First, the gestures in front of the display cases are of curiosity. Interest increases by reading the cartouches that illustrate documents, jewelry or clothing. When visitors to the exhibition on Freemasonry at the Documentary Center of Historical Memory of Salamanca (CDMH) access the chamber that recreates a lodge, their reactions are triggered: surprise, stupor… and even fear. Perhaps this was precisely the effect that the promoters of this anti-Masonic museum intended to provoke in the viewer when the idea arose in the mid-1940s. We will never know, since the facility would not open its doors until 1999, well into and consolidated into the democratic period. What can be confirmed is the persecution that, without rest or limits, the Franco regime practiced against Freemasonry, reaching the point of silencing, imprisoning and even shooting a good part of the members of a union organization whose ideal is summarized in the search of “the perfection of man and the progress of humanity”, which has its origins in the Middle Ages, and which in Spain began to develop from the beginning of the 18th century, although its life has often been interrupted by the emergence, for example, of the Civil War.
As part of this harassment, the Francoist side—in the midst of the Civil War—and the subsequent dictatorship launched a propaganda system whose main objective was the demonization of the Masonic organization. Different departments, created for the seizure of documents and belongings of groups such as the Freemasons, converged in 1944 in the National Delegation of Documentary Services. At its head was Marcelino de Ulibarri y Eguilaz, “a member of Falange and a very Catholic person who had a personal fight against Freemasonry, a struggle that ended with the founding of a special court for the repression of Freemasonry and Communism,” he details. Alicia Marqueta, museum technician at the Documentary Center of Historical Memory of Salamanca.
The hundreds of documents, objects and belongings seized from groups persecuted by the regime—used to identify their members and persecute their activities—began to arrive at said delegation, based in Salamanca, where special attention was paid to those who belonged to the Freemasonry, which ended up in a specific section. The volume and diversity of these funds was such that Ulibarri had the idea of starting a museum whose star piece was, precisely, the recreation of a lodge, that is, a meeting chamber for the Freemasons; invented, but with real objects. That project’s goal was to “denigrate and ridicule the Freemasons” by including, for example, “parodic elements” such as the case of “dolls with hoods and a skull with shining eyes,” as described in the information offered by the CDMH in its explanatory panels. A trick, without a doubt, within that defamation machine that, on the other hand, did achieve the purpose of creating an absolutely negative current against this organization in Spain.
“Understand what Freemasonry was”
The project ended up being frustrated. That disturbing chamber would never receive any visitors during the Franco dictatorship. However, the valuable material – essential, without a doubt, to know how the lodges functioned – was kept in storage until 1999. “At the end of the nineties, the lodge was opened, cleaned, placed and valued. what that anti-Masonic museum was going to be,” explains Alicia Marqueta, who details the contribution to the exhibition complex made from the Documentary Center of Historical Memory: “From the center, through the museologists and archivists, what “What has been done is a selection of the main objects of our funds, coming from the seizures of the old court.” A sieve, in reality, from among thousands of belongings, since what is exhibited is only “a small part” of the set, which can be accessed through the guided tours scheduled by the institution.
In this way, due to the nature of the funds, the CDMH is “a unique exhibition in the country”, which brings students, researchers or documentary producers to the Salamanca organization to document or record original pieces of Freemasonry. Now, if the objective of Ulibarri and the Franco regime was to “ridicule” the Freemasons, what is being pursued today by opening the doors of this surprising collection? “Historically, Freemasons have been very relevant, not only in Spain, but throughout the world; In fact, between the 19th century and during the Second Republic, a part of the deputies and ministers belonged to this type of groups, which were retaliated against during the Franco regime, although they continued to exist in the Transition,” details the curator of the exhibition. “The aim is to understand what Freemasonry really was,” he adds.
But has it been achieved in this quarter of a century? “In the guided tours, which are attended by many people, including ESO or Baccalaureate students, you can perceive the reaction of the people, and many ask: But, this is a sect, right?”, reveals Marqueta. “The negative idea that was had until two days ago continues to be maintained today,” acknowledges the specialist, which is why “it is very important to talk about them as something not so negative because, although they are more or less secret or closed groups, “They have a certain importance in society, for example, in collaboration with donations, charitable or cultural activities.” That is to say, the perception of Freemasonry as something close to a sect survives, with the doubt on the table as to whether Freemasons “are good or bad.”
The propaganda machine worked
From the Documentary Center of Historical Memory they convey the idea that the current caricature around Freemasonry – which is perfectly portrayed in those hooded men who preside over the chamber recreated in the exhibition, which have nothing to do with reality – is product of the powerful propaganda machinery of the Franco regime for decades. The proof is that, when groups of foreign students—from countries like France or the United States—approach this collection, the reaction is very different: “It is something that is very normalized to them, they themselves tell you that their father or their grandfather are Freemasons, and they do it naturally,” reveals Alicia Marqueta, who offers a not uninteresting key to understanding the situation in our country: “The difference with the Spanish is that here we do not speak with that freedom, the relationship It is completely direct with Francoist propaganda about Freemasonry.
This stigma is precisely what hides striking data, such as that in the proclamation of the Second Republic (1931), an important part of the deputies were Freemasons (150) or that the Government had at that time six ministers from these groups. , among them, the one who would end up being the last president of the democratic regime: Manuel Azaña. However, starting in 1933 the situation became completely hostile against the Freemasons, due to the persecution promoted by institutions such as the Church itself or parties of the time, such as the Spanish Falange, but also by others of the most diverse ideology. The result of the repression was prison and death. The CDMH says that there are documents that prove that a person could go to prison for 12 years for practicing this school of thought.
However, this persecution—the hatred professed by Franco himself—is not justified by the ideals of Freemasonry, which any citizen of the 21st century (and then) could subscribe to. The Masonic ideology speaks of the defense of human rights or secularism, it has opposed fascism, dictatorships and the death penalty, it has shown its obsession with peace and its concern about colonial problems, while its support has been evident. to the Sephardim, the Jews who had to leave the peninsula in 1492 (1498 in Portugal). In fact, people with proven track records belonged to these groups, such as the Nobel Prize winners in Medicine Severo Ochoa and Santiago Ramón y Cajal. Today, despite everything, there are some 4,000 Freemasons in our country, whose historical image “there is still much to do.” Museum technician Alicia Marqueta proposes different ideas to continue traveling this path, from changes in the exhibition itself so “that everything is even clearer”, to the promotion of various activities that, as in 2023, allowed the Freemasons to show the ins and outs of your organization.
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