Antonio María Oriol Urquijo

In this Spanish name, the first or paternal surname is Oriol and the second or maternal family name is Urquijo.

Antonio María de Oriol y Urquijo (1913–1996) was a Spanish politician and businessman. Politically he supported the Traditionalist cause, first as a Carlist militant and then as a Francoist official. In 1955–1977 he was a member of Cortes Españolas; in 1957–1965 he headed the welfare department in the Ministry of Interior; in 1965–1973 he served as the Minister of Justice; in 1973–1978 he was a member of the Council of the Realm and in 1973–1979 he presided over the Council of State. As businessman he was active in companies controlled by the Oriol family, holding executive positions in Iberdrola, Patentes Talgo and other entities.

Antonio María de Oriol
Born	Antonio María de Oriol y Urquijo 1913 Getxo, Spain
Died	1996 (aged 82–83) Madrid, Spain
Nationality	Spanish
Occupation(s)	official, businessman
Known for	politician
Political party	Carlism, FET, UNE

Family and youth

 

Antonio's grandfather, José de Oriol y Gordo Sáez, c. 1880

Antonio Oriol was born to a family of Catalan origins, its first members noted in the history of Spain in the 17th century.^[1] Buenaventura Oriol Salvador sided with the legitimists during the First Carlist War. In recognition of his merits the claimant awarded him with Marquesado de Oriol in 1870;^[2] he was elected to the Cortes in 1872.^[3] The son of his brother and Antonio's paternal grandfather, José María Oriol Gordo (1845–1899),^[4] a native of Tortosa, joined Carlos VII during the Third Carlist War and served as Jefe de Ayudantes of general Dorregaray.^[5] Following the amnesty he settled in Bilbao and married descendant to a local high bourgeoisie Urigüen family.^[6] His son and Antonio's father, José Luis Oriol Urigüen (1877–1972), in the mid-1930s emerged as a Carlist political mogul in Álava. He wed Catalina de Urquijo y Vitórica, descendant to an oligarchic family^[7] which controlled much of the Biscay finance.^[8] In the early 20th century Oriol Urigüen replaced his father-in-law as CEO of Hidroeléctrica Española^[9] and later developed a number of other businesses; he is considered one of the most important Spanish entrepreneurs of the 20th century.^[10]

José Luis and Catalina initially lived in a family estate in Getxo, the affluent suburb of Bilbao and hub of the oligarchic Basque bourgeoisie; however, they soon moved to Madrid. The couple had 8 children, all brought up in great wealth but also in a fervently religious ambience;^[11] Antonio was born as the fourth son; he had also a younger brother.^[12] It is not clear whether like at least one of his older brothers, he frequented a Jesuit high school in the capital.^[13] At unspecified time though probably in the early 1930s he enrolled at Department of Law at the Madrid university and graduated in juridical sciences in 1935.^[14] He prepared to join the family business but did so no sooner that after the Civil War.

 

Antonio's father, José Luis de Oriol y Urigüen, 1933

In 1940 Antonio Oriol married María de la Soledad Díaz de Bustamante y Quijano (died 1990).^[15] She descended from a wealthy Cantabrian family of entrepreneurs,^[16] though her father – who married into another industrial fortune^[17] - lived already in Madrid.^[18] The couple settled at the grand Oriol family estate near Majadahonda;^[19] it was shared with Antonio's brothers, two of them – Lucas and especially José María – growing to high Francoist officials and business tycoons.^[20] Antonio and Soledad had seven children;^[21] all the sons became high corporate executives,^[22] but they did not engage in politics. The daughter María married Miguel Primo de Rivera y Urquijo, grandson of the dictator and later one of key people behind the Spanish transition to democracy.^[23] Among 39 of Oriol's grandchildren^[24] the best known is Rocio Primo de Rivera Oriol, author of few fiction and history books;^[25] her brother Fernando gained attention in 2019 when claiming ducado de Primo de Rivera.^[26] Most of the grandchildren are well set in the world of Spanish societé and business;^[27] in 2020 the Oriol family clan was listed as the 180. richest family in Spain.^[28]

Early public engagements and civil war (before 1940)

 

Carlist standard

Antonio's mother descended from a well known Basque family of liberal convictions, but four generations of his paternal ancestors were related to Traditionalism, even though his father adhered to a generic conservative monarchism and politically engaged in Carlism only in his 50s. Like his three older brothers, Antonio inherited legitimist preferences from forefathers and during his student years in Madrid he was active in the Carlist academic organisation, Agrupación Escolar Tradicionalista; none of the sources consulted provides information on any roles he might have performed.^[29] According to one author already in his teens he enlisted to the paramilitary Requeté organisation and remained involved in its ranks throughout all of the Republic years.^[30] Officially he was noted in the press as donating to Catholic charity^[31] and in secondary roles during some Carlist rallies in Madrid.^[32]

Oriol was engaged in Carlist anti-republican conspiracy of the spring of 1936. He was assigned to join the coup in Álava; on July 18 he hid in Palacio Verástegui in Vitoria.^[33] He planned to join the military, supposed to rise the following day.^[34] Indeed, the Vitoria-based sub-units of the 5. Mountain Regiment “Flandes” did rise and the city was swiftly seized by the rebels. Early Oriol's military assignment is not clear; it is known that in mid-September he served in requeté troops which took San Sebastián.^[35] Since later this month he was seconded to the 2. Requeté Company, incorporated into the 3. Battalion of the Flandes regiment; it was deployed North to Vitoria, in the mountain range which separated Alava from Western parts of Gipuzkoa, controlled by the loyalists. In October 1936 the unit took part in heavy fightings on the Isusquiza hill. Antonio was hit and taken to the rear;^[36] few days later on the same section his brother Fernando was mortally wounded.^[37]

 

funeral of Fernando Oriol

Following recovery in November Oriol was seconded to the alferéz provisional course in Burgos;^[38] already as provisional lieutenant he joined the 2. Company, deployed to unblock encircled Villareal de Alava, in December.^[39] In the first half of 1937 the unit engaged in the Biscay campaign; shuttled to the central front it took part in the battle of Brunete in July.^[40] In September, renamed to 8. Compañía del Requeté de Alava, it was deployed in Cantabria; during later combat in Asturias Oriol was already commanding the 1. Section.^[41] Following the Northern campaign the company took part in victory parade in Vitoria, to be shuttled to Teruel by the end of 1937. Oriol was wounded for the second time near Mata de los Olmos in March 1938;^[42] treated in the hospital,^[43] he re-joined his unit in June at the Castellón front.^[44] He commanded the section during heavy fightings in Sierra de Pandols during the Battle of Ebro;^[45] the campaign earned him an individual Military Medal.^[46] In December 1938 the company was deployed in Huesca, to take part in the Catalonia offensive in early 1939.^[47] In March promoted to capitán de infantería, Oriol finished the war commanding his unit near Cartagena.^[48]

Businessman (1940–1955)

 

Talgo rolling stock arriving from the US in the port of Pasajes, 1949

There is very little information on Oriol's engagements of the 1940s. It is known that unlike his older brother José María, who assumed major party and administrative posts of early Francoism, he did not engage in politics. Throughout most of the decade he stayed away from public sight and except family events, he was not noted in the press.^[49] He did not resume his pre-war Carlist engagements and is not mentioned by historiographic works dealing with Traditionalism of the so-called primer franquismo.^[50] According to few available sources he dedicated himself to family business^[51] and remained active in “various companies”, controlled by the Oriol oligarchy.^[52] It is not clear whether he lived in Madrid or elsewhere. In the mid-1940s he was noted as resident of the Cantabrian Santander;^[53] this was probably because of his role in executive board of VALCA, the Santander-based chemical company Sociedad Española de los Productos Fotográficos,^[54] founded by the Oriols and 3 other Basque families.^[55]

It seems that the key Oriol's business focus was on Tren Articulado Ligero Goicoechea Oriol (TALGO), the new manufacturing and transportation railway company launched by his father jointly with Alejandro Goicoechea in 1942.^[56] Since the mid-1940 it was already an exclusive family enterprise,^[57] but due to cash shortages and technological problems the company was struggling to launch large scale high-speed train services. As TALGO was unable to address production problems domestically, manufacturing was contracted in the United States. Oriol is known to have spent some time in New York,^[58] where he signed a contract with American Car and Foundry^[59] and supervised production of locomotives and the rolling stock for the train known as Talgo II.^[60]

 

ACF-built Talgo en route

In 1950 Oriol ascended to chief executive officer of TALGO; the company figured prominently in the official propaganda, expected to demonstrate robustness of the industry and modernizing capacity of the regime.^[61] Apart from developing production, his other major task was closing negotiations with RENFE over usage of the state railway network; in 1950 the first commercial service was launched between Madrid and Hendaye. The Oriols were not happy with the arrangement and complained about their limited say on timetables and routes. In 1953 the contract was re-negotiated and concluded on the entirely new basis; TALGO was manufacturing and maintaining trains, operated by state railways as RENFE property. The new arrangement allowed the company to repay bank loans and stimulated further development; in the 1950s TALGO trains were already serving at a number of national routes. Oriol stepped down from chairmanship in the mid-1950s, reportedly to assume political jobs.^[62] However, he entered the new Comité de Gerencia of the company.^[63]

Welfare and Social Works (1955–1965)

 

Francoist welfare system at work

In 1955 Oriol was nominated to the FET Consejo Nacional, which ensured his place in the Francoist quasi-parliament, Cortes Españolas.^[64] Exact mechanism of his elevation is not clear, though it was part of a wider political change; it came simultaneously with rise of his two brothers, since Lucas took his Cortes ticket as representative of syndicates and José María as personal Franco's appointee. At unspecified time in the mid-1950s Oriol was appointed also FET's Delegado Nacional de Auxilio Social and became president of Cruz Roja Española.^[65] In early 1957 he was nominated Director General of Beneficiancia y Obras Sociales, the department of welfare located within the Ministry of Interior structures.^[66] None of the sources consulted clarifies Oriol's rapid ascent, though there is little doubt that he owed his position in the ministry to acquaintance with Camilo Alonso Vega, who himself had assumed the Interior just one month earlier; during the war years Alonso was Oriol's direct military superior.^[67]

Following minor administrative re-adjustments^[68] the focus of the department was on re-shaping the social security framework. Until the late 1950s it operated in residual mode, related to various administrative bodies;^[69] the system was non-coordinated and calibrated to meet basic requirements. Since 1959 it got formatted as modern state welfare system.^[70] In 1960 it was based on newly created Fondo Nacional de Asistencia Social^[71] and few other funds;^[72] they were included in standard budgetary provisions,^[73] while freshly set up Juntas Provinciales de Beneficiencia reported to civil governors.^[74] The system was enhanced with further regulations, issued either as ministerial decrees^[75] or as official legislation. The regular social security scheme was complete^[76] with Ley de Bases de la Seguridad Social, adopted in 1963.^[77] It introduced two modes of social security, “protección básica” and “protección complementaria”.^[78] As a consequence, the Francoist social security scheme started to resemble these of most Western European countries. A present-day historiographer summarizes the evolution as migration from “Beneficiencia del Estado” to the “Asistencia Social” pattern;^[79] another one claims that it moved from a heterogeneous “sistema de Seguros Sociales” to an integrated “sistema de Seguridad Social”.^[80] It is not clear how much credit for modernization of the system should be given to Oriol personally.^[81]

 

Don Juan with sons, 1950s

In the press of the era Oriol was noted during typical official ceremonies, e.g. opening of hospitals or child care centers,^[82] inspecting local welfare administration^[83] or commencing various specific campaigns – e.g. the 1963 one against illiteracy – of the Spanish Red Cross.^[84] Though he did not take part in big politics, in 1957 together with numerous offshoot Carlists^[85] he visited the Alfonsist claimant in his Estoril residence and declared him the legitimate Traditionalist heir;^[86] since then he cautiously promoted the Juanista case. He also tried to counter advances of the Javierista Carlists,^[87] even though he openly admitted own Carlist credentials. Because of this at times he could have run into problems with more zealous Falangists like Fernando Herrero Tejedor; however, he was careful that ultimately, the Traditionalist identity did not stand in the way of his career.^[88]

Minister of Justice (1965–1973)

 

Ministry of Justice, Madrid

In 1965 Oriol was nominated Minister of Justice, since 1938 the office held mostly by Traditionalists.^[89] Oriol's appointment was part of Franco's balancing game; in this case, ministers related to ACNDP and Carlism provided counter-weight to these associated with Opus Dei.^[90] His first main project was work on the 1966-adopted Ley Orgánica del Estado, major legislation which produced systematization and clarification of existing arrangements with minor reforms introduced;^[91] Oriol endorsed it claiming that the regime was in constant evolution.^[92]

A key thread of Oriol's work was dealing with Church issues. From the onset busy with religious affairs,^[93] he co-ordinated work on the law on religious liberty.^[94] The draft generated great tension especially among the Traditionalists; Oriol claimed the project complied with key civil rights but did not dismantle Catholic unity; the law was eventually passed in 1967.^[95] Since the late 1960s he was involved in negotiations of a new concordat, a thorny issue related to increasingly anti-Francoist position of the Spanish Church. He opposed changes advocated by the Vatican which would diminish official state prerogatives; following unsuccessful attempt to push through an own project in 1970,^[96] he officially hailed the existing regulations;^[97] confidential negotiations went on,^[98] but bore no fruit.^[99] Another religion-related issue was the rising number of priests charged with political offences. In 1968 Oriol set up a prison in Zamora, intended only for the religious.^[100] In the 1970s he was increasingly involved in hardly veiled propaganda war with the hierarchy; he admitted some unease about Zamora,^[101] but still presented it as a model solution.^[102] At the same time he voiced against “Marxist infiltration” among the clergy,^[103] demonstrated outrage at public statements of some hierarchs^[104] and took some religious appointments as personal insult.^[105]

As minister Oriol presided over continuous relaxation of the penal policy. He declared that Spain “had the second lowest prison population in the world” after the Netherlands.^[106] The number of inmates kept going down, paired with decreasing number of death penalties carried out; over 10 years there were 13 executions and 19 cases of clemency.^[107] However, in the early 1970s Oriol admitted to 3,000 political prisoners;^[108] they were all subject to amnesty of 1971.^[109] During his tenure he was also responsible for adoption of Ley Orgánica de la Justicia y de los Códigos Procesales Civil y Penal, the legislation which partially reformed and consolidated the civil and penal codes.^[110]

 

Carlist v. Alfonsist infantes, 1967

When summarizing his tenure some historians consider him “more of a technocrat than a politician”.^[111] Indeed, he is not mentioned as major protagonist of power struggle within the Francoist regime of the era;^[112] however, he enjoyed personal confidence of Franco^[113] and was in position to mount own personal intrigues.^[114] He confronted Javierista maneuvers. In his capacity of minister he denied Spanish citizenship to Don Javier^[115] and tried to marginalize independent Carlism,^[116] claiming that all Traditionalists sided with the regime;^[117] he earned virulent hostility of the Carlist youth in return.^[118] His monarchist efforts were crowned^[119] when in 1969 Don Juan Carlos was officially declared the future king.^[120]

Council of State: twilight of the regime (1973–1975)

 

Council of State HQ, Madrid

In July 1973 Oriol left the Ministry of Justice when nominated by Franco to Consejo de Estado, a high consultative body. At the same he assumed its presidency, which in turn ensured seat in Consejo del Reino, another council with some personal prerogatives;^[121] he became one of the highest-positioned carlo-francoists. None of the sources consulted clarifies whether the nominations were a step forward or a step back in Oriol's career; he abandoned the office which guaranteed real power to take seats in prestigious, but largely ceremonial and decorative bodies.^[122] It is neither clear whether Oriol's move should be associated with death of another Carlist Joaquín Bau, whose passing away in May vacated both seats, or rather was related to Carrero Blanco forming his own, the first non-Franco-led government in June.^[123] Oriol retained his seat in the Cortes, doubly eligible by virtue of membership in the Falangist Consejo Nacional and due to presidency in Consejo de Estado.^[124]

For Oriol the years of 1973-1975 were a string of visits, lectures, sittings and other events, associated with officialdom related to presidency of Consejo de Estado and membership in Consejo del Reino; they were dutifully reported in the press.^[125] They carried little of political substance; when speaking, Oriol declared faith in resilience of the Francoist system and seemed not to have noticed the apparent dramatic decline in Franco's health.^[126] Some of his addresses contained veiled references to understanding among all Spaniards and phrases which renounced division into the victors and the vanquished.^[127] Many of his statements pointed to Don Juan Carlos as the key person for the future,^[128] though some advanced ambiguous comments as to the role of the military.^[129]

 

Francoist elite, mid-1970s

During the last years of Francoism Oriol emerged as supporter of “asociaciones políticas”, a long-discussed concept supposed to enable institutionalization of political factions.^[130] Himself he tried to build a pro-regime Traditionalist grouping; as early as in 1972 he participated in buildup of Hermandad de Maestrazgo, originally an ex-requeté society designed as pro-Juan-Carlos “primera organización monárquica” and intended to attract a broader spectrum of politicians.^[131] He then switched to another project, not based on the ex-combatant platform but assuming a more typical political shape; it was also founded on Traditionalist principles. In 1974 Oriol was seen on traditional Carlist feast,^[132] and in early 1975 he tried to organize a “Traditionalist summit”.^[133] Following adoption of new legislation on political associations, in mid-1975 the organization eventually materialized as Union Nacional Española^[134] with Oriol as one of its leaders.^[135] It grouped either Carlists who had amalgamated into Francoism during earlier decades or other regime politicians who hoped that the monarchy of Juan Carlos would ensure continuity of the system, possibly with some minor rectifications.^[136]

Council of State: transición (1975–1979)

 

Adolfo Suárez, 1970s

Following the crowning of Don Juan Carlos Oriol assisted the new king in his personal maneuvers, aimed at consolidating power in hands of more liberal politicians.^[137] Though in December 1975 he declared the Francoist system well-organized,^[138] in April 1976 he admitted that “Francoism could not operate without Franco”; however, he imagined the change as evolution and not a rupture.^[139] He voiced against the perspective of a multi-party regime^[140] and envisioned the reform as building the system of associations,^[141] operating within Movimiento.^[142] He was very active in development of UNE structures, in April 1976 emerging as president of its Consejo Asesor.^[143] Some viewed Oriol as representative of hardline post-Francoist “búnker”; in reply he confirmed his commitment to evolution and hostility to fundamental changes.^[144] He called the Arias government not to deal with individuals seeking system breakup^[145] and demonstrated his allegiance to the memory of Franco.^[146] In May 1976 Oriol jointly with hardline Traditionalists^[147] and possibly in collusion with security services^[148] co-engineered^[149] an operation aimed at blocking the Hugocarlista rally at Montejurra;^[150] it left 2 progressist militants dead.^[151]

In June 1976 Oriol cautiously adhered to suggestions of some reformers and contributed to appointment of Adolfo Suarez as the new prime minister.^[152] He kept opposing legalization of political parties^[153] and insisted on allegiance to the Movimiento principles;^[154] he tried to shape the draft electoral law accordingly.^[155] However, in November 1976 and unlike his brother José María, Oriol voted in favor of Ley para la Reforma Política, dubbed “suicide of the Francoist Cortes”.^[156] As it turned out that his membership in Consejo del Reino was not legally compatible with position in the UNE executive^[157] he resigned the latter.^[158]

In December 1976 Oriol, as president of Consejo de Estado theoretically the 4th person of the kingdom,^[159] was kidnapped by a Marxist terrorist organization GRAPO. His captors declared him an iconic Francoist^[160] responsible for repressive legislation^[161] and demanded exchange for left-wing political prisoners. The abduction triggered speculation that the government was losing control and the country might slip into the unknown.^[162] However, following two months in captivity, on February 11, 1977, Oriol was rescued by Spanish security forces in a raid at a GRAPO hideout in Alcorcon.^[163][164]

 

general elections, 1977

As the last Francoist Cortes was dissolved in 1977, Oriol lost his procurador mandate.^[165] Possibly involved in leading UNE into Alianza Popular,^[166] he did not take part in the June elections to the constituent assembly. At the time he was getting increasingly sidetracked and his activity throughout 1977 and 1978 was mostly about official but politically irrelevant duties of two Councils he used to sit in;^[167] also his public statements demonstrated increasing detachment and veiled disappointment.^[168] He lost his seat in Council of the Realm when the institution was abolished by the new constitution in 1978; having reached the regular retirement age^[169] Oriol ceased as president and member of Consejo de Estado in 1979.^[170] Against the rising tide he kept demonstrating reverence to Franco and attended numerous commemorative and homage post-Francoist rallies,^[171] as prestigious guest taking part also in religious,^[172] local,^[173] or other ceremonies.^[174]

Retirement (after 1979)

 

Juan Carlos, 1980s

Having lost all seats in party and state structures in 1979 Oriol became a political retiree. However, he remained engaged in ex-combatant organization^[175] and in 1980 acted as president during the congress of Derecha Democrática Española, a short-lived centre-right amalgam.^[176] Some historians claim he was active behind the scenes when mounting “operación De Gaulle”, allegedly a plan to topple Suarez and replace him with a military leader; Oriol was reportedly “centro neurálgico de la conspiración”.^[177] In aftermath of the failed coup d’état of 1981 some media identified him as political sponsor of Antonio Tejero; Oriol sued them for libel.^[178] Others speculated that with Oriol's record of longtime promoter and supporter of Juan Carlos, his taking part in the conspiracy was unlikely.^[179]

In the 1980s Oriol appeared in public in relation to various post-Francoist events, never missing during anniversary rallies commemorating Franco's death^[180] or attending funerals of other regime officials; he also acted as vicepresidente segundo of Fundación Francisco Franco.^[181] As president of Hermandad de Alféreces Provisionales in 1985 he protested against anti-Franco harangues of some state officials, deemed to “break the national harmony”;^[182] in a 1986 declaration he professed “la idea de la reconciliación que habría de presidir el futuro de la Patria” and voiced against “revancha que algunos sectores de España pretenden renovar”.^[183] In 1987 Oriol seemed supportive of Blas Piñar's idea of building a political right-wing “acción organizada”,^[184] but in the late 1980s he was not reported as adhering to the Piñar-led Frente Nacional. Rather seldom he appeared in the media, e.g. when noted for legal action of ex-Francoist ministers who sued for alleged pension irregularities^[185] or when interviewed on TV.^[186]

 

Monte del Pilar, massive Oriol property near Majadahonda

Oriol remained in executive bodies of various companies related to the family business conglomerate; they included Argón, Compañía Minero-Metalúrgica Los Guindos, Electra de Viesgo, Electricista Alcoyana, Fuerzas Eléctricas del Noroeste, Iberdrola, Patentes Talgo, and Vidrieras de Llodio.^[187] At some opportunities he appeared in public, e.g. when opening the Madrid-Paris TALGO connection.^[188] He started to withdraw from commercial engagements in the late 1980s; he resigned his key post in the board of Iberdrola in 1990, replaced by own son.^[189] In the 1990s Oriol was recorded in public only in relation to his presidency of Confederación de Combatientes^[190] and Hermandad Nacional de Alféreces Provisionales^[191] ex-combatant organizations. Though at that time he was in conflict with Blas Piñar,^[192] some of their rallies managed to attract significant crowds.^[193] His death was noted in most nationwide press titles; some adhered to respectful tone and e.g. listed his numerous decorations,^[194] some repeated speculations about his alleged involvement in the 1981 plot^[195] and some merely re-printed standard news agency messages.^[196]

See also

• Carlism
• Carlo-francoism
• Traditionalism (Spain)
• Francoism
• Jose Maria de Oriol y Urquijo
• Jose Luis de Oriol y Uriguen

Footnotes

1. Pablo de Oriol y Lecha from Flix was recorded as "Ciudadano Honrado de Cataluña", Alfonso Ballestero, José Ma de Oriol y Urquijo, Madrid 2014, ISBN 9788483569160, p. 23
2. Ballestero 2014, p. 23. The marquesado, awarded in 1870, was not recognized by Alfonsist kings of Spain. It was Francisco Franco who in his capacity of head of state officially acknowledged the title and confirmed Jose Luis Oriol as the 2nd marquis of Oriol
3. Ballestero 2014, p. 25
4. see José María Oriol Gordo entry at the Geni genealogical service, available here
5. Joseba Agirreazkuenaga, Mikel Urquijo (eds.), Bilbao desde sus alcaldes: Diccionario biográfico de los alcaldes de Bilbao y gestión municipal en la Dictadura, vol. 3, Bilbao 2008, ISBN 9788488714145, p. 189
6. Gorka Pérez de la Peña Oleaga, Los Ensanches del muelle nuevo de Portugalete: (1869-1917), [in:] Cuadernos de sección. Historia-Geografía Donostia 21 (1993), p. 189
7. despite politically liberal leaning of her family Catalina was very religious, donating to construction of Cerro de los Angeles, see Agirreazkuenaga, Urquijo 2008, p. 190
8. for details see Onésimo Díaz Hernández, Los marqueses de Urquijo: el apogeo de una saga poderosa y los inicios del Banco Urquijo, 1870-1931, Pamplona 1998, ISBN 8431316365
9. Juan Carlos García Adan, Yolanda Diego Martín, El archive historic de Iberdrola y la industria eléctrica en España: fondos para la investigación histórica, [in:] Congreso de Historia Económica, Santiago de Compostela 2005, p. 9, also Francisco Cayón García, Hidroeléctrica Española: un analis de sus primeros años de actividad (1907-1936), [in:] Revista de Historia Económica 20 (2002), pp, 308-311
10. Francisco Cayón García, Miguel Muñoz Rubio, José Luís de Oriol y Urigüen (1877-1972), [in:] Eugenio Torres Villanueva (ed.), Los 100 empresarios españoles del siglo XX, Madrid 2000, ISBN 848871727X, pp. 255-258
11. Antonio Oriol remained very religious throughout all of his life; always carried a rosary on him, Alfonso Torres Robles, La prodigiosa aventura de los Legionarios de Cristo, Madrid 2010, ISBN 9788446032328, p. 37
12. see Antonio Maria de Oriol y Urquijo entry, [in:] Geneallnet service, available here
13. Ballestero 2014, p. 54
14. ABC 23.03.96, available here
15. María Soledad Díaz de Bustamante y Quijano entry, [in:] Geneanet service, available here
16. her paternal grandfather, Domingo Díaz de Bustamante, originated from a Cantabrian village of Herrera de Ibio; in 1817, at the age of 14, he migrated to Cuba. He returned as a rich man in 1856 and married Felisa Campuzano Rodríguez from the nearby Corrales de Buelna; she was sister to Conde de Mansilla. Domingo bought part of the Mansilla estate, Donata Díaz de Bustamante, De Ibio a Corrales de Buelna, [in:] LinkHome service, available here
17. Felipe Díaz de Bustamante y Campuzano (1866-1932) married María Quijano de la Colina, the oldest daughter of José María Quijano Fernández-Hontoria, a Cantabrian lawyer and pioneer of ferrous metallurgy in Spain. The coupled lived mostly in Madrid, Donata Díaz de Bustamante, De Ibio a Corrales de Buelna, [in:] LinkHome service, available here
18. by profession an agronomy ingeneer, Felipe tried his hand also in letters; his attempted romance novel, Romance de la serenisima y gloriosa infanta Dª Sancha Alfonso, Comendadora de la Orden Militar de Santiago, hija del Rey de León don Alonso el Nono, was completed in 1948 by his son, see Amazon service, available here
19. covering some 800 ha, the estate remains subject to controversy and various claims until today, see e.g. Ana Sánchez Juárez, El pueblo vs. los nobles: la guerra por las 800 hectáreas del Monte del Pilar, [in:] Vanitatis service 17.02.16, available here
20. José María was mayor of Bilbao during early Francoism, but he became known as one of key figures in the Spanish power industry of the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s. Lucas grew to president of VALCA and Prensa Económica SA; he was intellectually the most ambitious of all the brothers and his company published iconic reviews Punta Europa and Finisterre. Luis Fernando died in combat in 1936. Ignacio did not become a public figure. Among the sisters Magdalena Sacramento married José de Palacio y Palacio, marqués de Villarreal de Álava and marqués de Casa Palacio; Catalina became a Carmelite nun
21. born in the 1940s and 1950s, they were in sequence: María, Soledad, Antonio, Catalina, Felipe, Luis Javier and Isabel Oriol Díaz Bustamante. See e.g. Diaz Bustamante entry, [in:] RepertorioFamiliar service, available here. Brief notes on many of his offspring in Astrid Antuña Llorens, La niña a la que nadie quiso: ¿Era realmente la hija ilegítima del Marqués de Linares?, Madrid 2018, ISBN 9788417590413
22. Antonio Oriol Díaz de Bustamante grew to high posts in Iberdrola; he ceased in 2006, Oriol Díaz Bustamante Antonio María entry, [in:] InfoEmpresa service, available here; Felipe became a successful entrepreneur running his own companies, Felipe Oriol Díaz de Bustamante entry, [in:] MarketScreener service, available here; Luis Javier engaged in multiple businesses, Luis Javier María Oriol Díaz Bustamante entry, [in:] Expansion service, available here. He married a painter Carmen Spinola, Julia Saéz-Angulo, Carmen Spínola, pintora, discípula de Guillermo Muñoz Vera, mecenas y presidenta de la Fundación Arauco, [in:] EuroMundoGlobal service, available here
23. María de Oriol y Díaz Bustamante entry, [in:] Geneanet service, available here. Another of Antonio Oriol's daughters, Isabel, remains active as president of various organizations fighting cancer, see e.g. Isabel Oriol Díaz de Bustamante entry, [in:] CirculoDeOrellana service, available here
24. Diaz Bustamante entry, [in:] RepertorioFamiliar service, available here; they descended from the branches of Primo de River Oriol, Diez de Rivera Oriol, Oriol Allende, Becerril Oriol, Oriol Miranda, Oriol Spinola and Jaureguizar Oriol
25. see assortment of her works at the Amazon servicem available here
26. the title was created by Franco in 1948; see e.g. Consuelo Font, Fernando Primo de Rivera, el próximo en ostentar el ducado que Franco concedió a su tío abuelo, [in:] El Mundo 18.09.19, available here
27. see e.g. Tómas Jaureguizar Oriol entry, [in:] LinkedIn service, available here, or Juan Díez de Rivera Oriol, [in:] LinkedIn service, available here
28. 180. Familia Oriol. Accionistas de Talgo y terratenientes, [in:] El Mundo service, available here
29. Antonio María de Oriol y Urquijo, ex ministro de Justicia y ex presidente del Consejo de Estado , [in:] El País 23.03.96, available here
30. Don Antonio Mª de Oriol y Urquijo, [in:] Ya 08.07.65, available here
31. Pensamiento Alaves 05.12.33, available here
32. El Siglo Futuro 20.12.35, available here
33. details of the coup in Vitoria, including the role of Antonio Oriol himself, in Javier Ugarte Tellería, La nueva Covadonga insurgente: orígenes sociales y culturales de la sublevación de 1936 en Navarra y el País Vasco, Madrid 1998, ISBN 9788470305313, pp. 191-199. The author ridicules Oriol and the commanding group, who mounted the insurgency, but "estaba oculta en lugares seguros", p. 198
34. Ballestero 2014, p. 47
35. Pensamiento Alaves 14.09.36, available here
36. F. Góngora, Isuskutza: la colina de sangre, [in:] El Correo 07.10.13, available here
37. Julio Aróstegui, Combatientes Requetés en la Guerra Civil española, 1936-1939, Madrid 2013, ISBN 9788499709970, p. 444
38. Pensamiento Alaves 10.11.36, available here
39. Pensamiento Alaves 25.12.37, available here
40. Aróstegui 2013, p. 798
41. Aróstegui 2013, pp. 798-799
42. Aróstegui 2013, p. 800; another source claims Oriol was wounded on October 5, 1936 and March 14, 1938, Don Antonio Mª de Oriol y Urquijo, [in:] Ya 08.07.65, available here
43. Pensamiento Alaves 18.03.38, available here
44. Aróstegui 2013, p. 801
45. Aróstegui 2013, p. 802
46. Ballestero 2014, p. 48
47. 3. Batallón de Flandes de la 4. División de Navarra, [in:] Requetes service, available here
48. Pensamiento Alaves 09.03.39, available here
49. Pensamiento Alaves 15.10.45, available here
50. see doctoral dissertations on post-war Carlism, Ramón María Rodón Guinjoan, Invierno, primavera y otoño del carlismo (1939-1976) [PhD thesis Universitat Abat Oliba CEU], Barcelona 2015; Francisco Javier Caspistegui Gorasurreta, El naufragio de las ortodoxias. El carlismo, 1962–1977, Pamplona 1997, ISBN 9788431315641; Daniel Jesús García Riol, La resistencia tradicionalista a la renovación ideológica del carlismo (1965-1973) [PhD thesis UNED], Madrid 2015; Manuel Martorell Pérez, La continuidad ideológica del carlismo tras la Guerra Civil [PhD thesis in Historia Contemporanea, Universidad Nacional de Educación a Distancia], Valencia 2009
51. see e.g. Spanish Newsletter 4/5 (1965), p. 9
52. ABC 23.03.96, available here
53. Boletín Oficial de la Provincia de Santander 02.02.45, available here
54. Diario de Burgos 30.06.54, available here
55. VALCA. Una empresa vizcaína en el Valle del Kadagua burgalés (y II), [in:] Patrimonio Industrial Vasco service, available here
56. see Talgo official website, available here
57. Ballestero 2014, pp. 177-181
58. Imperio 15.12.46, available here
59. Diario de Burgos 28.12.49, available here
60. Don Antonio Mª de Oriol y Urquijo, [in:] Ya 08.07.65, available here
61. see e.g. La Vanguardia 03.03.50, available here; Talgo was hailed in 1950 as “el más alto exponente de la tecnología Española”, quoted after Alejandro Goicoechea Omar entry, [in:] Aunamendi Eusko Entziklopedia service, available here; see also the propaganda film with Franco aboard Talgo here
62. Ballestero 2014, p. 184
63. Ballestero 2014, p. 185
64. see the official Cortes service, available here
65. Mediterráneo 14.07.73, available here
66. Diario de Burgos 29.03.57, available here
67. first as commander of the Flandes Battalion and then as commander of the 4. Navarrese Brigade
68. e.g. Consejo Superior de Beneficiencia y Obras Sociales, created in 1938, in 1958 was re-organised as Consejo Superior de Beneficiencia y Obras Asistenciales, Laura Sánchez Blanco, Auxilio social y la educación de los pobres del franquismo a la Democracia, [in:] Foro de Educación 10 (2008), p. 134
69. including FET and its branches, regional and provincial administration or labor organizations
70. changes were driven by intention to achieve “solidaridad entre los objetivos económicos y sociales” and “redistribución de la renta nacional”, Sánchez Blanco 2008, p. 134
71. M.ª Patrocinio Las Heras, Elvira Cortajarena, Introducción al bienestar social: el libro de las casitas, Madrid 2014, ISBN 9788428336185, p. 83
72. like Fondo al Trabajo, Igualdad de Oportunidades, Crédito para la Difusión de la Propiedad Mobiliaria
73. María Letizia Rojo Alvarez-Manzaneda, Síntesis legislativa de la transformación de la beneficiencia, [in:] María del Carmen García Garnica (ed.), Nuevas perspectivas del tratamiento jurídico de la discapacidad y la dependencia, Madrid 2014, ISBN 9788490851746, p. 440
74. García Garnica 2014, pp. 440-441
75. e.g. the decree of June 14, 1962, which defined assistance for the children
76. for the first time, also the agricultural population was included in social security scheme, Stanley G. Payne, The Franco Regime, Madison 1987, ISBN 9780299110703, p. 486
77. it was dated December 28, 1963; it was extended with “texto articulado” in a decree of April 1966
78. De la beneficiencia a la previsión: antecedentes del estado de bienestar, [in:] Introducción a los Servicios Sociales service, available here
79. Sánchez Blanco 2008, p. 134
80. Las Heras, Cortajarena 2014, p. 83
81. works of Sánchez Blanco, García Garnica, Las Heras and Cortajarena describe the evolution of the system but do not refer to Oriol personally. In the late 1950s the welfare scheme was sketched widely and relatively young Spanish population easily supported it with relatively small contributions, but with the aging process advanced, in the early 1970s the system began to choke and almost went bust, Payne 1987, p. 487
82. ABC 17.03.61, available here
83. Flores y abejas 14.02.61, available here
84. Hoja Oficial de Lunes 13.05.63, available here
85. the so-called “Estorilos”, Ballestero 2014, p. 103
86. Mercedes Vázquez de Prada, El final de una ilusión. Auge y declive del tradicionalismo carlista (1957–1967), Madrid 2016, ISBN 9788416558407, p. 262
87. in 1962 the Oriols, including Antonio, conferred with Lopez Rodo on apparent danger of the Javierista campaign, which apparently successfully promoted in the media the person of Don Carlos Hugo. All present agreed that the Carlist activity created a dangerous division in the monarchist camp, ran the risk of compromising the entire monarchist idea and providing fuel for the republican propaganda, Ballestero 2014, p. 105
88. at unspecified point and as director of Beneficiencia department, Oriol had his business cards printed with “membrete de requetés” instead of the customary “yugo y flechas” logotype. This elicited angry reaction from vice-secretary of Movimiento, Herrero Tejedor, who demanded that Oriol pays for them from his private money. However, “los ímpetus políticos de Oriol, que se orientaban hacia el más fanático de los carlismos, no habían entrado nunca en contradicción con su saneada economía y no iba a ser ésta l aocasión para afectarla. Oriol conocía lo suficiente el valor de la autoridad en aquel Régimen, valor que le había llevado a él a ‘mantenella y no emendalla’ en más de una ocasión, y sencillamente se guardó las cartas con el membrete para mejor ocasión”, Gregorio Morán, Adolfo Suárez: ambición y destino, Barcelona 2009, ISBN 9788483068342, p. 385
89. the Minister of Justice office was vacated by a Carlist integrated within the Francoist regime, Antonio Iturmendi, who assumed the role of the Cortes speaker
90. Payne 1987, p. 511
91. the law reflected the position taken by Carrero Blanco and López Rodó (“reform was administrative and economic rather than political”) to frustration of Fraga and Solís (“who sought to introduce a certain amount of institutional political change”), Payne 1987, p. 513. It is not clear whether Oriol was involved in the power struggle and if yes, whether he sided with Carrero/López or with Fraga/Solis
92. “la constitución de España es abierta”, Diario de Burgos 30.11.66, available here
93. since taking the office Oriol was travelling to Rome on minor opportunities to demonstrate good will, Diario de Burgos, 14.11.65, available here
94. Isidoro Martín Sánchez, La libertad religiosa en la Ley Orgánica del Estado, [in:] Revista de estudios políticos 182 (1972), p. 206
95. Oriol underlined “que no se confunda la regulación de un derecho civil de la libertad en materia religiosa con torcidas interpretaciones que busquen descarada o encubiertamente, cobarde o neciamente, debilitar o destruir nuestra unidad católica”. He also recorded that “frente a la «pasión sectaria anticatólica» España supo en su momento defender al catolicismo con mártires”, Mónica Moreno Seco, El miedo a la libertad religiosaautoridades franquistas, católicos y protestantes ante la Ley de 28 de junio de 1967, [in:] Anales de Historia Contemporánea 17 (2001), pp. 357-358
96. following debates in the late 1960s, when Vatican insisted on major change and Madrid was prepared to endorse only minor rectifications, in 1970 the government prepared a so-called “concordato por sorpresa” draft. The primate Tarancón convinced the Hole See to reject it and declared that it would take long time to work out a new agrrement, Xosé Chao Rego, Iglesia y franquismo: 40 años de nacional-catolicismo (1936-1976), La Coruña 2007, ISBN 9788493556204, p. 311
97. Diario de Burgos 26.06.71, available here
98. in 1971 negotiations returned to the old pattern: the Church opeted for profound revision, the government preferred minor corrections; Oriol corresponded in this respect with cardenal Villot, Estudios sociológicos sobre la situación social de España, Madrid 1975, ISBN 9788424003036, p. 686
99. El País 12.02.77, available here
100. the decision was consulted with and authorised by Franco, Stuart Christie, General Franco Made Me a "terrorist", London 2003, ISBN 9781873976197, p. 250
101. in 1972 when visited by representation of bishops Oriol declared that the government had no interest in maintaining a prison for priests but was obliged to run it by the concordat stipulations, Chao Rego 2007, p. 381
102. Diario de Burgos 26.06.71, available here
103. Payne 1987, p. 561, see also his opinion about dissdence as “fruto predominante de una sagaz infiltración marxista y de un entendimiento confuso del Vaticano II”, Diario de Burgos 26.06.71, available here
104. e.g. in 1970 Oriol was furious about some bishops putting the terrorist ETA violence and the “structural” violence at the same level, and replied accordingly, Ferran Requejo, Klaus-Jürgen Nagel, Politics of Religion and Nationalism: Federalism, Consociationalism and Seccession, London 2014, ISBN 9781317566069, p. 187
105. this was especially the case with the 1972 nomination of José Maria Setien to auxiliary bishop of San Sebastián, Ivison Macadam, Muriel Grindrod, Ann Boas, The Annual Register; World Events, London 1972, p. 169
106. the statement was “technically correct” due to low civil crime rate, though “as political penalties were lessened, dissidence increased”, Payne 1987, p. 513. In 1965 in Spanish prisons there were 11,109 inmates, Diario de Burgos 04.01.66, available here
107. in 1965 Oriol declared that in 1961, 1962 and 1964 there was no execution. In the last 10 years there were 13 executions carried out and 19 death sentences commuted, Diario de Burgos 29.12.65, available here
108. however, some categories of convictions were on the rise. The Tribunal of Public Order, an institution created by Oriol's predecessor Iturmendi to deal with political crimes, previously handled by military courts, issued 113 sentences in 1965; the figure kept growing systematically and in 1973, the year of Oriol's departure from the ministry, it stood at 506, Payne 1987, p. 502
109. Payne 1987, p. 548
110. ABC 23.03.96, available here
111. Paul H. Lewis, Latin Fascist Elites: The Mussolini, Franco, and Salazar Regimes, London 2002, ISBN 9780313013348, p. 100
112. Oriol has easily survived the government change of 1969, which led to setup of the so-called gobierno monocolor, Payne 1987, p. 546; it was probably because of personal Franco's trust he enjoyed
113. e.g. in 1972 Franco asked Oriol to find who mounted the campaign which denied the status of princess to his granddaughter, allegedly the title she was entitled to after her husband; Franco suspected it was engineered by Juan Carlos or his supporters, Juan Pablo Fusi Aizpurúạ, Franco: A Biography, London 1987, ISBN 9780049230835, p. 141
114. e.g. in 1965 Oriol helped Herrero Tejedor (the two have already buried their earlier animosity, demonstrated by the business cards controversy discussed earlier), considered pro-Juanista and liberalizing politician, to leave the Movimiento executive and get a post at Tribunal Supremo instead, Morán 2009, p. 386
115. e.g. in 1967 Fernando Bustamante, Oriol's brother-in-law and a Carlist from the Javierista branch, approached him re citizenship for Don Javier; a long letter was accompanied by 5 juridical expertises and mentioned alleged Oriol's personal “alergias a los carlistas”. Oriol replied that Comunión Tradicionalista was formed not only by the Javieristas but also by branches supporting other claiments. He also noted that favoring “un señor” as exclusive heir to a century-old movement who gave so many heroic sacrifices was detrimental to the Carlist cause. Moreover, he claimed that in 1936 Don Javier had refused to help the conspirators by purchasing arms in Germany, quoting his French citizenship. He summarised that coming out with dinastical issues was nothing but messing up; according to Oriol, raising the problem was discrediting the whole concept of the monarchy in eyes of the youth. Fundamental thing was “hoy lo que está por resolver es si la monarquía puede o no ser establecida y con arreglo a unos criterios espirituales, sociales y políticos que se han venido defendiendo a lo largo de siglo y medio por una escuela ideológica y por un sector político que luchaba por ella”, Vázquez de Prada 2016, pp. 299-300. Also the Carlist leader José María Valiente addressed Oriol re citizenship for Don Javier. The reply was “si es que la Comunión Tradicionalista no es el Movimiento y no está dentro de la ley”, Manuel Martorell Pérez, Carlos Hugo frente a Juan Carlos. La solución federal para España que Franco rechazó, Madrid 2014, ISBN 9788477682653, p. 225
116. when in 1965 Oriol became the minister of justice the two Carlist politicians who hoped to get the job, Valiente and Zamanillo, realized it would never happen, Vázquez de Prada 2016, p. 262
117. e.g. in May 1972 Oriol have made sure that press did not use rerfer to “Carlism” or “Traditionalism” when referring court proceedings on members of GAC, a left-wing terrorist grouping claiming Carlist identity. His intention was to demonstrate that there were no Carlists opposing the regime, Josep Miralles Climent, El carlismo militante (1965–1980). Del tradicionalismo al socialismo autogestionario [PhD thesis Universidad Jaume I], Castellón 2015, pp. 230, 234, García Riol 2015, p. 295
118. a Carlist illegal bulletin Informacion Mensual in 1965 attacked Oriol for his refusal to grant Don Javier the Spanish citizenship, Rodón Guinjoan 2015, p. 305
119. one author claims that since the mid-1960s Oriol saw intronization of Don Juan Carlos as the only way to preserve Francoism, Juan Pablo Fusi, Franco: Autoritarismo y poder personal, London 2011, ISBN 9788430615766, p. 94
120. as Minister of Justice Oriol was also “the first notary of state”; as such he took Don Juan Carlos signatures in all documents signed during the 1969 process of declaring him the future king, Diario de Burgos 21.11.75, available here
121. Mediterráneo 14.07.73, available here
122. on both bodies see Payne 1987, pp. 372-373
123. it is unlikely that Oriol's departure from the ministerial post had anything to do with a car accident he suffered in 1972; it left him lightly injured, Diario de Burgos 20.07.72, available here
124. see the official Cortes service, available here
125. for 1973 see e.g. Mediterráneo 26.10.73, available here; for 1974 see e.g. Diario de Burgos 09.06.74, available here; for 1975 see e.g. Diario de Burgos 23.05.75, available here
126. Mediterráneo 27.09.74, available here
127. Mediterráneo 17.12.74, available here
128. Mediterráneo 17.10.74, available here
129. he claimed that the army “should not participate in day-to-day political game, but must rather remain a guardian of general political framework”, Mediterráneo 15.11.74, available here
130. he was careful to stress that “associations” had nothing to do with regular political parties, dysfunctional phenomenon of inorganic democracy, Mediterráneo 17.12.74, available here
131. in 1972 Oriol discussed the future role of Hermandad de Maestrazgo with Valiente, Solís, Fernández Cuestra, Iturmendi and Martín Villa; further loose talks included also Rodríguez de Valcárcel, López Rodo, Pilar Primo de Rivera and Arrese, Caspistegui 1997, p. 237, García Riol 2015, p. 306
132. Oriol attended Fiesta de los Martíres de la Tradición, a traditional Carlist feast falling on March 10, Mediterráneo 08.03.74, available here
133. it was intended to unite various Traditionalist groupings and include personalities like Ramón Forcadell, José M.a Valiente, Agustín de Asís Garrote, Ricardo Larrainzar and José María de Melis, Mediterráneo 11.04.75, available here. In May 1975 Oriol attended the funeral mass to Manuel Fal Conde, Mediterráneo 24.05.75, available here
134. UNE was officially registered in May 1975, Caspistegui 1997, p. 269
135. other UNE leaders included Zamanillo, Valiente, de Asis, Fagoaga, Mazón and Larráinzar, Miguel A. del Río Morillas, Origen y desarollo de la Unión Nacional Española (UNE): la experiencia de la extrema derecha neofraquista de Alianza Popular, [in:] Carme Molinero, Javier Tébar (eds.), VIII Encuentro Internacional de Investigadores del Franquismo, Barcelona 2013 [CD-ROM], p. 9
136. Mediterráneo 20.09.75, available here
137. in December 1975 the king preferred Torcuato Fernández Miranda to become the Cortes speaker and hence also the Consejo del Reino president; Oriol and Arias helped to advance this candidacy, Vicente Palacio Atard, Antonio Rumeu de Armas, Juan Carlos I y el advenimiento de la democracia, Madrid 1998, ISBN 9788423962600, p. 58
138. Oriol declared that Francoism is not “being organized”, as it is well organized already, being “mucho mas que una federación de asociaciones políticas. .. Se trata de intercambio de ideas y sugerencias para una posible colaboración”, Mediterráneo 18.12.75, available here
139. asked whether Francoism without Franco was possible, Oriol confessed: “el propio Caudillo habia previsto que el franquismo no podía perdurad sin su presencia. Incluso estaba prevista la evolución del sistema pero sin rupturas de ningún tipo”, Mediterráneo 20.04.76, available here
140. Mediterráneo 18.12.75, available here
141. in March 1976 March the new regulations allowed for the first time the setting up of parliamentarian groups in the Cortes; 6 of them emerged, and Oriol co-founded so-called Acción Institucional; other of its members were Zamanillo, Fernández Cuesta and Pilar Primo de Rivera. A contemporary scholars claims that among all the groupings formed, Acción was the closest to the hardline Francoist bunker, Miguel Angel Giménez-Martínez, Las Cortes de Franco o el parlamento imposible, [in:] Trocadero: Revista de historia moderna y contemporanea 27 (2015), p. 93
142. in late 1975 Oriol declared that “para no quebrantar la convivencia pacífica y fructífera de los españoles, iniciada heroicamente el 18 de julio de 1936, el Gobierno ha creado a su justo tiempo las asociaciones políticas (…) No representan, como los partidos, a los individuos ni a las ideologías, cotos cerrados y demagógicos, sino la participación orientadora hacia la defensa de los intereses de la comunidad y del mantenimiento de los principios espirituales de la nación”, Río Morillas 2013, p. 13. In January 1976 Oriol called for a sitting of the FET Consejo Nacional to discuss the ongoing political change, Mediterráneo 16.01.76, available here
143. ABC 23.03.96, available here
144. in April 1976, during final weeks of the Arias government, Oriol declared that “me da igual que me llamen o no del bunker”, and then proceeded to state that “como soy tradicionalista, yo definiría el progreso como una evolución perfectible. Y todo esto va inmerso en nuestro actual sistema”, Mediterráneo 20.04.76, available here
145. Mediterráneo 23.03.76, available here
146. Oriol joined Fundación Francisco Franco in March 1976, Mediterráneo 23.03.76, available here
147. Jeremy MacClancy, The Decline of Carlism, Reno 2000, ISBN 9780874173444, p. 180; Josep Miralles Climent, El carlismo militante (1965-1980). Del tradicionalismo al socialismo autogestionario [PhD thesis Universidad Jaume I], Castellón 2015 p. 395
148. some authors advance a theory of government-agreed action; this is e.g. the perspective advanced in Informe Montejurra, 1976-1996, Bayonne 1997. Others remain more cautious and speculate that maybe administrative squabbles, uncertainty ruling among Madrid and local officials and general bewilderment produced security lapses which allowed the Sixtinos Carlists to mount a large scheme, involving even foreign participants, MacClancy 2000, pp. 180-182
149. allegedly during Semana Santa of 1976 Oriol discussed and planned the Montejurra action – dubbed “Operación Reconquista” - with Fraga, Zamanillo and others, Informe Montejurra, pp. 33, 35. The same source claims he deposited 8m ptas to finance the operation and pay foreign mercenaries at various bank accounts in Logroño, Pamplona, Vitoria, Burgos, Soria and Huesca, Informe Montejurra, p. 23
150. the historian most engaged in advancing the theory of key Oriol's role in the Montejurra plot was José Carlos Clemente; for a sample from his numerous works see e.g. José Carlos Clemente, Historias de la transición: el fin del apagón, 1973-1981, Madrid 1994, ISBN 9788424506643, p. 93
151. Oriol and José María Araluce “had both marched in Don Sixto's band on the day of Montejurra”, MacClancy 2000, p. 180; after the shooting Oriol reportedly phoned from Irache to someone – supposedly general Angel Campano López - in Madrid, Informe Montejurra, p. 78. The Montejurra shooting has never been fully investigated officially and it is not clear whether there was any wider scheme behind it. For a review of numerous theories see Joaquín Cubero Sánchez, Montejurra 1976: un intento de interpretación, [in:] Javier Tussell, Alvaro Soto (eds.), Historia de la transición y consolidación democrática en España, 1975-1986, Madrid 1995, vol. I, ISBN 8436233158, pp. 29-48. The author suggest that the Montejurra shooting was part of a widely sketched international plot, fathered by CIA and the freemasonry
152. after the fall of the Arias Navarro government in June 1976 various factions competed to land their candidate on the premiership chair. Oriol's son-in-law Miguel Primo de Rivera, allied with Torcuato Fernández Miranda, tried to convince Oriol that one of their man get selected; he apparently agreed that one of “azules minados” be put forward. The option crystalized as Adolfo Suarez, one “de los nuestros”, Morán 2011, see esp. the writings from July 1976. Like all members of Consejo del Reino, Oriol was formally asked to list 3 candidates for the premiership; he opted for Federico Silva Muñoz, López Bravo and Adolfo Suarez, Morán 2011
153. Diario de Burgos 10.06.76, available here
154. when debating the law on succession to the throne (at that time applicable to descandants of Juan Carlos, primarily to Infante Felipe, at that time the 8-year-old boy), Oriol demanded that before crowning they swear allegiance to Principios Fundamentales del Movimiento; otherwise it might appear “que aquí se pretende hacerlo desaparecer”, Diario de Burgos 12.06.76, available here. On October 8, 1976 he took part in the last sitting of Consejo Nacional before Movimiento got dissolved by the king soon afterwards, ABC 19.10.17, available here
155. as procurador of the Cortes, Diario de Burgos 03.11.76, available here
156. Ballestero 2014, p. 120
157. Hoja Oficial de Lunes 12.06.76, available here
158. Mediterráneo 28.04.76, available here, Hoja Oficial de Lunes 12.07.76, available here
159. after the king, the prime minister and the president of Consejo del Reino
160. some viewed Oriol “personaje emblemático en el entorno puro y duro del franquismo”, Federico Utrera, Canarias, secreto de estado: episodios inéditos de la transición política y militar en las islas, Las Palmas 1996, ISBN 9788460546733, p. 131; other named him “un dels més poderosos, adinerats I influents representants del franquisme orthodox”, Javier Cercas, Anatomia d'un instant, Barcelona 2012, ISBN 9788401388675, p. 83
161. GRAPO declared that “Hemos elegido a Oriol porque creó el TOP y el JOP”. In fact, both Tribunal de Odren Público and Jurisdicción de Orden Público were created by his predecessor, Iturmendi, in 1963, Juan José de Aguila Torres, La creación de la Audiencia Nacional, [in:] La transició de la dictadura franquista a la democracia, Barcelona 2005, ISBN 8460973972, p. 123
162. Andrew Scott Cooper, The Oil Kings: How the U.S., Iran, and Saudi Arabia Changed the Balance of Power in the Middle East, New York 2011, ISBN 9781439157138, p. 357; Oriol's abduction took place days before the referendum on a political reform and according to some, was designed to blow up the entire process, ABC 23.03.96, available here
163. "Spain Frees 2 Government Officials Held by Guerrillas— Arrests Made in Kidnaping of Men Who Were Held Hostage for Release of 171 Political Prisoners", Los Angeles Times, February 11, 1977, p. 8
164. Oriol's kidnappers – including Pio Moa - were later apprehended, but they were released following the amnesty, Mediterráneo 11.05.79, available here
165. see the official Cortes service, available here
166. Mundo Obrero 01.06.77, available here
167. Mediterráneo 17.02.78, available here
168. e.g. in 1978 he declared that “actualmente en España se lleba a cabo un nuevo intento para establecer la base constitucional democrática de nuestro ordenamiento juridico, en lo cual este Consejo no tiene competencia. Dios quiera que se alcance la mejor solución posible que represente la realización plena del estado de derecho en el que esta Consejo continuará siempra al servicio de España y leal al Rey”, Mediterráneo 29.06.78, available here
169. Mediterráneo 03.05.79, available here
170. ABC 23.03.96, available here
171. see e.g. Diario de Burgos 19.07.77, available here; Hoja Oficial de Lunes 02.10.78, available here
172. e.g. when opening a new theology faculty, Diario de Burgos 09.10.79, available here
173. e.g. when receiving a golden medal from the city of Valencia, Diario de Burgos 24.02.79, available here; in the mid 2010s there were debates of stripping Oriol of the honor, Público 18.07.16, available here
174. e.g. when attending the funerals of ETA victims, Diario de Burgos 18.11.78, available here
175. Hoja Oficial de Lunes 07.07.80, available here
176. Diario de Burgos 21.12.80, available here
177. Morán 2011, p. 156
178. ABC 23.03.96, available here
179. Mediterráneo 25.07.81, available here
180. Diario de Burgos 21.11.85, available here
181. Diario de Burgos 19.11.89, available here
182. “rompe deseable concordia nacional”, Diario de Burgos 28.02.85, available here
183. ABC 12.10.86, available here
184. Diario de Burgos 23.11.87, available here
185. Diario de Burgos 25.01.86, available here
186. Diario de Burgos 30.01.86, available here
187. Lluc Salellas i Vilar, El franquisme que no marxa: Els responsables de la dictadura que han mantingut els privilegis a la democràcia, Barcelona 2018, ISBN 9788417611057, p. 212; Oriol Urquijo, Antonio Maria de entry, [in:] Aunamendi Euzko Entziklopedia online, available here 2022-10-06 at the Wayback Machine/, ABC 23.03.96, available here
188. Ballestero 2014, p. 186
189. Diario de Burgos 19.10.90, available here
190. Diario de Burgos 23.11.92, available here
191. Diario de Burgos 01.06.93, available here
192. during one of the rallies Oriol prevented Blas Pinas, who at the time represented Frente Nacional, from taking to the floor, Diario de Burgos 23.11.92, available here
193. e.g. in 1992 a rally of Confederación de Combatientes allegedly attracted 75,000 attendants; according to police sources, they were 8,000, Diario de Burgos 23.11.92, available here
194. ABC 23.03.96, available here
195. El País 23.03.96, available here
196. La Vanguardia 23.03.96, available here

Further reading

• Alfonso Ballestero, José Ma de Oriol y Urquijo, Madrid 2014, ISBN 8483569167, 9788483569160

External links

• Isuskitza: la colina de la sangre, Carlist account of the Isusquiza battle
• Oriol at Aunamendi Eusko Entziklopedia online
• Oriol's record at the official Cortes service
• Oriol as Council of State president at No-Do footage of 1969
• footage of Oriol as "first notary of state" during Juan Carlos' designation of 1969 (2:50 to 3:30)
• Por Dios y por España; contemporary Carlist propaganda on YouTube