The mayor of A Coruña, Inés Rey, presided over the traditional floral tribute on All Saints' Day at the municipal cemetery of San Amaro, dedicated this year to the teacher and educator María Barbeito Cerviño, the poet Manuel Curros Enríquez, and the founder of the Sala Calvet and Deportivo, Federico Fernández Amor-Calvet.
At the beginning of the ceremony, in front of the Cross of the Forgotten, Rey called for a minute of silence in memory of the victims of the train accident in the province of Toledo. "We share the deep sorrow of their families and loved ones. A pain that, unfortunately, we know well in Galicia. This act is also dedicated to their memory," Rey expressed.
The tribute brought together members of the municipal corporation, relatives of the honourees, representatives from the Royal Galician Academy, the Curros Enríquez Foundation, and the RC Deportivo, along with other significant institutions from the city.
In her speech, the mayor emphasised San Amaro as a space for memory in the city and Galicia. "The values of A Coruña rest in this enclave, but they are not dormant; they are the same values that guide the city today, which we must preserve as they are part of our identity," she stated.
The ceremony included floral offerings at the Cross of the Forgotten, at the graves of the honourees, and at the Monument to the Dead for Freedom. The Follas Novas Polyphonic Choir accompanied the ceremony with performances of "Ya no sé cantar" and "Signore delle cime." "A Coruña does not forget. On the contrary, it remembers and learns from the figures of the past who helped us become the city we are and who encourage us to keep moving forward," Rey concluded, highlighting education, democratic freedoms, cultural identity, and the passion for Deportivo as fundamental values of the city.
María Barbeito: 90 years since the start of her teaching career
Rey highlighted María Barbeito's contribution to pedagogical renewal and the defence of women's rights, coinciding with the 90th anniversary of the 1936 coup d'état and the beginning of Francoist repression that interrupted her teaching work. The mayor recalled her role as director of the Guarda Schools, her introduction of the Montessori method in Galicia, and her membership in the Royal Galician Academy, asserting the relevance of her advocacy for modern, active, and equal education: "Understanding A Coruña requires knowing Emilia Pardo Bazán, Rosalía de Castro, Juana de Vega, María Pita, or the cigar makers," Rey stated, placing Barbeito within this tradition of women who contributed to the city's progress.
The tribute also extended to her family's cultural legacy, recognising writer and researcher Carlos Martínez-Barbeito and municipal archivist Isabel Martínez-Barbeito, whose efforts were crucial for bringing Salvador de Madariaga's archives to A Coruña.
Curros Enríquez: 175th anniversary of his birth
On the 175th anniversary of Curros Enríquez's birth, the mayor praised his commitment to freedom and social justice, as well as his role in promoting the Royal Galician Academy, which this year celebrates its 120th anniversary with A Coruña as its headquarters since its inception. "A Coruña was and continues to be a cradle of Galicianism and a driving force of Galician culture," she emphasised.
Rey recalled the recognition the city bestowed upon him during his lifetime, with his coronation as a poet in 1904 at the Teatro Principal, now known as the Rosalía de Castro Theatre. During that tribute, Curros read "To the People of A Coruña," a poem in which he expressed gratitude for the affection received and shared the recognition with the Galician people. "Even in a moment of personal tribute, Curros put his country first," the mayor pointed out, highlighting his defence of those suffering injustice and his love for Galicia. This bond with the citizens was also reflected in his farewell on 2 April 1908, when around forty thousand people accompanied his coffin to San Amaro. "The photographs of those crowded streets preserve the memory of an entire city bidding farewell to a poet," Rey noted, framing his figure within the historical defence of freedoms from A Coruña.
Federico Fernández Amor-Calvet: 120 years since the founding of Deportivo
The coincidence of the 120th anniversary of the Royal Galician Academy and Deportivo served to highlight early 20th-century A Coruña as a space for cultural and social initiatives. In this context, Rey underscored Federico Fernández Amor-Calvet, "perhaps the least known figure among those we honour today, but with a legacy very present in the daily life of the city," and defended his place in A Coruña's memory.
Calvet founded the Sala Calvet on Calle de la Galera in 1901, with an open project aimed at popular education and sports practice. From that space emerged, five years later, the Club Deportivo de la Sala Calvet, where football would eventually take a central role. The mayor linked this initiative to a way of understanding sport as a tool for social progress and highlighted its evolution into an institution that has been part of the lives of generations of A Coruña residents. "You cannot understand coruñesismo without deportivismo, and vice versa," Rey affirmed, emphasising Deportivo's ability to unite the city in both victories and defeats. The tribute also aimed to raise awareness of Calvet's remains in the cemetery: "Here, in San Amaro, rests the seed of our Dépor. And alongside it, so many people who contributed to shaping Galician identity from A Coruña."
