José María Iparraguirre Balerdi was born on 12 August 1820 in Urretxu, Gipuzkoa, in the Basque Country, and died on 6 April 1881 in Itsaso, near his native district. He occupies an unusual and enduring place in Basque cultural history: he was at once a poet, singer, guitarist, wandering performer, Carlist veteran, exile, emigrant, and popular symbol. His fame rests above all on “Gernikako Arbola” (“The Tree of Gernik…
“God forbid that any bloody struggle should come to darken our picturesque mountains with mourning; let every good Spaniard refrain from taking up arms, whether in the Carlist or the republican cause.”
Neighbourhood:
Folk & Ballad Poets, Love Poets, Poet-Musicians, Political Poets, Social Justice Poets
Emotional landscape: Spirituality, Joy, Peace
Manuel Machado was born on August 29, 1874, in the heart of Seville, Spain, at number 20 on San Pedro Mártir Street, into a household that pulsed with the rhythms of Andalusian folklore and intellectual curiosity. His arrival came at two-thirty in the morning, under the warm embrace of a city where orange blossoms scented the air and the distant echo of guitars hinted at the deep songs that would later infuse his poe…
“I do not object to the new; after all, it too will grow old, such is the sadness of life.”
Neighbourhood:
Love Poets, Modernist Poets, Nature Poets
Emotional landscape: Joy, Sensuality, Longing
