"había de recordar"?

Question

Hi all,

So I'm reading Cien Años de Soledad, and here is the first sentence:

Muchos años después, frente al pelotón de fusilamiento, el coronel Aureliano Buendía había de recordar aquella tarde remota en que su padre lo llevó a conocer el hielo.

And my translation:

Many years later, in front of the firing squad, the coronal Aureliano Buendía had to recall that remote time in which his father took him to see the ice.

BUT my question is, why the phrase " había de recordar"? Why not "tenía que" or even "había que"? How does this phrase, haber que, work?

Thanks!

Answer 1

había de recordar - was to remember

I don't think this question has a 'why' answer. That's just the way they do it.

Answer 2

http://books.google.com/books?id=W6oIvSR4MQkC&printsec=frontcover&dq=a+hundred+years+of+solitude&cd=1#v=onepage&q&f;=false

Here's the version in English, don't sweat it :D