A Tribute to Federico García Lorca (1898 – 1936)
Four Poems Dedicated to the Poet in the Last Year of His Life
Foreword
Federico García Lorca was one of the most talented and universal poets of the twentieth century. Born in 1898, in Fuente Vaqueros, in the sweeping plains of Andalusia, he was to be tragically assassinated some thirty-eight years later in the death trenches of Viznar (near his beloved city of Granada); an early victim of the Spanish Civil War (1936 - 1939), a violent conflict between Spain's legitimate Republican Government – latterly symbolized by Picaso's painting Guernica, depicting the Third Reich's merciless bombardment of this town, consented to by the right-wing Falange Party, as well as the enduring poetry of foreign individuals who served in the International Brigades, based in Barcelona, such as W.H. Auden, George Orwell, and Stephen Spender.
In his sadly short literary passage, Lorca wrote prodigiously. In 1921, his Libro de Poemas ("Book of Poems") appeared. More poetry, "songs" and drama were to follow, giving him enormous popularity during his lifetime. Gypsy Ballads , Poema del Cante Jondo (in which García Lorca explores the "soul" of Andalusia, examining links with antiquity and the unknown, grief and pain being always present), Poet in New York, Flood of Tears for Ignacio Sanchez Mejías (in which is to be found his well-known work – each verse beginning with a repetition of the same phrase – about unforgettable scenes in the late afternoon), Dona Rosita La Soltera as well as his beautifully observed Impresiones y paisajes ("Impressions and landscapes") first published in 1918. Federico García Lorca's plays, included the culturally provocative Yerma and The House of Bernarda Alba.
Lorca travelled extensively: to Cuba, the United States and to Latin America. In the Argentine, he met Pablo Neruda, Jorge Larco (the painter), writers and poets, and musicians, amongst the latter, Carlos Gardel, the famed Tango singer. In Spain, the composer, Manuel de Falla, the painter Salvador Dalí and the film director to be, Luis Buñuel, constituted just a few of his many close friends. Lorca met Buñuel during the poet's stay at Madrid's "Residencia de Estudiantes" (1919-1920). Those who visited the "Residency" ("Poplar Hill" as it was commonly called) up to 1936, numbered amongst themselves, H. G. Wells, Albert Einstein, Marie Curie, Le Corbusier, Paul Claudel and John M. Keynes. There were musicians such as Andrés Segovia, Ricardo Viñes, Igor Stravinsky and Maurice Ravel.
On the 14th July 1936, Federico García Lorca returned by train to his much cherished Granada surrounded by the sprawling "vegas" (plains) of Andalusia. The atmosphere was chaotic, the February elections having led to upheavals, strikes and protests(1). General Franco's Falangists were preparing to shortly reach out for absolute, dictatorial control. After an initial term of surprise round-ups and indiscriminate slaughter the general situation seemed to quieten down. Then, the full wave of the Fascist onslaught arrived and Granada became the terrain for a bloodbath. It was difficult if not impossible for Lorca to write in such turmoil. He regularly read Ideal, which a faithful friend, Camacho Esperanza took to him; the poet spent much of his time listening to the radio. Federico had scarcely any time left. On August 16th, Concha García Lorca's husband was executed, together with another twenty-nine prisoners.
Federico García Lorca was now staying at the home of the Rosales family, where it was thought to be safer for him. However, he was arrested by officials of the Civil Government. It is known that he was taken to Viznar, a pleasant-looking village of whitewashed houses. Nobody can be sure of the exact date of Lorca's execution. It is believed to be about that of August 19th, 1936.(2)
1 See chapter 12, page 446 ("The Death of a Poet": "Terror in Granada") for a detailed account of Lorca's last days; Gibson, Ian. Federico García Lorca. A Life. Pantheon Books, New York, 1989.
2 An impressive re-construction of the poet's last days is shown in the film The Disappearance of García Lorca with Esai Morales and Andy García.
Page(s) 52-53
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