When you find yourself in the heart of Santillana del Mar touring the rooms of the Palacio de Velarde, you are not only strolling through Renaissance rooms, admiring historical tapestries or art collections. It also delves into the most secret corners of the town’s history. And in one of its corners, among shadows and documents, appears the disturbing and real figure of Reinhard Spitzy, a Nazi diplomat and spy who lived in hiding in the Palace after World War II.
Yes, what seems to be part of a spy fiction is documented and is part of the Palace’s recent past. Because in this interactive museum in Cantabria, history is not only revived with holograms and artificial intelligence: it is also investigated, reconstructed and known with all its nuances and mysteries.
Who was the Nazi spy who hid within the walls of the Palacio de Velarde?
Reinhard Spitzy was one of the men closest to Hitler’s former foreign minister, Joachim von Ribbentrop. A spy who acted as a liaison between the Third Reich and Franco during the dictatorship, participating in high-level negotiations and sensitive diplomatic missions.
But after the fall of the regime, with the Third Reich defeated and the Nuremberg trials underway, Spitzy decided to flee and go into hiding. His name was one of those on the lists of Allied intelligence, and he was suspected of war crimes and collaboration with the Nazi apparatus. However, they never found it.
Your refuge in Cantabria
For years, Spitzy lived hidden in Spain under a false identity, protected by a network of sympathizers and former collaborators of the regime. One of the places where he took refuge was Santillana del Mar, where the Palacio de Velarde was one of his temporary hiding places.
Taking advantage of the building’s isolation at a time when tourism had not yet transformed the villa, Spitzy hid within its walls. “The German Tenant” remained in Cantabria until the mid-50s, when he decided to go into exile in South America.
The Palacio de Velarde, the setting of history
As you can see, the Palacio de Velarde not only hides great stories from the Middle Ages or the Renaissance, it also hides lesser-known but equally fascinating stories like this one that come to life.
That’s why, if you visit us, in one of the rooms of the Palace you will see how this legend of spies is revived, faithfully reconstructed thanks to meticulous documentation work.
Because the Palacio de Velarde has witnessed more than five centuries of history and nobles, inquisitors, travellers, cosmopolitan duchesses and spies passed through its rooms. And now, thanks to technology, everyone is present in the building to tell you about it.
Do you want to discover the history of Santillana del Mar that does not appear in books?
Come to the Palacio de Velarde and delve into the best-kept secrets of Santillana del Mar. Discover how an interactive museum in Cantabria can transport you from the Middle Ages to World War II without leaving its walls. Dare to live the story and learn it from the protagonists themselves.
