Horacio Martínez Prieto (1902–1985) was a

Basque Basque may refer to: * Basques, an ethnic group of Spain and France * Basque language, their language Places * Basque Country (greater region), the homeland of the Basque people with parts in both Spain and France * Basque Country (autonomous co ...

anarcho-syndicalist Anarcho-syndicalism is an anarchist organisational model that centres trade unions as a vehicle for class conflict. Drawing from the theory of libertarian socialism and the practice of syndicalism, anarcho-syndicalism sees trade unions as both ...

, of the libertarian possibilist tendency, and on two occasions the General Secretary of the CNT.

Biography

Acracio Martínez Prieto was born in

Santurtzi Santurtzi (; ) is a port of Bilbao, port town in the province of Biscay, in the autonomous community of Basque Country (autonomous community), Basque Country, Spain. It is located in the Bilbao Abra bay, near the mouth of the Nervión river, on it ...

as the son of an anarchist father, his named was changed to Horacio by the Bilbao civil registry of the Ollerías neighborhood. Horacio studied at a municipal school, where he was beaten by his teacher – to which his father responded with a knife. Despite being a good student, Horacio did not receive any scholarship and had to immediately find work. As a teenager, he discarded all the predominant ideologies (

nationalism Nationalism is an idea or movement that holds that the nation should be congruent with the state. As a movement, it presupposes the existence and tends to promote the interests of a particular nation, Smith, Anthony. ''Nationalism: Theory, I ...

socialism Socialism is an economic ideology, economic and political philosophy encompassing diverse Economic system, economic and social systems characterised by social ownership of the means of production, as opposed to private ownership. It describes ...

Carlism Carlism (; ; ; ) is a Traditionalism (Spain), Traditionalist and Legitimist political movement in Spain aimed at establishing an alternative branch of the Bourbon dynasty, one descended from Infante Carlos María Isidro of Spain, Don Carlos, ...

) and instead formed a

libertarian Libertarianism (from ; or from ) is a political philosophy that holds freedom, personal sovereignty, and liberty as primary values. Many libertarians believe that the concept of freedom is in accord with the Non-Aggression Principle, according ...

group, "Los sin patria" (Those without country). Horacio was saved from being lynched by a group of Basque nationalists, due to the intervention of a rival gang from the Bilbao neighborhood of Bolueta. He took up the habit of carrying a pistol, which landed him in the Larrinaga prison in Bilbao at only 18 years of age, where he came into contact with a variety of different comrades. An attack in

Altos Hornos de Vizcaya Altos Hornos de Vizcaya, S.A. was a Spanish metallurgy manufacturing company. It was the largest company in Spain for much of the 20th century, employing 40,000 workers at its height. The business began in 1902 in Bilbao with the merger of thre ...

meant for Horacio the beginning of a long series of dangerous incidents, which forced him into exile in

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

, leaving his mother, already a widow, in Bilbao. Not long after

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 ...

's coup in 1923, Horacio participated in an attempted anarchist takeover of

Vera de Bidasoa Bera is a town and municipality situated in the province and autonomous community of Navarre, in northern Spain. The town is traversed by the river Bidasoa before it enters Gipuzkoa at Endarlatsa, eventually flowing into the Cantabrian Sea (Bay o ...

, but managed to escape again. In 1931, when 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. ...

was proclaimed, he joined the CNT. In 1932 he was invited by the PCE to visit Russia along with the director of ''Tierra Vasca'', but he returned with unfavorable impressions – he was initially cautious in sharing his views but later published a pamphlet that was critical of the Soviet system. Following the CNT's participation in the

Revolution of 1934 The Revolution of 1934 (), also known as the Revolution of October 1934 or the Revolutionary General Strike of 1934, was an uprising during the " black biennium" of the Second Spanish Republic between 5 and 19 October 1934. The Revolution of ...

, he took the post of Deputy Secretary of the CNT, and in 1935 at the Congress of Zaragoza, Prieto replaced

Miguel Yoldi Miguel Yoldi Beroiz (14 April 1903 – 13 August 1961) was a Navarrese anarcho-syndicalist. Biography On 14 April 1903, Miguel Yoldi Beroiz was born in Pamplona. He was educated at the House of Mercy in Pamplona and later worked as a Turning, ...

as the CNT's general secretary. The outbreak of the

Spanish Civil War The Spanish Civil War () was a military conflict fought from 1936 to 1939 between the Republican faction (Spanish Civil War), Republicans and the Nationalist faction (Spanish Civil War), Nationalists. Republicans were loyal to the Left-wing p ...

surprised Prieto in Bilbao, where he represented the CNT in the ''Basque Defence Council'' until he moved to Barcelona. Due to his proposal to involve the CNT in the governments of Azaña and

Largo Caballero Francisco Largo Caballero (15 October 1869 – 23 March 1946) was a Spanish politician and trade unionist who served as the prime minister of the Second Spanish Republic during the Spanish Civil War. He was one of the historic leaders of the Spa ...

, he was accused of being a traitor and a liquidationist, which led him to resign from his post in November 1936, although he continued representing the Northern Region in the CNT's National Committee and as a member of the Political Advisory Commission (CAP), from where he defended the participation of the CNT in the government of the Second Spanish Republic. Affiliated with the FAI, he was general director of commerce under the ministry of Juan López Sánchez (November 1936 – May 1937) and Undersecretary of Health under

Segundo Blanco Segundo Blanco González (Gijón 1899 – Mexico 1957) was an Asturian anarchist, teacher and CNT militant that participated in the governance of various republican institutions, during the Spanish Civil War. Biography Segundo Blanco Gonzál ...

(April 1938 – February 1939).

Works

* '' Anarchosyndicalism. How we make the Revolution '' (1933) * '' Facets of the USSR '' (Santander 1933) * '' The Problems of the Spanish Revolution '' (1933) * '' Relative Anarchism. Revisionist Fact Criticism and Suggestion '' (Mexico 1948) * '' Spanish Anarchism in the Political Struggle '' (1946) * '' Marxism and Libertarian Socialism '' (1947) * '' Libertarian Possibilism '', Choisy-le-Roi, Imp. Des Gondoles, 1966. 181 p.WorldCat.org reference
Accessed in June 2014 * '' Profile and Personality of Galo Díez '' (unpublished) * '' Basque government. Some Background to the Euskadi-North CNT White Paper '' (unpublished)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Martinez Prieto, Horacio 1902 births 1985 deaths General secretaries of the Confederación Nacional del Trabajo Basque anarchists