Peace, as Miguel de Unamuno writes, sprouts from the struggle for life, and war can be understood and justified only in the core of the true and deep peace. In fact, these paradoxical, at first glance, words make sense in this novel, the first one (1897) among the works of the famous Spanish writer-philosopher. The events that formed the basis for the plot were the last Carlist War as well as, in particular, the siege of Bilbao which the author himself survived and remembered while still a child. Hence there is the precision of the description of the life of common Biscayans, their identity and world outlook. But the conflict of the novel develops not only between the сarlists and liberals, but also between city and countryside, between farmers and traders, between religious and social rules and impulses of flesh. And above all there is the search for peace, and primarily the peace with oneself.