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Francisco de Asís Vidal y Barraquer | |
|---|---|
| Archbishop of Tarragona | |
 Pictured sometime between 1918 and 1931. | |
| Church | Roman Catholic Church |
| Appointed | 7 May 1919 |
| Term ended | 13 September 1943 |
| Predecessor | Antolín López y Peláez |
| Successor | Manuel Arce y Ochotorena |
| Other post | Cardinal-Priest of Santa Sabina (1921–43) |
| Previous posts | Titular Bishop of Pentacomia (1913–19) Apostolic Administrator of Solsona (1913–19) |
| Orders | |
| Ordination | 17 September 1899 by Tomás Costa Fornaguera |
| Consecration | 26 April 1914 by Antolín López y Peláez |
| Created cardinal | 7 March 1921 byPope Benedict XV |
| Rank | Cardinal-priest |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Francisco de Asís Vidal y Barraquer 3 October 1868 |
| Died | 13 September 1943(1943-09-13) (aged 74) Foyer Saint'Elizabeth,Fribourg,Switzerland |
| Buried | Tarragona Cathedral(since 1978) |
| Parents | Francisco Vidal i Gimbernat Angelina Barraquer i Roviralta |
| Alma mater | University of Barcelona University of Madrid |
| Motto | Diligite alterutrum |
| Coat of arms |  |
| Styles of Francisco Vidal y Barraquer | |
|---|---|
| |
| Reference style | His Eminence |
| Spoken style | Your Eminence |
| Religious style | Cardinal |
| Informal style | Cardinal |
| See | Tarragona |
Francisco de Asís Vidal y Barraquer (Catalan:Francesc d'Assís Vidal i Barraquer, 3 October 1868 – 13 September 1943) was a SpanishCatalancardinal of theRoman Catholic Church who served asArchbishop of Tarragona from 1919 until his death; he was elevated to the rank of cardinal in 1921.
He famously refused to sign the1937 Collective Letter in which the Spanish Church's hierarchy gave their support toFrancisco Franco's forces,[1] and died in exile in Switzerland.
Born inCambrils to a family of rural landowners and liberal professionals, Francisco Vidal y Barraquer attended theColegio San Ignacio inManresa (1880–1885), earned hisbachillerato at theseminary inBarcelona (1885), and thenpracticed law for a year after studying at thelawfaculty of Barcelona. He entered the seminary ofTarragona in 1895, and wasordained to thepriesthood on 17 September 1899. On 24 September 1900 Vidal obtained hisdoctorate in law from theUniversity of Madrid. He sought to join theSociety of Jesus, more commonly known as the Jesuits, but his father asked Francisco to finish a career first.
Vidal then didpastoral work in Tarragona, as well as serving as fiscal (1905), provisor and actingvicar general (1905–1909) in itsarchdiocesancuria. He was acanon of Tarragona'scathedralchapter from 1907 to 1913, vicar general from 1909 to 1913,archpriest in 1910, andvicar capitular from October 1911 until his promotion to theepiscopate.
On 10 November 1913 Vidal was appointedapostolic administrator ofSolsona andtitular bishop of Pentacomia. He received hisepiscopal consecration on 26 April 1914 from ArchbishopAntolín López Peláez, with BishopsRamón Barberá y Boada andRamón Guillamet y Coma serving asco-consecrators, in thecathedral of Tarragona. He wassenator of the Spanish kingdom for theprovince of Tarragona from 1914 to 1916, and renounced themitre ofCádiz to help calm the political and social tensions ofCatalonia. Vidal was laterArchbishop of Tarragona on 7 May 1919.
Pope Benedict XV created himcardinal priest ofSanta Sabina in theconsistory of 7 March 1921. Vidal was one of thecardinal electors in the 1922 papal conclave, which selectedPope Pius XI, and later rejected Pope Pius's offer of theprimatialsee of Toledo. He also refused appointments toZaragoza and to theRoman Curia. Following theRepublican government's exile of CardinalPedro Segura y Sáenz, Vidal became the leading prelate of theSpanish Church. He made fruitless attempts to mitigate the dispositions of the constitutional project which affected the rights of the Church, and to have theVatican acceptLuis Zulueta y Escolano as its Spanishambassador.
During theSpanish Civil War, Vidal remained in a position ofneutrality. When theRevolution of 1936 broke out, the cardinal found his life in danger at the hands of leftist militias and fled toPoblet,Barcelona. Taken captive byFederacion Anarquista Iberica militiamen and on the point of being killed, his life was saved by the Catalan Culture CommissionerVentura Gassol, a former seminarian and friend who saved the lives of several priests in Catalonia.[2] Vidal eventually left the country and made it to theCarthusian monastery of Farneta inLucca,Italy. Franco's troops occupiedTarragona on 15 January 1939 and Barcelona on 26 January.José de Yanguas, 11th Viscount of Santa Clara de Avedillo then urgently requested an audience withCardinal Pacelli to express the Francoist demand that Cardinal Vidal i Barraquer be removed from his see at Tarragona. The Francoist Minister the Conde de Jordana summoned the nuncio and passed to him a memorandum that declared the government wished, since part of the clergy "has been contaminated by separatist doctrines", forEnrique Pla y Deniel to be appointed to the See of Tarragona. A liturgical rite for the reconciliation ofTarragona Cathedral—although it had not been burnt or destroyed, it was considered profane because of several acts of vandalism during the first days of the revolution—was carried out in a ritual officiated over by don José Artero, the canon ofSalamanca Cathedral, in which he gave a "violent speech [that included a denunciation of] Catalan dogs! You don't deserve the sun that shines on you!"[3]
After the death of Pius XI, Vidal i Barraquerparticipated in theconclave of 1939, which resulted in the election ofPope Pius XII. However, the cardinal'sCatalanism, good relations with the Republican authorities of Catalonia, and his refusal to sign the joint letter of the Spanish episcopate during the civil war caused Generalissimo Franco to forbid him from returning to hisarchdiocese in the cardinal's lifetime; he nevertheless refused to renounce his post. Pius XII was outraged to hear that Franco desired to send Vidal, as a man hostile to theFrancoist State, into exile.[4]
Franco lifted his ban on Vidal in 1941, after he and the Vatican reached aconcordat.[5] However, the cardinal remained in Italy, and in 1943, theGermanoccupation of Italy forced him to move toSwitzerland.
Vidal was an enthusiastic champion ofcollegiality andCatholic Action.
Cardinal Vidal died inFribourg, at the age of 74. He was initially buried at a Carthusian monastery inValsainte, but his remains were transferred, in accord with his will, to Tarragona in May 1978. Vidal is buried beside his formerauxiliary, BishopManuel Borràs, who was imprisoned and then tortured and executed byPopular Front militiamen during the civil war while Vidal was in exile.[6]
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| Preceded by | Apostolic Administrator ofSolsona 1913–1919 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Archbishop of Tarragona 1919–1943 | Succeeded by |
