Just 25 miles south of one of Spain’s most populous cities is an empty village that has become a haven for dark tourism. Belchite has been described as a “ghost town”, with its present state a lasting example of the devastation wrought by the Spanish Civil War. Nationalists won out against the Republicans, leading to the autocratic rule of General Franco. Brits travelled to Spain to fight and report on the fighting, such as George Orwell, who wrote a memoir about his experience – Homage to Catalonia. The bullet-scarred village was the site of a key battle during the conflict, which saw its two sides fighting over 15 days.
Its churches, homes, and public areas were destroyed, and Franco, after the war ended in 1939, decided to leave Belchite in its ruined state to remind himself of his victory and as a warning to potential dissidents. But this is by no means the full extent of the settlement’s historic significance, as its origins can be traced back over two thousand years to the Romans.
During the Middle Ages, it developed into a bustling center of agricultural production and administration for the wider region, the World Monuments Fund says.
The town boasts unique architecture, including churches, synagogues, and homes in the Renaissance, Baroque, and Vernacular styles.
Experts say these reflect its history as an area of coexistence for people of the Christian, Muslim and Jewish faiths until the 1400s.
The WMF adds that Belchite was “particularly rich in Mudéjar architecture, a style that resulted from centuries of intercultural exchange”.
Today, the village is viewed as a site of crucial cultural importance in Spain’s Aragon region.
Specialists say that preserving the “haunting” remains of the settlement as “a site of memory and reflection” offers a “critical opportunity for present and future generations to understand the tragedy of war and how this conflict shaped modern Spain”.
But the site also poses a challenge as regards the conservation and interpretation of historic war ruins.
The WMF says: “After 80 years of abandonment, Old Belchite’s remaining structures are in need of urgent conservation.
“The site was protected with a fence and opened to guided tours in 2013, but many structures of profound historic and architectural significance face imminent collapse.
“At the current rate of decay, it is estimated that within 20 years, the town’s most notable monuments and character will have disappeared.”