During the Spanish Civil War in 1937, the town of Guernica was bombed for two hours by warplanes of Hitler's Condor Legion. As it was market day and the town's men were away fighting for the Republicans, the bombing killed hundreds of civilians, mostly women and children who were unable to escape due to debris blocking the roads out of town. Today Guernica has been rebuilt and remains an important symbol of peace, with many tourists visiting to learn about its history and see Pablo Picasso's famous painting depicting the bombing.

1. The History
of Guernica
in a nutshell
26 April 1937

2. Information was retrieved and processed according to the age of the
pupils from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guernica_(Picasso)
Guernica is a town in the province
of Biscay in Basque Country.
During 1936-1940 almost all
European countries had
dictatorships.
A Civil war begun in Spain, in July 1936. The right-wing Nationalists
led by General Francisco Franco sought to overthrow Spain's left-
wing Republican government. The Fascists and the Nazis were on
Franco’s side.

3. The bombardment
 During the Spanish Civil War, there was a strong Republican
resistance movement by the Basque people. This is why the town
was a target.
 At 16:30 on Monday, 26 April 1937, warplanes of Hitler’s Condor
Legion bombed Guernica for about two hours.

4. The people
Because a majority of the town's men were
away, engaged in fighting on behalf of the
Republicans, the town at the time of the
bombing was populated mostly by women
and children.
The inhabitants were congregated in the center
of town. It was market day. When the
bombardment began, they were unable to
escape because the roads were full of debris and
the bridges leading out of town had been
destroyed.

5. Guernica,
26 April 1937
Guernica
today
Guernica was a quiet village. The only military was a factory outside of the
town, which manufactured various war products. The factory went through the
attack unscathed. Thus, the motivation of the bombing was intimidation.

6. Guernica today
 Today, Guernica is rebuilt. It’s a beautiful, peaceful city, filled with
colors.
 Tourists from all over the world visit it to see the beautiful sites and
learn its history. See: https://www.skyscanner.net/trip/guernica-spain