By Xinhua,
Madrid : Spain on Friday began celebrations to mark the bicentennial of its war of independence against French occupation.
Spanish King Juan Carlos, accompanied by the royal family and Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero, presided over a commemorative ceremony as part of celebratory events slated to last through the weekend. It was also attended by representatives of state and local institutions.
The ceremony paid homage to the Spanish people and to those killed in the six-year war.
May 2, 1808 marks the emergence of an awareness of national identity among the Spanish people, based on the concepts of liberty, unity, equality and solidarity inscribed in the Constitution, King Juan Carlos said.
“Two historic centuries that marked the Hispanic world as a whole will be completed between 2008 and 2012, which decisively contributed to configurate the profiles of a new America and of modern and constitutional Spain,” he added.
A large number of celebratory activities are to be held in Madrid, which include a series of cultural events and military exhibitions related to the period.