Tales of Freedom from the Former Prison of Sort

The occupation in France and the need to escape what is now known as the “Final Solution to the Jewish Question,” the Nazi state’s objective in 1941, led approximately 65,000 people to cross the Pyrenees under the most extreme conditions. Jewish men, women, and children, political refugees, and downed Allied aviators attempted to pass through Spain from 1939 to return to Great Britain or embark for the United States. 

The town of Sort, in Catalonia, near the Spanish border with France, was one of the transit points for those who used the Pyrenean routes of Pallars Sobirà or Vall d’Aran to enter Spanish territory. It was an obligatory stop in almost all cases, due to the strict controls of the Francoist army, which had been present in the Catalan Pyrenees since 1939. The objective: to control the actions of the maquis resistance and the entry of “undesirable” individuals into Spanish territory. 

The detention procedure was the same in practically all cases: capture within minutes of entering Spanish territory, and then internment in the Sort prison until the Provincial Court of Lleida determined their fate. 

Confinement lasted several weeks, and the future of any detainee depended on various factors. In the case of Allied officers, detention initially took place in the jail before they were transferred to hotels in Sort, such as the former Hotel Pessets. Typically, the Red Cross, through the mediation of the American or British embassy, obtained authorization for their departure from Spain. 

Not everyone was so fortunate. Jews and political refugees had the most difficult situation. Men were confined to the Sort prison, while women and children stayed in pensions or family homes in the town, with payment agreements for the future. 

With only 24 square meters in size, this small detention center was frequently overcrowded with a floating population of over 50 people. Only weeks later, and by court order, some were released, others sent to concentration camps within the Spanish state, and those not claimed by anyone deported to occupied France. 

According to original records, it is estimated that between 1939 and 1944, 2,660 exiles passed through the Sort prison; French (1,288), Canadians (407), and Poles (235). The paths, routes, and stories of those who crossed the Pyrenees are now known as the “Paths of Freedom.” 

The Museum
Since 2007, the prison has been reopened and converted into a free museum that recalls the hardships and adventures of all who passed through it. The Sort Prison Museum displays documents, photographs, and original military remnants from the era daily. 

It is a recommended visit that doesn’t require much time but is essential to understand that in the Pyrenees, we find much more than nature. If you ask me about my feelings upon visiting the museum, I would describe it in two words: tiny and gigantic. 

Tiny because of its size and the limited knowledge of its implications; but gigantic because of each of the 2,660 personal stories with names and surnames that have been imprinted on the prison’s small surface. Stories that teach us that in the most desperate and unjust situations, hope, and generosity are values that define humanity.