https://feeds.thelocal.com/ Read the latest news and views from Europe in English en-us news@thelocal.com (TheLocal) webmaster@thelocal.com (TheLocal) TheLocal RSS Feed Former King Juan Carlos's memoirs went on sale in Spain on Wednesday, with the publication's warm words for the late dictator Franco stirring debate over the former monarch's legacy. https://www.thelocal.com/20251203/former-kings-memoirs-hits-bookstores-in-spain Wed, 03 Dec 2025 16:32:08 +0100 former-kings-memoirs-hits-bookstores-in-spain Hundreds of Spanish fascists marched through Madrid on Friday, a day after the country marked the 50th anniversary of divisive right-wing former dictator Francisco Franco's death. https://www.thelocal.com/20251122/spanish-fascists-march-in-madrid-after-franco-death-anniversary Sat, 22 Nov 2025 09:40:46 +0100 spanish-fascists-march-in-madrid-after-franco-death-anniversary Spain on Thursday marks the 50th anniversary of General Francisco Franco's death with political polarisation exacerbating deep-rooted and bitter divisions over the dictator's legacy. https://www.thelocal.com/20251118/divided-spain-marks-50-years-since-ex-dictator-francos-death Tue, 18 Nov 2025 09:58:39 +0100 divided-spain-marks-50-years-since-ex-dictator-francos-death Mixing historic anecdotes and regret over his own scandals, Spain's exiled king Juan Carlos I seeks to reconcile himself with his family and nation in newly-published memoirs that offer dramatic reminiscences from one of the last surviving players of 20th-century history. https://www.thelocal.com/20251106/diana-franco-and-brothers-death-the-memoirs-of-spains-exiled-king Thu, 06 Nov 2025 12:20:20 +0100 diana-franco-and-brothers-death-the-memoirs-of-spains-exiled-king Spain's Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares on Friday acknowledged the "pain and injustice" inflicted on Indigenous peoples during the Spanish conquest of the Americas, after Mexico renewed calls for an official apology. https://www.thelocal.com/20251031/spain-admits-pain-inflicted-on-indigenous-peoples-by-conquistadors Fri, 31 Oct 2025 18:24:59 +0100 spain-admits-pain-inflicted-on-indigenous-peoples-by-conquistadors The surprising story of the Spanish sailor from Huelva who was once King of England for just a day thanks to a game of cards. https://www.thelocal.com/20251024/the-spaniard-who-was-king-of-england-for-a-day Fri, 24 Oct 2025 15:00:26 +0200 the-spaniard-who-was-king-of-england-for-a-day The so-called Reconquista (Reconquest) has led many to believe that Spaniards recovered and united their country after 800 years of Moorish conquest. However, the history of ‘España’ as a nation is a lot more complicated than that. https://www.thelocal.com/20231012/when-did-spain-become-spain Thu, 12 Oct 2023 10:54:29 +0200 when-did-spain-become-spain Spain has been at the forefront of the international pro-Palestine effort, more so than any other European nation. Where does this fervent stance come from? And is support as clear cut among Spaniards as it is the government? https://www.thelocal.com/20240524/in-depth-why-does-spain-support-palestine Fri, 24 May 2024 12:57:47 +0200 in-depth-why-does-spain-support-palestine 2025 marks 50 years since dictator Francisco Franco died, an event which propelled Spain into democracy and modernity. There are plenty of myths about what the fascist leader did for Spain, but here are five ways in which he did change Spanish society. https://www.thelocal.com/20250717/franco-did-it-five-quirky-ways-the-dictator-shaped-modern-spain Thu, 17 Jul 2025 17:52:44 +0200 franco-did-it-five-quirky-ways-the-dictator-shaped-modern-spain Spanish prosecutors on Monday said they were investigating whether General Francisco Franco's dictatorship collaborated with Nazi Germany during World War II to send thousands of exiled Spaniards in France to death camps. https://www.thelocal.com/20250505/spain-probes-deaths-of-thousands-of-spaniards-in-nazi-camps Mon, 05 May 2025 18:24:26 +0200 spain-probes-deaths-of-thousands-of-spaniards-in-nazi-camps At first glance, there may not appear to be any links between Spain’s northern Basque region and the country of Iceland, but travel back hundreds of years and you’ll soon learn that these people were indeed connected. https://www.thelocal.com/20241119/did-you-know-it-was-legal-to-kill-basques-in-iceland-until-2015 Tue, 19 Nov 2024 13:06:40 +0100 did-you-know-it-was-legal-to-kill-basques-in-iceland-until-2015 There has been shock and outrage since it emerged that Spain's government will reduce jail sentences for terrorists who worked and killed for Basque separatist group ETA. https://www.thelocal.com/20241021/why-spain-is-reducing-jail-time-for-some-eta-terrorists Mon, 21 Oct 2024 15:10:13 +0200 why-spain-is-reducing-jail-time-for-some-eta-terrorists For centuries it's been widely believed that Christopher Columbus was from the Italian city of Genoa, but new DNA evidence from an ongoing study into his origins suggest that this is false and that he was actually a Spanish Sephardic Jew. https://www.thelocal.com/20241014/new-evidence-suggests-christopher-columbus-was-spanish-and-jewish Mon, 14 Oct 2024 13:18:51 +0200 new-evidence-suggests-christopher-columbus-was-spanish-and-jewish It’s surprising that as one of Europe’s most important nations Spain did not take part in either World War One or Two. These are the main reasons which spared Spaniards from these devastating conflicts. https://www.thelocal.com/20240607/why-did-spain-not-take-part-in-wwi-or-wwii Fri, 07 Jun 2024 14:02:51 +0200 why-did-spain-not-take-part-in-wwi-or-wwii It's a timeworn cliché that Spaniards have a siesta every day, and yet the data reveals that they actually sleep far less than some of their European neighbours. Why are Spaniards 'different' when it comes to sleep? https://www.thelocal.com/20240509/are-spaniards-the-worlds-most-misunderstood-sleepers Thu, 09 May 2024 12:47:19 +0200 are-spaniards-the-worlds-most-misunderstood-sleepers Legislation proposed by right-wing regional governments in Spain has caused a bitter row about Spain's dictatorial past and led to accusations of 'whitewashing' the Franco regime. https://www.thelocal.com/20240403/the-row-brewing-in-spain-over-whether-francos-regime-was-a-dictatorship Wed, 03 Apr 2024 14:02:35 +0200 the-row-brewing-in-spain-over-whether-francos-regime-was-a-dictatorship Today March 11th marks two decades since 10 bombs exploded nearly simultaneously on four commuter trains in Madrid during the morning rush hour, killing 192 people and injuring almost 2,000. https://www.thelocal.com/20240310/20-years-since-the-deadliest-terror-attacks-in-spains-history Sun, 10 Mar 2024 09:15:31 +0100 20-years-since-the-deadliest-terror-attacks-in-spains-history With tensions still simmering over the controversial amnesty deal his government made with Catalan separatists, Spain's Socialist Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez is surrounding himself with Spanish flags more than ever. https://www.thelocal.com/20231130/why-sanchez-is-claiming-back-spains-flag-from-the-right Thu, 30 Nov 2023 13:05:13 +0100 why-sanchez-is-claiming-back-spains-flag-from-the-right The history of Spain's Civil War and dictatorship is well known and remains divisive in modern society. What many might not realise is that Spain had up to 300 concentration camps and the last wasn't closed until the mid-1960s. https://www.thelocal.com/20231107/the-unknown-story-of-spains-concentration-camps Tue, 07 Nov 2023 16:50:27 +0100 the-unknown-story-of-spains-concentration-camps There are around 30 British cemeteries scattered around Spain, most of which have been there for over 150 years. This is the fascinating story of how they came to exist. https://www.thelocal.com/20231020/why-are-there-so-many-british-cemeteries-in-spain Fri, 20 Oct 2023 13:00:01 +0200 why-are-there-so-many-british-cemeteries-in-spain