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Pictures of Guernica (Gernika), Basque Country - Guernica Pictures

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Tiled Mural of Picasso's Guernica
Pictures of Guernica (Gernika), Basque Country - Guernica Pictures

Mural of Picasso's "Guernica" in the town of the same name.

Image: Damian Corrigan
To many, Guernica is a painting by Picasso. Picasso painted his most famous work shortly after the bombing of the town by the Nazis during the Spanish Civil War.. The original is housed in Museo Reina Sofia in Madrid.

The vast majority of Guernica was destroyed in the 1937 bombing. Franco ordered the bombing, which was carried out by the Germans, as a way of disheartening the Basque people, who were on the side of the Republicans. Though there was a munitions factory in Guernica, the attack was strictly a civilian target (the munitions factory was undamaged at the request of Franco, who wanted to use it for his own forces).

The attack is said to have been the biggest ever attack on civilians at the time and the first experiment in 'total war'.

For the importance of Guernica and why it was selected to be bombed, read the next page.

Next: Pictures of Guernica: The Old Oak Tree

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