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Narciso Perales (3 September 1914 – 18 June 1993) was a SpanishFalangist[1] who went from being decorated by order ofJosé Antonio Primo de Rivera to be confined and victimized under theFrancoist Spain because of ideological differences.[1]
Perales joined the earlyMovimiento Español Sindicalista (MES) in 1933 and was one of the original members ofFalange Española de las JONS, quickly rising in its ranks due to his intense militancy and ideological commitment. His revolutionary fervor and early activism led José Antonio Primo de Rivera to personally award him thePalma de Plata, one of the highest decorations within the Falangist movement, in October 1935. During the early stages of theSpanish Civil War, Perales was based inGranada, where he assumed local leadership roles within theFalange. His actions during this period have drawn scholarly attention, especially his intervention to protect poet Luis Rosales and possibly the ill-fatedFederico García Lorca from repression, a rare example of intra-rightist dissent during a time of mounting violence.
Despite his unwavering adherence to the ideals ofnational syndicalism, Perales grew increasingly alienated from Francoist Spain, particularly as the regime departed from its early promises of revolutionary reform. His 1939 arrest for attempting to form a dissidentFalange Auténtica marked a clear rupture between Perales and the regime he had once served.[2] Though briefly appointed as civil governor of León in 1941, he resigned in protest following the execution of fellow Falangist Juan José Domínguez Muñoz, denouncing what he perceived as a betrayal of the Falange's revolutionary mission. This act of defiance led to his confinement and solidified his status as a marginal yet principled dissident within the broader Falangist milieu.
Perales's postwar activities reflect his enduring commitment to national syndicalism divorced from Francoist authoritarianism. In the 1950s, he helped organize theAlianza Sindicalista, a syndicalist alternative rooted in early Falangist principles. By the 1960s, he co-founded theFrente Sindicalista Revolucionario (FSR), an organization that adopted black and red colors, symbolizing a break from traditional Falangist symbolism—and advocated for worker self-management, a concept resonating with libertarian socialist ideals.[3] His ideological shift illustrates how sectors of Falangism resisted Franco’s transformation of the movement into a vehicle of conservative, bureaucratic rule, seeking instead to reassert its original revolutionary ethos.
During Spain’s transition to democracy, Perales remained politically active. In 1976, he became the national chief of theFalange Española Auténtica, a splinter group that revived the pre-1937 program of the Falange and positioned itself in opposition to both the Francoist legacy andliberal democracy.[4] His leadership in the FEA reflected a persistent ideological nostalgia for José Antonio’s original vision—one rooted in spiritual nationalism and social justice through syndicalist revolution.[1]
Though marginal in political influence, Narciso Perales represents a rare continuity of Falangist idealism divorced from the state apparatus of Francoism. His lifelong commitment to national syndicalism, his personal sacrifices, and his rejection of authoritarian distortion of Falangist doctrine underscore a complex and often overlooked current within Spain’s 20th-century right-wing politics. His legacy, though contested, offers a case study in ideological fidelity and dissent within a broader authoritarian context.
Quoting Spanish FalangistNarciso Perales from an interview in 1983; "The Falange was a revolutionary movement which wanted to carry out profound changes in the Spanish society of those times. Changes which are still necessary today. José Antonio proclaimed a doctrine which resolved opposing doctrines in society. It upheld spiritual values and the belief in the fatherland as our common and universal destiny, and at the same time, it aimed for a social revolution. Theagrarian reform would turn the land over to the peasants so that the vision of giving the ownership of the land to those who work it would come true. Banks would be nationalized because it was considered unjust that the savings of all the Spanish people should be controlled by a few who dominated the economy of the country. [...]
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