Valeriano Orobón Fernández (1901–1936) was a Spanish anarcho-syndicalist theoretician, trade-union activist, translator and poet, who wrote the lyrics of the revolutionary song '' A Las Barricadas''. Born in

Cistérniga Cistérniga is a municipality located in the province of Valladolid, Castile and León, Spain. According to the 2018 census (INE), the municipality has a population of 9,049 inhabitants. See also *Cuisine of the province of Valladolid ...

Valladolid Province Valladolid () is a province of northwest Spain, in the central part of the autonomous community of Castile and León. It has a population of 520,716 people in a total of 225 municipalities, an area of and a population density of 64.19 people per ...

, Orobón was active in

labour movement The labour movement or labor movement consists of two main wings: the trade union movement (British English) or labor union movement (American English) on the one hand, and the political labour movement on the other. * The trade union movement ...

struggles from an early age. An intellectual with a facility for languages, he translated the biography of the well-known

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

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 ...

Max Nettlau Max Heinrich Hermann Reinhardt Nettlau (; 30 April 1865 – 23 July 1944) was a German anarchist and historian. Although born in Neuwaldegg (today part of Vienna) and raised in Vienna, he lived there until the anschluss to Nazi Germany in 193 ...

written by Rudolf Rocker. In between theoretical writings, Orobón was deeply involved in efforts to form a revolutionary alliance to stem the rising tide of

Fascism 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 an ...

and to prepare the way towards

revolution In political science, a revolution (Latin: ''revolutio'', "a turn around") is a fundamental and relatively sudden change in political power and political organization which occurs when the population revolts against the government, typically due ...

. For the post-revolutionary period, in his mind the labor unions were to have a major role in re-organising society on the basis of economic and political

decentralism Decentralization or decentralisation is the process by which the activities of an organization, particularly those regarding planning and decision making, are distributed or delegated away from a central, authoritative location or group. Conce ...

. He maintained that Anarcho-syndicalism was the more important revolutionary force in Spain, rejecting

Communist Communism (from Latin la, communis, lit=common, universal, label=none) is a far-left sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology and current within the socialist movement whose goal is the establishment of a communist society, a s ...

concepts that he considered etatist. He opposed the spread of such tendencies in 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), at the time the largest labour union and main Anarchist organization in Spain. The CNT was prominent in combating the

coup d'état A coup d'état (; French for 'stroke of state'), also known as a coup or overthrow, is a seizure and removal of a government and its powers. Typically, it is an illegal seizure of power by a political faction, politician, cult, rebel group, m ...

General Francisco Franco Francisco Franco Bahamonde (; 4 December 1892 – 20 November 1975) was a Spanish general who led the Nationalist forces in overthrowing the Second Spanish Republic during the Spanish Civil War and thereafter ruled over Spain from 193 ...

that led to 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 ...

in 1936. It was at that time, shortly before his death, that Orobón wrote the words of ''

To The Barricades "A las Barricadas" ("To the Barricades") was one of the most popular songs of the Anarchism in Spain, Spanish anarchists during the Spanish Civil War. "A las Barricadas" is sung to the tune of "Whirlwinds of Danger" ("Warszawianka"), composed ...

'', to the tune of '' Warszawianka 1905 roku'' – itself a well-known Polish revolutionary song. With words exhorting workers to fight the Fascist enemy, the song became the

anthem An anthem is a musical composition of celebration, usually used as a symbol for a distinct group, particularly the national anthems of countries. Originally, and in music theory and religious contexts, it also refers more particularly to short ...

of the CNT and one of the most popular songs of the Spanish anarchists during the Civil War. He died soon after 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 ...

External links

Jose Luis Gutiérrez Molina, "The thought and the action of Valeriano Orobón Fernandez"
in issue 14 of the magazine ''Bicel'' (published by the

Fundación de Estudios Libertarios Anselmo Lorenzo Fundación is a town and municipality of the Colombian Department of Magdalena. Its people are known as Fundanenses. The primary economic activity is livestock-raising, for production of both meat and milk. Other crops are: corn, yuca, ...

)
"Valeriano Orobón Fernandez, an anarchist from Valladolid"
Biography in Spanish 1901 births 1936 deaths People from the Province of Valladolid Anarchist theorists Anarcho-syndicalists Confederación Nacional del Trabajo members Spanish anarchists Spanish people of the Spanish Civil War Spanish songwriters German–Spanish translators 20th-century translators 20th-century poets 20th-century Spanish musicians {{anarchist-stub