Ernesto Giménez Caballero
Encyclopedia
Ernesto Giménez Caballero (Madrid
, 2 August 1899 – Madrid, 14 May 1988), also known as Gecé, was a Spanish
writer, film director
, diplomat and pioneer of fascism
in the country difficult to classify as an European citizen and philosopher as he can be thought as one of the Spanish surrealists not far from Russian- Polish-Italian- "French" Wilhelm Apolinary Kostrowicki, a.k.a. Guillaume Apollinaire
, (Rome
, Italy
, 1880 - Paris
, France
, 1918), Frenchman André Breton
, (1896 - 1966), Romanian-French epigone of Dadaism, Tristan Tzara
, (1896 - 1963), or the Spaniards Pablo Picasso
, (Malaga
, Spain
1881 - Mougins
, France
1973) Salvador Dalí
, (1904 - 1989). Some people described him however, sometimes, as the Spanish Gabriele d'Annunzio
(1863 - 1938)
Educated at the Complutense University of Madrid
and to doctorate level at the University of Strasbourg
he initially espoused a moderate socialism
but, influenced by José Ortega y Gasset
's critique of democracy
, he became a nationalist in the vein of Miguel de Unamuno
.
Troubles of plain soldier GC in North Morocco
He performed military service in Spanish Morocco
, although his 1923 book on his experience, Notas Marruecas de un Soldado, which demonstrated influence from Charles Maurras
, caused such outrage amongst the generals that he was imprisoned for a time before being pardoned by General and Dictator Miguel Primo de Rivera
.
As literary critic for El Sol
he went to Italy
in 1928 and struck up friendships with such fascist thinkers as Giuseppe Bottai
,(1895 - 1959), Giovanni Gentile
, (1875 - 1944), Curzio Malaparte
, (1898 - 1957), and Filippo Tommaso Marinetti
, (1896 - 1944), all of which convinced him of fascism
.
Having had already made a name for himself as an aesthetic
writer, he announced his conversion to fascism in 1929 in an article in La Gaceta Literaria, a journal he had founded in 1927. Dubbed the "Spanish d'Annunzio
", his conversion saw him cut off from Spain's high culture (which was liberal
-dominated) to become what he described as "a literary Robinson Crusoe".
, daughter of the Italian Consul at Strasburg , Giménez Caballero's fascism was largely derived from the Italian model of fascism
whilst also including an international dimension in which he saw fascism as the future of the Latin
Roman Catholic world. By this token he had no time for Nazism
, which he saw as too Protestant and northern and even foresaw war between fascism and Nazism for a time.
Writing extensively about the decadence of modern society and fascism his book Genio de España (1932) called for a re-establishment of the Spanish Empire
to its former glory under a Mussolini-led Latin union. His follow-up La Nueva Catolicidad underlined his commitment to Roman Catholicism in his fascism.
Despite his Catholic faith, he felt certain admiration for the Jewish people, perhaps caused by a sense of ambiguity towards the Sephardim, whom he saw as "Spaniards without a Fatherland".
Gimenez Caballero declared his support for the plans of Ramiro Ledesma Ramos
and became involved in hisJuntas de Ofensiva Nacional-Sindicalista
. However the writer was no political organiser and generally left control of the movement to Ledesma. He went on to join the Falange Española Tradicionalista y de las JONS and served on the council of the movement. However he was at odds with many of the ideas of José Antonio Primo de Rivera
, son of his former redeemer from jail General Miguel Primo de Rivera, and was expelled from the Falange in 1936 after he began to work with wealthy and dubious Mallorca
banker Juan March Ordinas in the Partido Español de Patrones y Empresarios. Later readmitted to the Falange, he fled to Italy during the Spanish Civil War
but from abroad encouraged Francisco Franco
to merge the Falangists with the Carlists. He was rewarded for his encouragement with the post of Vice-Secretary for National Education in Franco's inaugural cabinet.
, to Adolf Hitler
, as a way to soften and catholicise the latter.
After the Spanish Civil War he spent most of his time abroad, holding positions in the Spanish embassies in Paraguay
and Brazil
before being appointed ambassador to Paraguay in 1958, a position he held for 14 years. In later life he continued as a writer, winning his final writing prize, Premio Espejo de España, for his work Retratos españoles (bastante parecidos) in 1985 whilst also directing a series of documentary films.
Madrid
Madrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. The population of the city is roughly 3.3 million and the entire population of the Madrid metropolitan area is calculated to be 6.271 million. It is the third largest city in the European Union, after London and Berlin, and its metropolitan...
, 2 August 1899 – Madrid, 14 May 1988), also known as Gecé, was a Spanish
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
writer, film director
Film director
A film director is a person who directs the actors and film crew in filmmaking. They control a film's artistic and dramatic nathan roach, while guiding the technical crew and actors.-Responsibilities:...
, diplomat and pioneer of fascism
Fascism
Fascism is a radical authoritarian nationalist political ideology. Fascists seek to rejuvenate their nation based on commitment to the national community as an organic entity, in which individuals are bound together in national identity by suprapersonal connections of ancestry, culture, and blood...
in the country difficult to classify as an European citizen and philosopher as he can be thought as one of the Spanish surrealists not far from Russian- Polish-Italian- "French" Wilhelm Apolinary Kostrowicki, a.k.a. Guillaume Apollinaire
Guillaume Apollinaire
Wilhelm Albert Włodzimierz Apolinary Kostrowicki, known as Guillaume Apollinaire was a French poet, playwright, short story writer, novelist, and art critic born in Italy to a Polish mother....
, (Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
, 1880 - Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, 1918), Frenchman André Breton
André Breton
André Breton was a French writer and poet. He is known best as the founder of Surrealism. His writings include the first Surrealist Manifesto of 1924, in which he defined surrealism as "pure psychic automatism"....
, (1896 - 1966), Romanian-French epigone of Dadaism, Tristan Tzara
Tristan Tzara
Tristan Tzara was a Romanian and French avant-garde poet, essayist and performance artist. Also active as a journalist, playwright, literary and art critic, composer and film director, he was known best for being one of the founders and central figures of the anti-establishment Dada movement...
, (1896 - 1963), or the Spaniards Pablo Picasso
Pablo Picasso
Pablo Diego José Francisco de Paula Juan Nepomuceno María de los Remedios Cipriano de la Santísima Trinidad Ruiz y Picasso known as Pablo Ruiz Picasso was a Spanish expatriate painter, sculptor, printmaker, ceramicist, and stage designer, one of the greatest and most influential artists of the...
, (Malaga
Málaga
Málaga is a city and a municipality in the Autonomous Community of Andalusia, Spain. With a population of 568,507 in 2010, it is the second most populous city of Andalusia and the sixth largest in Spain. This is the southernmost large city in Europe...
, Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
1881 - Mougins
Mougins
Mougins is a commune in the Alpes-Maritimes department in southeastern France.It is located on the heights of Cannes, in the district of Grasse. Mougins is a 15-minute drive from Cannes. The village is surrounded by forests, such as the Valmasque forest...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
1973) Salvador Dalí
Salvador Dalí
Salvador Domènec Felip Jacint Dalí i Domènech, Marquis de Púbol , commonly known as Salvador Dalí , was a prominent Spanish Catalan surrealist painter born in Figueres,Spain....
, (1904 - 1989). Some people described him however, sometimes, as the Spanish Gabriele d'Annunzio
Gabriele D'Annunzio
Gabriele D'Annunzio or d'Annunzio was an Italian poet, journalist, novelist, and dramatist...
(1863 - 1938)
Ernesto GC intellectual background
Educated at the Complutense University of Madrid
Complutense University of Madrid
The Complutense University of Madrid is a university in Madrid, and one of the oldest universities in the world. It is located on a sprawling campus that occupies the entirety of the Ciudad Universitaria district of Madrid, with annexes in the district of Somosaguas in the neighboring city of...
and to doctorate level at the University of Strasbourg
University of Strasbourg
The University of Strasbourg in Strasbourg, Alsace, France, is the largest university in France, with about 43,000 students and over 4,000 researchers....
he initially espoused a moderate socialism
Socialism
Socialism is an economic system characterized by social ownership of the means of production and cooperative management of the economy; or a political philosophy advocating such a system. "Social ownership" may refer to any one of, or a combination of, the following: cooperative enterprises,...
but, influenced by José Ortega y Gasset
José Ortega y Gasset
José Ortega y Gasset was a Spanish liberal philosopher and essayist working during the first half of the 20th century while Spain oscillated between monarchy, republicanism and dictatorship. He was, along with Nietzsche, a proponent of the idea of perspectivism.-Biography:José Ortega y Gasset was...
's critique of democracy
Democracy
Democracy is generally defined as a form of government in which all adult citizens have an equal say in the decisions that affect their lives. Ideally, this includes equal participation in the proposal, development and passage of legislation into law...
, he became a nationalist in the vein of Miguel de Unamuno
Miguel de Unamuno
Miguel de Unamuno y Jugo was a Spanish essayist, novelist, poet, playwright and philosopher.-Biography:...
.
Troubles of plain soldier GC in North MoroccoMoroccoMorocco , officially the Kingdom of Morocco , is a country located in North Africa. It has a population of more than 32 million and an area of 710,850 km², and also primarily administers the disputed region of the Western Sahara...
and with his hyerarchical Generals
He performed military service in Spanish MoroccoSpanish Morocco
The Spanish protectorate of Morocco was the area of Morocco under colonial rule by the Spanish Empire, established by the Treaty of Fez in 1912 and ending in 1956, when both France and Spain recognized Moroccan independence.-Territorial borders:...
, although his 1923 book on his experience, Notas Marruecas de un Soldado, which demonstrated influence from Charles Maurras
Charles Maurras
Charles-Marie-Photius Maurras was a French author, poet, and critic. He was a leader and principal thinker of Action Française, a political movement that was monarchist, anti-parliamentarist, and counter-revolutionary. Maurras' ideas greatly influenced National Catholicism and "nationalisme...
, caused such outrage amongst the generals that he was imprisoned for a time before being pardoned by General and Dictator Miguel Primo de Rivera
Miguel Primo de Rivera
Miguel Primo de Rivera y Orbaneja, 2nd Marquis of Estella, 22nd Count of Sobremonte, Knight of Calatrava was a Spanish dictator, aristocrat, and a military official who was appointed Prime Minister by the King and who for seven years was a dictator, ending the turno system of alternating...
.
As literary critic for El Sol
El Sol (Madrid)
El Sol was a Spanish newspaper printed in Madrid. It was founded the December 1, 1917 by Nicolás María de Urgoiti. Edited by Manuel Aznar Zubigaray, its writers included Julio Álvarez del Vayo and Ernesto Giménez Caballero....
he went to Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
in 1928 and struck up friendships with such fascist thinkers as Giuseppe Bottai
Giuseppe Bottai
Guiseppe Bottai was an Italian lawyer, economist, journalist, and member of the National Fascist Party of Benito Mussolini.-Fascism:...
,(1895 - 1959), Giovanni Gentile
Giovanni Gentile
Giovanni Gentile was an Italian neo-Hegelian Idealist philosopher, a peer of Benedetto Croce. He described himself as 'the philosopher of Fascism', and ghostwrote A Doctrine of Fascism for Benito Mussolini. He also devised his own system of philosophy, Actual Idealism.- Life and thought :Giovanni...
, (1875 - 1944), Curzio Malaparte
Curzio Malaparte
Curzio Malaparte , born Kurt Erich Suckert, was an Italian journalist, dramatist, short-story writer, novelist and diplomat...
, (1898 - 1957), and Filippo Tommaso Marinetti
Filippo Tommaso Marinetti
Filippo Tommaso Emilio Marinetti was an Italian poet and editor, the founder of the Futurist movement, and a fascist ideologue.-Childhood and adolescence:...
, (1896 - 1944), all of which convinced him of fascism
Fascism
Fascism is a radical authoritarian nationalist political ideology. Fascists seek to rejuvenate their nation based on commitment to the national community as an organic entity, in which individuals are bound together in national identity by suprapersonal connections of ancestry, culture, and blood...
.
Having had already made a name for himself as an aesthetic
Aesthetics
Aesthetics is a branch of philosophy dealing with the nature of beauty, art, and taste, and with the creation and appreciation of beauty. It is more scientifically defined as the study of sensory or sensori-emotional values, sometimes called judgments of sentiment and taste...
writer, he announced his conversion to fascism in 1929 in an article in La Gaceta Literaria, a journal he had founded in 1927. Dubbed the "Spanish d'Annunzio
Gabriele D'Annunzio
Gabriele D'Annunzio or d'Annunzio was an Italian poet, journalist, novelist, and dramatist...
", his conversion saw him cut off from Spain's high culture (which was liberal
Liberalism
Liberalism is the belief in the importance of liberty and equal rights. Liberals espouse a wide array of views depending on their understanding of these principles, but generally, liberals support ideas such as constitutionalism, liberal democracy, free and fair elections, human rights,...
-dominated) to become what he described as "a literary Robinson Crusoe".
Italian and Spanish Latin fascism differences with German Nazism according to GC
Being married to an ItalianItaly
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
, daughter of the Italian Consul at Strasburg , Giménez Caballero's fascism was largely derived from the Italian model of fascism
Italian Fascism
Italian Fascism also known as Fascism with a capital "F" refers to the original fascist ideology in Italy. This ideology is associated with the National Fascist Party which under Benito Mussolini ruled the Kingdom of Italy from 1922 until 1943, the Republican Fascist Party which ruled the Italian...
whilst also including an international dimension in which he saw fascism as the future of the Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
Roman Catholic world. By this token he had no time for Nazism
Nazism
Nazism, the common short form name of National Socialism was the ideology and practice of the Nazi Party and of Nazi Germany...
, which he saw as too Protestant and northern and even foresaw war between fascism and Nazism for a time.
Writing extensively about the decadence of modern society and fascism his book Genio de España (1932) called for a re-establishment of the Spanish Empire
Spanish Empire
The Spanish Empire comprised territories and colonies administered directly by Spain in Europe, in America, Africa, Asia and Oceania. It originated during the Age of Exploration and was therefore one of the first global empires. At the time of Habsburgs, Spain reached the peak of its world power....
to its former glory under a Mussolini-led Latin union. His follow-up La Nueva Catolicidad underlined his commitment to Roman Catholicism in his fascism.
Despite his Catholic faith, he felt certain admiration for the Jewish people, perhaps caused by a sense of ambiguity towards the Sephardim, whom he saw as "Spaniards without a Fatherland".
Gimenez Caballero declared his support for the plans of Ramiro Ledesma Ramos
Ramiro Ledesma Ramos
Ramiro Ledesma Ramos was a Spanish national syndicalist politician, essayist, and journalist.-Early life:...
and became involved in hisJuntas de Ofensiva Nacional-Sindicalista
Juntas de Ofensiva Nacional-Sindicalista
Juntas de Ofensiva Nacional-Sindicalista was a national syndicalist movement in 1930s Spain, eventually incorporated into the dictatorship of Francisco Franco.-History:...
. However the writer was no political organiser and generally left control of the movement to Ledesma. He went on to join the Falange Española Tradicionalista y de las JONS and served on the council of the movement. However he was at odds with many of the ideas of José Antonio Primo de Rivera
José Antonio Primo de Rivera
José Antonio Primo de Rivera y Sáenz de Heredia, 1st Duke of Primo de Rivera, 3rd Marquis of Estella , was a Spanish lawyer, nobleman, politician, and founder of the Falange Española...
, son of his former redeemer from jail General Miguel Primo de Rivera, and was expelled from the Falange in 1936 after he began to work with wealthy and dubious Mallorca
Mallorca
Majorca or Mallorca is an island located in the Mediterranean Sea, one of the Balearic Islands.The capital of the island, Palma, is also the capital of the autonomous community of the Balearic Islands. The Cabrera Archipelago is administratively grouped with Majorca...
banker Juan March Ordinas in the Partido Español de Patrones y Empresarios. Later readmitted to the Falange, he fled to Italy during the Spanish Civil War
Spanish Civil War
The Spanish Civil WarAlso known as The Crusade among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War among Carlists, and The Rebellion or Uprising among Republicans. was a major conflict fought in Spain from 17 July 1936 to 1 April 1939...
but from abroad encouraged Francisco Franco
Francisco Franco
Francisco Franco y Bahamonde was a Spanish general, dictator and head of state of Spain from October 1936 , and de facto regent of the nominally restored Kingdom of Spain from 1947 until his death in November, 1975...
to merge the Falangists with the Carlists. He was rewarded for his encouragement with the post of Vice-Secretary for National Education in Franco's inaugural cabinet.
Trying to corrupt Hitler´s aryan blood with a Latin-Spanish wife
One of the most bizarre of Giménez Caballero's actions was perhaps his unsuccessful attempt to marry Primo de Rivera's sister, PilarPilar Primo de Rivera
Doña María del Pilar Primo de Rivera y Sáenz de Heredia, 1st Countess of the Castle of La Mota was the sister of José Antonio Primo de Rivera, founder of the Falange, a political movement of Spain, and the daughter of Spanish dictator General Miguel Primo de Rivera, 2nd Marquis of Estella.She was...
, to Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician and the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party , commonly referred to as the Nazi Party). He was Chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945, and head of state from 1934 to 1945...
, as a way to soften and catholicise the latter.
After the Spanish Civil War he spent most of his time abroad, holding positions in the Spanish embassies in Paraguay
Paraguay
Paraguay , officially the Republic of Paraguay , is a landlocked country in South America. It is bordered by Argentina to the south and southwest, Brazil to the east and northeast, and Bolivia to the northwest. Paraguay lies on both banks of the Paraguay River, which runs through the center of the...
and Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
before being appointed ambassador to Paraguay in 1958, a position he held for 14 years. In later life he continued as a writer, winning his final writing prize, Premio Espejo de España, for his work Retratos españoles (bastante parecidos) in 1985 whilst also directing a series of documentary films.
External links
- Biography and written works
- Origen europeo, liberal y antiespañol de las corridas de toros, a 1931 diatribe in which Giménez attacks modern bullfightingBullfightingBullfighting is a traditional spectacle of Spain, Portugal, southern France and some Latin American countries , in which one or more bulls are baited in a bullring for sport and entertainment...
with unusual arguments about it being populist, foreign and un-Spanish.
- Origen europeo, liberal y antiespañol de las corridas de toros, a 1931 diatribe in which Giménez attacks modern bullfighting