Luis Araquistáin Quevedo (
Bárcena de Pie de Concha
Bárcena de Pie de Concha is a municipality that is located in the autonomous community of Cantabria, Spain. According to the 2024 census, there were 674 inhabitants as compared to the 2007 census
A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') ...
,
Cantabria
Cantabria (, ; ) is an autonomous community and Provinces of Spain, province in northern Spain with Santander, Cantabria, Santander as its capital city. It is called a , a Nationalities and regions of Spain, historic community, in its current ...
,
Spain
Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...
, 1886 –
Geneva
Geneva ( , ; ) ; ; . is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland and the most populous in French-speaking Romandy. Situated in the southwest of the country, where the Rhône exits Lake Geneva, it is the ca ...
,
Switzerland
Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...
, 1959) was a Spanish
politician
A politician is a person who participates in Public policy, policy-making processes, usually holding an elective position in government. Politicians represent the people, make decisions, and influence the formulation of public policy. The roles ...
and
writer
A writer is a person who uses written words in different writing styles, genres and techniques to communicate ideas, to inspire feelings and emotions, or to entertain. Writers may develop different forms of writing such as novels, short sto ...
. Member of the
Spanish Socialist Workers' Party
The Spanish Socialist Workers' Party ( , PSOE ) is a Social democracy, social democratic Updated as required.The PSOE is described as a social-democratic party by numerous sources:
*
*
*
* List of political parties in Spain, political party ...
(PSOE) from a young age, he belonged to the circle of
Largo Caballero
Francisco Largo Caballero (15 October 1869 – 23 March 1946) was a Spanish politician and trade unionist who served as the prime minister of the Second Spanish Republic during the Spanish Civil War. He was one of the historic leaders of the Spa ...
and Tomás Meabe, of whom he was a close friend.
In 1932 he was named ambassador to
Germany
Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...
and in September 1936 ambassador to
France
France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...
, where until May 1937 he took charge of buying arms for the
Republican army in the
Spanish Civil War
The Spanish Civil War () was a military conflict fought from 1936 to 1939 between the Republican faction (Spanish Civil War), Republicans and the Nationalist faction (Spanish Civil War), Nationalists. Republicans were loyal to the Left-wing p ...
.
He founded the journals ''España'', ''Claridad'' and ''Leviatán''.
Although his leanings before and during the war were decidedly revolutionary, later he became drawn to a socialism more 'European' in character, and was moved to insist on the necessity of unity between monarchists and republicans in order that a peaceful transition from
Francoism
Francoist Spain (), also known as the Francoist dictatorship (), or Nationalist Spain () was the period of Spanish history between 1936 and 1975, when Francisco Franco ruled Spain after the Spanish Civil War with the title . After his death i ...
to
democracy
Democracy (from , ''dēmos'' 'people' and ''kratos'' 'rule') is a form of government in which political power is vested in the people or the population of a state. Under a minimalist definition of democracy, rulers are elected through competitiv ...
might be effected. This position made him some enemies, but he developed a great understanding with other moderate members of the PSOE.
After the war he went into exile in
Great Britain
Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north-west coast of continental Europe, consisting of the countries England, Scotland, and Wales. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the List of European ...
and later
Switzerland
Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...
, where he died in 1959. Just before his death Araquistáin edited the Spanish language magazine of the
Congress for Cultural Freedom
The Congress for Cultural Freedom (CCF) was an anti-communist cultural organization founded on 26 June 1950 in West Berlin. At its height, the CCF was active in thirty-five countries. In 1966 it was revealed that the Central Intelligence Agency w ...
, ''
Cuadernos
''Cuadernos'' () was a Spanish-language magazine that was published in Paris, France, in the period 1953–1965. Its full title was ''Cuadernos del Congreso por la Libertad de la Cultura''. It was one of the publications of the Congress for Cultu ...
''.
References
Further reading
*''Luis Araquistáin y el socialismo español en el exilio'' (1939-1959), Madrid 2002. .
*''Zuzagoitia, Julián, Guerra y vicisitudes de los españoles'', Crítica, Barcelona, 1977.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Araquistain, Luis
1886 births
1959 deaths
Politicians from Cantabria
Spanish Socialist Workers' Party politicians
Members of the Congress of Deputies of the Second Spanish Republic
Ambassadors of Spain to France
Ambassadors of Spain to Germany
Spanish male writers
Spanish people of the Spanish Civil War (Republican faction)
Exiles of the Spanish Civil War in Switzerland
Exiles of the Spanish Civil War in the United Kingdom
Spanish political writers
Spanish magazine founders