Auts
Encyclopedia
Ebro
The Ebro or Ebre is one of the most important rivers in the Iberian Peninsula. It is the biggest river by discharge volume in Spain.The Ebro flows through the following cities:*Reinosa in Cantabria.*Miranda de Ebro in Castile and León....
river in the Bajo Aragón-Caspe/Baix Aragó-Casp
Bajo Aragón-Caspe/Baix Aragó-Casp
Bajo Aragón-Caspe or Baix Aragó-Casp is a comarca in eastern Aragon, bordering the Spanish Autonomous Community of Catalonia.It borders the Aragonese comarques of Matarranya, Monegros, Bajo Cinca, Bajo Martín and Ribera Baja del Ebro, and the Catalan comarques of Terra Alta, Baix Ebre, and Ribera...
comarca, Aragon
Aragon
Aragon is a modern autonomous community in Spain, coextensive with the medieval Kingdom of Aragon. Located in northeastern Spain, the Aragonese autonomous community comprises three provinces : Huesca, Zaragoza, and Teruel. Its capital is Zaragoza...
, Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
. It is located about 9 km north of Fayón
Fayón
Fayón or Faió is a municipality located in the province of Zaragoza, Aragon, Spain. According to the 2004 census , the municipality has a population of 395 inhabitants....
(Faió), close to the road between Maella
Maella
Maella is a municipality located in the province of Zaragoza, Aragon, Spain. According to the 2004 census , the municipality has a population of 2,025 inhabitants. This town is located in La Franja, the local dialect is a variant of Catalan.-History:...
and Mequinenza (Mequinensa).
The ridge's highest point is Alt dels Auts , a 434 m high summit.
The Auts are desolate-looking limestone
Limestone
Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate . Many limestones are composed from skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera....
mountains, smooth, with low and scruffy vegetation and numerous denuded patches. In some documents in the Spanish language
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
, these hills appear under the name Sierra de Mequinenza, but they are actually not a proper "sierra".
Origin of the name
The name "Auts" comes most likely from an ancient CatalanCatalan language
Catalan is a Romance language, the national and only official language of Andorra and a co-official language in the Spanish autonomous communities of Catalonia, the Balearic Islands and Valencian Community, where it is known as Valencian , as well as in the city of Alghero, on the Italian island...
word for "heights", "alts" in modern Catalan. Referring to hills this name appears, for example, in Ramon Llull
Ramon Llull
Ramon Llull was a Majorcan writer and philosopher, logician and tertiary Franciscan. He wrote the first major work of Catalan literature. Recently-surfaced manuscripts show him to have anticipated by several centuries prominent work on elections theory...
's following text:
«Los cavaliers veem que fant castells i forces en los auts munts, per tal que si son vensuts ni sobrats en los píans, que fugen en los munts».
Recent history
These moderately high, dry mountains were the scenario of one of the most bloody confrontations during the Battle of the EbroBattle of the Ebro
The Battle of the Ebro was the longest and bloodiest battle of the Spanish Civil War...
in the Spanish Civil War
Spanish Civil War
The Spanish Civil WarAlso known as The Crusade among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War among Carlists, and The Rebellion or Uprising among Republicans. was a major conflict fought in Spain from 17 July 1936 to 1 April 1939...
(1936–39).
On the 25th July 1938 the 42d division of the Spanish Republican Army successfully crossed the river in this area and occupied the Auts area taking positions in the hills.
Initially their feat was hailed as a great victory by the Spanish Republic
Second Spanish Republic
The Second Spanish Republic was the government of Spain between April 14 1931, and its destruction by a military rebellion, led by General Francisco Franco....
, eager to see a positive outcome of the Battle of the Ebro effort. But the whole division was soon surrounded and relentlessly massacred in the Auts by General Franco's rebels
Spanish State
Francoist Spain refers to a period of Spanish history between 1936 and 1975 when Spain was under the authoritarian dictatorship of Francisco Franco....
.