Brief information. Not likely. Tragic. The Federal Republic of Illa de Arousa lasted almost a breath. It was announced late on Sunday, October 7, 1934, in the bar of an island tavern on the Rías Baixas, and barely 24 hours later there was only a list scribbled on brown paper and a tremendous judicial mess. And yet, despite its ephemeral history, which is much more ephemeral than that of the Estat Català recently proclaimed by Lluís Companys or the 1931 Galician Republic, it is not easy to find an adjective that accurately describes it.

After all, the tragic island republic suffered from less than a bad hangover, and its repercussions on its heroes lasted for years.

In some cases fatal outcome.

I was born in a tavern

The story of the Federal Republic of Illa de Arousa is a story so delusional that it can only be explained by the problematic context of the second biennium of the Second Republic. Moreover, without this background, Galicia’s attempt at independence would probably have become nothing more than a witty joke among our colleagues in the canteen.

The story is very simple.

In the heat of the turbulent political winds that blew through Spain in 1934, and of course the wine and herbal liqueur, a group of neighbors involved in Arousa politics decided on the afternoon of October 7, 1934 that their island should be created as a territory. independent republic. For this reason. As it is. Exactly the same thing that Lluís Companys recently did with Estat Català in Barcelona.

They were so inspired that They prepared an improvised document To disperse the positions of the constituent government. This might have remained a tavern joke if the Assault Guards had not found the famous newspaper the next day and a major judicial confusion had not ensued, resulting in many of those involved being charged with mutiny before the War Council.

That’s the summary. The story is much more complex.

October 1934 was not an easy month for the Second Republic. On October 5, a revolutionary general strike began, especially intense in Catalonia and Asturias, and a day later Companys declared the provisional Catalan State. The island of Arousa, a small island in the Rías Baixas, was no stranger to the winds of national politics, and the local faction of the Socialist Party decided to join the mobilizations. strike On October 8th.

The Pandulleiros blog, which specializes in local history, explains that the aim was to protest working conditions at canning companies in the region.

The decision was taken on Sunday the 7th, during a meeting at the Juanito de Luisa tavern, better known among locals as ‘O Nicho’, which resulted in an afternoon of speeches and discussions. There, among barrels of ribeiro, glasses of wine, and bottles of burning water, it didn’t take long for an idea to come up; Pandulleiros says one suggestion made by the innkeeper himself was: Why should we be alone on strike? What prevented Arousa from following Catalonia’s example and declaring the island a republic?

It may sound crazy, but that’s where the idea came from. a very specific contextSomething that goes beyond the possible influence of the ‘O Nicho’ tavern or the wine itself.

Along with the revolutionary context, Pandulleiros recalls, there was also a sense of “grief” and “abandonment” by the institutions among the islanders. In 1873 the island lost its independent municipality status and became dependent on the Consistory of Vilanova de Arousa; This situation was not repeated until it became a town again until the end of the 20th century.

Whatever the reason, the fact is that establishing a Republic in A Illa de Arousa must have sounded good among the parishioners gathered in ‘O Nicho’, for they did more than toss up stray ideas. They took out a pen and They prepared a list of how the interim government should be established.

On a piece of brown paper, they wrote a list of what the constituent government would look like. With accusations. And with their own names, surnames and nicknames. For example, the presidency will fall Santiago Otero Pouso“Haystacks”. Justice portfolio in Andrés Mougán, “The Storm”; Governorship in Manuel Iglesias… And other similar positions, including the fields of Finance and Culture.

The night of debate passed.

He spent the Sunday of the “Declaration” at ‘O Nicho’.

And the day of the strike on October 8, 1934 was born. bomb explosion at a local hardware store. It was unclear who was responsible, but hours later a team of assault guards arrived on the island determined to control the mobilization day. And it didn’t take long for him to find the newspaper with the famous list that had been scribbled together with the officials of the republic the day before.

The newspaper was discovered while searching for Segundo Nine, one of those involved in the incident. Maybe by chance. Maybe it’s because of a tip. The truth is that upon their arrival, the guards took with them a handful of neighbors, including those who rang the bells, and transported them to Pontevedra in a truck.

Among the first to be arrested Santiago Otero Pouso“Haystacks”. Frustrated, the president of the island republic had gone into hiding just to escape the guards, but he wasn’t free for long. He surrendered when they returned to the island shortly after a second explosion.

“The atmosphere in A Illa was that of a strike. When the poor manufacturers (canneries) saw the fish rotting on the pier, they called the civil government. In the afternoon, 15-20 fish guards came to a boat and started cleaning the fish. Record people on the street,” says local historian Juan Luciano. Voice of Galicia.

Even though they never took office and the federal republic of Illa de Arousa did not go beyond the bar of ‘O Nicho’, the idea was very valuable to those involved. There are several versions. Some claim that some of those detained remained in prison for several months. Others said that everyone was already on the streets on Saturday the 13th.

What is clear is that they had to face a judicial process that would last for months until it resulted in their acquittal in 1935.

Unfortunately, this This wasn’t the end of history.

Although the atmosphere of Spanish politics was turbulent in October 1934, it was not much better in 1936. Following the outbreak of the civil war and during Franco’s repression, this revolutionary background put a strain on some of those involved. Such was the case with Pajares, president of the tragic island republic. Chronicles say he was shot by Phalangists in 1937 and thrown into the river.

A tragic end for the short-lived island republic of Arousa.

Pictures | Manuel Alende Maceira (Flickr), Fotosderianxo (Flickr)

in Xataka | In 1931, thousands of families in Barcelona also stopped paying the rent on their homes. They went on strike