Ignacio Baleztena Ascárate (1887–1972) was a Spanish folk customs expert, a Carlist politician and soldier.
Family and youth
Ignacio's paternal grandfather,see the Geni genealogical service available here José Joaquín Baleztena Echeverría, a native of Navarrese Leitza, tried his luck in California and Cuba before returning to the home town, where he owned two buildings next to Ayuntamiento.named "Torrea" and "Petrorena"; Javier Baleztena Abarrategui, Premín de Iruña blog available here, entry 08.09.11 His son and Ignacio's father, Joaquín Baleztena Muñagorri, formed part of new Navarrese economic and political elites.Ángel García-Sanz Marcotegui, Elites económicas y políticas en la Restauración. La diversidad de las derechas navarras, [in:] Historia contemporánea, 23 (2001), pp. 623-5; Annuario Riera of 1902 lists him among 20 "most important" rural owners in the merindad of Pamplona, see here Holding a number of rural properties in the comarca of Valles Meridionales,José Andrés-Gallego, Pedro Pegenaute Garde, Navarra ca.1900-ca.1975, s.l., available here , pp. 546-547 he was co-founder of Conducción de Aguas de Artetacompare David Allegría Suescun, Historia del abastecimiento de agua en la Comarca de Pamplona available here and shareholder of a number of other local companies.Albert Carreras, Doctor Jordi Nadal: la industrialització i el desenvolupament econòmic d'Espanya, vol. 2, Barcelona 1999, , 9788447521456 p. 910, Josean Garrues-Irurzun, Public utility of water and private service of production and distribution of electricity in Pamplona, 1893-1961, Madrid 2008, available here Elected consejal of Pamplona in the 1910s,elected on the Carlist-Basque ticket listed, García-Sanz 2001, pp. 623-5 he served as vice president of the local Circulo Carlista.see Joaquín Baleztena Muñagorri entry at Auñamendi Eusko Entziklopedia available here Ignacio's mother, María Dolores Ascárate Echeverría, was descendant to a Carlist family; her father served as officer under Carlos V during the First Carlist War.Premín de Iruña blog, entry 22.06.11
Ignacio was born after the family had moved from Leitza to Pamplona. He received secondary education in the Piarist Colegio de los EscolapiosPremín de Iruña blog, entry 12.11.10 and was raised, like his 8 siblings, in the fervently Catholic ambience. His older sister, María Isabel, was initially supposed to marry Juan Vázquez de Mella.Premín de Iruña blog, entry 17.10.11 His older brother, Joaquín, became the Carlist political leader in Navarre. His paternal cousins Arraiza Baleztena sympathised with Carlism and held different posts in the Pamplona ayuntamiento early 20th century.Eugenio was Teniente de Alcalde of Pamplona, while Juan Pedro was the Alcalde himself, see Araiza genealogy available here His younger sister Dolores was a Carlist activist and author. His younger brother, Pedro María Baleztena Ascarate, became a famous pelota player.see BALEZTENA ASCARATE, Pedro María entry at Gran Enciclopedia Navarra available here , or Pedro María Baleztena Ascarate entry at Auñamendi Eusko Entziklopedia available here; Luis Baleztena Abarrategui, son of Ignacio, was also a locally known athlete, see Auñamendi Eusko Entziklopedia available here
Married (1927) to Carmen Abarrategui Gorosábel,(1905-1992), daughter of Benito Abarrategui Zubía and Ascensión Gorosabel Eguidazu, see Geni genealogy service available here Ignacio fathered 10 children.Geni genealogy service available here, see also the obituary in ABC 09.02.92 available here Joaquín (Joaquíncho) was active in El Pensamiento Navarro;see obituary in ABC 22.10.13 available here Javier was director of Archivo General de Navarra and is author of historical and historiographical works related to the province,for bibliography see Dialnet service available here while Cruz Maria directed B-class movies.for filmography, see here Most of the family remained Carlist,in 1988, during the first visit of Juan Carlos de Borbón and his wife to Pamplona, the Baleztenas kept all windows and shutters closed (except the premises inhabited by Joaquincho Baleztena), see ABC 22.10.13 available here some of them engaged in politics.Silvia Baleztena Abarrategui unsuccessfully ran for the Cortes in 2011 on the Derecha Navarra y Española ticket. The Baleztena house in Leitza remains a highly contested political symbol until today; during the wedding of Joaquíncho in 1971 it was protected by the police against ETA; in 1996 and 2012 it was assaulted by the Basque nationalists with the Spanish banner torn away from the balcony and burnt down, see ABC 20.08.96 available here and ABC 16.08.12 available here A few of his grandchildren became public figures; Ignacio Baleztena Navarreteson of Joaquincho Baleztena and Pancha Navarrete, co-founder of UPN and an activist bent on fighting ETA represents Navarre at the EU headquarters in Brussels,appointment of a 31-year-old for a 78,000 euro job raised many eyebrows, though comments focused on Pancha Navarrete rather than on the Baleztena family, see Noticias de Navarra 19.12.13 available here Joaquin Baleztena Gurrea is a well known Pamplona physicianspecialising in geriatrics and co-founder of Peña Mutilzarra; the association, founded in 1992, declares itself unpolitical and dedicated to traditional local customs; see its website available here while Carola Baleztena is a TV starletfor filmography see here, for a sample of her movie performance see here and gossip media celebrity.compare here
Early public activity
Allegedly already as a child Ignacio took part in street protests against Gamazada in the 1890s.Premín de Iruña blog, entry 04.06.13 He commenced his lifetime career as a youngster, co-organising and shaping various village feasts – especially the local santiburcios – in Leitza;Premín de Iruña blog, entry 18.11.10; Baleztena continued to research, organize and design the Leitza santiburcios also later on, see Premín de Iruña blog, entry 25.08.12, compare also the 1996 santiburcios assault on Casa Baleztena, ABC 20.08.96 in the family house he set up an amateur theatre, where he directed and performed along friends and relatives, staging also his own juvenile plays.he kept writing plays also later on, mostly comedies mixing absurd humour with political mockery: Bromicas de Cupido, El Capitán Cornoboutt o una invernada en los hielos, El ópalo de los Duques de Olofgrado, Abundio, te la cedo, Futri contra Campiñarri, De cómo Kilikizarra murió y estiró la garra, Cirilo por San Fermín pasó aventuras sin fin, Los caballeros de la Luna, El submarino de Dositeo, Los misterios de Mendillorri, quoted after Jaime del Burgo, Catálogo bio-bibliográfico, Pamplona 1954, p. 144, available here He commenced studying law in the Jesuit Deusto college in Bilbao, but lefthis extravert and jolly behaviour produced conflict with the college authorities, Premín de Iruña blog, entry 17.11.10 to study architecture in Madrid and to continue with law in Salamanca;where he met and admired de Unamuno, Premín de Iruña blog, entry 17.11.10, Auñamendi Eusko Entziklopedia during his academic years Baleztena continued with cultural activities writing short stories and couplets, first for friends and then the public.Premín de Iruña blog, entry 12.11.10. These juvenile attempts marked Baleztena's fascination with performing arts, especially pantomime, disguise, masks, puppetry etc Contributing with short pieces to various periodicals, during the Salamanca years he set up his own, El Bólido.Premín de Iruña blog, entry 15.11.10 He completed his first academic curriculum in 1910,del Burgo 1954, p. 144. returning to Pamplona somewhat earlier. Became engaged in a number of Catholic initiatives aimed against Ley del Candado, the most momentous having been the huge 1908 Gipuzkoan gathering known as acto de Zumárraga.Premín de Iruña blog, entry 20.11.10 The event was heavily influenced by the Carlists; as part of their preparations Baleztena wrote Spanish lyrics of a traditional Carlist anthem "Oriamendi", originally sung only in Basque.Premín de Iruña blog, entries 21.11.10 and 22.11.10. The Spanish version of Oriamendi, written by Baleztena, became later much more popular than the original Basque lyrics. For history of the song, see Rafael Garcia Serrano, Cantatas de mi mochila, [in:] Navarra fue la primera, Pamplona 2006, , pp. 523-530 Also in 1908 he set up El Requeté de Pamplona, a periodical intended for Carlist youth.Premín de Iruña blog, entry 15.11.10 In 1911 he was elected president of Juventud Jaimista in Pamplona,Premín de Iruña blog, entry 23.11.10; Auñamendi Eusko Entziklopedia says it was in 1912 though his leadership style was peculiar, with special focus on zarzuelas, balls, juegos florales,in 1928 he won one of the competitions as "Malkárra", awarded for his study on toponimia de Pamplona, see Iñaki Egaña, Quién es quién en la historia del país de los vascos, Tafalla 2005, , 9788481363999, p. 83 historical re-enactments, spectacles and other carnivalesque performance genres.Premín de Iruña blog, entry 31.01.11 In 1914, having graduated in law from Salamanca, he was offered the job of personal secretary by his brother-in-law, the Spanish consul in Pau.Pablo Lucas Jaurrieta Múzquiz, married to his sister Silvia, see Geni genealogical service available here Ignacio remained in the Spanish consular service in France until 1918. Premín de Iruña blog, entry 03.02.11
Public servant
In 1918 Baleztena joined the Carlist-foralist list of candidates in the local elections; successful, he became concejal of the Pamplona Ayuntamiento.Premín de Iruña blog, entry 10.02.11. Some sources claim he engaged in politics half-heartedly, as his genuine passion was culture, see here One of his first initiatives was to create Caja de Ahorros de Navarra, an institution run by the Diputación Foral and providing popular affordable credit. Premín de Iruña blog, entry 28.03.11 He made his name as a staunch advocate of traditional local legal establishments. During initial works on vasco-navarrese autonomy he co-founded Comité pro Autonomía and co-signed a proclamation, issued by Junta Gestora de la Juventud pro Navarra, demanding restoration of traditional Navarrese foral regulations.Premín de Iruñablog, entry 18.02.11, Auñamendi Eusko Entziklopedia In 1921 he represented the Jaimistas in Alianza Foral coalition and was elected to the Navarrese Diputación Foral.consisting of 7 members: 3 for Pamplona, 1 for Aoiz, Estella, Tafalla and Tudela. Actually, Baleztena was declared victorious with no competition fielded. He replaced an Integrist, Juan José Juanmartiñena, as the Jaimistas changed their alliance strategy, see Elena Floristan Imizcoz, María Luisa Garde Etayo, El manifesto constitutivo de la Alianza Foral (1921), [in:] Principe de Viana 49 (1988), p. 148, Andrés-Gallego, Pegenaute 1975, p. 570 Re-elected in 1923 and 1926, he retained the post until 1928. Since 1925 he took part in talks between Diputación Foral and Ministerio de la Gobernación,Premín de Iruña blog, entry 26.05.11, Auñamendi Eusko Entziklopedia though he demonstrated some flexibility when negotiating changes to the foral regime;some of his fellow members resigned in protest against the imposed changes, but Baleztena chose to stay in, see Francisco Miranda Rubio, Política y Foralidad en Navarra durante la Dictadura de Primo de Rivera, [in:] Príncipe de Viana 66,(2005), pp. 345 in 1930 he formed part of the appointed Comisión Gestora.Premín de Iruña blog, entries 22.03.11, 27.06.11; he demanded reinstating traditional Navarrese establishments, Andrés-Gallego, Pegenaute 1975, p. 572 Baleztena kept endorsing a Navarrese identity also by other means, be it religious (San Francisco Javier commemorations), historical (unveiling of the monument to Navarrese heroes in Maya)Baleztena clashed with some fellow Carlists led by Pradera, who vehemently opposed the monument as a means fostering Basque separatism, see