Commemorative events to pay homage to the British volunteers of the International Brigades

INTERNATIONAL BRIGADE MEMORIAL TRUST

Commemorative events to pay homage to the British volunteers of the International Brigades

3rd and 4th June 2012

Agullana, La Vajol, Figueres and La Jonquera

To mark the participation of British volunteers in the International Brigades during the Spanish Civil War, on 3rd and 4th June the British association International Brigade Memorial Trust (IBMT) will hold a series of commemorative events in the cross-border area of Alt Empordà, Vallespir and Roussillon. The International Brigade Memorial Trust is organising these events with the collaboration and involvement of Memorial Democràtic, the Exile Memorial Museum (MUME) and the Town Councils of Figueres, Agullana, La Jonquera and La Vajol.

Moreover, the events are also supported by the memorial organisations FFREEE (Fils et Filles de Républicains Espagnols et Enfants de l’Exode) in Argelès-sur-mer, the Comissió d'Actes Lluís Companys in La Vajol, and Triangle Blau in Figueres.

Within the commemorative framework programme, on Sunday 3rd June there will be a walk from Maureillas-las-Illas (Vallespir) to Coll de la Manrella (Alt Empordà). The walk, which will evoke the crossing of the French-Spanish border by the international volunteers seventy-five years ago, will start at 11am and end at 4.30pm. During the crossing there will be stops at Coll de Lli and Castell de Cabrera.

Once at Coll de la Manrella at 4.30pm, there will be an institutional ceremony in front of the monument dedicated to President Lluís Companys, with the participation, among others, of the representatives of the International Brigade Memorial Trust, the Mayor of Agullana (Alfons Quera), the Mayoress of La Vajol (Dolors Manzanera) and the Mayoress of La Jonquera (Sònia Martínez). After the ceremony, at 6pm, there will be a visit to some of the exile memorial sites in La Vajol.

On Monday 4th June, at 11am, the Mayor of Figueres (Santi Vila) and the Director of Memorial Democràtic (Jordi Palou-Loverdos) will participate, together with the members of the International Brigade Memorial Trust, in an act of homage to the Brigade members at Castell de Sant Ferran in Figueres. In October 1936, at the height of the Civil War, it received numerous foreign volunteers who had arrived in the Catalan rearguard to join the International Brigades. In 2006, a plaque was placed which recalls the international volunteers’ time in the Figueres fortress.

During the afternoon of Monday 4th June, at 4pm, the members of the International Brigade Memorial Trust will visit the Exile Memorial Museum (MUME). The Mayoress of La Jonquera, the President of the MUME Consortium (Sònia Martínez) and the Director of MUME (Jordi Font) will welcome the British association, followed by a guided tour of the museum exhibitions.

EXILE MEMORIAL MUSEUM CONSORTIUM

 Major, 43-47 17700 La Jonquera Tel. 972 55 65 33 This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. - www.museuexili.cat