Tomás Domínguez Arévalo, 6th Count of Rodezno, 12th Marquis of San Martin (1882–1952) was a Spanish Carlist and Francoist politician. He is known mostly as the first Francoist Minister of Justice (1938–1939). He is also recognised for his key role in negotiating Carlist access to the coup of July 1936 and in emergence of carlo-francoism, the branch of Carlism which actively engaged in the Francoist regime.
Family and youth
Tomás Domínguez y de Arévalo Romera y Fernández Navarrete was a descendant of two landowner families from the very south and from the very north of Spain. The paternal Domínguez family has been for centuries related to the Andalusian town of Carmona (Seville province). Its first representatives were noted as regidores in the 18th century and intermarried with another distinguished local family, the Romeras.Antonio Lería, Proclamación y jura reales. El caso de Carmona, [in:] Carel. Revista de estudios locales, 2/2 (2004), pp. 591–667 Their descendant was Tomás' father, Tomás Domínguez Romera (1848–1931), who inherited the local Campo de la Plata estate.Jorge Maier, Jorge Bonsor, 1855-1930: un académico correspondiente de la Real Academia de la Historia y la Arqueología Española, Madrid 1999, , p. 55 He demonstrated political sympathies hardly typical for the region siding with the legitimists during the Third Carlist WarTomás Domínguez Romera Pérez de Pomar entry at Auñamendi Eusko Entziklopedia service online, available here and had to leave the country afterwards.Juan Sebastián Elián, El gran libro de los apellidos y la heráldica, Barcelona 2001, , p. 100 Following the amnesty he returned to Spain and at unspecified date he married María de Arévalo y Fernandez de Navarrete (1854–1919),María de los Dolores de Arévalo y Fernandez de Navarrete, 6º condessa de Rodezno, 6º condessa de Valdellano entry at Generallnet service, available here descendant to a Riojan-Navarrese Arévalo family. Her father, Justo Arévalo y Escudero, was a well known conservative politician; in the mid-19th century he served in the Cortesofficial Cortes service, available here and later as a long-time senator from Navarre (1876–1891).official Senate service, available here As at the time of the marriage she was already condesa de Rodezno,Annuario del comercio, de la industria, de la magistratura y de la administración 1883, p. 42, available here. Her mother was María de los Ángeles Fernández de Navarrete, condesa de Rodezno, who died in 1856; at that moment her father from conde consorte converted to conde viudo. The couple had two children; the older son also died early and at that point the title passed to María de los Dolores Tomás Domínguez Romera became conde consorte.
In the late 1880s Tomás Domínguez Romera emerged holding major posts within the Madrid Carlist structures. In 1888 he was president of comisión de propaganda of the Madrid Junta Directiva del Circula Tradicionalista de Madrid the same year elected its secretario general, but when unsuccessfully running for the Cortes in the 1890s, he stood in Haro (Logroño province). He emerged triumphant in 4 successive elections between 1905 and 1914, voted in from the Navarrese district of Aoiz.official Cortes service, available here At that time he was already member of the national Carlist executive; in 1912 he entered Junta Nacional Tradicionalista representing Castilla La Nueva, in 1913 entered comisión de Tesoro de la Tradición and chaired party gatherings interchanging with the likes of Cerralbo, Feliu or de Mella.
It is not clear whether Tomás Domínguez Arévalo spent his early childhood in the capital or in Villafranca. He was then educated in the Jesuit Colegio de San Isidoro in Madrid,La Voz 03.05.29, available here; the college closed one Jesuits were expulsed in the early days of the Second Republic, see another alumni meeting 23 years later, ABC 03.06.52, available here at unspecified date commencing law studies at the University of Madrid; he followed classes of the then Carlist political leader, Matías Barrio y Mier. It is during his academic years that Domínguez came to know Jaime Chicharro and Luis Hernando de Larramendi, active in Juventud Jaimista but also in literary and artistic circles.Ignacio de Hernando de Larramendi, Así si hizo Mapfre, Madrid 2000, , p. 28 He graduated in 1904;María Dolores Andrés Prieto, La mujer en la política y la política de la memoria. María Rosa Urraca Pastor, una estrella fugaz [MA thesis], Salamanca 2012, p. 60 some authors, contemporary press and the official Cortes service refer to him as "abogado",Leandro Álvarez Rey, La derecha en la II República: Sevilla, 1931-1936, Sevilla 1993, , p. 140; also La Epoca 23.05.16, available here though none of the sources consulted confirms that he practiced as a lawyer. Urbane and gregarious, in 1917Miguel Muñoz de San Pedro, Cuando vestí mis primeros pantalones largos, [in:] Alcántara 20/146 (1966), p. 10, available here, also La Nación 06.03.17, available here Domínguez married Asunción López-Montenegro y García Pelayo,Asunción López-Montenegro y García Pelayo entry at Geni genealogical service, available here descendant to a wealthy aristocratic terrateniente family from Cáceres, with its representatives holding prestigious posts in the city and in the province.Manuel Vaz-Romero, Cristina Nuñez, López-Montenegro fue un franquista coyuntural y episodico, [in:] Hoy 12.02.06, available here; her father had already passed away when she was getting married The couple settled in Villafranca; they had one child, María Domínguez y López-Montenegro.María del Sagrado Corazón Domínguez y López-Montenegro, 8º condessa de Rodezno entry at Geneall service, available here Following the death of his mother in 1919,La Acción 28.11.19, available here in 1920 Tomás Domínguez Arévalo inherited the title of conde de Rodezno; following the death of his father in 1931 he became marqués de San Martín.
Early political career
There is almost no information on Domínguez's public activity in the first decade of the 20th century; he was probably active in Juventud Jaimista and Juventud Hispanoamericana. In 1909 he published his first work, a booklet dedicated to medieval rulers of Navarre,Los Teobaldos de Navarra. Ensayo de crítica histórica, Madrid 1909 followed by articles in scholarly reviews focusing on history of the province and short biographical studies, also anchored in history of Navarre. Domínguez also tried his hand in Pamplona dailies as a literary critic. Some authors claim that his first public assignment was mayorship of Villafranca,Tomás Domínguez Arévalo, Conde de Rodezno, un político profundamente antidemocrático, responsable y cómplice del exterminio político, [in:] Autobús de la memoria 21.06.08, available hereTomás Domínguez Arévalo, Conde de Rodezno, Ministro de Justicia y Consejero Nacional, [in:] Fundacion Nacional Francisco Franco service, available here but when first running for seat in the Cortes, he was referred to by the press only as "joven abogado y escritor".La Epoca 23.03.16, available here
Domínguez's entry into politics was facilitated by memory of his late maternal grandfather and especially by standing of his father, one of the most distinguished politicians of Navarre; his position is dubbed as "cacicato" and the Aoiz district was considered his personal fiefdom."en Navarra tambien existieron cacicatos estables, como el de los carlistas condes de Rodezno en el distrito de Aoiz", María del Mar Larazza, Navarra, [in:] José Varela Ortega (ed.), El poder de la influencia: geografía del caciquismo en España (1875-1923), Madrid 2001, , p. 443 It is not known why he decided not to renew his mandate in the 1916 campaign. Initially Domínguez Romera was to be substituted as Jaimista candidate by Joaquín Argamasilla, but in unclear circumstances the latter was replaced by Domínguez Arévalo. Argamasilla stroke back with a pamphlet, lambasting alleged alliance with the liberals and charging his substitute with flexibility bordering opportunism."este señor hubiera logrado el apoyo de los elementos independientes del mismo modo como ha conseguido la ayuda fervorosa de los jefes liberales de Navarra sin tener por eso la desgracia de ser sospechoso entre los suyos", quoted after Jesús María Fuente Langas, Elecciones de 1916 en Navarra, [in:] Príncipe de Viana 51 (1990), p. 951 Though resident of another Navarrese district of Tafalla, Domínguez Arévalo was also presented as a cuckoo candidate. Despite the critique, he was narrowly elected;1916 file at official Cortes service, available here he renewed his ticket, though also marginally, in the 1918 campaign in the same district.1918 file at official Cortes service, available here
At that time Carlism was increasingly paralyzed by tension between its top theorist Vazquez de Mella and the claimant Don Jaime; Domínguez was counted among supporters of the former. According to some historians he considered orthodox Carlism a dead-end street given the Carlist dynasty was already certain to extinguish. He shared de Mella's vision of a grand extreme-right coalition, which would be new possibilist reincarnation of Traditionalism;Andrés Martín 2000, p. 181 he also considered sort of transfer of legitimist rights to the Alfonsine dynasty. However, at the 1919 moment of breakup he decided to stay loyal to Don Jaime, even given discrepancies between him and his king were already public.José Luis Orella Martínez, El origen del primer católicismo social Español [PhD thesis UNED], Madrid 2012, p. 182
In the 1919 campaign Domínguez Arévalo presented his bid in Aoiz,La Epoca 24.05.19, available here but lost to a Maurista candidate by the smallest margin possible.out of two competitors running, his counter-candidate gained 50.52% of votes, see his 1919 file at official Cortes service here In 1920 the same two hopefuls competed in the same district;La Libertad 12.12.20, available here this time Domínguez, already conde de Rodezno, lost more decisively, the visible sign of increasingly loose Carlist grip on Navarre. A mere week after the defeat he presented his candidature to the Senate.El Globo 29.12.20, available here As indirect elections to the upper chamber were more about behind-the-stage party dealings rather than about seeking popular vote, the Jaimistas managed to negotiate Rodezno's success.official Senate site, available here He was also re-elected for the successive term in 1922. His activity as recorded in the Senate archive was insignificant.Diario de sesiones bookmark at the Senate site here One of his few interventions referred to tariffs on cork exports,Diario de Sesiones de Cortes for May 1921, p. 1210, available here the issue he was personally interested in as there was cork produced on his Andalusian Carmona estate.Madrid Cientifico 1929, p. 8, available here
Dictatorship
Advent of the Primo de Rivera dictatorship suspended Rodezno's parliamentarian career. Having lost his senate mandate he abandoned politics and is not listed as active in any of the primoderiverista institutions, be it either Somatén, Unión Patriotica or any other organization. However, he did not withdraw from public life. Rodezno took part in various Christian activities, contributed to cultural initiatives, remained engaged in Carlist structures and pursued his career as author and historian, at the same time dedicating his time to family and business.