Tea at Trianon: The Passion of Spain

John Wilson Croker on Marie-Antoinette

"We have followed the history of Marie Antoinette with the greatest diligence and scrupulosity. We have lived in those times. We have talked with some of her friends and some of her enemies; we have read, certainly not all, but hundreds of the libels written against her; and we have, in short, examined her life with– if we may be allowed to say so of ourselves– something of the accuracy of contemporaries, the diligence of inquirers, and the impartiality of historians, all combined; and we feel it our duty to declare, in as a solemn a manner as literature admits of, our well-matured opinion that every reproach against the morals of the queen was a gross calumny– that she was, as we have said, one of the purest of human beings."

~from History of the Guillotine by John Wilson Croker, 1844

Edmund Burke on Marie-Antoinette

"It is now sixteen or seventeen years since I saw the queen of France, then dauphiness, at Versailles; and surely there never lighted on this orb, which she hardly seemed to touch, a more delightful vision. I saw her just above the horizon, decorating and cheering the elevated sphere she had just begun to move in, glittering like a morning star full of life and splendor and joy. Oh, what a revolution....Little did I dream that I should have lived to see such disasters fall upon her, in a nation of gallant men, in a nation of men of honor and of cavaliers! I thought ten thousand swords must have leaped from their scabbards, to avenge even a look which threatened her with insult. But the age of chivalry is gone; that of sophisters, economists, and calculators has succeeded...."

~Edmund Burke, October 1790

Monday, July 18, 2011

The Passion of Spain

"Soeur Espagne, sainte Espagne... tu as choisi!
Onze évêques, seize-mille prêtres massacrés... et pas une apostasie!"

~ Paul Claudel, "Aux martyrs espagnols"

Rorate Caeli reports on the carnage of seventy-five years ago.

Exactly 75 years ago, the tensions within the Spanish Republic reached unbearable levels and the alzamiento of July 18 began. The greatest persecution of Catholics since late Antiquity was about to begin in the territory retained by the Communist-inspired forces, and would be particularly brutal in the first six months of the conflict. (Read entire article.)

lara77 said...: I never closely followed the Spanish Civil War but the first photo sent chills down my spine. I thought of the atrocities committed in France during their revolution. Always the attacks on the Church; whether in France or Spain. The destruction of property; as if these revolutionaries thought by destroying the symbols of antiquity they could erase a nation's past. I realize atrocities were committed on both sides of the Spanish Civil War. What shocks me was the level of depravity the Republicans practiced. To destroy a statue in memory of the Prince of Peace and all He stood for. THAT was beyond despicable. I am still so very happy that His Most Catholic Majesty reigns today in Spain.; July 19, 2011 at 12:56:00 PM EDT
elena maria vidal said...: Yes. Unfortunately the socialists have more power than the king.; July 19, 2011 at 1:00:00 PM EDT
xavier said...: Maria Elena:

Here's a very interesting tidbit I learnt about the persecution of the Catholics by the Spanish anarchists among the others. It appears that some of the anarchists who persecuted Catholics had prior experience in Mexico. It seems that during the Mexican revolution they went there to persecute the Catholics and then came back to Spain with that experience to do the exact same thing.

I recommend the book El silenci de les campanes [Ed. La Campana] I think that this book has been translated into Spanish.

It gives a good overview of the persecution in Catalunya and focuses on Catalans repressing other Catalans just for being Catholic.

P.S. Just to give you a family story: my mom was born 3 days before the civil war and she was quickly baptized because the priest went into hiding. My dad's cousin who's a priest was a seminarian at the time and some of his fellow seminarians were executed. He survived and was given permission by his bishop to be in civilian clothes. He obviously doesn't talk much about it but you can sense the pain

xavier; July 21, 2011 at 10:06:00 AM EDT
elena maria vidal said...: Very very interesting, Xavier. Thank you. We must not forget.; July 21, 2011 at 11:11:00 AM EDT