The Institución Libre de Enseñanza was founded in 1876 by a group of university professors –among which were Francisco Giner de los Ríos, Gumersindo de Azcárate and Nicolás Salmerón– separated from the university for defending academic freedom and refusing to adjust their teaching to the official dogmas in religious, political, or moral matters. This forced them to continue their educational work on the fringes of university centers of the State, through the creation of a private educational establishment whose first experiences were geared towards university teaching and, later, at elementary and secondary education.
Until 1936, the Institution was a hotbed of initiatives designed to modernize Spanish culture and society. Under its influence they undertook important social, educational, cultural, and scientific reforms, which made possible what has been classified as a Second Golden Age of Spanish culture. At the end of the war, the Institution was dissolved and their assets seized by the decree of May 17, 1940, declaring it illegal "for its notorious actions contrary to the New State".
The Fundación Francisco Giner de los Ríos was created in 1916 after the death of Giner to pursue and to disseminate their work and ensure the survival of the Institution, and is responsible for the protection of heritage material, and intellectual assets. Since then it has been working to recover the legacy of the Institución Libre de Enseñanza for the Spanish society of our time, and to continue and expand its modernising work.
