Rafael Sánchez Mazas
Encyclopedia
Rafael Sánchez Mazas was a Spanish
nationalist
writer and a leader of the Falange
, a right-wing political movement created in Spain before the Spanish Civil War
.
Sánchez Mazas received a law degree at the Real Colegio de Estudios Superiores de María Cristina, El Escorial
and in 1915 published Pequeñas memorias de Tarín. He then wrote for the magazine Hermes and the newspapers ABC, El Sol
and El Pueblo Vasco. His work brought him to Morocco
in 1921 (for El Pueblo Vasco) and Rome in 1922 (for ABC). He lived in Italy for seven years and married Liliana Ferlosio. While there he identified with the developing fascist
movement.
Returning to Spain in 1929, he became an advisor for José Antonio Primo de Rivera
, the main ideologist of the Falange
. In 1933, he helped to create the weekly newspaper El Fascio, which was banned by the authorities after its second issue was published.
After the creation of Falange Española on October 29, 1933, Sánchez Mazas was appointed a member of the Council, and he remained an active member up until the breakout of the Civil War
(July 1936-April 1939). In February 1934, he wrote Oración por los muertos de Falange. He also co-wrote Cara al Sol, the anthem of Falange Española.
Sánchez Mazas was arrested and imprisoned in Madrid
in March 1936, as the Falange
was outlawed. He was given a short leave on the occasion of the birth of his fourth son, but he failed to report back and instead took up political asylum at the Chilean Embassy in Madrid. In 1937 he attempted to flee the country, but was arrested in Barcelona
in November. Confined in the prison-ship Uruguay until January 24, 1939, he was taken for execution with about fifty other inmates to the Monastery of Santa Maria del Collell in Girona
.
The execution was carried out on January 30, but as the squad fired at the prisoners Sánchez Mazas leapt out of the group and escaped into the forest. A manhunt was organised and he was found hiding under some bushes shortly after. However, the Republican soldier who found him decided not to report him and spared his life. After a few days he joined the Nationalist lines.
cabinet of August 8, 1939, as a minister without portfolio
and vice-president of the Junta Política.
When Spanish troops occupied internationally-administered Tangier
in June 1940, Sánchez Mazas made a speech stressing the Spanish character of the city. His addition of nationalist rhetoric to an already politically delicate situation earned him a severe dressing down from Franco's brother-in-law and fellow minister, Ramón Serrano Súñer
, who later claimed to have been so angry that he tried to punch Sánchez Mazas in the face.
In 1940 he was appointed a member of the Real Academia Española
but failed to attend his inauguration ceremony.
His life story inspired Javier Cercas
to write Soldados de Salamina
. A movie of the same name was directed by David Trueba
. His sons Rafael Sánchez Ferlosio
and Chicho Sánchez Ferlosio and his grandson Máximo Pradera are known artists.
Spanish people
The Spanish are citizens of the Kingdom of Spain. Within Spain, there are also a number of vigorous nationalisms and regionalisms, reflecting the country's complex history....
nationalist
Nationalism
Nationalism is a political ideology that involves a strong identification of a group of individuals with a political entity defined in national terms, i.e. a nation. In the 'modernist' image of the nation, it is nationalism that creates national identity. There are various definitions for what...
writer and a leader of the Falange
Falange
The Spanish Phalanx of the Assemblies of the National Syndicalist Offensive , known simply as the Falange, is the name assigned to several political movements and parties dating from the 1930s, most particularly the original fascist movement in Spain. The word means phalanx formation in Spanish....
, a right-wing political movement created in Spain before 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...
.
Sánchez Mazas received a law degree at the Real Colegio de Estudios Superiores de María Cristina, El Escorial
El Escorial
The Royal Seat of San Lorenzo de El Escorial is a historical residence of the king of Spain, in the town of San Lorenzo de El Escorial, about 45 kilometres northwest of the capital, Madrid, in Spain. It is one of the Spanish royal sites and functions as a monastery, royal palace, museum, and...
and in 1915 published Pequeñas memorias de Tarín. He then wrote for the magazine Hermes and the newspapers ABC, El Sol
El Sol (Madrid)
El Sol was a Spanish newspaper printed in Madrid. It was founded the December 1, 1917 by Nicolás María de Urgoiti. Edited by Manuel Aznar Zubigaray, its writers included Julio Álvarez del Vayo and Ernesto Giménez Caballero....
and El Pueblo Vasco. His work brought him to Morocco
Morocco
Morocco , officially the Kingdom of Morocco , is a country located in North Africa. It has a population of more than 32 million and an area of 710,850 km², and also primarily administers the disputed region of the Western Sahara...
in 1921 (for El Pueblo Vasco) and Rome in 1922 (for ABC). He lived in Italy for seven years and married Liliana Ferlosio. While there he identified with the developing fascist
Fascism
Fascism is a radical authoritarian nationalist political ideology. Fascists seek to rejuvenate their nation based on commitment to the national community as an organic entity, in which individuals are bound together in national identity by suprapersonal connections of ancestry, culture, and blood...
movement.
Returning to Spain in 1929, he became an advisor for José Antonio Primo de Rivera
José Antonio Primo de Rivera
José Antonio Primo de Rivera y Sáenz de Heredia, 1st Duke of Primo de Rivera, 3rd Marquis of Estella , was a Spanish lawyer, nobleman, politician, and founder of the Falange Española...
, the main ideologist of the Falange
Falange
The Spanish Phalanx of the Assemblies of the National Syndicalist Offensive , known simply as the Falange, is the name assigned to several political movements and parties dating from the 1930s, most particularly the original fascist movement in Spain. The word means phalanx formation in Spanish....
. In 1933, he helped to create the weekly newspaper El Fascio, which was banned by the authorities after its second issue was published.
After the creation of Falange Española on October 29, 1933, Sánchez Mazas was appointed a member of the Council, and he remained an active member up until the breakout of the 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...
(July 1936-April 1939). In February 1934, he wrote Oración por los muertos de Falange. He also co-wrote Cara al Sol, the anthem of Falange Española.
Sánchez Mazas was arrested and imprisoned in Madrid
Madrid
Madrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. The population of the city is roughly 3.3 million and the entire population of the Madrid metropolitan area is calculated to be 6.271 million. It is the third largest city in the European Union, after London and Berlin, and its metropolitan...
in March 1936, as the Falange
Falange
The Spanish Phalanx of the Assemblies of the National Syndicalist Offensive , known simply as the Falange, is the name assigned to several political movements and parties dating from the 1930s, most particularly the original fascist movement in Spain. The word means phalanx formation in Spanish....
was outlawed. He was given a short leave on the occasion of the birth of his fourth son, but he failed to report back and instead took up political asylum at the Chilean Embassy in Madrid. In 1937 he attempted to flee the country, but was arrested in Barcelona
Barcelona
Barcelona is the second largest city in Spain after Madrid, and the capital of Catalonia, with a population of 1,621,537 within its administrative limits on a land area of...
in November. Confined in the prison-ship Uruguay until January 24, 1939, he was taken for execution with about fifty other inmates to the Monastery of Santa Maria del Collell in Girona
Girona
Girona is a city in the northeast of Catalonia, Spain at the confluence of the rivers Ter, Onyar, Galligants and Güell, with an official population of 96,236 in January 2009. It is the capital of the province of the same name and of the comarca of the Gironès...
.
The execution was carried out on January 30, but as the squad fired at the prisoners Sánchez Mazas leapt out of the group and escaped into the forest. A manhunt was organised and he was found hiding under some bushes shortly after. However, the Republican soldier who found him decided not to report him and spared his life. After a few days he joined the Nationalist lines.
In the Franco regime
As one of the camisas viejas (literally "old shirts", referring to Falangists from before the Civil War), Sánchez Mazas was appointed to Franco'sFrancisco 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...
cabinet of August 8, 1939, as a minister without portfolio
Minister without Portfolio
A minister without portfolio is either a government minister with no specific responsibilities or a minister that does not head a particular ministry...
and vice-president of the Junta Política.
When Spanish troops occupied internationally-administered 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...
in June 1940, Sánchez Mazas made a speech stressing the Spanish character of the city. His addition of nationalist rhetoric to an already politically delicate situation earned him a severe dressing down from Franco's brother-in-law and fellow minister, Ramón Serrano Súñer
Ramón Serrano Súñer
Ramón Serrano Súñer , was a Spanish politician during the first stages of General Francisco Franco's dictatorship, the Spanish State, between 1938 and 1942, when he held the posts of President of the Political Junta Política of Falange Española Tradicionalista y de las JONS , and Interior and...
, who later claimed to have been so angry that he tried to punch Sánchez Mazas in the face.
In 1940 he was appointed a member of the Real Academia Española
Real Academia Española
The Royal Spanish Academy is the official royal institution responsible for regulating the Spanish language. It is based in Madrid, Spain, but is affiliated with national language academies in twenty-one other hispanophone nations through the Association of Spanish Language Academies...
but failed to attend his inauguration ceremony.
His life story inspired Javier Cercas
Javier Cercas
Javier Cercas is a writer and, since 1989, a Professor of Spanish literature at the University of Girona, Spain. He is a frequent contributor to the Catalan edition of El País and the Sunday supplement...
to write Soldados de Salamina
Soldados de Salamina
Soldiers of Salamis is a novel published in 2001 by Spanish author Javier Cercas. A film adaptation Soldados de Salamina was released in 2003. The novel was well received in Spanish literary circles and the English translation by Anne McLean won the Independent Foreign Fiction Prize for...
. A movie of the same name was directed by David Trueba
David Trueba
David Trueba is a Spanish novelist, film director and screenwriter. He is the brother of Academy Award winner Fernando Trueba, and was once married to Ariadna Gil.He has published two novels in Anagrama Editions....
. His sons Rafael Sánchez Ferlosio
Rafael Sánchez Ferlosio
Rafael Sánchez Ferlosio is a Spanish writer. His father Rafael Sánchez Mazas, a minor writer himself, was a founder and leader of Falange....
and Chicho Sánchez Ferlosio and his grandson Máximo Pradera are known artists.