Maria Silva Cruz (20 April 1915 – 23 August 1936) was a Spanish

anarchist Anarchism is a political philosophy and movement that is skeptical of all justifications for authority and seeks to abolish the institutions it claims maintain unnecessary coercion and hierarchy, typically including, though not neces ...

and a hero of the Casas Viejas Uprising in Spain. She was also known as "La Libertaria."

Biography

Silva Cruz was born and raised in

Casas Viejas Casas Viejas is a city located in the province of Cádiz, Spain. According to the 2005 census, the city has a population of 6,754 inhabitants. Casas Viejas is located in the '' Ruta del Toro''. Main sights * Cueva del Tajo de las Figuras *Iglesi ...

(now Benalup-Casas Viejas) in

Andalusia Andalusia (, ; es, Andalucía ) is the southernmost Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community in Peninsular Spain. It is the most populous and the second-largest autonomous community in the country. It is officially recognised as a ...

. Her parents were

day labor Day labor (or day labour in Commonwealth spelling) is work done where the worker is hired and paid one day at a time, with no promise that more work will be available in the future. It is a form of contingent work. Types Day laborers (also kn ...

ers and her father, Juan Silva Gonzalez and her uncle were both members of the

Confederación Nacional del Trabajo The Confederación Nacional del Trabajo ( en, National Confederation of Labor; CNT) is a Spanish confederation of anarcho-syndicalist labor unions, which was long affiliated with the International Workers' Association (AIT). When working wi ...

(CNT), an

group which supported reforms for workers. In January 1933, the CNT demonstrated in Casas Viejas and attempted to get the government's

Civil Guard Civil Guard refers to various policing organisations: Current * Civil Guard (Spain), Spanish gendarmerie * Civil Guard (Israel), Israeli volunteer police reserve * Civil Guard (Brazil), Municipal law enforcement corporations in Brazil Histori ...

to give up their power. Silva Cruz and her friends, Manuel Lago and Gallinito, were part of the demonstrations on 11 January. During the demonstrations, two guards were wounded. More troops from the Civil Guard and

Assault Guard The Cuerpo de Seguridad y Asalto ( en, Security and Assault Corps) was the heavy reserve force of the blue-uniformed municipal police, urban police force of Spain during the Spanish Second Republic. The Assault Guards were special police and para ...

were sent in to stop the CNT. Many of the villagers fled, but some anarchists attempted to hide in the house of Silva Cruz's grandfather, Francisco Cruz Gutiérrez, who was nicknamed ''Seisdedos'' ("Six fingers")''.'' The house was set on fire by the forces of the police and everyone inside was killed, except for Silva Cruz and a cousin. She emerged, burned and carrying the young boy to safety. She persuaded the guard not to kill her or the boy and then she fled to her mother's house. Silva Cruz was arrested on 14 January 1933. Silva Cruz was jailed at

Medina Sidonia Medina Sidonia is a city and municipality in the province of Cádiz in the autonomous community of Andalusia, southern Spain. Considered by some to be the oldest city in Europe, it is used as a military defence location because of its elevation. ...

and then transferred to Cadiz for a month's imprisonment. She met Miguel Perez Cordon, a member of the CNT while at Medina Sidonia. Perez Cordon courted her and after two months, the couple moved to

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 ...

. In May 1935, they had a son, Juan Perez Silva. The family moved back to Andalusia, living in

Ronda Ronda () is a town in the Spanish province of Málaga. It is located about west of the city of Málaga, within the autonomous community of Andalusia. Its population is about 35,000. Ronda is known for its cliff-side location and a deep chasm ...

Fascists Fascism is a far-right, authoritarian, ultra-nationalist political ideology and movement,: "extreme militaristic nationalism, contempt for electoral democracy and political and cultural liberalism, a belief in natural social hierarchy and th ...

eventually occupied Ronda in July 1936, and Perez Cordon fled to the mountains while Silva Cruz stayed with her young son at home. She was arrested by the Civil Guard and her son was taken from her. She and two other people were

executed Capital punishment, also known as the death penalty, is the state-sanctioned practice of deliberately killing a person as a punishment for an actual or supposed crime, usually following an authorized, rule-governed process to conclude that t ...

on 23 August 1936 at dawn. Like many people who participated in the Spanish Revolution, Silva Cruz's remains were never identified. She was also never listed as officially dead until 2010. Her son, who grew up with Silva Cruz's aunt, worked throughout his life to try to find Maria Silva Cruz's remains in order to bury them and plant flowers for her.

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Silva Cruz, Maria 1915 births 1936 deaths Spanish anarchists Spanish revolutionaries People executed by Spain by firing squad People from La Janda Spanish women Women in the Spanish Civil War Spanish Anti-Francoists