Last Stamp of the FAI

When it became clear that the Spanish Republicans were losing the Civil War, contacts between the IISH and the anarchist organizations CNT and FAI were established. They hoped to be able to shelter the archives far from Franco's Spain. Internal problems and military control delayed the beginning of the transfer. In March 1939 Franco embargoed the archives. Yet, in April, 22 wooden boxes with papers and photos were transferred to the London department of the IISH. Those boxes contained the latest stamps: the last validated date on the FAI stamp was 21 January 1939, five days before the fall of Barcelona.