José Enrique Varela Iglesias, 1st Marquis of San Fernando de Varela (17 April 1891 – 24 March 1951) was a Spanish military officer noted for his role as a

Nationalist Nationalism is an idea and movement that holds that the nation should be congruent with the state. As a movement, nationalism tends to promote the interests of a particular nation (as in a group of people), Smith, Anthony. ''Nationalism: Th ...

commander in 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 Carlism, Carlists, and The Rebellion ( es, La Rebeli ...

Early career

Varela started his military career as an

enlisted man An enlisted rank (also known as an enlisted grade or enlisted rate) is, in some armed services, any rank below that of a commissioned officer. The term can be inclusive of non-commissioned officers or warrant officers, except in United States mi ...

in the

Spanish Marines The Spanish Naval Infantry ( es, Infantería de Marina) is the naval infantry unit of the Spanish Navy () responsible for conducting amphibious warfare by utilizing naval platforms and resources. The Marine Corps is fully integrated into the ...

for three years starting in 1909. Varela initially enlisted as a recruit in the same regiment his father served as sergeant. He rose from private to the rank of

sergeant Sergeant ( abbreviated to Sgt. and capitalized when used as a named person's title) is a rank in many uniformed organizations, principally military and policing forces. The alternative spelling, ''serjeant'', is used in The Rifles and other ...

and then enrolled at infantry school in Spain and graduated as a

lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations. The meaning of lieutenant differs in different militaries (see comparative military ranks), but it is often ...

. Returning to Morocco, he distinguished himself in action and King

Alfonso XIII Alfonso XIII (17 May 1886 – 28 February 1941), also known as El Africano or the African, was King of Spain from 17 May 1886 to 14 April 1931, when the Second Spanish Republic was proclaimed. He was a monarch from birth as his father, Alf ...

awarded him the

Laureate Cross of Saint Ferdinand The Royal and Military Order of Saint Ferdinand ( es, Real y Militar Orden de San Fernando), is a Spanish military order whose decoration, known as Laureate Cross of Saint Ferdinand ( es, Cruz Laureada de San Fernando), is Spain's highest mili ...

, Spain's highest military award, on two separate occasions, an unmatched honor for bravery in battle. He commanded native Moroccan troops of

Regulares The Fuerzas Regulares Indígenas (" Indigenous Regular Forces"), known simply as the Regulares (Regulars), are volunteer infantry units of the Spanish Army, largely recruited in the cities of Ceuta and Melilla. Consisting of indigenous infantr ...

and rose to the rank of

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

by merit and participated in several campaigns in the Morocco war, the principal one being the joint Franco-Spanish

amphibious landing Amphibious warfare is a type of offensive military operation that today uses naval ships to project ground and air power onto a hostile or potentially hostile shore at a designated landing beach. Through history the operations were conducte ...

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 Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colon ...

and to

colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge ...

at the end of the war. During the early 1930s, 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 A republic () is a " state in which power rests with the people or their representatives; specifically a state without a monarchy" and also a "government, or system of government, of such a state." Previously, especially in the 17th and 18th ...

, he participated in the abortive

José Sanjurjo José Sanjurjo y Sacanell (; 28 March 1872 – 20 July 1936), was a Spanish general, one of the military leaders who plotted the July 1936 ''coup d'état'' which started the Spanish Civil War. He was endowed the nobiliary title of "Marquis o ...

uprising in 1932 for which he was imprisoned. He was released and joined the

Carlists Carlism ( eu, Karlismo; ca, Carlisme; ; ) is a Traditionalist and Legitimist political movement in Spain aimed at establishing an alternative branch of the Bourbon dynasty – one descended from Don Carlos, Count of Molina (1788–1855) – ...

and organized the

militia A militia () is generally an army or some other fighting organization of non-professional soldiers, citizens of a country, or subjects of a state, who may perform military service during a time of need, as opposed to a professional force of r ...

or the

paramilitary A paramilitary is an organization whose structure, tactics, training, subculture, and (often) function are similar to those of a professional military, but is not part of a country's official or legitimate armed forces. Paramilitary units carr ...

units of the Carlists, the Requetés, into the formidable military organization that it became in the

. 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.

The Civil War

In jail in Cadiz when the rising started, he was released on 18 July and helped secure Cadiz for the insurrection. He participated in many of the campaigns of the War including, Seville, Córdoba, Malaga, Extremadura, Tagus Valley,

Alcázar An alcázar, from Arabic ''al-Qasr'', is a type of Islamic castle or palace in the Iberian Peninsula (also known as al-Andalus) built during Muslim rule between the 8th and 15th centuries. They functioned as homes and regional capitals for gov ...

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 ...

Jarama Jarama () is a river in central Spain. It flows north to south, and passes east of Madrid where the El Atazar Dam is built on a tributary, the Lozoya River. It flows into the river Tagus in Aranjuez. The Manzanares is a tributary of the Jaram ...

Brunete Brunete () is a town located on the outskirts of Madrid, Spain with a population of 10,730 people. History There was no military garrison in Brunete and there was no rebel attempt to seize the city during the coup of July 1936. Brunete remain ...

Teruel Teruel () is a city in Aragon, located in eastern Spain, and is also the capital of Teruel Province. It has a population of 35,675 in 2014 making it the least populated provincial capital in the country. It is noted for its harsh climate, with ...

and the

Ebro , name_etymology = , image = Zaragoza shel.JPG , image_size = , image_caption = The Ebro River in Zaragoza , map = SpainEbroBasin.png , map_size = , map_caption = The Ebro ...

In Francoist Spain

Ending the war with the rank of

major general Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of ...

, he was appointed minister of war in

Franco's 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 ...

August 1939 government and was considered a representative of the

Carlist Carlism ( eu, Karlismo; ca, Carlisme; ; ) is a Traditionalist and Legitimist political movement in Spain aimed at establishing an alternative branch of the Bourbon dynasty – one descended from Don Carlos, Count of Molina (1788–1855) – o ...

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 The Battle of France (french: bataille de France) (10 May – 25 June 1940), also known as the Western Campaign ('), the French Campaign (german: Frankreichfeldzug, ) and the Fall of France, was the German invasion of France during the Second World ...

in 1940 and

Hitler Adolf Hitler (; 20 April 188930 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was dictator of Nazi Germany, Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his death in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the le ...

's subsequent overtures to Franco, Varela was anti-

national socialist Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in ...

and a leading opponent of Spanish entry into the war on the Axis side, although he did endorse the

Blue Division The Blue Division ( es, División Azul, german: Blaue Division) was a unit of volunteers from Francoist Spain within the German Army (''Wehrmacht'') on the Eastern Front during World War II. It was officially designated the Spanish Volunteer ...

's participation on the Eastern Front fighting the Soviet Union. 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 16 August 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 Begoña Bombing 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 (14 November 1896, in Madrid – 28 April 1969, in Madrid) was a Spanish soldier and statesman who fought for the Nationalist faction during the Spanish Civil War, rising in command from Colonel to General in Franco's ...

. In 1945 Franco appointed Varela as high commissioner of

Spanish Morocco Morocco (),, ) officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is the westernmost country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It overlooks the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to ...

. He was later made

captain-general Captain general (and its literal equivalent in several languages) is a high military rank of general officer grade, and a gubernatorial title. History The term "Captain General" started to appear in the 14th century, with the meaning of Command ...

of Madrid. He died of leukemia in 1951. Franco subsequently granted Varela a posthumous

marquisate A marquess (; french: marquis ), es, marqués, pt, marquês. is a nobleman of high hereditary rank in various European peerages and in those of some of their former colonies. The German language equivalent is Markgraf (margrave). A woman w ...

title as Marquis of San Fernando de Varela. After his death he was also granted the title of Captain General of the Army, passed from the also deceased former dictator

Miguel Primo de Rivera Miguel Primo de Rivera y Orbaneja, 2nd Marquess of Estella (8 January 1870 – 16 March 1930), was a dictator, aristocrat, and military officer who served as Prime Minister of Spain from 1923 to 1930 during Spain's Restoration era. He deepl ...

in 1951 (until 1952, when the title was granted also posthumously to the General

Juan Yagüe Juan Yagüe y Blanco, 1st Marquis of San Leonardo de Yagüe (19 November 1891 – 21 October 1952) was a Spanish military officer during the Spanish Civil War, one of the most important in the Nationalist side. He became known as the "Butcher of ...

). He is the only Spanish soldier to have risen from the rank of private to Captain General, the highest rank in the Army.

Notes

Bibliography

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Varela, Jose Enrique 1891 births 1951 deaths People from San Fernando, Cádiz Spanish generals Carlism Francoist Spain Laureate Cross of Saint Ferdinand Defence ministers of Spain Spanish military personnel of the Rif War Spanish military personnel of the Spanish Civil War (National faction)