One of the most significant chapters in Spanish history began in Mijas, specifically at El Charcón beach, where General José María Torrijos landed on 2nd December 1831. This historic event marked the beginning of the tragic end to his liberal uprising against the absolutist regime of King Ferdinand VII. Mijas Comunicación, in collaboration with the Culture Department and various groups, recreates the general’s final days, from his arrival to his execution by firing squad in Málaga, in a documentary presented last Friday, 2nd October, at the Manuel España Theatre.

“It all began with a visit to the Torrijos Museum in Málaga. We, the team at Mijas Comunicación, went there to produce a feature. There we met the association’s president and Torrijos’s biographer, Esteban Alcántara, who turned that visit into a veritable lesson in living history that captivated us”, commented Mónica López during the presentation of the documentary. And so ‘José María Torrijos: Wind of Freedom’ was born, a documentary produced and directed by our colleague Mónica López and made by Lucas Vela. It faithfully reconstructs, with historical accuracy and on locations, the period from 2nd December 1831, when Torrijos landed on the Mijas coast in defence of freedom and democratic values, right up to his execution by firing squad on San Andrés beach in Málaga just nine days later, on 11th December.

“We were really looking forward to the presentation of this extraordinary documentary produced by Mijas Television”, explained Esteban Alcántara, president of the Torrijos 1831 Socio-Cultural Association, who added: “In the case of Mijas, we had a very significant landmark; unfortunately, national encyclopaedias had made a major error, stating that Torrijos had landed in Fuengirola. There was a very important matter still to be resolved: ensuring that El Charcón beach, on the Mijas coastline, regained its rightful place".

 

Mijas Comunicación

For their part, the chief executives of Mijas Comunicación, councillors Mario Bravo (PP) and Juan Carlos Cuevas Dawson (Vox), emphasised that “it is a piece of history and it is important that Mijas Comunicación tells us what happened and how it happened”, noted Bravo, who also proudly stated that “we were the cradle of that nascent freedom that put an end to absolutism, which continues to this dayin our parliamentary monarchy”. The PP councillor also noted that “freedom is not something you win and then leave on a top shelf; we must continue to fight for freedom every day, each of us from our own post, authority or position”.

“I would like to congratulate Mónica and Lucas, and the whole team at Mijas Comunicación, for the fantastic work they have done in producing a marvellous documentary about a very small piece of Spain’s history linked to Mijas, and that is something to be admired: learning about the history of Mijas and recognising that we have played an important role in Spain’s history”, emphasised Cuevas Dawson.

 

Collaborations

This project would not have been possible without the involvement of the municipal Department of Culture and, above all, the collaboration and guidance of the Torrijos 1831 Socio-Cultural Association, members of Málaga Creadora, actors from the UP Theatre and CineMijas workshops, the Peña Caballista Mijeña, and other contributors, such as Fernando Torres and Manuel Santafé, who provided some of the locations.

“Here at the Culture Department, we continue to work alongside this association to ensure that this historic event is re-enacted every year with the landing. But not only that: we also aim to highlight what it meant in the struggle for freedom and the Constitution. Because culture must serve as a catalyst for remembrance and for fostering a better present and future”, stated the councillor for Culture, Juan Carlos Maldonado (PMP).

The video also features testimonies from, among others, Torrijos’s biographer and president of the association, Esteban Alcántara; Ángel Rodríguez, Professor of Constitutional Law at the University of Malaga (UMA) and director of the Torrijos Chair; and Antonina Rodríguez García, historian and biographer of Mariana Pineda.

Acknowledgements

Following the screening of the documentary, Esteban Alcántara, president of the association, presented a token of recognition to Mónica López and Lucas Vela for their dedication and “the excellent work carried out”, said the biographer of General José María Torrijos, who explained that “from the very start, Mijas television supported us in the re-enactments; it has never let us down once; it has always been there, come cold, wind or rain”.

The Landing

General José María Torrijos set sail from Gibraltar with some 50 men with the aim of restoring the 1812 Constitution. However, the voyage was disrupted by attacks from the absolutist ship Neptuno, which forced them to bring forward their landing on the coast of Mijas.

It was all part of a trap orchestrated by the governor of Málaga, Vicente González Moreno, who, through forged letters (under the pseudonym Viriato), had deceived them by promising massive support that never existed. After setting foot on dry land on 2nd December 1831, the royalist forces took them by surprise and immediately gave chase. The liberal expedition was forced to flee through the municipality of Mijas towards the Sierra de Alpujata and Alhaurín, where they were eventually surrounded, captured and subsequently shot without trial on the beaches of San Andrés de Málaga on 11th December 1831.

Today, this episode is fundamental to the identity and historical memory of the municipality of Mijas. Every year, in late November or early December, El Charcón beach and the La Cala Watchtower provide the setting for a historical re-enactment organized by the Torrijos 1831 Historical and Cultural Association, commemorating the landing and the lives of the carabineros of that era.

Tower and bust

During the presentation, a sketch of a bust, created pro bono by local sculptor Lázaro Cruz, was displayed on stage. “We are in the process of commissioning the final bust, which we want to place on El Charcón beach to pay tribute to Torrijos, so that everyone, as well as seeing the plaque commemorating the historical event, can also admire the memorial figure that we all wish to have for Torrijos,” said the Councillor for Culture.

For his part, local government councillor Mario Bravo announced that at El Torreón in La Cala, which houses an interpretation centre dedicated to Torrijos that has been closed for months due to a landslide, “we will do everything possible to ensure that, in early December, we can celebrate that landing, including a visit to the Torreón, so that Mijas continues to carry the name of Torrijos and the spirit of freedom wherever it is needed”, emphasised Bravo.

Mijas 3.40 TV will broadcast the full event and the documentary shortly.

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