A memorial cross (sometimes called an intending cross) is a cross-shaped memorial to commemorate a special event or an incident, typically where one or more people died. It may also be a simple form of headstone to commemorate the dead.
A memorial cross (sometimes called an intending cross) is a cross-shaped memorial to commemorate a special event or an incident, typically where one or more people died. It may also be a simple form of headstone to commemorate the dead.
In England, King Edward I had memorial crosses, the so-called Eleanor Crosses, erected in memory of his wife Eleanor of Castile who died in November 1290. Three of the original twelve crosses have survived.
In Germany today, the custom has arisen of erecting crosses (Unfallkreuze or "accident crosses") as roadside memorials at the spot where someone has been killed. These are maintained for shorter or longer periods of time and decorated e.g. with flowers or candles. In South Germany, especially in Bavaria, memorial crosses exist for those who died several generations ago. Some of these crosses are at very remote places. These, too, usually commemorate a fatal accident. These roadside memorial crosses should not be confused with wayside crosses, which are erected in the Bavarian region on the edge of paths and tracks, and are there simply to give walkers the opportunity to say a short prayer.
In the US, makeshift crosses are often placed at the scenes of car accidents where someone died, or at the scene of a death due to violence. White crosses are frequently seen along interstate highways and other roads. Friends, family, or other visitors may decorate the area with photos of the deceased, flowers, toys (when the deceased was a small child), and other meaningful memorabilia. Other memorial crosses commemorate war dead and victims of terrorism.
The tallest memorial cross in the world at 152.4 metres is the Monumento Nacional de Santa Cruz del Valle de los Caidos near El Escorial in Spain. [1]
The Day of the Dead is a holiday traditionally celebrated on November 1 and 2, though other days, such as October 31 or November 6, may be included depending on the locality. It is widely observed in Mexico, where it largely developed, and is also observed in other places, especially by people of Mexican heritage. The observance falls during the Christian period of Allhallowtide. Some argue that there are Indigenous Mexican or ancient Aztec influences that account for the custom, and it has become a way to remember those forebears of Mexican culture. The Day of the Dead is largely seen as having a festive characteristic. The multi-day holiday involves family and friends gathering to pay respects and to remember friends and family members who have died. These celebrations can take a humorous tone, as celebrants remember funny events and anecdotes about the departed.
The Valley of Cuelgamuros, formerly known as Valley of the Fallen, is a monument in the Sierra de Guadarrama, near Madrid. The valley contains a Catholic basilica and a monumental memorial in the municipality of San Lorenzo de El Escorial. Dictator Francisco Franco ordered the construction of the monumental site in 1940; it was built from 1940 to 1958, and opened in 1959. Franco said that the monument was intended as a "national act of atonement" and reconciliation.
A mausoleum is an external free-standing building constructed as a monument enclosing the burial chamber of a deceased person or people. A mausoleum without the person's remains is called a cenotaph. A mausoleum may be considered a type of tomb, or the tomb may be considered to be within the mausoleum.
El Escorial is a municipality in the Autonomous Community of Madrid, located 45 km (28 mi) northwest of the Spanish capital Madrid. It belongs to the comarca of Cuenca del Guadarrama. Its population in 2009 was 14,979.
An eternal flame is a flame, lamp or torch that burns for an indefinite time. Most eternal flames are ignited and tended intentionally, but some are natural phenomena caused by natural gas leaks, peat fires and coal seam fires, all of which can be initially ignited by lightning, piezoelectricity or human activity, some of which have burned for hundreds or thousands of years.
A roadside memorial is a marker that usually commemorates a site where a person died suddenly and unexpectedly, away from home. Unlike a grave site headstone, which marks where a body is laid, the memorial marks the last place on earth where a person was alive – although in the past travelers were, out of necessity, often buried where they fell.
Juan de Ávalos y García-Taborda was a Spanish sculptor.
Lithuanian cross crafting is a traditional Lithuanian art of crafting crosses. The making of altars and crosses is an important part of Lithuanian culture. Lithuanian traditional crosses are part of the people's Roman Catholic religion. Approximately since Lithuania became a part of the Russian Empire in the 19th century, these crosses have become a symbol of the Lithuanian people.
Santa Cruz Xoxocotlán is a small city and municipality located 5 km from the state capital of Oaxaca in the south of Mexico. It is part of the Centro District in the Valles Centrales region. The name comes from the Nahuatl word “xocotl” which means “sour or sweet and sour fruit” with the duplicative “xo” to indicate “very.” The meaning of the entire phrase means “among the very sour fruits.” The Mixtec name for the area was Nuunitatnohoyoo which mean “land of the moon-faced flowers.” However, the community is most commonly referred to simply as Xoxo.
The Dos de Mayo or Second of May Uprising took place in Madrid, Spain, on 2–3 May 1808. The rebellion, mainly by civilians, with some isolated military action by junior officers, was against the occupation of the city by French troops, and was violently repressed by the French Imperial forces, with hundreds of public executions.
The Monument to the Fallen for Spain or the Monument to the Heroes of the Second of May, popularly known as el Obelisco, is a war memorial in Madrid, Spain. It lies on the centre of the Plaza de la Lealtad.
A wayside shrine is a religious image, usually in some sort of small shelter, placed by a road or pathway, sometimes in a settlement or at a crossroads, but often in the middle of an empty stretch of country road, or at the top of a hill or mountain. They have been a feature of many cultures, including Chinese folk religious communities, Catholic and Orthodox Europe and some Asian regions.
Mount Abantos is a mountain in the Sierra de Guadarrama range in the Sistema Central of Spain, a chain that runs from east to west. For the most part, the mountain is located in the municipality of San Lorenzo de El Escorial in the Community of Madrid, with part of its west side in the province of Ávila.
Luis Daoiz y Torres was a Spanish artillery officer and one of the leaders of the Dos de Mayo Uprising that signalled the start of the Spanish War of Independence. Daoíz's surname is derived from the town of Aoiz in Navarre and he was descended from a long line of Spanish gentry with soldiering associations dating to the Reconquista. Daoíz's great grandfather married the daughter of the Count of Miraflores de los Angeles and Daoíz spent much of his early life in palaces owned by the family. He was born in Seville and, after receiving a Catholic education, trained at the Royal School of Artillery in Segovia. Daoíz saw action against the Moors in Spanish North Africa, where he was commended for his bravery and promoted to lieutenant. He also served against the French in the short-lived War of the Roussillon where he was captured. After refusing to serve in the French army, he was imprisoned.
The symbols of Francoism were iconic references to identify the Francoist State in Spain between 1936 and 1975. They serve as visual illustrations for the ideology of Francoist Spain. Uniforms were designed for men and women that combined elements of the earlier Falangist and Carlist uniforms. The state developed new flags and escutcheons based on the traditional heraldry of the monarchy, but now associated with the state. The emblem of five arrows joined by a yoke was also adopted from earlier Spanish symbology, but after 1945 the arrows always pointed upward. This emblem appeared on buildings, plaques and uniforms.
The 1982 Liberation Memorial is a war memorial in Stanley, Falkland Islands. It commemorates all British Forces and supporting units that served in the Falklands War and helped liberate the Falkland Islanders from Argentine military occupation in 1982. The Memorial is situated in front of the Secretariat Building, overlooking Stanley Harbour. The funds for the Memorial were raised entirely by Falkland Islanders and it was unveiled by the Governor of the Falkland Islands, Sir Rex Hunt, on Liberation Day 1984, the second anniversary of the end of the war.
The Monument to the Fallen is a monument in Plaza de España, near the sea front of Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Spain. It is one of the several erected monuments across the Spanish geography that serve as memorial to the victors in the Spanish Civil War.
The Monument to the Heroes of Puente Sampayo is a memorial and sculptural group created by the Spanish sculptor Julio González Pola, in Pontevedra, Spain.
The Gran Vía de Montero Ríos is an avenue in Pontevedra (Spain) located in the city centre, in the 19th century bourgeois area. It is one of the most emblematic avenues in Pontevedra.
In 2011, the Spanish government under then-Prime Minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero recommended that the remains of Spanish dictator Francisco Franco be removed from the Valley of the Fallen, where they had been for over 30 years, and be reburied at a location chosen by his family. After a lengthy legal process, his remains were ultimately reinterred at Mingorrubio Cemetery, El Pardo.
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