Eric Hawkins and the Basque Children of ’37.

On May 15th 2005, at the kind invitation of Eric Hawkins, we travelled to Jesus College Cambridge to represent the ALA at the unveiling of a ‘blue plaque’ to commemorate the Basque children colony that was established in Cambridge from 1937 to 1939. (Blue plaques are often found in Britain, for example on buildings to record some particular historical importance, such as when a famous person lived there). There were 29 such children in the Cambridge colony, out of 4,000 who travelled in the ship Habana to Southampton from Bilbao in 1937, in the wake of the bombings and air-raids on civilian populated areas of the Basque Country during the Spanish Civil War (an altogether new type of warfare at that time). Many more children were evacuated from the rest of Spain to various parts of Europe. All this happened at the time when Eric was still finishing his teacher training at Cambridge, and indeed he broke off from his training to take on the responsibilities of tutoring and taking care of some of the children. The lessons Eric learnt during this time at Cambridge (for example, about the role of stories and of song) proved very useful when he then went on to work at another very different colony of 200 boys at Harwood Dale near Scarborough. And indeed, all these events and experiences had a profound and lasting effect on his thinking about language and pedagogy.

Eric writes – with typical modesty, of course - about these children and his own role in their care and education in his book Listening to Lorca (published by CILT, 1999). Just how distinguished a contribution he made during those years became very clear at this unveiling ceremony. Indeed, it was Eric himself – together with one of the niños (now in her 70s) - who was given the honour of pulling the cord to reveal the plaque.

The event was well-attended, and many of the people sitting around us were niños accompanied by their families. In addition to Eric himself, several other dignitaries participated, including the Mayor of Cambridge, official representatives of the Autonomous Government of the Basque Country, and also from the Spanish Embassy in London. Professor Adrian Bell, who has written a book on the whole historical episode of the evacuation and experiences of the Basque children, was also there, and, as one of the speakers, gave an intriguing summary of the political complexities in Britain concerning the evacuation and care of these children, as people in Britain, and the government, began to anticipate the Second World War.

To us, the story of the 4,000 niños being separated from their families after such traumatic experiences of war, and so heartily welcomed and strongly supported by so many individuals, is a very moving piece of history, and one that surely deserves to be far more widely known about. It is a life-lesson for all of us.

If you are interested in reading more about the Basque Children of ’37, see: http://www.spanishrefugees-basquechildren.org/

Peter Garrett.
Josep M. Cots.