El tricornio de la Guardia Civil como símbolo literario en los relatos de viajeros de habla inglesa del siglo XX

Abstract

This presence in English literary texts of the hat worn by the Spanish Guardia Civil, known in Spanish as the ‘tricornio’, had its beginnings in the form of mere descriptions. It began as an item of clothing that was difficult to ‘apprehend’ (a ‘three-cornered hat’ or a ‘cocked hat’), but these visual perceptions gradually started to take on subtle shades of meaning and a significance which varied with the historical circumstances and the individual travellers, especially during the 20th century. Its descriptions were complemented in time with varying adjectives, personal impressions and more or less bizarre interpretations as to its origin and purpose, namely: its usefulness in allowing the civil guards to lean against the wall and therefore catch criminals more easily; its poor role as protector against the rain but its success as a protector of the civil guard’s ears; its connection with the Peninsular War, Napoleon or Goya, or to the French Gendarmerie; its archaism; its similarity to the hats of funfair puppets and comic operas, etc. Indeed, the constant presence of the ‘cocked hat’ in the Spanish literary landscape in the eyes of Anglophone travellers is of the utmost relevance when endeavouring to understand contemporary Spain.