Alexandre Bóveda Iglesias (

Ourense Ourense (; es, Orense ) is a city and capital of the province of Ourense, located in the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Galicia (Spain), Galicia, northwestern Spain. It is on the Camino Sanabrés path of the Way of St ...

, 7 June 1903 - executed in A Caeira,

Poio Poio is a municipality in Galicia, Spain in the province of Pontevedra. Poio is located in the North shore of the Ría de Pontevedra, between Sanxenxo and the provincial capital, Pontevedra. The municipality is adjacent with Meaño, Meis, Ponteve ...

, 17 August 1936), commonly known as Alexandre Bóveda, was a Spanish politician and financial officer from Galicia. He is considered one of the most important Galicianist intellectuals during the

Spanish Second Republic The Spanish Republic (), commonly known as the Second Spanish Republic (), was the form of government in Spain from 1931 to 1939. The Republic was proclaimed on 14 April 1931, after the deposition of King Alfonso XIII, and was dissolved on 1 ...

. He was one of the founders and key member of the ''Partido Galeguista'' (Galicianist Party), origin of contemporary

Galician nationalism Galician nationalism is a form of nationalism found mostly in Galicia, which asserts that Galicians are a nation and that promotes the cultural unity of Galicians. The political movement referred to as modern Galician nationalism was born at ...

Biography

Bóveda studied French and commerce in the city of

A Coruña A Coruña (; es, La Coruña ; historical English: Corunna or The Groyne) is a city and municipality of Galicia, Spain. A Coruña is the most populated city in Galicia and the second most populated municipality in the autonomous community and s ...

. He also worked as a school teacher in his natal city of

. He was a regular reader of the Galicianist journal ', and he soon felt the need to express his own ideas. He started publishing in the magazine ''La Zarpa'', where he stood out as a great communicator. He also published in the Galicianist newspaper ''A Nosa Terra''. In 1924 he passed examinations in

Madrid Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the second-largest city in the European Union (EU), and ...

for a managerial position at the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Finance. He was offered a post in the Spanish capital by

José Calvo Sotelo José Calvo Sotelo, 1st Duke of Calvo Sotelo, GE (6 May 1893 – 13 July 1936) was a Spanish jurist and politician, minister of Finance during the dictatorship of Miguel Primo de Rivera and a leading figure during the Second Republic. During t ...

, but Bóveda opted for moving back to Galicia, where he worked at the delegation of the ministry in Ourense. After passing further examinations for a more senior position in accountancy, Bóveda eventually moved to

Pontevedra Pontevedra (, ) is a Spanish city in the north-west of the Iberian Peninsula. It is the capital of both the ''Comarca'' (County) and Province of Pontevedra, and of the Rías Baixas in Galicia. It is also the capital of its own municipality whi ...

in 1926. Pontevedra was at that time the central point of all Galicianist activity and cultural life in the country. Soon, Bóveda got acquainted with intellectuals such as Castelao and Losada Diéguez, deepening in his Galicianist political convictions. In 1930 Boveda becomes the first director of the ''Caixa de Aforros Provincial de Pontevedra'' (

Credit Union A credit union, a type of financial institution similar to a commercial bank, is a member-owned nonprofit organization, nonprofit financial cooperative. Credit unions generally provide services to members similar to retail banks, including depo ...

of Pontevedra). In 1928 and 1929 he is awarded with two professional grants from the provincial government to travel to

Barcelona Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within ci ...

and the Basque Country in order to further study the functioning of credit unions. In 1931 he is one of the founding members of the ''Partido Galeguista'' (Galicianist Party), a party with clear

nationalist Nationalism is an idea and movement that holds that the nation should be congruent with the state. As a movement, nationalism tends to promote the interests of a particular nation (as in a group of people), Smith, Anthony. ''Nationalism: The ...

ideals. In 1932 he participated in the first meeting for the drafting of the

Galician Statute of Autonomy The Statute of Autonomy of Galicia of 1981 ( gl, Estatuto de Autonomía de Galicia) is the current basic institutional norm of Galicia. The Galician Government, Parliament and High Court of Galicia are regulated by it. Genesis of the 1981 Sta ...

, held in

Santiago de Compostela Santiago de Compostela is the capital of the autonomous community of Galicia, in northwestern Spain. The city has its origin in the shrine of Saint James the Great, now the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela, as the destination of the Way of St ...

. Bóveda was greatly involved in this project, to the point that Castelao considered him the person "without whom there would have not been a Statute".Castelao, ''Sempre en Galiza'', 1944 In 1933 he was designated as "core member" by the ''Comité de Autonomía'' (Committee for Autonomy). In fact, Castelao and other members of the ''Partido Galeguista'' (Galicianist Party) stated that Bóveda was the "motor" behind the whole process. Castelao and Bóveda were close personal friends. Castelao often labelled Bóveda as a "man of action", and unquestionably his "right-hand man" in setting up the Galicianist Party and moving the Statute of Autonomy forward. In 1934, and probably linked to his political activities, he was transferred to the tax office of the southern Spanish city of

Cádiz Cádiz (, , ) is a city and port in southwestern Spain. It is the capital of the Province of Cádiz, one of eight that make up the autonomous community of Andalusia. Cádiz, one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in Western Europe, ...

. Yet, he managed to return to Galicia in 1935, where he worked at the tax office in

Vigo Vigo ( , , , ) is a city and Municipalities in Spain, municipality in the province of Pontevedra, within the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Galicia (Spain), Galicia, Spain. Located in the northwest of the Iberian Penins ...

. In 1936 he actively participated in the

elections An election is a formal group decision-making process by which a population chooses an individual or multiple individuals to hold public office. Elections have been the usual mechanism by which modern representative democracy has operate ...

. He was a candidate for the ''Frente Popular'' alliance (Popular Front, which included the Galicianist Party), representing the province of Ourense. That same year he moved back to work at the tax office of Pontevedra. However, 1936 was also the year of the July coup and the consequent start of the

Spanish Civil War The Spanish Civil War ( es, Guerra Civil Española)) or The Revolution ( es, La Revolución, link=no) among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War ( es, Cuarta Guerra Carlista, link=no) among Carlists, and The Rebellion ( es, La Rebelión, lin ...

, eventually won by the Nationalist faction. Alexandre Bóveda was captured on July 20, accused of treason to Spain because of his Galician nationalist ideals, and sentenced to death. He was executed on 17 August 1936 in the place of A Caeira,

(near Pontevedra). At present, the date is celebrated in Galicia with the name ''Día da Galiza mártir'', where those who died for Galicia ("martyrs") are honoured. A monument was erected in the same spot where he was killed, that being the place where the official ceremony takes place every August 17, with local authorities and local representatives from the

Galician government The Xunta de Galicia (; "Regional Government of Galicia") is the collective decision-making body of the government of the autonomous community of Galicia, composed of the President, the Vice-President(s) and the specialized ministers (''Consell ...

attending.

Notes

External links

Fundación Alexandre Bóveda
-

foundation Foundation may refer to: * Foundation (nonprofit), a type of charitable organization ** Foundation (United States law), a type of charitable organization in the U.S. ** Private foundation, a charitable organization that, while serving a good cause ...

dedicated to his life and work (in Galician)

Biography

Notes

External links

Further reading

See also