El cuartel de la Montaña was a military building in Madrid built during the 19th century, located on the hill of Príncipe Pío. It was a solid building of brick and granite of great sobriety, designed with a quadrangular plan and two courtyards to house a garrison of 2,600 to 3,000 soldiers.
The building gained notoriety as the place where the military uprising of July 1936 began in the Spanish capital. On July 19, 1936, General Fanjul entered the building dressed as a civilian and declared a state of war. He took hold of the site with 1,500 men, including 180 Falangists, while the government forces surrounded the location.
By the morning of July 20, artillery fire began against the building. The rebels resisted for only a few hours before the Civil Guard forced the takeover, practically destroying the structure in the attempt. During the war, the building was further damaged by artillery fire due to its proximity to the front line.
In April 1939, the ruins were briefly used as a concentration camp for over 4,000 Republican prisoners. Eventually, the site was ceded to the Madrid City Council as a public park. The park was inaugurated on July 20, 1972, featuring a monument by Joaquín Vaquero Turcios and the Temple of Debod.
Sources: Wikipedia, OpenStreetMap, Wikidata, Wikimedia Commons
Written by Nicolo Ciampini
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