Manuel Ruiz Zorrilla (22 March 183313 June 1895) was a
Spanish politician. He served as
Prime Minister of Spain
The prime minister of Spain, officially president of the Government ( es, link=no, Presidente del Gobierno), is the head of government of Spain. The office was established in its current form by the Constitution of 1978 and it was first regula ...
for a little over ten weeks, in the summer of 1871, and again for eight months, between June 1872 and February 1873.
Biography
Born in
Burgo de Osma
Burgo de Osma-Ciudad de Osma is the third-largest municipality in the province of Soria, in the autonomous community of Castile and León, Spain. It has a population of about 5,250.
It is made up of two parts:
*the smaller Ciudad de Osma (city ...
, he was educated at
Valladolid
Valladolid () is a Municipalities of Spain, municipality in Spain and the primary seat of government and de facto capital of the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Castile and León. It is also the capital of the province o ...
and studied
law
Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior,Robertson, ''Crimes against humanity'', 90. with its precise definition a matter of longstanding debate. It has been vario ...
at the
Central University of Madrid, where he leaned towards
radicalism in
politics
Politics (from , ) is the set of activities that are associated with making decisions in groups, or other forms of power relations among individuals, such as the distribution of resources or status. The branch of social science that studies ...
. In 1856, he was elected deputy and soon attracted notice among the most advanced
Progressists and
Democrat
Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to:
Politics
*A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people.
*A member of a Democratic Party:
**Democratic Party (United States) (D)
**Democratic ...
s.
Ruiz Zorrilla took part in the revolutionary
propaganda
Propaganda is communication that is primarily used to influence or persuade an audience to further an agenda, which may not be objective and may be selectively presenting facts to encourage a particular synthesis or perception, or using loaded ...
that led to the military movement 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 ...
on 22 June 1866. He had to take refuge in
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
for two years, like his fellow conspirators, but he returned to Spain when the
revolution of 1868 took place. He was one of the members of the first cabinet after the revolution, and in 1869, under the regency of
Marshal Serrano, he became Minister of Grace and Justice. In 1870, he was elected
President of the Congress of Deputies
The president of the Congress of Deputies ( es, Presidente del Congreso de los Diputados) is the speaker of the Congress of Deputies, the lower house of the Cortes Generales (the Spanish parliament). The president is elected among the members o ...
and seconded
Juan Prim
Juan Prim y Prats, 1st Count of Reus, 1st Marquis of los Castillejos, 1st Viscount of Bruch (; ca, Joan Prim i Prats ; 6 December 1814 – 30 December 1870) was a Spanish general and statesman who was briefly Prime Minister of Spain until ...
in offering the throne to
Amadeus of Savoy. He went to
Italy
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...
as President of the Commission and carried, to the Prince at
Florence
Florence ( ; it, Firenze ) is a city in Central Italy and the capital city of the Tuscany region. It is the most populated city in Tuscany, with 383,083 inhabitants in 2016, and over 1,520,000 in its metropolitan area.Bilancio demografico an ...
, the official news of his election.
Initiated as
Freemason
Freemasonry or Masonry refers to fraternal organisations that trace their origins to the local guilds of stonemasons that, from the end of the 13th century, regulated the qualifications of stonemasons and their interaction with authorities ...
in the ''Mantuana'' Lodge in Madrid by July 1870, Ruiz Zorrilla (symbol: ''Cavour''; degree: 33) barely took days to become
Grand Master of the
Grand Lodge
A Grand Lodge (or Grand Orient or other similar title) is the overarching governing body of a fraternal or other similarly organized group in a given area, usually a city, state, or country.
In Freemasonry
A Grand Lodge or Grand Orient is the us ...
in a process full of irregularities, serving in that capacity until 1 January 1874.
[; ; ] Ruiz Zorrilla did not actually preside over nor attend the meetings, and successively delegated the chair of the lodge to Simón Gris Benítez, and José Carvajal.
On the arrival of Amadeus in Spain, Ruiz Zorrilla became Minister of Public Works for a short time before resigning in protest against Serrano and
Topete Topete is a Portuguese and Spanish surname, which derives from the Portuguese ''topete'', meaning "quiff" and "cockscomb".''Dictionary of American Family Names''"Topete Family History" Oxford University Press, 2013. Retrieved on 16 January 2016. The ...
entering the councils of the new king. Six months later, in 1871, he was invited by Amadeus to form a cabinet, and he continued to be the principal councillor of the king until February 1873, when the monarch
abdicate
Abdication is the act of formally relinquishing monarchical authority. Abdications have played various roles in the succession procedures of monarchies. While some cultures have viewed abdication as an extreme abandonment of duty, in other societ ...
d.
After the departure of Amadeus, Ruiz Zorrilla advocated the establishment of a
republic
A republic () is a "state in which power rests with the people or their representatives; specifically a state without a monarchy" and also a "government, or system of government, of such a state." Previously, especially in the 17th and 18th c ...
, but he was not called upon either by the Federal Republicans to help them during 1873 or by Marshal Serrano in 1874 to join
Martos
Martos is a city in the province of Jaén in the autonomous community of Andalusia in south-central Spain.
It has a population of 24271 inhabitants, making Martos the fifth largest municipality in the province. The city is located on a western ...
and
Sagasta in his cabinet. Immediately after the
Restoration
Restoration is the act of restoring something to its original state and may refer to:
* Conservation and restoration of cultural heritage
** Audio restoration
** Film restoration
** Image restoration
** Textile restoration
* Restoration ecology
...
of the monarchy, early in 1875, Ruiz Zorrilla again went to France.
He was for nearly 18 years the soul of the republican conspiracies, the prompter of revolutionary propaganda and the chief inspirer of intrigues concerted by discontented military men of all ranks. He gave so much trouble to the Madrid governments that they organized a watch over him with the assistance of the French government and police, especially when it was discovered that the two military movements of August 1883 and September 1886 had been prepared and assisted by him. During the last two years of his life, he became less active. Failing health and the loss of his wife had decreased his energies, and the Madrid government allowed him to return to Spain some months before he died at
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 ...
, of
heart disease
Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is a class of diseases that involve the heart or blood vessels. CVD includes coronary artery diseases (CAD) such as angina and myocardial infarction (commonly known as a heart attack). Other CVDs include stroke, hea ...
.
Notes
References
;Citations
;Bibliography
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;Attribution:
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Ruiz Zorrilla, Manuel
1833 births
1895 deaths
People from the Province of Soria
Prime Ministers of Spain
Presidents of the Congress of Deputies (Spain)
Complutense University of Madrid alumni
Liberal Union (Spain) politicians
Justice ministers of Spain
Spanish Freemasons
Leaders of political parties in Spain
Exiled Spanish politicians
Spanish republicans