Emilio Blanco Izaga (1892–1949) was a Spanish military comptroller, ethnographer and architect, who developed his career in the

Spanish Protectorate in Morocco The Spanish protectorate in Morocco ; es, Protectorado español de Marruecos, links=no, was established on 27 November 1912 by a treaty between France and Spain that converted the Spanish sphere of influence in Morocco into a formal protect ...

. He published a number of ethnographic and architectural essays on the Rif region.

Biography

Born on 15 March 1892 in Orduña, Biscay, he licentiated from the Infantry Academy in 1913. He was destined to

Larache Larache ( ar, العرايش, al-'Araysh) is a city in northwestern Morocco. It is on the Moroccan coast, where the Loukkos River meets the Atlantic Ocean. Larache is one of the most important cities of the Tanger-Tetouan-Al Hoceima region. M ...

, in the

in 1914. A military colonial comptroller in the Spanish protectorate of Morocco from 1927 to 1945, he served as delegate for Native Affairs from 1944 to 1945. Ascribed to

Africanism Africanisms refers to characteristics of African culture that can be traced through societal practices and institutions of the African diaspora. Throughout history, the dispersed descendants of Africans have retained many forms of their ancest ...

, according to Alfonso Iglesias Amorín, Blanco fitted better a profile in the vein of the 19th-century Spanish africanists, underpinned by a greater respect for the local population, a greater awareness of the social and cultural fabric of the Protectorate, and a preference for peaceful solutions rather than the ''africanomilitarismo'' subset embodied by the likes of

Francisco Franco 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 19 ...

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 ...

Emilio Mola Emilio Mola y Vidal, 1st Duke of Mola, Grandee of Spain (9 July 1887 – 3 June 1937) was one of the three leaders of the Nationalist coup of July 1936, which started the Spanish Civil War. After the death of Sanjurjo on 20 July 1936, M ...

José Millán-Astray José Millán-Astray y Terreros (July 5, 1879 – January 1, 1954) was a Spanish soldier, the founder and first commander of the Spanish Legion, and a major early figure of Francoist Dictatorship. Astray was notable for his disfigured body: duri ...

and

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 ...

, characterised for vying for a rapid military promotion, a lesser cultural acumen and for espousing anti-democratic views. A Berberophile, he was weary of the Arab and French influences on the Berbers, rejecting both Western and Arab influences in the architecture of the region. Striving towards finding an ideal style from the

Riffians Riffians or Rifians (; singular: , ) are a Berber ethnic group originally from the Rif region of northeastern Morocco (includes the autonomous city of Spain, Melilla). Communities of Riffian immigrants are also found in southern Spain, Nether ...

, he projected a number of small buildings in the protectorate based on a mashup of ''

ksar Ksar or qsar (Maghrebi Arabic: قصر ''qṣer'' or ڭصر ''gser'', plural ''qṣur''; Berber: ⵉⴴⵔⵎ ''aghrem'' or ''ighrem'', plural: ''igherman''), plural ksars, qsars, ksour or qsour, is the North African term for "fortified vill ...

'' from Southern Morocco, Neo-Pharaonic egyptian architecture and Pre-Columbian models. A keen researcher of the Riffian

customary law A legal custom is the established pattern of behavior that can be objectively verified within a particular social setting. A claim can be carried out in defense of "what has always been done and accepted by law". Customary law (also, consuetudina ...

, he praised the perks of keeping the local assemblies in force, opposed to the influence dictated by the ''

Makhzen Makhzen (Arabic: , Berber: ''Lmexzen'') is the governing institution in Morocco and in pre-1957 Tunisia, centered on the monarch and consisting of royal notables, top-ranking military personnel, landowners, security service bosses, civil servant ...

''; he got to the point of stating "what is ridiculous (on the Part of the Spanish colonial administration) is not having protected the Rif from Sharia contamination". He died in 1949 in

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), an ...

. has described him as "probably the most relevant Spanish ''rifeñista'' from the 20th century".

Works

* ''La vivienda rifeña: ensayo de característica e interpretación con ilustraciones del autor'' (1930) * ''El Rif. La ley rifeña: los cánones rifeños comentados'' (1939).

References

;Citations ;Bibliography * * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Blanco Izaga, Emilio Spanish architects Colonial history of Morocco Spanish expatriates in Morocco Architecture in Morocco Spanish ethnographers Spanish military officers Rif 1892 births 1949 deaths Spanish Africanists Spanish colonial officials