---
title: 'La Vanguardia, picture page (Barcelona, 26 May 1937): "La bárbara destrucción de Guernica"'
url: https://propagandaarchive.org/collection/la-vanguardia-guernica-destruccion-1937/
description: 'Photo spread, scanned landscape without the masthead: six photographs of ruined streets in Guernica under the headline "La bárbara destrucción de…'
section: Collection
---

[Collection](https://propagandaarchive.org/collection/)

[![La Vanguardia, picture page (Barcelona, 26 May 1937): "La bárbara destrucción de Guernica"](https://propagandaarchive.org/collection/images/la-vanguardia-guernica-destruccion-1937.jpg)](https://propagandaarchive.org/collection/images/la-vanguardia-guernica-destruccion-1937.jpg)

# La Vanguardia, picture page (Barcelona, 26 May 1937): "La bárbara destrucción de Guernica"

Photo spread, scanned landscape without the masthead: six photographs of ruined streets in Guernica under the headline "La bárbara destrucción de Guernica". The central caption says German aircraft squadrons destroyed "la ciudad símbolo de las libertades vascas" with incendiary bombs, that only five houses were left standing, and that as a symbol Guernica "será inmortal y eterna". The tell: symbol and virtue wording (liberties, civilisation, immortal) frames photographs of real destruction.

## Text on the object

Original (Spanish) · read from the image, not independently checked

```
La bárbara destrucción de Guernica

[caption] He aquí los restos de Guernica, la ciudad símbolo de las libertades vascas, que destruyeron las bombas incendiarias de varias escuadrillas de aviones alemanes. Bárbara muestra de una intervención innegable, y de una actitud, que ellos dicen «defensora de la civilización». De esta Guernica, capital espiritual de Euzkadi, sólo han quedado cinco casas en pie; pero, como símbolo, será inmortal y eterna
```

English translation (machine translation by Claude, not verified by a fluent reader)

```
The barbarous destruction of Guernica

[caption] Here are the remains of Guernica, the city symbol of the Basque liberties, which the incendiary bombs of several squadrons of German aircraft destroyed. A barbarous sample of an undeniable intervention, and of an attitude which they say is "defender of civilisation". Of this Guernica, spiritual capital of Euzkadi, only five houses have been left standing; but, as a symbol, it will be immortal and eternal
```

Headline and central caption read from the downsampled image; a strip of the caption's last line is partly obscured by the photo border in the scan, but the words given were legible. No masthead or date line is visible. Translation is literal and not checked by a fluent reader.

[← La Vanguardia, front page (Barcelona, 12 March 1937): "La lucha en los frentes del Centro"](https://propagandaarchive.org/collection/la-vanguardia-frentes-del-centro-1937/) [La Vanguardia, front page (Barcelona, 11 July 1937): "Nuestro avance en los frentes del Centro" →](https://propagandaarchive.org/collection/la-vanguardia-brunete-avance-1937/)

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