Francesc Macià i Llussà (; 21 September 1859 – 25 December 1933) was a
Catalan politician who served as the 122nd
president
President most commonly refers to:
*President (corporate title)
* President (education), a leader of a college or university
*President (government title)
President may also refer to:
Arts and entertainment Film and television
*'' Præsident ...
of the
Generalitat of Catalonia
The Generalitat de Catalunya (; ; ), or the Government of Catalonia, is the institutional system by which Catalonia is Self-governance, self-governed as an autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Spain. It is made up of the Parli ...
, and formerly an officer in the
Spanish Army
The Spanish Army () is the terrestrial army of the Spanish Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is one of the oldest Standing army, active armies – dating back to the late 15th century.
The Spanish Army has existed ...
.
Politically, Macià evolved from an initial regenerationism of Spain to the defense of the
Catalan Republic, being appointed as the first president of the restored Generalitat and achieving the first successful establishment of
self-government for Catalonia of
modern history
The modern era or the modern period is considered the current historical period of human history. It was originally applied to the history of Europe and Western history for events that came after the Middle Ages, often from around the year 1500, ...
.
Life
Early years
Francesc Macià i Llussà was born in
Vilanova i la Geltrú, Catalonia,
Spain
Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...
. Shortly after the death of his father, when he was 16, he entered the Military Academy of Guadalajara to join the Corps of Engineers of the Spanish Army, specializing in bridges, railways and telegraphs. He requested to be transferred to Cuba but was sent several times to Barcelona, Madrid and Seville, rising from telegrapher to captain. As an officer in the Spanish army, he favored its modernization. He achieved the rank of
lieutenant-colonel. In 1887 he was transferred to Lleida, where he met his wife, Eugènia Lamarca, daughter of Agapito Lamarca, with whom he had three children, Joan, Eugènia and Maria.
On 25 November 1905, some Spanish army officers, in retaliation to a joke in the satirical Catalan journal
¡Cu-Cut!,
assaulted and destroyed the offices of the magazine, as well as the offices of the Catalanist journal
La Veu de Catalunya. The Spanish Government responded by creating a
Law of jurisdictions for the repression of crimes against the homeland and against the army, which caused various political groups to unite to form Solidaritat Catalana (
'Catalan Solidarity'). Macià publicly condemned the military's action. As a result, his officials transferred him to
Santoña
Santoña is a town in the eastern coast of the autonomous community of Cantabria, on the north coast of Spain. It is situated by the bay of the same name. It is from the capital Santander, Cantabria, Santander. Santoña is divided into two zones, ...
,
Cantabria
Cantabria (, ; ) is an autonomous community and Provinces of Spain, province in northern Spain with Santander, Cantabria, Santander as its capital city. It is called a , a Nationalities and regions of Spain, historic community, in its current ...
.
He ran as a member of Catalan Solidarity in the election of 21 April 1907 for Barcelona and Les Borges Blanques districts, where his family came from. The resounding victory of this formation (41 of the 44 deputies of Catalonia) took him in Santoña. He was re-elected deputy in 1914, 1916, 1918, 1919, 1920 and 1923. From the
Spanish Congress, he began to advocate for the regeneration of Spain, however, during his last years as a politician in Madrid, he moved from Catalan regionalist to left-wing independentist positions.
Independentist leader
In 1919 he founded the
Nationalist Democratic Federation (''Federació Democrà tica Nacionalista''), which proposed a federal or confederal solution for Spain, in which Catalonia would enjoy a high degree of self-government. In 1922, Macià founded the independentist party
Estat Català .
In September 1923, right after the
coup d'etat of
Miguel Primo de Rivera
Miguel Primo de Rivera y Orbaneja, 2nd Marquis of Estella, Grandee, GE (8 January 1870 – 16 March 1930), was a Spanish dictator and military officer who ruled as prime minister of Spain from 1923 to 1930 during the last years of the Resto ...
, Macià took refuge in
Perpignan
Perpignan (, , ; ; ) is the prefectures in France, prefecture of the Pyrénées-Orientales departments of France, department in Southern France, in the heart of the plain of Roussillon, at the foot of the Pyrenees a few kilometres from the Me ...
. In 1926 he attempted an insurrection against the Spanish dictatorship of Primo de Rivera. This uprising, known as the
plot of Prats de Molló, had the aim to achieve the independence of Catalonia, was based in
Prats de Molló (
Roussillon
Roussillon ( , , ; , ; ) was a historical province of France that largely corresponded to the County of Roussillon and French Cerdagne, part of the County of Cerdagne of the former Principality of Catalonia. It is part of the region of ' ...
, southern France).
["Qui va trair Macià ?" by Jordi Finestres and Giovanni Cattini, '' Sà piens'' volume 84 (October 2009)] Between 50 and 100 Italian mercenaries, mostly from the
Garibaldi Legion that fought in the
French Foreign Legion
The French Foreign Legion (, also known simply as , "the Legion") is a corps of the French Army created to allow List of militaries that recruit foreigners, foreign nationals into French service. The Legion was founded in 1831 and today consis ...
during World War I and exiled to France, were hired by Macià to help on the action. This attempt was aborted by the
French Gendarmerie
The National Gendarmerie ( ) is one of two national law enforcement forces of France, along with the National Police. The Gendarmerie is a branch of the French Armed Forces placed under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of the Interior, with ad ...
, which was able to abort the complot with the help of Ricciotti Garibaldi jr., a spy of
Fascist Italy
Fascist Italy () is a term which is used in historiography to describe the Kingdom of Italy between 1922 and 1943, when Benito Mussolini and the National Fascist Party controlled the country, transforming it into a totalitarian dictatorship. Th ...
and grandson of
Giuseppe Garibaldi
Giuseppe Maria Garibaldi ( , ;In his native Ligurian language, he is known as (). In his particular Niçard dialect of Ligurian, he was known as () or (). 4 July 1807 – 2 June 1882) was an Italian general, revolutionary and republican. H ...
. Macià was arrested and convicted to two months in jail and a fine of 100 francs. Despite the failure, Macià and his cause became very popular in Catalonia. He left France for Brussels in March 1927, where his notoriety increased while we remained in Belgium. He founded there, with other exiles, the
Casal Català de Brussel·les. In April 1930 he returned to Spain after being pardoned; he was briefly exiled again but returned once more in February 1931.
Republic and Generalitat
In March 1931 Estat Català joined the Catalan Republican Party of
LluÃs Companys and the L'Opinió Group of
Joan Lluhà to found a new party,
Republican Left of Catalonia
The Republican Left of Catalonia (, ERC; ; generically branded as ) is a pro-Catalan independence, social democratic political party in the Spanish autonomous community of Catalonia, with a presence also in Valencia, the Balearic Islands and t ...
(''Esquerra Republicana de Catalunya'', ERC), maintaining Estat Català a degree of internal autonomy. Francesc Macià became the leader figure of the new party.
On 14 April 1931, two days after the
Spanish local elections that caused the exile of king
Alfonso XIII of Spain and gave the local majority to the
Republican Left of Catalonia
The Republican Left of Catalonia (, ERC; ; generically branded as ) is a pro-Catalan independence, social democratic political party in the Spanish autonomous community of Catalonia, with a presence also in Valencia, the Balearic Islands and t ...
, and a few hours before the proclamation of the
Second Spanish Republic
The Spanish Republic (), commonly known as the Second Spanish Republic (), was the form of democratic government in Spain from 1931 to 1939. The Republic was proclaimed on 14 April 1931 after the deposition of Alfonso XIII, King Alfonso XIII. ...
in Madrid, from the balcony of the
Palau de la Generalitat (then the seat of the
Provincial Deputation of Barcelona), Macià proclaimed the "
Catalan Republic, expecting that the other peoples of Spain constitute themselves as republics, in order to establish the Iberian Confederation". Macià was appointed as acting president of Catalonia. Three days later, the government of the new Spanish Republic sent three ministers (
Fernando de los RÃos, LluÃs Nicolau d'Olwer and Marcel·là Domingo) to Barcelona to negotiate with Macià and the Catalan provisional government. Macià reached an agreement with the ministers, in which the Catalan Republic was renamed
Generalitat of Catalonia
The Generalitat de Catalunya (; ; ), or the Government of Catalonia, is the institutional system by which Catalonia is Self-governance, self-governed as an autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Spain. It is made up of the Parli ...
, becoming an
autonomous government within the Spanish Republic. Macià remained as acting President of the Generalitat. The main task of the provisional Generalitat was to draft an
statute of autonomy for Catalonia, approved by the Spanish Congress after many modifications and discussions on 9 September 1932.
After the
first Catalan parliamentary election on 20 November 1932 when, after a landslide victory of ERC, he was officially appointed President of the Generalitat of Catalonia, maintaining the position until his death in December 1933.
Death
Macià died due to appendicitis on 25 December 1933 in Barcelona. His funeral caused a massive demonstration of grief.
His remains rest in the ''Plaça de la Fe'', the
Montjuïc Cemetery, in Barcelona's
Montjuïc hill.
Documentation
Part of his personal collection, which consists of documentation image about the president travels throughout Catalonia and family snapshots, is preserved in the
National Archive of Catalonia. They are a repository of Mrs. Teresa Peyrà i Macià . The fund contains documents generated and received by Francesc Macià , personal and family documents, correspondence from the period before the Second Spanish Republic (until April 1931) and documentation produced primarily in terms of its political activity. The fund brings together documents relating to his conduct before being named president of the Government of Catalonia (1907-1931): as a Member of Parliament (speeches, proclamations, and conference reports) on Estat Català (organization, reports, proclamations, calls, publications, etc.), on Catalan Army (constitution, rules and organization, information mapping and geographic pathways) and on the corresponding period in the Directory of
General Primo de Rivera. Finally, there is the collection of photographs, most made during his presidency.
Another part of Macià 's personal archive consists of correspondence written to/by Joan Agell, documents of Centre Català in New York, diverse documentation and press clippings.
Macià 's personal archive
/ref> It is in the Pavelló de la República CRAI Library at the University of Barcelona.
See also
* Plaça de Francesc Macià , Barcelona
References
External links
Biography
(Catalan)
Macià proclaiming the Catalan Republic
Inventari del Fons FP, Subsèrie Francesc Macià , de l CRAI Biblioteca del Pavelló de la República de la Universitat de Barcelona
{{DEFAULTSORT:Macia I Llussa, Francesc
1859 births
1933 deaths
People from Vilanova i la Geltrú
Presidents of the Republican Left of Catalonia
Members of the Congress of Deputies of the Second Spanish Republic
Presidents of the Government of Catalonia
Spanish army officers
Soldiers from Catalonia
Burials at Montjuïc Cemetery