Melchor Rodríguez García
Encyclopedia
Melchor Rodríguez García (also known as El Ángel Rojo - Red Angel; 1893, —February 14, 1972), was a Spanish
politician and statesman, a notable anarcho-syndicalist
, and the head of prison authorities in Madrid
during the Spanish Civil War
.
, he started his career as a worker. During the times of the Second Spanish Republic
he joined the Agrupación Anarquista union and became the head of one of its trade union
s. After the outbreak of the Civil War, on December 5, 1936, Juan García Oliver
appointed Rodríguez García director of the prisons of Madrid, as one of the anarchists to be accepted into the government for their support of the republicans. At that post, he was responsible not only for the upkeep of the prisoners and prevention of escapes, but - more importantly - for prevention of lynching
, proposed by numerous members of various militia
s. During the first months of the war, the problem of extra-legal execution
of prisoners was serious and quite common.
The militias and other armed groups were driven by the desire to eliminate the enemies of the Republic at all cost, and the execution of political opponents was quite common. Also, the society of besieged Madrid often reacted with violence towards the imprisoned nationalists after particularly bloody bombardments or after the press reporting of the nationalist treatment of captured republicans. The fact that the Spanish government was weak during the opening stages of the civil war did not help either. The most notable of such accidents happened after the air raid on Alcalá de Henares
air base. A group of protesters, some of whom were armed, arrived at one of Madrid's prisons, stormed the gates and demanded that the cells be opened and the nationalist prisoners be handed to the crowd. Rodríguez appeared in the prison, ordered the crowd to disperse and even announced that he would rather give arms to the prisoners than hand them over to the mob. Among the saved prisoners were rightist General Valentín Gallarza, notable football player Ricardo Zamora
, politician Ramón Serrano Súñer
, Rafael Sánchez Mazas
and Raimundo Fernández-Cuesta
.
During his term in office, Melchor Rodríguez García also revealed that José Cazorla, a counsellor of state security of the Council of Defence of Madrid organized a net of private, illegal prisons run by the Communist Party of Spain. Later in the war he became one of Madrid's counsellors himself, on behalf of the Iberian Anarchist Federation. After the fall of Madrid in 1939, it was him to officially pass the office to the new Francoist authorities.
After the fall of the republic, Melchor Rodríguez was tried for his war-time past by the victorious nationalists. However, due to favourable testimonies of many former prisoners, he was only imprisoned, while the majority of his colleagues were either exiled or executed. He lived the rest of his life in Madrid.
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...
politician and statesman, a notable anarcho-syndicalist
Anarcho-syndicalism
Anarcho-syndicalism is a branch of anarchism which focuses on the labour movement. The word syndicalism comes from the French word syndicat which means trade union , from the Latin word syndicus which in turn comes from the Greek word σύνδικος which means caretaker of an issue...
, and the head of prison authorities in Madrid
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...
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...
.
Biography
Born in SevilleSeville
Seville is the artistic, historic, cultural, and financial capital of southern Spain. It is the capital of the autonomous community of Andalusia and of the province of Seville. It is situated on the plain of the River Guadalquivir, with an average elevation of above sea level...
, he started his career as a worker. During the times of the Second Spanish Republic
Second Spanish Republic
The Second Spanish Republic was the government of Spain between April 14 1931, and its destruction by a military rebellion, led by General Francisco Franco....
he joined the Agrupación Anarquista union and became the head of one of its trade union
Trade union
A trade union, trades union or labor union is an organization of workers that have banded together to achieve common goals such as better working conditions. The trade union, through its leadership, bargains with the employer on behalf of union members and negotiates labour contracts with...
s. After the outbreak of the Civil War, on December 5, 1936, Juan García Oliver
Juan García Oliver
Juan García Oliver was a Spanish Anarcho-syndicalist revolutionary, and a leading figure of Anarchism in Spain....
appointed Rodríguez García director of the prisons of Madrid, as one of the anarchists to be accepted into the government for their support of the republicans. At that post, he was responsible not only for the upkeep of the prisoners and prevention of escapes, but - more importantly - for prevention of lynching
Lynching
Lynching is an extrajudicial execution carried out by a mob, often by hanging, but also by burning at the stake or shooting, in order to punish an alleged transgressor, or to intimidate, control, or otherwise manipulate a population of people. It is related to other means of social control that...
, proposed by numerous members of various militia
Militia
The term militia is commonly used today to refer to a military force composed of ordinary citizens to provide defense, emergency law enforcement, or paramilitary service, in times of emergency without being paid a regular salary or committed to a fixed term of service. It is a polyseme with...
s. During the first months of the war, the problem of extra-legal execution
Capital punishment
Capital punishment, the death penalty, or execution is the sentence of death upon a person by the state as a punishment for an offence. Crimes that can result in a death penalty are known as capital crimes or capital offences. The term capital originates from the Latin capitalis, literally...
of prisoners was serious and quite common.
The militias and other armed groups were driven by the desire to eliminate the enemies of the Republic at all cost, and the execution of political opponents was quite common. Also, the society of besieged Madrid often reacted with violence towards the imprisoned nationalists after particularly bloody bombardments or after the press reporting of the nationalist treatment of captured republicans. The fact that the Spanish government was weak during the opening stages of the civil war did not help either. The most notable of such accidents happened after the air raid on Alcalá de Henares
Alcalá de Henares
Alcalá de Henares , meaning Citadel on the river Henares, is a Spanish city, whose historical centre is one of UNESCO's World Heritage Sites, and one of the first bishoprics founded in Spain...
air base. A group of protesters, some of whom were armed, arrived at one of Madrid's prisons, stormed the gates and demanded that the cells be opened and the nationalist prisoners be handed to the crowd. Rodríguez appeared in the prison, ordered the crowd to disperse and even announced that he would rather give arms to the prisoners than hand them over to the mob. Among the saved prisoners were rightist General Valentín Gallarza, notable football player Ricardo Zamora
Ricardo Zamora
Ricard Zamora i Martínez was a Spanish footballer and manager. He played as a goalkeeper for, among others, RCD Espanyol, FC Barcelona and Real Madrid. As an international he played for both the Catalan XI and Spain...
, politician Ramón Serrano Súñer
Ramón Serrano Súñer
Ramón Serrano Súñer , was a Spanish politician during the first stages of General Francisco Franco's dictatorship, the Spanish State, between 1938 and 1942, when he held the posts of President of the Political Junta Política of Falange Española Tradicionalista y de las JONS , and Interior and...
, Rafael Sánchez Mazas
Rafael Sánchez Mazas
Rafael Sánchez Mazas was a Spanish nationalist writer and a leader of the Falange, a right-wing political movement created in Spain before the Spanish Civil War....
and Raimundo Fernández-Cuesta
Raimundo Fernández-Cuesta
Raimundo Fernández-Cuesta y Merelo was a leading Spanish politician with both the Falange and its successor movement the Spanish Traditionalist Phalanx of the Assemblies of National-Syndicalist Offensive....
.
During his term in office, Melchor Rodríguez García also revealed that José Cazorla, a counsellor of state security of the Council of Defence of Madrid organized a net of private, illegal prisons run by the Communist Party of Spain. Later in the war he became one of Madrid's counsellors himself, on behalf of the Iberian Anarchist Federation. After the fall of Madrid in 1939, it was him to officially pass the office to the new Francoist authorities.
After the fall of the republic, Melchor Rodríguez was tried for his war-time past by the victorious nationalists. However, due to favourable testimonies of many former prisoners, he was only imprisoned, while the majority of his colleagues were either exiled or executed. He lived the rest of his life in Madrid.