Description of the attraction
The Forest of the Dead is a memorial in Madrid to commemorate the victims of the March 11, 2004 terrorist attacks. The attacks were carried out three days before the Spanish parliamentary elections and were the largest terrorist attacks in the country's history. Seven suicide bombers managed to blow up four commuter trains, killing 191 people and injuring 2,050. This terrible tragedy happened at Madrid's Atocha train station.
It is believed that this tragedy was associated with the terrorist attack that took place in the United States on September 11, 2001 - there is evidence of the involvement of Islamic organizers in it. The date of the terrible event is also symbolic - it happened exactly 911 days (9/11) and exactly 2.5 years after the terrorist attack in America. During this tragedy, not only citizens of Spain were killed, but also a number of other countries.
The memorial is a composition of trees, which consists of 22 olives and 170 cypresses - one tree for each lost life.
The opening of the monument took place exactly one year after the incident, on March 11, 2005. The King and Queen of Spain were the first to place funeral garlands at the monument. During the opening, not a word was said - the relatives of the victims wished to honor the memory of the victims with silence. The opening was attended by heads and ambassadors of other states - after all, this tragedy also affected other countries.
The memorial is very close to the place where the tragedy occurred. The beautiful green Retiro Park is located around the memorial. Everything here is saturated with silence, peace and sadness.
