Tiburcio Romualdo de Toledo y Robles (1895–1974) was a Spanish politician, civil servant and education theorist. He is known mostly as the high official of Ministerio de Educación Nacional and head of the primary education system in 1937–1951. His political allegiances changed; in the 1920s member of the primoderiverista Unión Patriótica, in the 1930s he was an active Carlist but then got fully aligned with the Franco regime. In 1933–1936 he was deputy to the republican Cortes, and in 1943–1958 he served in the Francoist parliament, Cortes Españolas. Between 1937 and 1958 he was member of the Falange Española Tradicionalista executive, Consejo Nacional. In 1925–1930 de Toledo served as councilor in the Madrid ayuntamiento, since 1929 as teniente de alcalde; in the town hall he was largely responsible for education-related issues. Since 1939 until death he was in executive board of the news agency EFE.
Family and youth
The surname of Toledo/de Toledo is among the most popular in Spain; it was recorded already in the early medieval era. However, it is not clear what branch Romualdo descended from and there is close to nothing known about his ancestors. His father, Eduardo Toledo, held a small estate in Molina de Aragón, in the province of Guadalajara. None of the sources consulted provides information when he married Josefa Robles Arnal, a girl from the same town. The couple settled at the Eduardo's possessions. It is not clear how many children they had, yet apart from Romualdo they had at least one more son, PascualLa Unión 14.08.14, available here. Pascual was present as weddings of some of Romualdo’s children, e.g. Josefina, Hoja Oficial de Lunes 23.11.53, available here. He was representing Molina in Cámara de Propiedad Rústica in 1929, La Palanca 11.12.29, available here (who unlike his brother would not use the ennobled version of their surname and would appear and “Pascual Toledo Robles”) and at least one daughter, Maria de los Dolores.she is listed as the sister when attending the second wedding of Romualdo, La Nacion 16.10.35, available here. She married a local lawyer, later to become a judge, Santiago Vigil de Quiñones, Nueva Alcarria 16.06.45, available here Both Eduardo and Josefa perished during the deadly influenza epidemic, known as Spanish flu, in 1914.unclear in what sequence. Upon her passing away the local newspaper did not mention Eduardo, La Unión 14.08.14, available here On behalf of the children, the estate was administered by their uncle Pascual.
At the age of 11 Romualdo – at the time known rather by his first name Tiburcio – left the family home and in 1906 he became a boarder in Instituto General y Técnico in Guadalajara.La Region 02.10.06, available here During the following years of 1907La Torre de Aragon 20.06.07, available here and 1908La Union 06.06.08, available here he excelled as a student; in 1909 he opted for bachillerato in algebra and trigonometry,Flores y abejas 03.10.09, available here the title which he obtained in 1911.Flores y abejas 25.06.11, available here In 1912Toledo Robles, Tiburcio Romualdo entry, [in:] PARES website of Archivo Historico Nacional, available here he moved to Zaragoza to commence university studies at Facultad de Ciencias, the faculty dedicated mostly to physics and chemistry.Jose Luis Cebollada Gracia, La seccion de quimicas de Zaragoza en las primeras decadas del siglo, [in:] Luis Español González (ed.), Estudios sobre Julio Rey Pastor: (1888–1962), Zaragoza 1990, , pp. 327-339 He completed the curriculum and in 1916Toledo Robles, Tiburcio Romualdo entry, [in:] PARES website of Archivo Historico Nacional, available here he graduated as doctor de ciencias exactas.ABC 25.05.74, available here. In Spanish academia of the time, this "ciencias exactas" stood mostly for mathematics, physics and chemistry Subject to military service, he formed part of “reemplazo de 1916” – though unclear whether he actually served – and in 1920 passed to reserve in Tropas de Sanidad Militar.Boletin Oficial de la Provincia de Guadalajara 18.06.20, available here In the early 1920s he moved to Madrid and was employed as auxiliar de meteorología in Observatorio de Madrid; first noted at this post in 1922,Guía Oficial de España 1922, available here he would hold the job for some 10 years to come.
Prior to 1926in 1926 “distinguida esposa de nuestro buen amigo D. Romualdo de Toledo” is noted as giving birth to a child, to be named Eduardo, La Nacion 12.08.26, available here. In her later obituary notes when listing children Eduardo is listed after Josefina, which suggests that he had an older sister, born no later than in 1925 de Toledo married Remigia del Castillo Asensio (1895–1935); little is known about her except that she was related to Teruel.the daughter of Cipriano and Juana, related to Teruel, Teruel 17.12.28, available here The couple had 4 children,Josefina in 1953 married Carlos Maldonado, Hoja Oficial de Lunes 23.11.53, available here (it is not clear why she is listed as “Josefina de Toledo y Sanz”; back in 1945 when noted as cursillista, she was referred to as “Josefina de Toledo y del Castillo”, Anuario del Maestro 01.01.47, available here), Eduardo married María del Carmen Martínez de Galinsoga; he also appears as “Eduardo de Toledo y Sanz”, El Diario Palentino 08.10.50, available here, María del Carmen in 1950 married Pedro Areitío y Rodrigo, Hoja Oficial de Lunes 09.10.50, available here, María Dolores married Luis Serrano de Pablo born between the mid-1920s and the mid-1930s.Josefina, Eduardo, Carmen and Dolores are listed as children of Romualdo and Remigia in La Epoca 11.02.35, available here Remigia died prematurely in February 1935;El Siglo Futuro 11.02.35, available here. It is not clear whether her premature death was related to car accident, suffered in 1931, El Debate 07.06.31, available here in October 1935 the widower remarried with Pilar Sanz Beneded (died 1992).ABC 10.12.92, available here l His second wife descended from a well-established Zaragoza family;for “distinguida familia aragonesa” see Ahora 17.10.35, available here her father was an entrepreneurher father was Felipe Sanz Espuis, her brother was Felipe San Beneded, the one who developed the business, see Mariano García, El Bazar X, el gran teatro de los sueños de los zaragozanos durante 70 años, [in:] Heraldo 08.04.24, available here and the retail business he started was later developed into a large-scale enterprise.developed later by his son, and romualdo’s brother in-law Felipe Sanz Beneded, see El Bazar X de Zaragoza, [in:] ZaraGozala service 03.09.24, available here. For Felipe San Beneded as brothers-in-law to Romualdo see Hoja Oficial de Lunes 18.05.53, available here In the marriage with Pilar de Toledo had further 3 children.Pilar in 1959 married Juan Miguel Antoñanzas, Romualdo (born 1938) in 1967 married Esperanza González Green, and Blanca married Ricardo de Juanes y Lagonot, Romualdo de Toledo y Robles entry, [in:] Geneanet service, available here None of his descendants would become a widely known personality, yet Romualdo de Toledo Sanz gained some recognition as in the 1970s and the 1980s he ascended to high management positions in the publishing house Grupo 16.Diario de Burgos 13.03.86, available here, El adelantado 22.09.87, available here. He was later imprisoned and trialed with fraud charges advanced, José Díaz Herrera, Pedro J. Ramírez, al desnudo, Madrid 2009, , pp. 28-29 Among more distant relatives his maternal cousin José María Araúz de Robles was a politician and bull-breeder,de Toledo and Arauz de Robles were cousins since their mothers, respectively Josefa Robles Arnal and Maria Robles Arnal, were sisters (children of Vicente Robles and Dolores Arnal) while his nephew-in-law Angel Sanz Briz became known for saving Hungarian Jews in 1944–1945.he was son of Felipe San Beneded, the brother of de Toledo's second wife, see Angel Maximo Sanz Briz entry, [in:] Geni service, available here
Dictadura: councilor and education official (1925–1930)
Political preferences of de Toledo's ancestors are unknown; there is neither any data available on his public activities in the academic period. First information on his political endeavors is related to the mid-1920s;one historian counts de Toledo among Carlists “claramente vinculados al sistema de la restauracion liberal y alfonsina”, Manuel Martorell Pérez, Nuevas aportaciones históricas sobre la evolución ideológica del carlismo, [in:] Gerónimo de Uztariz 16 (2000), p. 104. It is not clear what is the basis of this claim, since de Toledo was not active in public before 1923, i.e. before the regime of liberal democracy was replaced with dictatorship during the early period of Primo de Rivera dictatorship he joined the Madrid structures of the newly created state party, Unión Patriotica. He was an active member, and in 1925 as one of 10 vocales he entered Junta Provincial of the organisation.El Debate 12.12.25, available here The same year de Toledo as one of 64 alternate councilors entered the Madrid town hall,Diario de la Marina 07.11.25, available here in the dictatorship era not elected but appointed by the civil governor. In 1927 he became the interim councilor in the ayuntamientoLa Nacion 19.12.27, available here and assumed some administrative duties, e.g. in 1928 dealing with local calamities.La Nacion 24.09.28, available here In 1929 the council elected him as one of 10 deputy mayors;there were 51 votes cast in support, 3 votes blank and 0 votes against, El Debate 20.07.29, available here de Toledo was responsible for the Universidad district.Guía Oficial de España 1930, available here He was noted as active on numerous fields, from public transporte.g. in 1929 discussing taxi fares, La Nacion 11.07.29, available here to quality of breadEl Debate 01.11.29, available here to organizing fiestas veraniegas.La Nacion 29.07.29, available here
Parallel to his duties in the Madrid town hall, de Toledo commenced career in central administration. In 1926 he was nominated secretario auxiliar in Ministerio de Instrucción PúblicaLa Nación 13.08.1926 and entered some internal committees within the ministry.La Voz de de Peñaranda 24.04.26, available here He retained this role during following yearsLa Nacion 11.07.29, available here, also La Nacion 17.10.27, available here and assumed positions in various dependent bodies, like Consejo Superior del Patronato de la Federación de Mutualidades Escolares.La Libertad 07.05.27, available here He was noted conferencing on “problema escolar”,La Nacion 03.08.29, available here writing articles,La Escuela Moderna 07.08.29, available here and discussing issues like financing teachers by large municipalitiesEl Liberal 03.10.29, available here or city councils co-financing certain types of schools.La Voz 08.10.29, available here In the late 1920s his activities in local administration and education converged, as he became delegado de enseñanza in the ayuntamiento,El dia grafico 22.05.30, available here referred to as “paladín de la instrucción pública en nuestro activo Municipio”.La Voz 08.10.29, available here