‘Civil War Stories’
October, 1937. The war is going badly for the Republic against General Franco’s fascist forces. In Valencia, now the capital, ‘Maria’, a clandestine supporter of Franco, is waiting for you. She wants you to act as a courier for intelligence that will damage the Republican war effort. However, ‘Luis’, a communist and member of the Republic’s secret police, is on her trail. He wants your help in the antifascist struggle. ‘Maria’ and her kind must be caught to save democracy in Spain and throughout the world.
The ‘Civil War Stories’ app trail brings to life espionage and counter-espionage during the Spanish Civil War (1936-39). As the Western democracies looked on, the forces of international fascism and communism clashed in the Iberian Peninsula. Yet it is also an intimate story of two Valencians with very different hopes and fears for Spain. While both Maria and Luis are fictional characters, they are based on real figures rediscovered from archival records. ‘Maria’ believes she is on a crusade to save her nation from atheistic communism. ‘Luis’, an admirer of the Soviet Union, believes he is protecting Spanish democracy. Both are anxious to convince you of the righteousness of their cause.
Maria and Luis will entangle you in a game of cat and mouse in Valencia’s city centre, taking you to sites both famous and overlooked, and whose civil war history is little known. Along the way you will hear stories of Republican and Francoist terror that only serve to reinforce our characters’ sense of right and wrong. They will tell you that in a modern twentieth-century conflict, no-one can remain neutral. You have to pick a side.
As the hunt for ‘Maria’ comes to a dramatic conclusion, it will become clear that despite wartime propaganda, this is not a straightforward battle between heroes and villains. The stories of our two characters, along with the ‘Discover More’ audio, will help you understand why the Spanish Civil War is still such a controversial subject today.
Julius Ruiz
HistoryCity Apps 