Spanish Civil War 1936–1939
Port of Alicante – Stanbrook and the last refugees
City site
The story
As the Republic collapsed in March 1939, tens of thousands of Republican soldiers, officials and families converged on Alicante, hoping for evacuation by sea. On 28 March the British collier Stanbrook, under Captain Archibald Dickson, sailed for Oran carrying about 2,600–3,000 people, far beyond her capacity. Very few ships came after her. Between 15,000 and 20,000 people were left on the quays. Italian troops of the Littorio Division and Nationalist forces took the port, and on 1 April some of those trapped killed themselves rather than surrender. The rest were marched to the Los Almendros field and then to Albatera. The Generalitat Valenciana now marks 28 March as a day of remembrance.
What you can see today
Today a modern ferry and leisure port. A plaque to the Stanbrook's crew stands on the quayside (it was torn off once by vandals) and a street is named after the ship.
Plan your visit
Walk the waterfront from the Explanada. The plaque's exact position is not confirmed, so ask at the port tourist office. Combine with Los Almendros, 2 km north.
Sources
- mapcarta.com/30853086
- en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SS_Stanbrook
- alicante.es/es/noticias/homenaje-republicanos-atrapados-puerto-1939
- elespanol.com/alicante/20240704/tragico-destino-republicanos-no-pudieron-subir-stanbrook-alicante/867663449_0.html
- publico.es/politica/arrancan-placa-puerto-alicante-memoria-stanbrook.html
Nearby sites
- Mercado Central, Alicante (bombing of 25 May 1938) · under 1 km
- Refugio de la Plaza Séneca, Alicante · under 1 km
- Campo de Los Almendros memorial, Alicante · 2 km
- Albatera concentration camp memorial, San Isidro · 37 km
- Refugio-Museo de la Guerra Civil, Cartagena · 94 km
- Batería de Castillitos, Cabo Tiñoso (Cartagena) · 106 km
All 158 sites in Spanish Civil War 1936–1939 →
The Spanish Civil War 1936–1939
A free field guide for your phone: the route, the maps and the stories built in, even with no signal. The battlefields, trenches, ruined villages, shelters, museums and memorials of the Spanish Civil War across the whole of Spain, told fairly from both sides.
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