José Robles Pazos (

Santiago de Compostela Santiago de Compostela is the capital of the autonomous community of Galicia, in northwestern Spain. The city has its origin in the shrine of Saint James the Great, now the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela, as the destination of the Way of S ...

, 1897–1937) was a

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Can ...

writer,

academic An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of secondary or tertiary higher learning (and generally also research or honorary membership). The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy, ...

and independent left-wing activist. Born to an aristocratic family, Robles embraced left-wing views which forced him to leave Spain and go into exile in the United States. In the 1920s, he was teaching at

Johns Hopkins University Johns Hopkins University (Johns Hopkins, Hopkins, or JHU) is a private research university in Baltimore, Maryland. Founded in 1876, Johns Hopkins is the oldest research university in the United States and in the western hemisphere. It consi ...

and became a friend and

Spanish language Spanish ( or , Castilian) is a Romance language of the Indo-European language family that evolved from colloquial Latin spoken on the Iberian peninsula. Today, it is a global language with more than 500 million native speakers, mainly in th ...

translator for writer

John Dos Passos John Roderigo Dos Passos (; January 14, 1896 – September 28, 1970) was an American novelist, most notable for his ''U.S.A.'' trilogy. Born in Chicago, Dos Passos graduated from Harvard College in 1916. He traveled widely as a young man, visit ...

, who at the time also supported the radical left. His translation of '' Manhattan Transfer'' is still considered to be exemplary. He also translated some works of

Sinclair Lewis Harry Sinclair Lewis (February 7, 1885 – January 10, 1951) was an American writer and playwright. In 1930, he became the first writer from the United States (and the first from the Americas) to receive the Nobel Prize in Literature, which was ...

. At the outbreak of 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 Carlists, and The Rebellion ( es, La Rebelión, link ...

, Robles was on vacation in Spain. He supported the cause of the

Spanish Republic The Spanish Republic (), commonly known as the Second Spanish Republic (), was the form of government in Spain from 1931 to 1939. The Republic was proclaimed on 14 April 1931, after the deposition of King Alfonso XIII, and was dissolved on 1 A ...

, but his independent and outspoken views brought him in conflict with the Soviet Union's emissaries, who were gaining increasing control of the Republican government. In early 1937 Robles disappeared. The American left-wing journalist

Josephine Herbst Josephine Herbst (March 5, 1892 – January 28, 1969) was an American writer and journalist, active from 1923 to near the time of her death. She was a radical with communist leanings, who "incorporate the philosophy of socialism into her ficti ...

, then on a visit to the Civil War front, found out that he had been arrested and shot as an alleged "spy for

Francoists Francisco Franco Bahamonde (; 4 December 1892 – 20 November 1975) was a Spanish general who led the Nationalist faction (Spanish Civil War), Nationalist forces in overthrowing the Second Spanish Republic during the Spanish Civil War ...

", and conveyed this information to

Ernest Hemingway Ernest Miller Hemingway (July 21, 1899 – July 2, 1961) was an American novelist, short-story writer, and journalist. His economical and understated style—which he termed the iceberg theory—had a strong influence on 20th-century f ...

and Dos Passos who were in Madrid. The exact circumstances of his death were never clarified, and the charge of his having spied for the

Nationalists 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: The ...

was doubted. Rather, it was suggested that he was among many other left-wingers (for example, Andrés Nin) killed by Soviet NKVD agents, led by Aleksandr Mikhailovich Orlov, Alexander Orlov, for their independent stance at the time. In a letter to the editor published in ''The New Republic'' in July 1939, Dos Passos wrote that it was not until he reached Madrid (after having spent a week in Valencia) that he got what he called "definite information from the then chief of the Republican counter-espionage service that Robles had been executed by a 'special section' (which I gathered was under control of the Communist Party) … Spaniards I talked to closer to the Communist Party took the attitude that Robles had been shot as an example to other officials because he had been overheard indiscreetly discussing military plans in a cafe. The 'fascist spy' theory seems to be the fabrication of romantic American Communist sympathizers. I certainly did not hear it from any Spaniards." According to research by writer Stephen Koch, the real reason Robles was killed was that he had been the translator of Yan Karlovich Berzin, a senior Soviet military envoy to Spain who knew no Spanish. When Berzin disputed with Orlov about the relative priority to be given to preserving the military efficiency of Spanish Republican forces vs. conducting NKVD purges of Spanish Anarchists, POUM etc., and lost the favor of Stalin as a result, then Robles' knowledge of behind-the-scenes Soviet maneuverings in Spain became highly inconvenient to the Soviets.Koch (1994), pp. 283ff. Robles' execution caused a total rift between Hemingway and Dos Passos, who were previously friends. Hemingway condoned the killing, as "necessary in time of war", while Dos Passos, embittered by the death of his friend, broke away from the left altogether and started his move to the political right. Robles' last days before his disappearance are shown in a 2012 movie ''Hemingway & Gellhorn''.

References

External links

"The Spanish Prisoner"
Stephen Koch, ''The Breaking Point: Hemingway, dos Passos, and the Murder of Jose Robles'', reviewed by George Packer. *Martínez de Pisón, Ignacio (2005). ''Enterrar a los muertos'' (1st edition). Editorial Seix Barral (Spanish). *Carr, Virginia (1984). ''Dos Passos: A Life''. New York: Doubleday & Co. *Paul Preston, Preston, Paul (2008). ''We Saw Spain Die. Foreign Correspondents in the Spanish Civil War''. London: Constable. *Koch, Stephen (1994). ''Double Lives: Spies and Writers in the Secret Soviet War of Ideas against the West''. {{DEFAULTSORT:Robles, José 1897 births 1937 deaths People from Santiago de Compostela Spanish military personnel of the Spanish Civil War (Republican faction) Johns Hopkins University faculty Galician translators Spanish military personnel English–Spanish translators 20th-century translators Executed military personnel Executed Spanish people People killed by the Second Spanish Republic