Stolperstein dedicated to Manuel García García

The Stolperstein dedicated to Manuel García García is a small brass memorial plaque set into the pavement at Calle del Mesón de Paredes 60, in the heart of Madrid's Lavapiés neighborhood. It belongs to the Europe-wide "stumbling stone" project started by German artist Gunter Demnig, which marks the last freely chosen home of a victim of Nazism, right where passers-by walk every day.

Who was Manuel García García?

Manuel García García was a pastry chef from Lavapiés. He trained in the trade from 1930 and eventually headed the pastry team at Madrid's Hotel Nacional. When the Spanish Civil War broke out in 1936, he joined the Republican militias without hesitation, fighting in the Sierra de Guadarrama and later at the Battle of the Ebro. After the Republic's defeat he went into exile in France, where he was captured on January 25, 1941. The Germans deported him to Mauthausen concentration camp (prisoner number 3243) and later to its subcamp Gusen. He died there on July 3, 1942, of pulmonary tuberculosis, only months after his deportation.

Why is the stone here, in Madrid?

Stolpersteine are traditionally placed outside the last address a victim chose for themselves — which is why this stone sits in Lavapiés, the neighborhood where García lived before the war forced him abroad. It's one of a wider group: in July 2019, Madrid's Centro district provisionally installed more than a dozen such stones honoring residents deported to German concentration camps. Around 9,300 Spaniards ended up in Nazi camps, most of them Republican political exiles who had fled to France after the civil war ended in 1939, only to be swept up by the German occupation and deportation machine once the Second World War began.

What will you actually see?

Don't expect a monument. It's a discreet brass plaque, roughly the size of a cobblestone, set flush into the pavement and engraved with the victim's name, dates, and place of death. That modesty is the point — Stolpersteine work because you stumble across a real person's name in an ordinary street, not in a fenced-off memorial site.

How do you get there?

The stone is on Calle del Mesón de Paredes 60, in Lavapiés, one of Madrid's most walkable central neighborhoods. The nearest metro stations are Lavapiés and Tirso de Molina (Line 1), both a few minutes' walk away. It pairs naturally with a short walking route through the other memorial stones scattered across the Centro district.

When should you visit?

Any time — it's a public street, not a site with opening hours. That said, this isn't a conventional sightseeing stop: treat it as a moment of quiet reflection rather than a box to tick off an itinerary.

Frequently asked questions

What exactly is a Stolperstein? A Stolperstein ("stumbling stone") is a small brass plaque embedded in the pavement outside the last freely chosen home of a victim of Nazi persecution. The project was started by German artist Gunter Demnig and now spans hundreds of European cities, including Madrid.

Who was Manuel García García? A pastry chef from Lavapiés who fought with the Republican militias during the Spanish Civil War, was captured after fleeing into exile in France, and was deported to the Mauthausen and Gusen concentration camps, where he died in 1942.

Is this the only Stolperstein in Madrid? No — more than a dozen similar stones were installed in the Centro district in 2019, each honoring a different Madrid resident deported to a Nazi concentration camp.

How do I get there by public transport? Take the metro to Lavapiés or Tirso de Molina (Line 1); the stone is a short walk from either station, at Calle del Mesón de Paredes 60.