When Alvin met with Caballero, David Simon and Danny Lewis were interviewing him in Badajoz.
Badajoz is located in southwest Spain, close to Portugal. A few months ago, a fierce war broke out in Badajoz between the People's Guard and the Falangists. The Moorish army recruited by Franco joined the war, and the Falangists defeated the People's Guard and occupied it.
Badajoz became the final winner.
Portugal played a very important role in the Spanish Civil War. Most of Germany's supplies to support the Falangists were shipped to Spain through Portugal.
The Portuguese border is undefended against the Falangists. The Falangists can freely enter and exit the border between Portugal and Spain and enter Portugal for rest and supplies. The Spanish-Portuguese border is close to the Portuguese side and has been completely occupied by the Falangists.
After the fall of Badajoz, a shocking massacre occurred.
The massacre was initiated by the Moors.
As introduced earlier, the Moors are mainly composed of Berbers. Berber means "barbarians" in Latin, which fully reflects the moral level of the Moors.
After the capture of Badajoz, the Moors became more animalistic. They unscrupulously insulted women and castrated men. This was their tradition.
The Falangists went even further. During the capture of Badajoz, the citizens of Badajoz put up tenacious resistance, and the National Army suffered heavy casualties as a result.
So after the war, the citizens of Badajoz became the target of the Falangists' vent.
Among the Moors, women were simply insulted.
After the Falangists insulted women, they would also humiliate women by shaving their heads, applying red dye, and parading through the streets.
Not only was this behavior not stopped by the top brass of the National Army, a senior National Army general even publicly declared on the radio: The women of the People's Guard have understood that our men are the real men, and those castrated members of the People's Guard
No.
While women were systematically humiliated, men were massacred.
A garrison force of about 1,200 people tried to escape to Portugal after the city was breached, but was rejected by Portugal. They were then brought back by the National Army and all shot.
After the city was broken, Badajoz was full of ruins. The corpses on the roadside had not yet been cleaned up. The open space in front of the cathedral in the city center was filled with corpses. There were still corpses in the church that had not been cleaned up. The altar was covered with blood.
, above is the Cross of Christ.
Bang——
David Simon took this photo without thinking.
Such a horrific massacre in front of Christ is very symbolic and can be interpreted into many things.
"Hey, be careful--" Louis reminded in a low voice that there were Moorish soldiers in the church, and Louis was worried that David Simon's behavior would offend them.
David Simon's face was ashen. He was Spanish. The situation in front of him was something that David Simon had never thought of before.
Spain also prides itself on being a "civilized society".
But everything that happened after the fall of Badajoz had nothing to do with "civilization". It was already 1935, not 1435.
Even in 1435, such a human tragedy should not have happened.
Whether they are dead or alive, they are all Spaniards——
Wait, that’s not right, it was the Moors who were the first to commit violence.
"Hey, friend, can you take a photo for us?" The Moore soldiers had a good attitude towards reporters.
In particular, reporters from The Times received special care from the top brass of the National Army, otherwise David Simon and Lewis would not have been able to come to Badajoz.
But even so, the movements of David Simon and Lewis are strictly restricted.
Yesterday, the National Army rejected David Simon and Lewis's application to interview the prisoner of war camp.
No need to ask why.
"Of course -" Louis smiled and raised the camera in his hand, looking for a suitable angle.
"Photograph more handsomely!" Soldier Moore still had another request.
"Definitely, the film is so expensive." Louis smiled, taking in the shot of several Moorish soldiers arm-in-arm and the corpse in the altar.
"My name is Halbi. Remember to send me the photos and I will give you money -" Albi said giving money, but made no intention of paying.
"Haha, no problem, you don't have to pay, our newspaper will reimburse you." Louis didn't expect these Moorish soldiers to pay. They were actually mercenaries.
Unlike the mercenaries of the Umbrella Company, these Moorish soldiers are the real war hyenas.
Before the outbreak of the Civil War, Franco led troops stationed in Spanish overseas colonies.
It's amazing, Spain doesn't even exist anymore, but it still has overseas colonies.
All I can say is that the foundation is really thick.
After the civil war broke out, Franco recruited Moors to join the army. These Moors were from the poorest primitive tribes. They had no moral values at all. Venting after the battle was the norm. They did not even understand the concept of wealth and only wanted gold.
Products are of interest.
Yesterday Louis bought an oil painting by Velázquez from a Moorish soldier for only one hundred pesetas.
Velasquez was the greatest Spanish painter of the 17th century.
After walking out of the church, David Simon raised his head. The sky seemed to be a faint blood color, which might be like the sky in hell.
There are hundreds of corpses neatly lined up in the square in front of the church. Several old Spaniards are carrying them. They are also Badajoz people. There may be their relatives or even their children among them.
On the other side of the square, a dozen Moorish soldiers were laughing and joking around the two girls. The girls were so frightened that they hugged each other and did not dare to resist. A Moorish soldier couldn't bear it anymore and stepped forward to separate the two girls.
The girl's cries were heartbreaking.
David Simon did not dare to lift the camera, but quietly pointed the lens in the direction and pressed the shutter.
Bang——
The flash is not only very bright, but also loud.
A National Army officer noticed something was wrong and walked over to David Simon and Lewis.
"Sir, can I interview you?" Louis took the initiative to greet you.
"Which newspaper company are you from?" the officer said with a serious expression.
"We are reporters from The Times and have interview permission." Louis took the initiative to show his interview pass.
“Give me your camera—” the officer asked for David Simon’s camera.
This actually makes no sense. Today's cameras don't have a display. You have to wait until the photos are developed to know what was captured.
"Don't be like this, sir, we are all journalists who abide by the law -" Louis took the initiative to hold the officer's hand, and in his hand was a gold coin with a face value of 500 pesetas.
The officer's expression softened slightly, but he did not give up.
Louis cursed secretly and "shaked hands" with the officer again.
"We will strictly abide by the regulations of the National Army. All photos will be reviewed by the National Army. My brother accidentally touched the shutter just now. You see, the lens cover is not even opened -" Louis took the initiative to show his camera, and the lens cover was indeed
It's not opened.
Today's cameras have very slow shutter exposure speeds and no anti-shake system. Taking a suitable photo requires a long period of adjustment, which is different from the cameras of the future that just click when you hold it.
"Be careful, I will keep an eye on you -" the officer was finally satisfied. He didn't care what David Simon took. The scenes inside and outside the church were happening at any time in any corner of the city of Badajoz.
The two girls over there were finally pulled into a nearby coffee shop. Through the windows of the coffee shop, people could be vaguely seen. The girls' cries also disappeared, and most of their mouths were blocked.
Louis' heart was heavy.
David Simon's eyes were red and his body was trembling.
"Let's go, I think you should take a break. Your current situation is not suitable for continuing to work." Louis didn't want to see David Simon in such pain.
"No, I want to continue working, and I want everyone in the world to know what these bastards have done-" David Simon gritted his teeth and jumped out syllables one by one.
The next day's "News Record" published Franco's interview.
Franco openly declared in the newspapers that he could shoot half of Spain at any time if necessary.
Another National Army general, Quepo de Llano, said in an interview: Eighty percent of Andalusian families are in mourning, but we must resolutely use more severe measures.
More severe?
This is the rhythm to kill all the Spaniards.
The massacre did not deter the Spaniards.
It is true that some weak-willed members of the Guard became deserters because of this.
More Spaniards took the initiative to take up arms against the rebels, and the size of the Popular Guard expanded again.
This is not a good thing for the current republican government.
The members of the National Guard are full of enthusiasm, but they lack sufficient training and weapons. The troops fighting on the front line in Madrid even have to leave their weapons when they withdraw from the battlefield and transfer them to the troops who take over the battle.
The militiamen do not know how to use weapons correctly, let alone how to maintain their weapons. If there is an enemy aircraft flying over in the sky, all the militiamen will raise their rifles and shoot at the aircraft, and even some officers are doing the same.
More Spaniards are fleeing the war zone in a hurry. They are dragging their families with them, carrying all the property they can take away, and swarming on the roads, causing serious obstruction to traffic.
The intricate battlefields are intertwined. Sometimes on a road, some people go south and some go north. They don't know what is waiting for them ahead, and they just want to stay away from the war instinctively.
The Castle of Toledo, south of Madrid, had just been occupied by the People's Guard. After the Italian Third Army arrived in Toledo, the People's Guard who had not had time to withdraw was surrounded by the Italian Third Army.
In the siege of the previous few months, the ancient city of Toledo had been reduced to rubble. The People's Guard's fighting will was far inferior to that of the previous defenders of Toledo Castle. After only holding on for three days, the remaining People's Guard militiamen
All surrendered and Toledo fell.
At this time, the rebel forward was less than 30 kilometers away from Madrid.