Joaquín Bau Nolla (1897–1973) was a
Spanish Carlist
Carlism ( eu, Karlismo; ca, Carlisme; ; ) is a Traditionalism (Spain), Traditionalist and Legitimists (disambiguation), Legitimist political movement in Spain aimed at establishing an alternative branch of the House of Bourbon, Bourbon dynasty ...
and
Francoist politician.
Family and youth
![Tortosa - Casa Bau 2](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/72/Tortosa_-_Casa_Bau_2.JPG)
Joaquín Bau Nolla was born to a
bourgeoisie
The bourgeoisie ( , ) is a social class, equivalent to the middle or upper middle class. They are distinguished from, and traditionally contrasted with, the proletariat by their affluence, and their great cultural and financial capital. They ...
Catalan
Catalan may refer to:
Catalonia
From, or related to Catalonia:
* Catalan language, a Romance language
* Catalans, an ethnic group formed by the people from, or with origins in, Northern or southern Catalonia
Places
* 13178 Catalan, asteroid #1 ...
family. His paternal grandfather
Miguel Bau Isern (1836-1911) ran a chocolate manufacture in
Tortosa and served as mayor of the city in 1901-1903, co-founding Banc de Tortosa, Cambra Agricola de Tortosa and the local Cambra de Comerç. One of his 16 children and Joaquin's father,
José Bau Vergés (1868-1935), was an oil and vinegar trader and producer. He grew from a local merchant, transporting oil on his mules, to "el rei de l'oli", the owner of Aceites Bau S.A., a Tortosa-based company operating two factories, selling on the national Spanish market and exporting to South America, especially to
Argentina
Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...
. Following the commercial success, Bau Vergés built an imposing family residence in Tortosa; he was also honorary consul of
Uruguay
Uruguay (; ), officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay ( es, República Oriental del Uruguay), is a country in South America. It shares borders with Argentina to its west and southwest and Brazil to its north and northeast; while bordering ...
and Argentina, member of local business organizations and a Catholic activist. In 1894 he married María Cinta Nolla Poy, a
stonemason
Stonemasonry or stonecraft is the creation of buildings, structures, and sculpture using stone as the primary material. It is one of the oldest activities and professions in human history. Many of the long-lasting, ancient shelters, temples, mo ...
's daughter. The couple had 4 children, all brought up in highly religious ambience; Joaquín was their second son.
Following his early education in Colegio de San Pedro Apóstol of the Hermanos de las Escuelas Cristianas in Tortosa, the young Joaquín obtained his bachillerato in
Colegio de los Hermanos de la Doctrina Cristiana in
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 ...
, to complete military service in Regimiento de guarnición of
Tarragona
Tarragona (, ; Phoenician: ''Tarqon''; la, Tarraco) is a port city located in northeast Spain on the Costa Daurada by the Mediterranean Sea. Founded before the fifth century BC, it is the capital of the Province of Tarragona, and part of Tar ...
in 1921. Encouraged by his father, he passed commercial
broker
A broker is a person or firm who arranges transactions between a buyer and a seller for a commission when the deal is executed. A broker who also acts as a seller or as a buyer becomes a principal party to the deal. Neither role should be confu ...
exams and rose to president of Junta Central de Corredores de Commercio de España in 1935. In 1933 he commenced law studies as unenrolled student and graduated from Faculty of Law of
Universidad de Valencia in 1935. In 1920 Joaquín Bau married Pilar Elisa Carpi Esteller. The couple had 5 children; the oldest son Joaquín as a 16-year-old volunteered to the Carlist
requeté unit, survived the
Civil War
A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country).
The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...
and later became an engineer; José Luis served in the army as a lieutenant colonel and military judge, while Fernando practiced as a lawyer and a conservative politician. Between 1967 and 1977 he served in the Francoist
Cortes
Cortes, Cortés, Cortês, Corts, or Cortès may refer to:
People
* Cortes (surname), including a list of people with the name
** Hernán Cortés (1485–1547), a Spanish conquistador
Places
* Cortes, Navarre, a village in the South border of N ...
; in 1991 he published ''Crònica de veinte años. 1957-1977''.
Mayor
Though Joaquín's paternal grandfather was a
Liberal
Liberal or liberalism may refer to:
Politics
* a supporter of liberalism
** Liberalism by country
* an adherent of a Liberal Party
* Liberalism (international relations)
* Sexually liberal feminism
* Social liberalism
Arts, entertainment and m ...
his father was already reported as
Traditionalist
Traditionalism is the adherence to traditional beliefs or practices. It may also refer to:
Religion
* Traditional religion, a religion or belief associated with a particular ethnic group
* Traditionalism (19th-century Catholicism), a 19th–cen ...
and it was in his footsteps that Joaquín followed. As a youngster and teenager Bau engaged in local Traditionalist juvenile organisations. He became head of the Tortosa section of Requeté, a formation established in 1909 as a sporting and outdoor grouping for the Carlist youth. He seemed particularly fond of social and charity initiatives, organising Christmas for the poor, working in Patronato Escolar Obrero de la Sagrada Familia and co-founding Sindicatos Católicos Obreros. In the early 1920s he already emerged as a dynamic local politician. Once
Primo de Rivera Primo de Rivera is a Spanish family prominent in politics of the 19th and 20th centuries:
*Fernando Primo de Rivera (1831–1921), Spanish politician and soldier
*Miguel Primo de Rivera (1870–1930), nephew of Fernando, military officer and dictat ...
replaced the liberal
restauración
Restauración is the third largest city in the province of Dajabon, Dominican Republic. It is located in the northwest portion of the island, in the Cibao
The Cibao, usually referred as "El Cibao", is a region of the Dominican Republic located ...
with dictatorship, Bau enthusiastically engaged in the nascent primoderiverista structures; in 1924 he co-founded the Tortosa branch of
Unión Patriótica and became its jefe provincial.
During the period called "Bauisme" in the history of Tortosa, in 1925 Bau was unanimously elected mayor of the city, re-elected in 1928 and holding the post until 1930. His contribution was multifold; during 5 years the Bau-led
ayuntamiento executed the plan of public works, consisting of modernization of city streets, refurbishment of public schools and hospitals and setting up regular fire brigade services. He inaugurated
Instituto Nacional de Segunda Ensenanza and
Escuela de Trabajo, expanded local railway line and enhanced the county road network. Much of his activity was about tackling
Ebro
, name_etymology =
, image = Zaragoza shel.JPG
, image_size =
, image_caption = The Ebro River in Zaragoza
, map = SpainEbroBasin.png
, map_size =
, map_caption = The Ebro ...
-related issues, like floods, navigation, bridges or land re-cultivation. Largely successful and sort of celebrated by
Alfonso de Borbón and the dictator as one of the youngest mayors, he nevertheless failed in his attempt to elevate Tortosa - since 1833 part of the
Tarragona province - to the provincial capital range, the new unit to be carved out from these of Tarragona,
Castellón and
Teruel
Teruel () is a city in Aragon, located in eastern Spain, and is also the capital of Teruel Province. It has a population of 35,675 in 2014 making it the least populated provincial capital in the country. It is noted for its harsh climate, with a ...
.
![FFR](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/ce/FFR.98.4.JPG)
Though dictatorship was initially welcomed by the Carlists as a stepping stone towards a Traditionalist monarchy, in 1925 the claimant
Don Jaime switched to opposition. Bau decided not to follow suit and went on contributing to the regime; in literature he is usually listed along
Victor Pradera and
Esteban Bilbao as one of those Carlists who abandoned their king and joined the primoderiverista version of the
Alfonsine
Alfonsine ( rgn, Agl'infulsẽ or ''Agl'infulsèn'') is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the province of Ravenna in the Italian region of Emilia-Romagna. It is located east of Bologna and northwest of Ravenna.
It is located between the Senio Ri ...
monarchy. In 1927 he was appointed to the quasi-parliament,
Asamblea Nacional Consultiva, standing as representative of Organizaciones provinciales de Unión Patriótica and representative of the Ayuntamientos; in the chamber he became one of the youngest members. He kept supporting the dictator by staging welcome celebrations in Tortosa and organizing manifestations of tortosinos in Madrid in 1928. In 1929 Bau was re-elected jefe of the local Unión Patriótica, engaged in
Somatén, animated the youth branch named Juventud Patriótica and until 1930s financed a local Tortosa periodical, ''Unión Patriótica''. He is deemed responsible for 1929 expulsion from the city of
Marcelino Domingo
Marcelino Domingo Sanjuán (26 April 1884 – 2 March 1939) was a Spanish teacher, journalist, and politician who served as a minister several times during the government of the Second Spanish Republic.
Biography
Early life & political career ...
, at that time a
Republican activist in serious health condition.
Deputy
![Flag of Cross of Burgundy](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f5/Flag_of_Cross_of_Burgundy.svg)
Bau ceased as Tortosa mayor in 1930; in 1931 he was accused of financial irregularities, though none of the charges raised has been concluded. As three Traditionalist branches united in 1932 Bau resumed his service to the legitimist king rejoining the Carlist organization,
Comunión Tradicionalista
The Traditionalist Communion ( es, Comunión Tradicionalista, CT) was one of the names adopted by the Carlist movement as a political force since 1869.
History
In October 1931, Carlist claimant to the Spanish throne Duke Jaime died. He was s ...
. Within its structures he was heading the local Tortosa Requeté; as member of the Tarragona branch he had to accept leadership of the provincial jefe, Juan Maria Roma. In the
1933 elections he represented Carlism within the local Tarragonese
Unió Ciutadana alliance and was elected. As a result, he emerged one of key figures in the
Levantine Levantine may refer to:
* Anything pertaining to the Levant, the region centered around modern Syria, Lebanon, Israel, Palestine, and Jordan, including any person from the Levant
** Syria (region), corresponding to the modern countries of the Lev ...
Carlism, especially in the comarcas of
Terres de l'Ebre
Terres de l'Ebre (, literally in English 'The Ebre Lands') is one of the seven territories defined by the Regional Plan of Catalonia. It is located in the south-west of Catalonia, in the southern part of river Ebre, and will be formed by four coma ...
, though following the death of
Jaime Chicharro also in Castellón.
Voicing his support for the Catalan identity Bau has nevertheless opposed the adopted
autonomous statute as irreconcilable with the Spanish raison d'etat and produced by "traidores a su Patria y a su honor". He demanded its derogation and replacement with a new autonomous statute, constructed along Traditionalist lines and properly reflecting the genuine personality of Catalonia. He sided with
Francesc Cambó
Francesc Cambó i Batlle (; 2 September 1876 – 30 April 1947) was a conservative Spanish politician from Catalonia, founder and leader of the autonomist party ''Lliga Regionalista''. He was a minister in several Spanish governments. He supported ...
against the Catalan left-wing autonomism and supported Catalan landowners in the notorious
Catalan Leases Act case. He also encouraged new Christian syndicates of the Tarragona province, confederated in
Agrupacion Gremial de Trabajadores. In October 1934 he was active mounting local opposition to the
revolutionary sway; his close collaborator,
Jose Maria Sentis Simeon, co-ordinated action against the rebels in the province and was later appointed governors' delegate for Public Order. In 1935 Bau arranged for
Guardia de Asalto
The Cuerpo de Seguridad y Asalto ( en, Security and Assault Corps) was the heavy reserve force of the blue-uniformed urban police force of Spain during the Spanish Second Republic. The Assault Guards were special police and paramilitary units cr ...
detachment to be stationed in Tortosa.
![LLO](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/52/LLO.98.13.JPG)
By many Carlists Bau was viewed with suspicion. This was due to his enthusiasm when engaging in alliance talks with the Alfonsinos and personal friendship with their leader,
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 ...
; though new Traditionalist jefe
Manuel Fal approached
Bloque Nacional as tactical option to be eventually abandoned, Bau was suspected of pushing for a dynastical compromise. In the spring of 1935
Don Alfonso Carlos and Fal considered Bau's activity in the Bloque intolerable and semi-rebellious. Also present-day scholars name his position as "conspiration", while others claim that he was loyal to Calvo rather than to Traditionalism. However, he was allowed to speak at massive Carlist meetings in
Poblet
Poblet Abbey, otherwise the Royal Abbey of Santa Maria de Poblet ( ca, Reial Monestir de Santa Maria de Poblet), is a Cistercian monastery, founded in 1151, located at the foot of the Prades Mountains, in the comarca of Conca de Barberà, in C ...
and at
Montserrat
Montserrat ( ) is a British Overseas Territories, British Overseas Territory in the Caribbean. It is part of the Leeward Islands, the northern portion of the Lesser Antilles chain of the West Indies. Montserrat is about long and wide, with r ...
; he was also appointed to the Carlist Council of Economy.
Prior to the
1936 elections Bau advocated the strategy of a
broad Right-wing alliance, an option which has never materialized; himself he competed on the list of
Front Català d'Ordre and was elected from Tarragona. Shortly after the
Frente Popular
The Popular Front ( es, Frente Popular) in Spain's Second Republic was an electoral alliance and pact signed in January 1936 by various left-wing political organizations, instigated by Manuel Azaña for the purpose of contesting that year's el ...
triumph was declared Bau and Calvo visited the prime minister
Portela Valladares
Manuel Portela y Valladares (Pontevedra, 31 January 1867 – Bandol, Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, France 29 April 1952) was a Spanish political figure during the Second Spanish Republic. He served as the 43rd Attorney General of Spain betwe ...
urging him to call the military and rule by decree; this was probably the most charged moment in his entire career. Once
Lorenzo Maria Alier resigned as Carlist Catalan jefe in February 1936 one of the options considered was a triumvirate including Bau, but eventually it was
Tomàs Caylà appointed the new regional leader.
Commissioner
Though until the summer of 1936 Bau was active in the Cortes, he was heavily engaged in anti-Republican conspiracy, serving as a Carlist link to
Renovación Española. Following the death of Calvo Sotelo he travelled to
Portugal
Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of ...
to negotiate details of the rebellion with
José Sanjurjo, personally witnessing the crash of general's aircraft. Since Bau was originally scheduled to communicate uprising orders to requeté units in southern Catalonia, his departure impaired Carlist insurgent structures in Terres de l'Ebre. Shortly after the
hostilities broke out he returned from Portugal to
Burgos
Burgos () is a city in Spain located in the autonomous community of Castile and León. It is the capital and most populated municipality of the province of Burgos.
Burgos is situated in the north of the Iberian Peninsula, on the confluence of t ...
in the
Nationalist zone.
Early September 1936 the supreme governing body of the rebels,
Junta de Defensa Nacional, constituted
Comisión de Industria y Comercio, a substitute for Ministry of Economy. Bau, considered by
Franco one of the more collaborative Carlists, was appointed one of its seven members; his high nomination was allegedly related to ability to arrange finance through Catalan contacts who had fled abroad. A month later the newly established
Junta Técnica del Estado
The Junta Técnica del Estado (Spanish for: ''Technical State Junta'') was one of several political-administrative bodies created by General Franco in October 1936 after his appointment as head of government of rebel Spain during the Spanish Civ ...
set up
Comisión de Industria, Comercio y Abastos with Bau appointed its president, the de facto minister of economy in the Nationalist zone. As head of 7 commissions formed and one of 16 members of the Junta Técnica, he rapidly grew to top Nationalist executive.
Bau's primary task was to keep production running and to build the gold deposit reserve of the Nationalists; he was subsequently involved in currency reform, first organizing the stamping of pre-War notes and then arranging for a new Nationalist
peseta to be printed in
Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
. The next objective was to control foreign trade and direct the flow of deficient components accordingly, which was attempted by numerous regulatory means. At that time Bau considered himself an advocate of the "directed" economy; as an economist he was considered a disciple of Calvo Sotelo. Heavily involved in dealings with semi-official Nazi companies,
HISMA and
ROWAK, he objected to increase of German stakes, though key decisions were probably beyond his capacity. He hugely contributed to the Nationalist logistics by closing international deals covering 600
Fiat
Fiat Automobiles S.p.A. (, , ; originally FIAT, it, Fabbrica Italiana Automobili di Torino, lit=Italian Automobiles Factory of Turin) is an Italian automobile manufacturer, formerly part of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, and since 2021 a subsidiary ...
cars and 1,000
Studebaker
Studebaker was an American wagon and automobile manufacturer based in South Bend, Indiana, with a building at 1600 Broadway, Times Square, Midtown Manhattan, New York City. Founded in 1852 and incorporated in 1868 as the Studebaker Brothers M ...
chassis.
Bau's relations with Carlism are not clear. According to one source, he took advantage of his position by procuring arms designed specifically for the requetés; according to another, starting late 1936 he assisted in organization of
Terç de Requetès de la Mare de Déu de Montserrat, the requeté battalion consisting of Carlist refugees from Catalonia. On the other hand, he is not known to have protested against Franco's measures against Manuel Fal; even detailed studies dealing with amalgamation of Carlism within Francoism in 1936-7 do not mention Bau, which suggests that at that time he was already hardly involved in Traditionalism. It seems that he unconditionally accepted
Unification Decree
The Unification Decree was a political measure adopted by Francisco Franco in his capacity of Head of State of Nationalist Spain on April 19, 1937. The decree merged two existing political groupings, the Falangists and the Carlists, into a new ...
and was leading Catalan Carlists co-operating with Franco; some scholars compare the role he played in Catalonia to the role played by
Tomás Domínguez Arévalo
Tomás Domínguez Arévalo, 6th Count of Rodezno, 12th Marquis of San Martin (1882–1952) was a Spanish Carlist and Francoist politician. He is known mostly as the first Francoist Minister of Justice (1938–1939). He is also recognised for his ...
in Vasco-Navarrese area. Considered rebellious by Manuel Fal and the new regent-claimant
Don Javier, at an unspecified date he was expulsed from Carlism.
Outcast
![Bundesarchiv Bild 121-1010, Berlin-Lichterfelde, Suner, Himmler](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a3/Bundesarchiv_Bild_121-1010%2C_Berlin-Lichterfelde%2C_Suner%2C_Himmler.jpg)
Bau's influence started to decline once
Ramón Serrano Suñer arrived in Burgos. Upon arrival he was already averse towards Bau as late 1936 Franco decided that it would be the family of Bau, not the family of Serrano, to be exchanged with the Republicans for the family of general
Miaja. The animosity grew during 1937, when Bau opposed totalitarian designs pursued by Franco's cuñado. When the first regular Francoist government was created early 1938 Bau was not even considered. In the spring of 1938 he left Burgos, settling in
San Sebastián
San Sebastian, officially known as Donostia–San Sebastián (names in both local languages: ''Donostia'' () and ''San Sebastián'' ()) is a city and Municipalities of Spain, municipality located in the Basque Country (autonomous community), B ...
.
Together with many Catalan industry tycoons taking refuge in the
Gipuzkoa
Gipuzkoa (, , ; es, Guipúzcoa ; french: Guipuscoa) is a province of Spain and a historical territory of the autonomous community of the Basque Country. Its capital city is Donostia-San Sebastián. Gipuzkoa shares borders with the French depa ...
n capital, Bau engaged in plans to re-create regional economic institutions once Catalonia would be retaken by the Nationalist troops. He was offered presidency of
l'Institut Catala de Sant Isidre, the regional agricultural organization, but declined quoting his hostile relations with Serrano. Indeed, the internal
Falangist document denounced him as one of the leaders of local "plutocratas y alta burguesia" who conspired against the national-syndicalist state.
Bau kept supporting the
Catalan Montserrat battalion. He remained involved in numerous charity projects, like
Auxilio de Invierno. The most important of Bau's ventures of that period was probably helping the Catalan Republican POWs. Personal acquaintance of officers commanding
Campos de Concentración and
Comisíon Clasificadora, Bau did his best to release Catalan prisoners and enlist them either in the Carlist tercios or in the Falangist banderas. Following the end of the war he returned to Tortosa, though he is not listed as taking part in the Carlist-Falangist competition for power in Catalonia.
![RequeteViladot](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/08/RequeteViladot.JPG)
Bau was not invited to the victory parade of May 19, 1939. Though sidetracked in great national politics, he remained engaged in clandestine and extremely sensitive Francoist business schemes. In 1941-42 he managed the deal with
Nazi
Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in ...
Oberkommando der Marine, supervising construction of 20 wooden ships intended to supply
German troops fighting the
British in Africa. Later on he kept exchanging courteous but purely formal correspondence with Franco. In the 1940s Bau dedicated himself to family issues, various Catholic organizations and business; he became the first post-war president of Banco de Tortosa and later multiplied his wealth by trading shares of the bank, going on also with the inherited Aceites Bau business. Privately he pursued his interest in
organ music.
Bau led one of 3 competing Traditionalist Tarragona factions, namely the one opposing
Carloctavistas and
javieristas and promoting rapprochement with the Alfonsist claimant,
Don Juan. The Tortosa javierista Carlists distributed leaflets presenting him as Francoist traitor who ignored the lot of requetés detained by the Francoist administration. He apparently acknowledged that a future kingdom must encompass Francoist structures. His private papers from mid-1950s suggest that Bau, though with hesitation, tended to support what seemed a long-distance Franco's plan for crowning prince
Juan Carlos. However, when in 1957 he joined the Carlists who abandoned the regent-claimant Don Javier, Bau declared Juan Carlos' father,
Don Juan, the legitimate heir and continued to approach him as a king.
Francoist dignitary
![Francisco Franco 1959 (cropped)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/92/Francisco_Franco_1959_%28cropped%29.jpg)
As in mid-1950s Franco shelved totalitarian plans and opted for a hybrid line of development, he started looking for loyal individuals not associated with Falangism; 1958 produced huge turnover of
procuradores nominated to the quasi-parliament,
Cortes Españolas. The dictator appointed Bau member of
Consejo Nacional of the Falange, which automatically ensured the Cortes mandate. He got his seat confirmed in 5 successive legislatives, appointed also in 1961, 1964, 1967 and 1971. As his career was re-launched, Bau kept assuming higher and higher posts. In 1963 he started leading various parliamentary committees, formally nominated president of the internal affairs committee in 1964, president of Leyes Fundamentales committee in 1965 and then other committees working on new constitutional laws. In 1965 he was appointed president of
Consejo de Estado, a body adding to extreme complexity of Francoist power structures and being part of Franco's recipe for political balance. The appointment produced his nomination to
Consejo del Reino, another body with some competencies related to monarchical establishments. In 1970 Bau was nominated its vice-president. As one of the regime's highest dignitaries in the late 1960s he became one of faces of Francoism. Shortly before his death he was made
Conde de Bau.
Bau's rise from political non-existence to president of Consejo de Estado in just 7 years was possible as he proved acceptable to most groupings competing for power within Francoism. Deprived of own political background, he posed no threat and might have been considered as sympathetic to their cause by Carlists, monarchists,
technocrats
Technocracy is a form of government in which the decision-maker or makers are selected based on their expertise in a given area of responsibility, particularly with regard to scientific or technical knowledge. This system explicitly contrasts wi ...
(by virtue of his business activities and friendship with
López Rodó), the Church and even the military (maintained friendly relations with many high-ranking generals); it was only the Falangist syndicalists that he remained at odds with. Bau, always impeccably elegant, boosted his career by oratory skills and non-belligerent, silky presiding style in numerous bodies of the regime, excelling in conflict management and demonstrating sort of impartiality, combined with perfect loyalty to Franco.
![Juan Carlos de Borbón, Prince of Spain](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f9/Juan_Carlos_de_Borb%C3%B3n%2C_Prince_of_Spain.jpg)
Bau's own political outlook may be summarised as a watered-down
authoritarian
Authoritarianism is a political system characterized by the rejection of political plurality, the use of strong central power to preserve the political ''status quo'', and reductions in the rule of law, separation of powers, and democratic votin ...
, non-dynastical monarchism based on diehard (marchamartillo) Catholicism. Following his return to great politics in 1958 he emerged as one of the most prominent monarchists, contributing to shaping of late Francoism in course of works on various key legal structures of the system. Far from political militancy, starting mid-1960s Bau began to press the monarchical cause by advocating adoption of
Ley Orgánica and
Ley de Designación. Mocked by some critics as himself the best successor to Franco, Bau could have considered his efforts crowned when Juan Carlos was officially confirmed as Franco's successor in 1969, though as late as 1970 he kept fighting the regentialistas, first headed by
Muñoz Grandez and than by
Valcárcel. When in the early 1970s advising Juan Carlos on prospective course to be adopted, he suggested
Federico Silva Muñoz
Federico Silva Muñoz (28 October 1923 – 12 August 1997) was a Spanish politician who served as Minister of Public Works of Spain between 1965 and 1970, during the Francoist dictatorship.
References
1923 births
1997 deaths
Public work ...
as the man for future. He retained Catalan identity taking part in a number of regional initiatives and bodies, always perfectly within the limits permitted by the regime.
Legacy
Joaquín Bau is commemorated by a very short street in Madrid, a parking-lot-plaza in the
Ferreries district of Tortosa (until 2017) and a long backyard drive in the resort town of
Benicàssim
Benicàssim (; es, Benicasim ; ar, بنو قاسم, translit=banū qāsim, or ar, بني قاسم, translit=banī qāsim, label=none, according to numismatic findings) is a municipality and beach resort located in the province of Castelló (p ...
, where the family owns a summer residence purchased by Bau in the 1950s; some of them are subject to various initiatives aiming at purging public space from Francoist or Fascist symbols. No trace of Bau having been named "hijo predilecto" of Tortosa in 1966 can be found on the official ayuntamiento web page. Since 1956 until 2018 one of Tortosa
college
A college (Latin: ''collegium'') is an educational institution or a constituent part of one. A college may be a degree-awarding tertiary educational institution, a part of a collegiate or federal university, an institution offering ...
s was named "Institut Joaquín Bau" (today ''Institut Dertosa''), though there was a failed attempt to change the patron in 1983. Bau's biography, in large part a hagiographical compilation of his correspondence from the private archive, was published in 2001; the author defined Bau as a conservative monarchist and played down Carlist threads, ignoring also most controversial episodes from his lifetime. Condado de Bau is still functional and currently remains held by Bau's grandson.
[see ''BOE'' 06.05.99, availavl]
here
/ref>
See also
* Carlism
Carlism ( eu, Karlismo; ca, Carlisme; ; ) is a Traditionalist and Legitimist political movement in Spain aimed at establishing an alternative branch of the Bourbon dynasty – one descended from Don Carlos, Count of Molina (1788–1855) – ...
* Carlo-francoism
Carlo-francoism ( es, carlofranquismo, also ''carlo-franquismo'') was a branch of Carlism which actively engaged in the regime of Francisco Franco. Though mainstream Carlism retained independent stand, many Carlist militants on their own assumed v ...
* Francoist Spain
Francoist Spain ( es, España franquista), or the Francoist dictatorship (), was the period of Spanish history between 1939 and 1975, when Francisco Franco ruled Spain after the Spanish Civil War with the title . After his death in 1975, Spai ...
Footnotes
Further reading
* Martin Blinkhorn, ''Carlism and Crisis in Spain 1931-1939'', Cambridge 2008,
* Joaquín Monserrat Cavaller, ''Joaquín Bau Nolla y la restauración de la Monarquía'', Madrid 2001,
* Joan Sabaté Borràs, ''Els Ajuntaments republicans i els anys del Bauisme (1915 - 1930)'', n:''Cent anys de crònica de Tortosa des del Centre de Comerç'', Tortosa 2001, , pp. 77–85
* Robert Vallverdú i Martí, ''El Carlisme Català Durant La Segona República Espanyola 1931-1936'', Barcelona 2008,
External links
Bau obituary in local Catalan newspaper
Bau on Geneallnet
Historical Index of Deputies
Bau college official site
Bau in the 1965 RTE footage (01:44)
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bau Nolla, Joaquin
1897 births
1973 deaths
People from Tortosa
Counts of Spain
Spanish Roman Catholics
Carlists
Spanish Patriotic Union politicians
Renovación Española politicians
Members of the Congress of Deputies of the Second Spanish Republic
Members of the Cortes Españolas
Politicians from Catalonia
20th-century Spanish lawyers
20th-century Spanish businesspeople
Spanish people of the Spanish Civil War (National faction)
Mayors of places in Catalonia
Carlism in Catalonia
FET y de las JONS politicians