Democratic Memory Chair: agreement between the State and the UCLM

The Official State Gazette publishes in issue number 214, dated August 31, 2026, the Resolution of August 24, 2026, from the Secretary of State for Democratic Memory, which publicizes the agreement signed with the University of Castilla-La Mancha for the creation of the “Chair of Democratic Memory.” The agreement was signed on August 20, 2026, and appears as an annex to the resolution in section III, page 117550.

The agreement falls within the competencies that Royal Decree 273/2024, of March 19, attributes to the Ministry of Territorial Policy and Democratic Memory to promote, in collaboration with public administrations, actions for information, dissemination, training, and capacity building regarding democratic memory, from the origins of Constitutionalism to the end of the Dictatorship. The publication is carried out in compliance with article 48.8 of Law 40/2015, of October 1, on the Legal Regime of the Public Sector.

Signatories and Purpose

The agreement is signed, on behalf of the Ministry, by the Secretary of State for Democratic Memory, Fernando Martínez López, and, on behalf of the University, its Rector Magnificus, José Julián Garde López-Brea, appointed by Decree 97/2024, of December 23, of the Department of Education, Culture, and Sports. The Chair is established with the objective of generating, applying, and disseminating knowledge about democratic memory, projecting activities both inside and outside university campuses.

Commitments and Financing

The Ministry of Territorial Policy and Democratic Memory commits to a maximum contribution of 100,000 euros, at a rate of 50,000 euros for each of the two years of validity (2026 and 2027), charged to budget application 22.03.925M.226.06. For its part, the University of Castilla-La Mancha directly finances activities with a maximum value of another 100,000 euros from its own budgets, under the same conditions.

Planned activities include:

• Holding scientific congresses, seminars, and dissemination workshops.
• Training activities and links with R&D research projects.
• Presentation of books, didactic guides, and visual and documentary materials.
• Study of the treatment of the Second Republic, the Spanish War, the Francoist dictatorship, and the Transition within the educational system.
• Study and dissemination of the persecution suffered by the Roma people and the Women’s Board (Patronato de la Mujer).
• Creation of memory networks with research groups from other universities.

Monitoring and Validity

For the monitoring of the agreement, a joint steering committee is created, composed of two representatives from each party, which will meet at least once a year and approve the annual activity report and the annual budget plan. The agreement will remain in effect until November 30, 2027, with the possibility of an extension for a period of up to four additional years via an addendum, subject to the existence of sufficient budgetary credit.

The creation of this chair reinforces the network of university structures dedicated to democratic memory in Spanish public universities, and establishes the University of Castilla-La Mancha as an academic benchmark for research, dissemination, and training on a historical period of special relevance for the civic culture of Spanish society as a whole.

Source: Official State Gazette, no. 214, August 31, 2026, Sec. III, page 117550 (official reference: BOE-A-2026-18357).