Nicolás Estévanez Murphy (17 February 1838 – 19 August 1914) was a Spanish military officer, politician, essayist and poet. A federal republican, he briefly served as civil governor of Madrid and as
Minister of War
A ministry of defence or defense (see American and British English spelling differences#-ce.2C -se, spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is the part of a government responsible for matters of defence and Mi ...
in the wake of the proclamation of the First Spanish Republic. A defender of the Africanness of his native
Canary Islands
The Canary Islands (; ) or Canaries are an archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean and the southernmost Autonomous communities of Spain, Autonomous Community of Spain. They are located in the northwest of Africa, with the closest point to the cont ...
, which were a central motif of his written work, he espoused a blend of anti-european,
atheist
Atheism, in the broadest sense, is an absence of belief in the existence of deities. Less broadly, atheism is a rejection of the belief that any deities exist. In an even narrower sense, atheism is specifically the position that there no ...
revolutionary
A revolutionary is a person who either participates in, or advocates for, a revolution. The term ''revolutionary'' can also be used as an adjective to describe something producing a major and sudden impact on society.
Definition
The term—bot ...
and
anarchist
Anarchism is a political philosophy and Political movement, movement that seeks to abolish all institutions that perpetuate authority, coercion, or Social hierarchy, hierarchy, primarily targeting the state (polity), state and capitalism. A ...
ideals. While he showed an unwavering commitment to Spanish patriotism, Estévanez has been reconstructed as a sort of father of Canarian nationalism by Canarian nationalist authors. He was a close collaborator of Francisco Pi y Margall.
Biography
Born in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria on 17 February 1838, the son of captain Francisco de Paula Estébanez y García Caballero (a progressive military officer from
Málaga
Málaga (; ) is a Municipalities in Spain, municipality of Spain, capital of the Province of Málaga, in the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Andalusia. With a population of 591,637 in 2024, it is the second-most populo ...
, Andalusia) and Isabel Murphy y Meade (a Canarian woman descended from Irish merchants settled in the islands in the late 18th century). Very young, in 1852, he entered the military academy in Toledo. After graduating, he served in the 1859–1860 African War. He took part in a number of war actions, including the 4 February 1860
Battle of Tétouan
A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and force co ...
Cuba
Cuba, officially the Republic of Cuba, is an island country, comprising the island of Cuba (largest island), Isla de la Juventud, and List of islands of Cuba, 4,195 islands, islets and cays surrounding the main island. It is located where the ...
with the rank of captain when eight students were executed by the authorities who found them guilty of anti-Spanish activities and of vandalizing some tomb sites. On hearing the news he publicly protested and, for this reason, was expelled from the army but he never apologized or renounced his actions and was always proud of what he did. To this day, on the façade of the Hotel Inglaterra in
Havana, Cuba
Havana (; ) is the capital and largest city of Cuba. The heart of La Habana Province, Havana is the country's main port and commercial center.revolution of September 1868 and joined the republican insurrection of 1869 for which he was imprisoned.
He later was elected member of parliament and was appointed minister in the cabinet of Pi y Margall during the First Spanish Republic but with the restoration of the monarchy he went into exile in
Paris
Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...
,
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 ...
.
Described in police reports as an "everlasting conspirator and expert in explosive devices", he has been pointed out as a presumed plotter in the attempted regicide of Alfonso XIII on 31 May 1906. He would have moved from his Parisian exile to Barcelona earlier in the month, reportedly holding a meeting at
Tibidabo
Tibidabo () is a hill overlooking Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. At , it is the tallest hill in the Serra de Collserola. Rising sharply to the north-west, it has views over the city and the surrounding coastline.
The summit of the hill is occupi ...
with Francisco Ferrer and Mateo Morral—the physical perpetrator—before leaving for Cuba.
He died on 19 August 1914 in Paris.