Los Barracones de Cultura. Noticias sobre las actividades educativas de los exiliados españoles en los campos de refugiados

Abstract

The “Barracones de cultura”: on the educational activities of the Spanish exiles in the refugees camps of Southern France

At the end of the Spanish civil war, in the spring of 1939, thousands of Republicans repaired in France and were interned in the refugees camps of the South. Here they put up the barracones de cultura, a rather rudimentary and yet effective educational project, aimed to help the exiles tackle their new conditions, through courses of foreign languages, basic culture and the like. At the same time, the activity of the barracones contributed most effectively to win despair and demoralization among the ranks of the Republican forces after the military collapse. In spite of the depressive situation, the want of means and the uncertain future, plenty of testimonies underline the importance of the work done by teachers, schoolmasters and students within the refugees camps.