Antonio Maura Montaner

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Antonio Maura y Montaner (Palma de Mallorca, May 2, 1853 - Madrid, December 13, 1925) was Prime Minister of Spain on five separate occasions:

October 23, 1900 to March 6, 1902 and
January 25, 1907 to October 21, 1909

1 Biography
2 Descendants
3 See also
4 References
5 External links

[edit] Biography

Born into a rich family, he studied law in Madrid. He was a prolific watercolorist and often painted scenes of nature or old buildings from a simpler era. He entered the Cortes in 1881 as a liberal delegate for Majorca, but later joined the Conservative party. In 1886 he held the position of vice-president of the Congress. As prime minister, he attempted to carry out a reform plan, but this was fiercely opposed by the liberals. He fell from power after the brutal suppression of an uprising in Barcelona in 1909, called the Tragic Week. His abilities and authoritarian personality made him the hero of a semi-Fascist youth movement (Mauristas); however, when he later headed coalition cabinets with other parties (1918, 1919, 1921–22), he did nothing to advance non-democratic methods. Many of his followers later supported the dictatorship of Miguel Primo de Rivera, but he remained aloof from the new regime.

Antonio Maura came into the political arena founding a party to fight "caciques" culture which he considered as the cancer of Hispanic political groups and the obstacle towards liberal and democratic institutions. When Antonio Maura was Prime Minister of king Alfonso XIII, he spent summer in the estate of Can Mossenya [an historic part of the Royal Chartreuse of Jesus of Nazareth where Chopin and George Sand had also been the previous century]. Azorín who admired him very much at the time, travel from the continent to meet Maura. The International Foundation Can Mossenya - Friends of Jorge Luis Borges has name a entrace to its historic estate "Gate of Friendship - Azorín and Maura" after this encounter which left a brief book where Azorín notes his impressions of this travel to meet Maura.

[edit] Descendants

Gabriel Maura Gamazo (Duke of Maura, son of Antonio, historian and Minister of work in the last government of the reign of Alfonso XIII)
Miguel Maura Gamazo (Minister of Security in the first government of the Spanish Republic, son of Antonio)
Honorio Maura Gamazo (Playwriter and monarchist deputy, son of Antonio killed by leftist militia at the beginning of the Spanish Civil war, 1936)

Movies as a playwriter:

1931 "Un Caballero de frac" Directed by Roger Capellani and Carlos San Martín, located in Les Studios Paramount.

1933 "Susana Has a Secret" (USA) Directed by Benito Perojo

1935 "Julieta compra un hijo" Directed by Gregorio Martínez Sierra and Louis King

1944 "Ella, él y sus millones" Directed by Juan de Orduña

1957 "los Maridos no cenan en casa" Directed by Jerónimo Mihura.

Hernando Maura (Aerobatic pilot, son of Honorio)
Luisa Isabel Álvarez de Toledo y Maura,(Duchess of Medina-Sidonia, in Italy also Princess of Montalbano, - Princess of Paternò - Countess de Sclafani)
Macarena Chávarri de la Mora (Baroness of Grado)
Julía Maura (Writer)
The Marquis of Villatoya (son of Julía Maura)
Jaime Chávarri (film director, son of Marichu de la Mora Maura)
Actress Carmen Maura
Jorge Semprún-Maura, former Education secretary of Spain during the Premiership of Felipe González
Carlos Semprún-Maura, writer and journalist, brother to Jorge. Both lived in Paris as their father was a republican general who went into exile after they lost in the Spanish Civil War.