Enric Prat de la Riba facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Enric Prat de la Riba
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| President of Barcelona Provincial Council | |
| In office 2 April 1907 – 6 April 1914 |
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| Preceded by | Joaquim Sostres i Rey |
| Succeeded by | Joan Vallès i Pujals |
| President of the Commonwealth of Catalonia | |
| In office 6 April 1914 – 1 August 1917 |
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| Preceded by | New office |
| Succeeded by | Josep Puig i Cadafalch |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
Enric Prat de la Riba i Sarrà
29 November 1870 Castellterçol, Barcelona |
| Died | 1 August 1917 (aged 46) Castellterçol, Barcelona |
| Nationality | Spanish - Catalan |
| Political party | Regionalist League of Catalonia (Catalan: Lliga Regionalista) |
| Alma mater | University of Barcelona; Complutense University of Madrid |
| Occupation | Lawyer, writer, journalist |
Enric Prat de la Riba i Sarrà (born November 29, 1870 – died August 1, 1917) was an important Catalan politician, lawyer, and writer. He was a key figure in the early days of Catalan nationalism. This is the idea that Catalonia is a distinct nation with its own culture and needs more self-governance.
Prat de la Riba became the first President of the Commonwealth of Catalonia on April 6, 1914. He held this important position until he passed away. He also wrote a famous book called La nacionalitat catalana. In this book, he strongly argued for Catalonia to have more control over its own affairs. He is buried in the Montjuïc Cemetery in Barcelona.
Contents
Early Life and Education
Enric Prat de la Riba i Sarrà was born on November 29, 1870. His family lived in Castellterçol, a town in Catalonia. They were a well-off and traditional Roman Catholic family.
Enric began studying law at the University of Barcelona. He later finished his law degree at the Central University of Madrid.
Political Journey
Prat de la Riba became very interested in Catalan nationalism while he was still in college. In 1887, he joined a group called Centre Escolar Catalanista. This group helped shape the early ideas of Catalan identity.
Joining Key Groups
He became a significant member of another cultural and political group, Unió Catalanista. He wrote some of their most important statements. One famous statement was the Missatge al Rei dels Hel·lens in 1897. In 1891, he was chosen as the secretary of Unió.
Writing and Promoting Ideas
Prat de la Riba wrote many texts about Catalan nationalism. These included Compendi de la doctrina catalanista and Compendi de la història de Catalunya. He also wrote for a newspaper called La Renaixença.
From 1899, he worked to bring Catalan nationalism into politics. He was first a member of the Centre Nacional Català. Later, he joined the Regionalist League of Catalonia.
The Regionalist League
The Regionalist League was a political party in Catalonia. Prat de la Riba helped create it in 1901. This party wanted Catalonia to have more administrative autonomy. This means they wanted Catalonia to have more power to make its own decisions, rather than having everything decided by the central government in Spain.
Working Towards Self-Governance
In 1892, Prat de la Riba served as a secretary for an assembly. This assembly was writing a draft for a regional constitution. This draft was known as Bases de Manresa. It was an important first step toward creating the Catalan Statute of Autonomy. This Statute would give Catalonia more self-rule.
He is also well-known for writing the La nacionalitat catalana in 1906. This book was a key text for the Noucentisme movement. This movement promoted a new, modern Catalan culture and identity.
Leading the Commonwealth
In 1907, Prat de la Riba became the first president of the Institut d'Estudis Catalans. This institute was important for studying and promoting Catalan culture and language. He also became president of the Diputació de Barcelona.
He was a strong supporter of the Commonwealth of Catalonia. This was a new government body created to unite the four Catalan provinces. It aimed to give Catalonia more power to manage its own affairs. Prat de la Riba became its first President on April 6, 1914. He led the Commonwealth until his death on August 1, 1917.
