The Valle de los Caídos ("Valley of the Fallen") is a Catholic basilica and a monumental memorial in the municipality of San Lorenzo de El Escorial, erected at Cuelgamuros Valley in the Sierra de Guadarrama, near Madrid, conceived by Spanish dictator Francisco Franco to honour and bury those who fell during the Spanish Civil War. It was also claimed by Franco that the monument was meant to be a "national act of atonement" and reconciliation. As a surviving artifact of Franco's rule, the monument and its Catholic basilica remain controversial, particularly because 10% of the construction workforce were convicts, some of them Popular Front political prisoners. The monument, a landmark of 20th-century Spanish architecture, was designed by Pedro Muguruza and Diego Méndez on a scale to equal, according to Franco, "the grandeur of the monuments of old, which defy time and forgetfulness". Together with the Universidad Laboral de Gijón, it is the most prominent example of the original Spanish Neo-Herrerian style, which was intended as a revival of Juan de Herrera's architecture, exemplified in El Escorial. This uniquely Spanish architecture was widely used in public buildings of post-war Spain and is rooted in International classicism exemplified by Albert Speer or Mussolini's Esposizione Universale Roma. The monument precinct encloses over 3,360 acres of Mediterranean woodlands and granite boulders on the Sierra de Guadarrama hills, over 3,000 feet over sea level where stand the Basilica, the Benedictine Abbey, the Hospedería, the Valley and the Juanelos, four cylindrical monoliths dating from the 16th century. The most prominent feature of the monument is the towering 150-metre-high (500 ft) cross erected over a granite outcrop 150 metres over the basilica esplanade and visible from over 20 miles away. Work started in 1940 and took over eighteen years to complete, the monument being officially inaugurated on April 1, 1959. According to the official ledger, the cost of the construction totalled 1.159 billion pesetas, funded through National Lottery draws and donations. The complex is owned and operated by the Patrimonio Nacional, the Spanish governmental heritage agency, and ranked as the third most visited monument of the Patrimonio Nacional in 2009. The Spanish socialist government closed the complex to visitors at the end of 2009, basing the decision on safety reasons connected to restoration on the facade. Controversy arose upon this decision, as the closure was attributed by some people to the Historical Memory Law enacted during president Zapatero's mandate, and there were claims that the Benedictine community was being persecuted. The works include the Pietà sculpture prominently featured at the entrance of the crypt, using hammers and heavy machinery. In November, 2010, alleging safety reasons, the socialist Spanish government of Zapatero closed down the Basilica for Mass. Mass was celebrated in the open during several weeks; with an attendance of 3,000 faithful, in a rainy day on November 14. Checkpoints were set up, according to socialist government sources, to prevent right-wing political manifestations such as Falange flags, in accordance to the Law of "Memoria Histórica". However, Catholic sources claimed that the government was simply trying to interfere with the celebration of the Mass. After the electoral defeat of the Socialisty Party of Zapatero and his leaving office on December 21, 2011, the Basilica has returned to its normal functioning.
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