Garraf plot

The Garraf plot was an attempted regicide of Spain's King Alfonso XIII by Catalan separatists in Barcelona in June 1925.

History

On May 6, 1925, King Alfonso XIII's trip to Catalonia was announced. La Bandera Negra, a clandestine military organization which operated within Estat Català, decided that the monarch, who had enabled the dictatorship of General Primo de Rivera and repressed Catalan national identity, had to be killed. The meeting in which this decision was made was attended by Miquel Badia, Marcelino Perelló, Jaume Julià, Francesco Ferrer, Emili Granier-Barrera, Ramon Xammar, Santiago Balius and Josep Garriga. Although the conspiracy was organized by members of Estat Català, the idea initially came from a group of radical militants, the Grup dels Set ("Group of Seven") of Acció Catalana's clandestine organization, the Societat d' Estudis Militars, which included Enric Fontbernat, Abelard Tona, Miquel Ferrer, Antoni Arguelaguet, Ramon Saguers and Ramon Fabregat. The conspirators believed that in the confusion following the assassination of the monarch, the military would carry out acts of violence against the population of Barcelona, which would in return increase popular for the escamots of Estat Català, who could then seize the most significant buildings and proclaim the Catalan Republic.

The visit was scheduled for May 26. La Bandera Negra initially planned to detonate a bomb in the tunnel between Garraf and Sitges as the king's train passed through. On May 23, the first attempt to place the bomb took place. However, when they arrived, the conspirators found that they lacked the appropriate tools to lift the ballast from the track and place the explosive device. They hid the bomb in vegetation next to the road, intending to return the next day. On the 24th they failed again, this time because the conspirators missed the train in Barcelona and could not reach Garraf. This setback led the conspirators to modify the plan to instead place the bomb in one of the tunnel vents. When on the 25th the conspirators again went to Garraf to plant the explosive device, the massive presence of the Civil Guard prevented them from carrying out their plans.

On the 26th they decided to attack the monarch in Barcelona while he passed through the Ramblas on his way to the gala performance at the Liceu, on May 29. This new attempt was again a failure. Jaume Julià was appointed for the action, who did not appear at the scheduled time. Later it was learned that Julià's father discovered the matter and prevented him from participating (Julià was twenty years old). Under these conditions, a substitute was appointed, who according to some sources was Miquel Ferrer, from the Grup dels Set, and according to others, Jaume Miravitlles (escamot from Estat Català). In any case, the commando, armed with pistols, which was carrying the bomb camouflaged inside a bouquet of flowers, was unable to carry out the operation due to heavy police surveillance.

After this new failure, there was still the possibility of resuming the initial plan and detonating the bomb when the king left Barcelona and passed through the Garraf tunnel again. Four members of La Bandera Negra and two members of the Grup dels Set went to Garraf on June 6 to reconnoiter the land. However, the presence of an infiltrator in the conspiracy, Joan Terrés, nicknamed Josep Talavera, meant that the police were waiting for them at the station. 28 of the conspirators were arrested.

One of the festive acts for the liberation of Marcelino Perelló, on April 1, 1930. Perelló himself appears in the center of the photograph, together with his fiancée Edelmira Valls.

The police accused Estat Català of being behind the plot, and the dictatorship began the repression against Catalanism, arresting numerous members not only of Estat Català, but also of Acció Catalana and Unió Catalanista.

In July 1925 Jaume Compte, Marcelino Perelló, Jaume Julià, Miquel Badia, Deogràcies Civit, Francesc Ferrer, Josep Garriga, Emili Granier, Ramon Fabregat and Antoni Arguelaguet were brought to trial. These last three were released on bail and fled. The judicial procedure was left in the hands of the military, who were accused of not respecting the legal procedure, of torturing the detainees and of irregularities and contradictions in the summary. Finally, Jaume Compte was accused of being the leader of the group and sentenced to death by garrote, as well as Perelló, Julià and Garriga. Their sentences were commuted to life imprisonment. Badia, Civit and Ferrer were sentenced to 12 years in prison. All those imprisoned were granted amnesty at the end of the Primo de Rivera dictatorship in 1930.