History, whatever for?

Abstract

That is the title of a book published in 1980. In it, a group of historians and writers of the time answer the question: Whatever for is history useful? The question was raised by authorities of the Archivo General de la Nación (General Archives of the Nation). The book with answers was formatted as a series of essays integrated into one single text. It was published in order to substantiate the need to preserve the nation’s historical archives in a building that had previously harbored the Lecumberri jail for many years. The building had been conditioned to receive the several tons of documents which constitute the memory of our country. These documents constitute the fundamental basis for the reconstruction, analysis and diffusion of our history