José Enrique Varela
Encyclopedia
José Enrique Varela Iglesias (San Fernando, Cadiz
, Spain
, April 17, 1891 – Tangier
, Spanish Morocco
, March 24, 1951) was a Spanish military officer and Carlist
noted for his role as a Nationalist commander in the Spanish Civil War
.
for three years starting in 1909. He rose to the rank of sergeant
and then enrolled at infantry school in Spain and graduated as a lieutenant
.
Returning to Morocco, he distinguished himself in action and King Alfonso XIII awarded him the Honored Cross of San Fernando, Spain's highest military award, on two separate occasions. He rose to the rank of captain by merit and participated in several campaigns in the Morocco war
, the principal one being the joint Franco-Spanish amphibious landing at Alhucemas
in 1925. This landing altered the course of the Morocco War
and hastened its end. Shortly thereafter he was promoted to lieutenant colonel
and to colonel
at the end of the war.
During the early thirties he was assigned as a member of a military mission that spent time in Germany, Switzerland, Belgium and France to broaden their military knowledge. With the coming of the Republic
, he participated in the abortive José Sanjurjo
uprising in 1932 for which he was imprisoned. He was released and joined the Carlists and organized the militia
or the paramilitary
units of the Carlists, the Requetés
, into the formidable military organization that it became in the Spanish Civil War
. Disguised as a priest, Uncle Pepe, he traveled along the Pyrenean
villages organizing the people and readying them for war. He actively participated in the planning for the rising that started the Spanish Civil War. In April, 1936, the government found out about his plotting and imprisoned him.
, Extremadura, Tagus Valley
, Alcázar
, Madrid, Jarama
, Brunete
, Teruel
and the Ebro
.
, he was appointed minister of war in Franco's
August 1939 government and was considered a representative of the Carlist
faction there. During his ministry the Spanish army was purged of a small number of officers and NCOs who were considered politically unreliable.
Following the fall of France
in 1940 and Hitler's subsequent overtures to Franco, Varela was a leading opponent of Spanish entry into the war on the Axis
side, although he did endorse the volunteer Blue Division
's participation on the Eastern Front
.
As tensions between Carlists and Falangists within the government rose during 1942, Varela suggested to Franco that Carlists were underrepresented and proposed several schemes for a reorganization of the cabinet. Violence between the factions broke out at the Basilica of Begoña
on August 16, 1942, when Falangists attacked a Carlist crowd with grenades, causing many injuries and possibly several deaths. Varela, who was inside the church at the time, took the initiative against the Falangists and portrayed the incident as an attack on the army and a possible assassination attempt in telegrams to officials throughout the country, displeasing Franco. In the following cabinet reshuffle in September, Varela was replaced as army minister by General Carlos Asensio Cabanillas
.
In 1945 Franco appointed Varela as high commissioner
of Spanish Morocco
.
He was later made captain-general of Madrid.
Franco subsequently granted Varela a posthumous marquisate title as Marquis of San Fernando de Varela.
Cádiz (province)
Cádiz is a province of southern Spain, in the southwestern part of the autonomous community of Andalusia, the southernmost part of continental Western Europe....
, Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
, April 17, 1891 – Tangier
Tangier
Tangier, also Tangiers is a city in northern Morocco with a population of about 700,000 . It lies on the North African coast at the western entrance to the Strait of Gibraltar where the Mediterranean meets the Atlantic Ocean off Cape Spartel...
, Spanish Morocco
Spanish Morocco
The Spanish protectorate of Morocco was the area of Morocco under colonial rule by the Spanish Empire, established by the Treaty of Fez in 1912 and ending in 1956, when both France and Spain recognized Moroccan independence.-Territorial borders:...
, March 24, 1951) was a Spanish military officer and Carlist
Carlism
Carlism is a traditionalist and legitimist political movement in Spain seeking the establishment of a separate line of the Bourbon family on the Spanish throne. This line descended from Infante Carlos, Count of Molina , and was founded due to dispute over the succession laws and widespread...
noted for his role as a Nationalist commander in the Spanish Civil War
Spanish Civil War
The Spanish Civil WarAlso known as The Crusade among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War among Carlists, and The Rebellion or Uprising among Republicans. was a major conflict fought in Spain from 17 July 1936 to 1 April 1939...
.
Early career
Varela started his military career as an enlisted man and fought in the colonial wars in the RifRif
The Rif or Riff is a mainly mountainous region of northern Morocco, with some fertile plains, stretching from Cape Spartel and Tangier in the west to Ras Kebdana and the Melwiyya River in the east, and from the Mediterranean Sea in the north to the river of Wergha in the south.It is part of the...
for three years starting in 1909. He rose to the rank of sergeant
Sergeant
Sergeant is a rank used in some form by most militaries, police forces, and other uniformed organizations around the world. Its origins are the Latin serviens, "one who serves", through the French term Sergent....
and then enrolled at infantry school in Spain and graduated as a lieutenant
Lieutenant
A lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer in many nations' armed forces. Typically, the rank of lieutenant in naval usage, while still a junior officer rank, is senior to the army rank...
.
Returning to Morocco, he distinguished himself in action and King Alfonso XIII awarded him the Honored Cross of San Fernando, Spain's highest military award, on two separate occasions. He rose to the rank of captain by merit and participated in several campaigns in the Morocco war
Rif War (1909)
The Second Melillan campaign was a conflict in 1909 and 1910 in Morocco around Melilla. The fighting involved local Rifains and the Spanish Army.- Prelude :...
, the principal one being the joint Franco-Spanish amphibious landing at Alhucemas
Al Hoceima
Al Hoceima is a city and port in the north of Morocco and in the center of the Rif Mountains. The Al Hoceima city region has a population of 395.644 and is the capital of the Taza-Al Hoceima-Taounate region...
in 1925. This landing altered the course of the Morocco War
Rif War (1920)
The Rif War, also called the Second Moroccan War, was fought between Spain and the Moroccan Rif Berbers.-Rifian forces:...
and hastened its end. Shortly thereafter he was promoted to lieutenant colonel
Lieutenant colonel
Lieutenant colonel is a rank of commissioned officer in the armies and most marine forces and some air forces of the world, typically ranking above a major and below a colonel. The rank of lieutenant colonel is often shortened to simply "colonel" in conversation and in unofficial correspondence...
and to colonel
Colonel
Colonel , abbreviated Col or COL, is a military rank of a senior commissioned officer. It or a corresponding rank exists in most armies and in many air forces; the naval equivalent rank is generally "Captain". It is also used in some police forces and other paramilitary rank structures...
at the end of the war.
During the early thirties he was assigned as a member of a military mission that spent time in Germany, Switzerland, Belgium and France to broaden their military knowledge. With the coming of the Republic
Second Spanish Republic
The Second Spanish Republic was the government of Spain between April 14 1931, and its destruction by a military rebellion, led by General Francisco Franco....
, he participated in the abortive José Sanjurjo
José Sanjurjo
General José Sanjurjo y Sacanell, 1st Marquis of the Rif was a General in the Spanish Army who was one of the chief conspirators in the military uprising that led to the Spanish Civil War.-Early life:...
uprising in 1932 for which he was imprisoned. He was released and joined the Carlists and organized the militia
Militia
The term militia is commonly used today to refer to a military force composed of ordinary citizens to provide defense, emergency law enforcement, or paramilitary service, in times of emergency without being paid a regular salary or committed to a fixed term of service. It is a polyseme with...
or the paramilitary
Paramilitary
A paramilitary is a force whose function and organization are similar to those of a professional military, but which is not considered part of a state's formal armed forces....
units of the Carlists, the Requetés
Requetés
The Requetés were the Carlist militia during the Spanish Civil War. Wearing red berets, they mostly came from Navarre and were highly religious with many regarding the war as a Crusade...
, into the formidable military organization that it became in the Spanish Civil War
Spanish Civil War
The Spanish Civil WarAlso known as The Crusade among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War among Carlists, and The Rebellion or Uprising among Republicans. was a major conflict fought in Spain from 17 July 1936 to 1 April 1939...
. Disguised as a priest, Uncle Pepe, he traveled along the Pyrenean
Pyrenees
The Pyrenees is a range of mountains in southwest Europe that forms a natural border between France and Spain...
villages organizing the people and readying them for war. He actively participated in the planning for the rising that started the Spanish Civil War. In April, 1936, the government found out about his plotting and imprisoned him.
The Civil War
In jail in Cadiz when the rising started, he was released on July 18, and helped secure Cadiz for the insurrection. He participated in many of the campaigns of the War including, Seville, Cordova, MalagaBattle of Málaga
The Battle of Málaga was the culmination of an offensive in early 1937 by the combined Nationalist and Italian forces to eliminate Republican control of the province of Málaga during the Spanish Civil War...
, Extremadura, Tagus Valley
Battle of the Sierra Guadalupe
The Battle of the Sierra Guadalupe , also known as the Tagus Campaign, was a continuation of the Nationalist Army's race north toward Madrid in the early stages of the Spanish Civil War...
, Alcázar
Siege of the Alcázar
The Siege of the Alcázar was a highly symbolic Nationalist victory in Toledo in the opening stages of the Spanish Civil War. The Alcázar of Toledo was held by a variety of military forces in favor of the Nationalist uprising. Militias of the parties in the Popular Front began their siege on July 21...
, Madrid, Jarama
Battle of Jarama
The Battle of Jarama was an attempt by General Franco's Nationalists to dislodge the Republican lines along the river Jarama, just east of Madrid, during the Spanish Civil War...
, Brunete
Battle of Brunete
The Battle of Brunete , fought 15 miles west of Madrid, was a Republican attempt to alleviate the pressure exerted by the Nationalists on the capital and on the north during the Spanish Civil War...
, Teruel
Battle of Teruel
The Battle of Teruel was fought in and around the city of Teruel during the Spanish Civil War in December 1937 – February 1938. The combatants fought the battle during the worst Spanish winter in twenty years. It was one of the bloodier actions of the war. The city changed hands several times,...
and the Ebro
Battle of the Ebro
The Battle of the Ebro was the longest and bloodiest battle of the Spanish Civil War...
.
In the Franco regime
Ending the war with the rank of major generalMajor General
Major general or major-general is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. A major general is a high-ranking officer, normally subordinate to the rank of lieutenant general and senior to the ranks of brigadier and brigadier general...
, he was appointed minister of war in Franco's
Francisco Franco
Francisco Franco y Bahamonde was a Spanish general, dictator and head of state of Spain from October 1936 , and de facto regent of the nominally restored Kingdom of Spain from 1947 until his death in November, 1975...
August 1939 government and was considered a representative of the Carlist
Carlism
Carlism is a traditionalist and legitimist political movement in Spain seeking the establishment of a separate line of the Bourbon family on the Spanish throne. This line descended from Infante Carlos, Count of Molina , and was founded due to dispute over the succession laws and widespread...
faction there. During his ministry the Spanish army was purged of a small number of officers and NCOs who were considered politically unreliable.
Following the fall of France
Battle of France
In the Second World War, the Battle of France was the German invasion of France and the Low Countries, beginning on 10 May 1940, which ended the Phoney War. The battle consisted of two main operations. In the first, Fall Gelb , German armoured units pushed through the Ardennes, to cut off and...
in 1940 and Hitler's subsequent overtures to Franco, Varela was a leading opponent of Spanish entry into the war on the Axis
Axis Powers
The Axis powers , also known as the Axis alliance, Axis nations, Axis countries, or just the Axis, was an alignment of great powers during the mid-20th century that fought World War II against the Allies. It began in 1936 with treaties of friendship between Germany and Italy and between Germany and...
side, although he did endorse the volunteer Blue Division
Blue Division
The Blue Division officially designated as División Española de Voluntarios by the Spanish Army and 250. Infanterie-Division in the German Army, was a unit of Spanish volunteers that served in the German Army on the Eastern Front of the Second World War.-Origins:Although Spanish leader Field...
's participation on the Eastern Front
Eastern Front (World War II)
The Eastern Front of World War II was a theatre of World War II between the European Axis powers and co-belligerent Finland against the Soviet Union, Poland, and some other Allies which encompassed Northern, Southern and Eastern Europe from 22 June 1941 to 9 May 1945...
.
As tensions between Carlists and Falangists within the government rose during 1942, Varela suggested to Franco that Carlists were underrepresented and proposed several schemes for a reorganization of the cabinet. Violence between the factions broke out at the Basilica of Begoña
Basilica of Begoña
The Basilica of Begoña is a basilica in Bilbao, in Spain, dedicated to the patron saint of Biscay, the Virgin Begoña.The current parish priest is Jesús Francisco de Garitaonandia.-History:...
on August 16, 1942, when Falangists attacked a Carlist crowd with grenades, causing many injuries and possibly several deaths. Varela, who was inside the church at the time, took the initiative against the Falangists and portrayed the incident as an attack on the army and a possible assassination attempt in telegrams to officials throughout the country, displeasing Franco. In the following cabinet reshuffle in September, Varela was replaced as army minister by General Carlos Asensio Cabanillas
Carlos Asensio Cabanillas
Carlos Asensio Cabanillas was a Spanish soldier and statesman who served during the Spanish Civil War, rising in command from Colonel to General in Franco's Army of Africa....
.
In 1945 Franco appointed Varela as high commissioner
High Commissioner
High Commissioner is the title of various high-ranking, special executive positions held by a commission of appointment.The English term is also used to render various equivalent titles in other languages.-Bilateral diplomacy:...
of Spanish Morocco
Spanish Morocco
The Spanish protectorate of Morocco was the area of Morocco under colonial rule by the Spanish Empire, established by the Treaty of Fez in 1912 and ending in 1956, when both France and Spain recognized Moroccan independence.-Territorial borders:...
.
He was later made captain-general of Madrid.
Franco subsequently granted Varela a posthumous marquisate title as Marquis of San Fernando de Varela.