The Law of Democratic Memory / Claiming Spanish Nationality Read about it here … or email Simon Martínez to discuss

News, Events & Reports


Cumbria Spotlight

Cumbria Spotlight updated

We've recently reedited this website page, with updated notes and lists.

View it here


Hutton Hall, Guisborough

New Colony Page added

We've recently added a new colony page to our collection: Hutton Hall, Guisborough.

View it here


Los Leones

Los Leones

We are very pleased to announce the publication of Los Leones by Christopher Evans. This is the first book to be written in English on Athletic Club Bilbao. Apart from detailing the club's history, there are chapters encompassing the civil war in Euskadi and on the Basque children and their contribution to footballing history. Chris is a Welsh journalist and writer, and has worked closely with us on Caerleon events, his home town, and as a journalist has written several articles (all available on our website) bringing the Basque children footballers to public attention. Links for the book and for purchase from Waterstones and Amazon can be found here


The secrets of Rochester Place

The secrets of Rochester Place


Tony Fox has sent us links to his blog about a mystery novel: "The secrets of Rochester Place" by Iris Costello. It features the story of Fermín Magdalena one of the niños who settled in Middlesbrough after being in the Hutton Hall Colony. Hutton Hall Guisborough 1937 Read more here



This photo of a group of 20 niños is from a Facebook article about Hutton Hall.


Centenary of the first Scottish woman MP
Katharine Murray, Duchess of Atholl

Katharine Murray, Duchess of Atholl

In early December last year the Scottish Parliament celebrated the Centenary of its first woman MP, Katharine Murray, Duchess of Atholl. Two of our members were at the reception and we have their reports: Carmen Coupland, one of the speakers, daughter of a niña and Koldo Sanz, son of two niños de la guerra. Read their reports here

More background can be found here:
Atholl Estates: Duchess Kitty Exhibition


Forged in Spain

Forged in Spain

This new book by Richard Baxell is about to be released. It includes this chapter: The Niños Second Mother - Leah Manning. From the press release: "… [Leah Manning] who was the impetus behind bringing 4,000 refugee Basque children to Britain in the summer of 1937. She later served as an MP in Clement Attlee’s post-war Labour government, helping to draft and implement legislation raising the school leaving age to 16. Richard Baxell is a prominent historian on the Spanish Civil War who has supported our association in the past. More details here


The Gernika Children Picasso Gernika

The Guernica Children documentary
now on our YouTube channel

We are delighted to announce that we have completed negotiations to bring Steve Bowles' award winning documentary "The Guerica Children" to a wider audience through our YouTube channel. Apart from individuals, we hope that history groups, schools and colleges will be able to use this film as part of their exploration into the history of the Basque Children of 1937. The English Version can be viewed here: https://youtu.be/LSNe_BMPhDI The Spanish version can be viewed here: https://youtu.be/CuW_BAqZcTY Please subscribe to our free channel.

El documental de Los Niños de Guernica
ahora en nuestro canal de YouTube

Nos complace anunciar que hemos completado las negociaciones para llevar el documental de Steve Bowles "Los Niños de Guernica", ganador de un premio, a un público más amplio a través de nuestro canal de YouTube. Además de los particulares, esperamos que los grupos de historia, las escuelas y los colegios puedan utilizar esta película como parte de su exploración de la historia de los niños vascos de 1937. La versión en inglés puede verse aquí: https://youtu.be/LSNe_BMPhDI La versión en español puede verse aquí: https://youtu.be/CuW_BAqZcTY Por favor, suscríbase a nuestro canal gratuito.


'Happy and Safe': The Basque Child Refugees in Cumberland and Westmorland 1937 - 1939

by Rob David
Book cover

Rob has been studying, writing about, and lecturing on the experiences of refugees in Cumbria for many years. Now he turns his focus on the Basque Children who arrived in the North West in 1937. He has had full access to the archives of the Charles and Lady Cecilia Roberts who brought into existence a colony of 100 children in Brampton near Carlisle and a satellite for 25 children at Ambleside. Rob describes the lives of the children and the impressive range of people who stepped forward to support them both financially and with care and attention …

The book is now available in our shop.


For other recently posted and older notices, click here.


Welcome

In 1937, during the Spanish civil war, almost 4,000 children were evacuated to the UK from Bilbao. Read more …

At first they stayed in a camp at Stoneham and later in colonies throughout the UK. Read more …

We want to remember and preserve the story of these niños de la guerra in their rightful context. Read more …

Newsletter / Boletín

From the Archives

Newsletter 13, May 2010

The forgotten colonies
by Natalia Benjamin Newsletter 13, May 2010, page 7 Read the full article here …


… an article you may have missed:

Ricardo Fernández Orsi - Captain of the SS 'Habana' by Sabina Fernández Read the full article here


From Another Archive:

Child refugees from the Spanish Civil War: a scrapbook tells a story Marx Memorial Library Read the full article here …

Articles & Reviews

"En tierras lejanas"
por Marisa Iturriza
"In Distant Lands"
by Marisa Iturriza — translation by MDL Power
"In the Wings"
Chapter from the autobiography of the late Henry Brinton

View more articles here …


View more event reports here …


YouTube logo

Visit our YouTube channel


Exhibitions Live & Online

Bombs…Away!

The Peace Museum's Bombs…Away! explores the impact of aerial bombardment against civilians during World War Two and uses its unique collection to examine how peace campaigns formed in response … BCA'37 UK helped with the section on the Basque children.

www.bombsawayexhibition.com


Haven's East: The Lost History of Basque Child Refugees in 1930s East Anglia

A National Lottery funded project investigating the history of the Basque children at colonies in Cambridgeshire and Norfolk. BCA'37 UK contributed to the R & D of this exhibition. Visit the exhibition at: www.havenseast.org, read about the background to the project here …, and read this Report on Refugee week 2021 by Ed Packard