valentín Álvarez Martínez, David Expósito Mangas and David González Álvarez, “El cemeterio moro de Barcia: Breve acercamiento a su estudio”, in Actas del I Congreso de Estudios Asturianos, Vol. 5 (Comisión de Artes, Arquitectura y Urbanism), Oviedo, Real Instituto de Estudios Asturianos, 2007, p. 131; Sebastian Balfour, Deadly Embrace…, op. cit., p. 251.
9 Eduardo Caballero de Puga, España y Marruecos. Ayer, Hoy y Mañana, Madrid, R. Velasco, 1921, p. 27.
10 One officer, after the 1921 disaster at Annual, stated, “there must be no other solution than their extermination”: Sebastian Balfour, Deadly Embrace…, op. cit., p. 200.
11 Elisabeth Bolorinos Allard, My Enemy or My Brother? Spanish Representations of Muslim and Jewish Culture during the Colonial Campaigns in Morocco, 1909-1927, PhD diss., Trinity College, University of Oxford, 2016, p. 223; Sebastian Balfour, Deadly Embrace…, op. cit., p. 200.
12 Ibid., p. 85.
13 Josep Lluís Mateo Dieste, La “hermandad”…, op. cit., p. 252; Sebastian Browne, Medicine and Conflict…, op. cit., p. 34; Eric Calderwood, “Franco’s Hajj: Moroccan Pilgrims, Spanish Fascism, and the Unexpected Journeys of Modern Arabic Literature”, PMLA, vol. 132, no 5, 2017, 1097-1116, here p. 1098-1100.
14 Sebastian Balfour, Deadly Embrace…, op. cit., p. 281.
15 Ibid.
16 Mustapha El Merroun, Las Tropas Marroquíes…, op. cit., p. 41. It is also interesting to note that the Sultan of Morocco, Mohamed V, prohibited Moroccans from enlisting in the Spanish Civil War on either side. Clearly, this decree was not respected. Sebastian Browne, Medicine and Conflict…, op. cit., p. 44.
17 Archivo Provincial de la Diputación de Cádiz, L-3083 (1935-1936), Libro Registro de Ingresos y Altas de Enfermos.
18 Francisco Javier Hernández Navarro and Antonio Prieto Barrio, “Los Distintivos y las Medallas Creadas para las Enfermeras de los Hospitales de Sanidad Militar y Marroquíes del Ejército Franquista (1937-1940)”, Revista de Historia Militar, no 128, 2020, p. 240-320, here p. 265.
19 Martín de Frutos Herranz, Hospitales de Burgos Durante la Guerra Civil (1936-39), Burgos, Ayuntamiento de Burgos, 2009, p. 126; Francisco Javier Hernández Navarro and Antonio Prieto Barrio, “Los Distintivos y las Medallas Creadas…”, art. cit., p. 264.
20 Archivo General Militar de Ávila (AGMAV), c. 2396, 190, 14 #2, Hospitales para moros. Informe acerca de las propuestas formuladas por S.E. el Uzir Ben Ali Seun-Megri y al Alta Comisaría de Marruecos respeto al régimen de los hospitales para indígenas en la Peninsula, Salamanca, 19 March 1937. See also Ali Al Tuma, “Moros y Cristianos: Religious Aspects of the Participation of Moroccan Soldiers in the Spanish Civil War (1936-1939)”, in Bekim Agai, Umar Ryad and Mehdi Sajid (eds.), Muslims in Interwar Europe, Leiden, Brill, 2016, p. 151-177, here p. 168.
21 AGMAV, c. 2331, 59, 86 #2, Correspondencia relativa a la prohibición que se trata de convertir al catolicismo al personal indígena. Burgos, 19 November 1936 and Josep Lluís Mateo Dieste, La “hermandad”…, op. cit., p. 254.
22 Martín de Frutos Herranz, Hospitales de Burgos…, op. cit., p. 110.
23 Miguel Guirao Gea, “Hospital Musulmán Universitario”, Boletín de la Universidad de Granada, no 9, 1937, p. 272-273.
24 En breve fecha se inaugurará el Hospital Marroquí de Granada, que es único en España. El Ideal. Diario Regional de Andalucía, 12 June 1937, p. 8.
25 Sebastian Browne, Medicine and Conflict…, op. cit., p. 47; Ali Al Tuma, “Moros y Cristianos…”, art. cit., p. 168.
26 “La ciencia médica de Granada puesta al servicio de la causa nacional… los hermanos de Marruecos… corazón español…se han unido a nosotros para salvar a España” (En breve fecha se inaugurará el Hospital Marroquí de Granada, que es único en España. El Ideal. Diario Regional de Andalucía, 12 June 1937, p. 8, all Spanish trans. by author of this article).
27 “cuando todavía llamaba a los moros de Granada ‘sus fieles y bien amados súbditos’”, ibid.
28 Sebastian Browne, Medicine and Conflict…, op. cit., p. 22.
29 Nationalist newspapers forbade foreign journalists from any reference to Moroccan troops other than as god fearing devoted soldiers. Ali Al Tuma, “Moros y Cristianos…”, art. cit., p. 158.
30 “los hombres de la Raza gemela […] los hermanos musulmanes” (Antonio Olmedo, “Acompañado por su Brillante Séquito”, ABC Sevilla, 26 August 1937, p. 11).
31 “la participación de los marroquíes en la obra actual de Reconquista de España” (Córdoba Recibe al Gran Visir, con su Séquito, en una Imponente Manifestación de Adhesión y de Entusiasmo. ABC Sevilla, 15 October 1936, p. 9).
32 Josep Lluís Mateo Dieste, La “hermandad”…, op. cit., p. 252; Sebastian Browne, Medicine and Conflict…, op. cit., p. 34; Eric Calderwood, “Franco’s Hajj…”, art. cit., p. 1098-1100.
33 AGMAV c. 2331, 59, 87, #6 Correspondencia relativa a la designación de un barco para la peregrinación a la Meca del personal musulmán, Salamanca, 30 December, 1936; id. #10, Salamanca, 25 January 1937; Informaciones de Marruecos. ABC Sevilla, 14 January 1938, p. 18; Josep Lluís Mateo Dieste, La “hermandad”…, op. cit., p. 259-261. For further discussion and analysis of Franco’s patronage of the Hajj, see Eric Calderwood, “Franco’s Hajj…”, art. cit., p. 1097-1116. Also, it is interesting to note that the Germans in World War I, like Franco and his collaborators later, tried to create a sense of friendship and brotherhood. For example, Germans are recorded as shouting in Arabic to Muslim soldiers fighting for the French “Why are you fighting us? We are your brothers, we are Muslims like you”: Richard S. Fogarty, Race and War in France…, op. cit., p. 191.
34 I am still attempting to determine whether any others also are extant. While telegrams and other documents at the military archives record the existence of hospitals, as well as the requirements I outlined above, thus far I have not been able to find any specific orders to build a free-standing mosque rather than preparing a prayer space like the one at the Muslim Hospital in Granada.
35 Martín de Frutos Herranz, Hospitales de Burgos…, op. cit., p. 127.
36 Ana Miragaya López, Vida del Dr. Vidal Ríos: Testimonio de una época, A Coruña, Fundación VR, 1999, p. 77. This source also notes that Dr. Ovidio Vidal Ríos and Candido Álvarez de la Cruz were assigned to work at the hospital. In addition, because of the mountainous terrain, soldiers who were not badly injured were evacuated by donkey. Ibid, p. 80.
37 Shortly after the hospital’s closure, during the 1938-39 school year, the site was used as a Jesuit school. After the war, the facilities were expanded so that over the next several decades it included a hotel, café, ballroom, dining room and the spa. In the 1970s it closed and was largely abandoned until 1999 when a project was established to refurbish and re-open the hotel. Around that time, it appears that the mosque was re-painted.
38 Joan Serrallonga, “Main Military Medical Organisations in the Rebel Army, 1936-1939”, Revista Universitaria de Historia Militar Online, no 7/4, 2015, p. 41-66, here p. 60-61.
39 The building functions as a mosque today. It has had a variety of functions since the War. For more information see Jennifer Roberson, “From Dictatorship to Democracy: Córdoba’s Islamic Monuments in the Twentieth Century”, in Deborah S. Hutton and Rebecca M. Brown (eds), Rethinking Place in South Asian and Islamic Art, 1500 – Present, New York, Routledge, 2017, p. 116-136, here p. 122.
40 Entrega de la Mezquita Construida por el Ayuntamiento en la Plaza de Colón. Diario de Córdoba, 30 July 1938, p. 1.
41 For more information, see Jennifer Roberson, “From Dictatorship to Democracy…”, art. cit., p. 128-30.
42 “El nuevo Gobierno español, en demonstración del cariño que siente por el pueblo musulmán, no cesa de contribuir y fomentar lugares sagrados donde cree conveniente para que cumplamos con nuestra fe religiosa. En casi todas las principales ciudades de la España liberada, hay hospitales expresamente para musulmanes, dotados de personal religioso, con el fin de que no falte nada en nuestras costumbres religiosas y debemos de estar muy agradecidos por estas atenciones” (Entrega de la Mezquita Construida por el Ayuntamiento en la Plaza de Colón. Diario de Córdoba, 30 July 1938, p. 1).
43 I have found one photograph of a mosque at the King’s Hospital (Hospital del Rey) in Burgos. It appears to be a white cuboid. No dome is evident in the photo. It is possible that there was a dome originally but that it had collapsed by the time the photo was taken. I continue to seek more information.
44 In an article about the inauguration, the mosque is referred to as a Morábito, as well. Entrega Oficial de un Morábito Levantado en la Plaza de Colón, en Córdoba. ABC Sevilla, 31 July 1938, p. 10.
45 Eduardo Gallego, “Nuevas mezquitas en nuestra zona de Marruecos”, La Construcción Moderna, no 13, 15 July 1914, p. 193-195.
46 Antonio Bravo Nieto, Arquitectura y Urbanismo Español en el Norte de Marruecos, n.p.: Junta de Andalucía, Consejería de Obras Públicas y Transportes, 2000, p. 46, 50-51.
47 Stones from the battlefields of Toledo, Oviedo and Teruel were included in the construction of the Mosque of Muley el-Mehdi “as ‘official recognition’of the existence of Islam in Spain and as ‘proof’ of the meaning of these ‘martyred cities’ for Muslims.” Ali Al Tuma, “Moros y Cristianos…”, art. cit., p. 152. The Nationalist rebels’ successful defense of the Alcázar of Toledo was an important symbolic victory.
48 Zeynep Çelik, Displaying the Orient: Architecture of Islam at Nineteenth-Century World’s Fairs, Berkeley, University of California Press, 1992, p. 95.
49 María Luisa Bellido Gant, “Promoción turística y configuración de la imagen de Marruecos durante el Protectorado español”, Cuadernos de arte de la Universidad de Granada, no 33, 2002, p. 221-234, here p. 230.
50 Luis Ángel Sánchez Gómez, “África en Sevilla: La Exhibición Colonial de la Exposición Iberoamericana de 1929”, Hispania. Revista Española de Historia, no 66/224, 2006, p. 1045-1082, here p. 1062.
51 The Morocco Pavilion at the 1947 Barcelona Fair is just one example.
52 María Luisa Bellido Gant, “Promoción turística…”, art. cit., p. 52-66.
53 Shanahan also notes connections between expo pavilions and the WWI French built Nogent Mosque in France. See Maureen G. Shanahan, “Battles for Hearts and Minds…”, art. cit., p. 23.
54 Enrique Arias Anglés, “La visión de Marruecos a través de la pintura orientalista española”, Mélanges de la Casa de Velázquez, no 37-1, 2007, p. 13-37.
55 Elisabeth Bolorinos Allard, My Enemy or My Brother?…, op. cit., p. 65.
56 Javier Rodríguez Barberán, in his discussion of the cemetery in Sevilla, notes that Muslims could not be buried in the Catholic cemetery nor would it be appropriate to bury them with the dissidents who symbolized “de todo lo condenado por el regimen” [“everything that the [Nationalist] regime condemned”]. Javier Rodríguez Barberán, Los Cementerios en la Sevilla Contemporanea: Análisis Histórico y Artístico (1800-1950), Sevilla, Diputación Provincial de Sevilla, 1996, p. 234.
57 Valentín Álvarez Martínez, David Expósito Mangas and David González Álvarez, “El cemeterio moro…”, art. cit., p. 142.
58 Jordi Moreras, Musulmanes en Barcelona: Espacio y Dinámicas Comunitarias, Barcelona, CIBOD Ediciones, 1999, p. 88.
Haut de pageTable des illustrations
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| Titre | Fig. 1. Morábito Mosque, Córdoba, Spain. Inaugurated in 1938 |
| Crédits | Photo by the author |
| URL | http://journals.openedition.org/cdlm/docannexe/image/18988/img-1.jpg |
| Fichier | image/jpeg, 3,3M |
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| Titre | Fig. 2. Mosque at the Hospital-Spa of Guitiriz, Spain. Open in 1936 |
| Crédits | Photo by the author |
| URL | http://journals.openedition.org/cdlm/docannexe/image/18988/img-2.jpg |
| Fichier | image/jpeg, 5,4M |
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| Titre | Fig. 3. Entrance gate to the Muslim Cemetery of Barcia, Spain |
| Crédits | Photo by the author |
| URL | http://journals.openedition.org/cdlm/docannexe/image/18988/img-3.jpg |
| Fichier | image/jpeg, 4,2M |
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Jennifer Roberson, « Building Islamic Spaces during the Spanish Civil War », Cahiers de la Méditerranée [En ligne], 110 | 2025, mis en ligne le 08 décembre 2025, consulté le 18 février 2026. URL : http://journals.openedition.org/cdlm/18988 ; DOI : https://doi.org/10.4000/15avt
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