Adam Husicka
WHILE one small Andalusian village has just scrubbed Franco from its name, six other towns across Spain continue to defy the country’s 2022 Democratic Memory Law, with zero penalties and little political will to change.
Villafranco del Guadalhorce has officially become Villa del Guadalhorce, ditching its tribute to the dictator.
But elsewhere, places like Llanos del Caudillo, Alberche del Caudillo, and San Leonardo de Yague are still very much stuck in the past.
These names aren’t subtle.
They directly honour Franco, his generals, or key figures of the fascist movement, including Mola, Yague, and Onesimo Redondo, founder of the JONS, a fascist movement from the 30s that later merged with the Falange Española.
Under Spain’s memory law, such tributes, whether in town names, streets or public buildings, are illegal.
The law allows for fines of up to €10,000 and puts the responsibility on local authorities to remove them.
But so far? No fines. No catalogue of banned symbols. No action.
In most towns, there’s no movement to change names largely because local councils don’t consider it a priority.
The one partial exception is Alberche del Caudillo, which started a name-change process before the 2023 elections, only to put it on pause while waiting for the national list of banned names, which still hasn’t arrived.
Meanwhile, the town of Villa del Guadalhorce, formerly Villafranco, shows that change is possible.
It just takes a vote, a bit of political backbone, and a willingness to move on from dictatorship-era nostalgia.
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