The Juan Armario infant and junior school in Alcalá de los Gazules is to be renamed the Al-Kalat school, following a decision by the school board earlier this month. Juan Armario was the founder of the local Falange and a supporter of the Franco-led uprising in 1936. He is said to have led much of the repression in Alcalá de los Gazules during and after the Civil War.
Juan Armario’s pistol and badge are now on display at the Casa de la Memoria La Sauceda, along with ballistic evidence from the exhumations carried out by the Forum for the Memory of the Campo de Gibraltar and Afresama, the association of relatives of victims.
Head teacher Ángel Baizán Pedrero made the announcement on 15 April, but the change was originally mooted at a council meeting back in November 2019 to comply with the law of historical memory and democracy in Andalucía.
In the information sent to pupils’ families, he explained that the name Al-Kalat, which means ‘the castle’ in Arabic and had been the option which received the most votes from the school board.
The change of name will be presented to the council for approval and should be effective by the start of the 2024/2025 school year.
