Spanish Civil War Memory Project

Summary

Vicente Moreira Picorel was born in León in 1925. Vicente explains that his father went to Asturias to join the Republican Army and defend the Republic following the start of the Civil War. He details his experiences fleeing the war in León with his mother and his siblings. Vicente tells of his mother's capture and assassination. He speaks about reconnecting with his father in Asturias and fleeing to Gijón. In September 1937, Vicente and his brother Ramón boarded a ship with 1,100 other children of the war. He remembers disembarking in Leningrad, describes the welcome reception put on by the Soviet government for the Spanish children, and discusses their living conditions and educational training. Vicente recounts his experiences during and after World War II in the Soviet Union, as well as his time living in Baku. He recalls returning to Spain in 1956 and moving to Madrid in 1957. Vicente became involved in the union movement. As a result, he was closely monitored and questioned by the Civil Guard. He comments on the experiences of his father and his brother Valentín, who remained in Spain after the war. Vicente relates the eventual success of his attempts to locate and recover his mother's remains in 2001 with the help of the Asociación para la Recuperación de la Memoria Histórica (Association for the Recuperation of Historical Memory)