Ignacio was born after the family had moved from Leitza to Pamplona. He received secondary education in the PiaristColegio de los Escolapios[10] and was raised, like his 8 siblings, in the fervently Catholic ambience. His older sister, María Isabel, was initially supposed to marryJuan Vázquez de Mella.[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.[12] His younger sister Dolores was a Carlist activist and author. His younger brother,Pedro María Baleztena Ascarate, became a famouspelota player.[13]
Allegedly already as a child Ignacio took part in street protests againstGamazada in the 1890s.[26] He commenced his lifetime career as a youngster, co-organising and shaping various village feasts – especially the localsantiburcios – in Leitza;[27] 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.[28] He commenced studying law in theJesuitDeusto college inBilbao, but left[29] to study architecture inMadrid and to continue with law inSalamanca;[30] during his academic years Baleztena continued with cultural activities writing short stories and couplets, first for friends and then the public.[31] Contributing with short pieces to various periodicals, during the Salamanca years he set up his own,El Bólido.[32] He completed his first academic curriculum in 1910,[33] returning to Pamplona somewhat earlier. Became engaged in a number of Catholic initiatives aimed againstLey del Candado, the most momentous having been the huge 1908Gipuzkoan gathering known asacto de Zumárraga.[34] 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 inBasque.[35] Also in 1908 he set upEl Requeté de Pamplona, a periodical intended for Carlist youth.[36] In 1911 he was elected president ofJuventud Jaimista in Pamplona,[37] though his leadership style was peculiar, with special focus onzarzuelas,balls,juegos florales,[38] historicalre-enactments, spectacles and othercarnivalesque performance genres.[39] In 1914, having graduated in law from Salamanca, he was offered the job of personal secretary by his brother-in-law, the Spanishconsul inPau.[40] Ignacio remained in the Spanish consular service inFrance until 1918.[41]
In 1918 Baleztena joined the Carlist-foralist list of candidates in the local elections; successful, he becameconcejal of the Pamplona Ayuntamiento.[42] One of his first initiatives was to createCaja de Ahorros de Navarra, an institution run by theDiputación Foral and providing popular affordable credit.[43] He made his name as a staunch advocate of traditional local legal establishments. During initial works onvasco-navarrese autonomy he co-foundedComité pro Autonomía and co-signed a proclamation, issued byJunta Gestora de la Juventud pro Navarra, demanding restoration of traditional Navarrese foral regulations.[44] In 1921 he represented theJaimistas inAlianza Foral coalition and was elected to the Navarrese Diputación Foral.[45] Re-elected in 1923 and 1926, he retained the post until 1928. Since 1925 he took part in talks between Diputación Foral andMinisterio de la Gobernación,[46] though he demonstrated some flexibility when negotiating changes to the foral regime;[47] in 1930 he formed part of the appointedComisión Gestora.[48] Baleztena kept endorsing a Navarrese identity also by other means, be it religious (San Francisco Javier commemorations), historical (unveiling of themonument to Navarrese heroes inMaya)[49] or scientific (opening a Navarrese section in Museum of Bayonne).[50]
Baleztena was vital to development and re-organisation ofArchivo General de Navarra,[51] the place where he spent more and more time as researcher starting late 1920s[52] and which turned into his primary employment in the 1930s, when he was discharged from most other duties. In 1928 nominated the municipal Delegado de Turismo,[53] resuming the function in the 1940s as Secretario del Comité Provincial de Turismo.[54] In 1940 he foundedMuseo de Recuerdos Históricos in Pamplona, intended as Carlist cultural outpost;[55] he was managing it as a director until the museum, due to run-down conditions of the building and amidst controversial circumstances, shut down in the mid-1960s.[56] Since 1949 he was director of Museos de Navarra.[57] Active in a number of mostly culture-related municipal and provincial bodies, likeComisión de Monumentos orInstituto Principe de Viana.[58] By the end of his life he became an iconic and proverbial Pamplona figure, dubbed "aitacho".[59]
Since early youth Baleztena demonstrated particular interest in everything related toGiants and Bigheads;[60] he was engaged in design, construction and carrying the figures.[61] He later became an expert on gigantes, investigating their history and related rituals down to minuscule details.[62] His interests gradually broadened to all Pamplonese feasts; in the 1920s he emerged as their key organizer[63] and expert, publishing a number of related works[64] and incalculable newspaper pieces.[65] His contribution soon went far beyond cultivating local customs, as Baleztena was also reconstructing old-forgotten rituals and inventing new ones,[66] incorporating them into celebrations ofEpiphany,[67]Holy Week[68] orCorpus Christi;[69] he launched also stand-alone customs likeProcesión de San Saturnino.[70] His activities went beyond Pamplona, as he revitalised localromerias, like the one toUjué.[71] All feasts contained a strong if not vital religious component, like the massive 1922 celebrations commemorating San Francisco Javier, styled as "arquetipo navarro.[72] Some were strongly flavoured by Carlism, like the annual pilgrimage toJavier,[73] launched in 1939.[74]
sanfermines 1911
Baleztena remained particularly fascinated by thesanfermines, investigating their history and forming part ofCorte de San Fermín.[75] He is credited for launching an unofficial feast anthemUno de enero, dos de febrero[76] and a popularIruña-ko mezetak song,[77] apart from a number of other unrelated chants.[78] It was Baleztena and his friends who in 1911 first performedriau-riau; it remains debated whather the ritual was intended as a Carlist demonstration dogging theLiberal-dominated city council[79] or simply as a juvenile joke.[80] When it comes torunning of the bulls he was in favor of as few regulations as possible,[81] though none of the sources consulted mentions Baleztena running with the bulls himself. He remained one of key figures shaping sanfermines until the early 1960s, when he lost his grip on the event. The 1963-4 feasts were snatched by young Carlist progressists,[82] who formatted them as their own political manifestations.[83]
Baleztena's interest in feasts and customs is peculiar as it combined three different approaches: this of a scientist (anthropologist,historian,ethnographer, who pursues impartial scholarly studies),[84] this of a politician (who shapes popular customs as vehicles of propagating own set of values),[85] and this of a participant (who genuinely enjoys the feasts, contributes to them and takes part in them).[86] Some scholars classify his approach as "costumbrismo nostálgico", which exalted religiosity and viewed modernising changes with anxiety.[87] Some consider it a strategy of disseminating authoritarian discourse, which by means of cultural identification mobilised the society along conservative lines, a process similar to those employed by theNazis in theWeimar Republic.[88] Some present it as means of maintaining traditional Navarrese identity.[89]
Baleztena'smother tongue was Spanish;[90] he spokeBasque with some difficulty, though he understood Basque very well.[91] Due to his childhood spent in Leitza, he was well accustomed and indeed fascinated by theBasque culture. Faced with the new phenomenon ofBasque national drive, he opposed it with traditional vision of Basque identity;[92] to this end, in 1913 he founded aJoshe Miguel weekly,[93] intended as a Basque "antieuzkadiano" periodical.[94] Baleztena early joinedSociedad de Estudios Vascos[95] and formed part of its Junta Permanente; he participated in attempts to openUniversidad Vasco-Navarra and remained active inCongresos de Estudios Vascos throughout the 1920s,[96] promoting traditionalist Euskalerria against the nationalist Euzkadi.[97] Baleztena opposed the usage ofikurriña as contrived and championed traditional provincial flags instead; he criticised newly invented feasts likeAberri Eguna, especially the 4th one staged in Pamplona.[98]
In 1925 Baleztena co-foundedEuskeraren Adiskideak, a society promoting Basque culture in Navarre.[99] In 1931 he set upZáldiko Máldiko, a semi-private group focusing on folk dances and performing on festivals across Spanish and French Navarre.[100] The grouping was re-formatted in 1934 as a Basque cultural folk association namedMuthiko Alaiak, specialising in dance and theatric performances.[101] Dominated by Carlists, Muthiko functioned as a vehicle for promoting Traditionalist vision of Navarrese society,[102] though Baleztena did not refrain from mocking authorities (firstRepublican and laterFrancoist),[103] especially by means of kurriños,[104] performed often during local Carlist political events.[105] After the Civil War Muthiko was considered the centre of antifrancoist Carlism.[106] The group occasionally took part in official events,[107] but it was registered as late as in 1949[108] and following continuous harassment,[109] was re-opened in 1954.[110] Though the last floor of the Baleztena house served as a stage for rehearsals,[111] over time Baleztena lost control over Muthiko. As early as 1956 the communist intelligence considered the group a potentially promising area[112] and indeed, in the 1960s[113] it became a nucleus of socialism,[114] which it remains until today,[115] actively promoting also the Basque nationalism.[116]
Since early youth Baleztena was active in juvenile Jaimist organisations. In 1919 he took part inMagna Junta Carlista de Biarritz[117] and set up a new Carlist weeklyRadica,[118] representing the movement first in the Pamplona ayuntamiento and in the 1920s in the Deputación Foral.[119] He considered taking part in "controlled" elections, planned byBerenguer in 1930.[120] During first months of the Republic he forged aCarlist-nationalist alliance prior to the1931 elections[121] and engaged in works onvasco-navarrese autonomy. Initially in favour,[122] he withdrew his support when governmental draft moved religious issues from autonomous to central portfolio.[123] Member of the regional Carlist authorities,[124] he got the family Pamplona house set ablaze by the leftist hit-squad in 1932.[125] In 1933 he briefly headed the NavarreseRequeté.[126]
Don Javier, 1960
In the spring of 1936 Baleztena negotiated Carlist support withMola,[127] within Carlism forming the faction pressing unconditional Carlist adherence to the coup.[128] Upon the outbreak of hostilities the Baleztena houses turned into important insurgent centres.[129] Ignacio helped to organiseTercio de San Miguel;[130] in the mayhem that followed he is noted for saving Leftist supporters and POWs.[131] Late July he volunteered[132] toTercio María de las Nievesbattalion and served inAragón,[133] later on transferred toTercio de Cristo Rey, deployed on the Madrid front[134] and serving until the end of the war on the on-and-off basis.[135] His stance towardsunification is highly unclear,[136] though it soon evolved into opposition;[137] contesting Carlist amalgamation intoMovimiento,[138] he brusquely rejected Franco's blandishments.[139] During theSecond World War the Baleztenas helped the French refugees[140] and demonstrated anti-Axis sympathies.[141] They are usually considered members of the intransigent "bando falcondista",[142] though Ignacio made also some conciliatory gestures towardsFrancoism.[143] In the late 1940s the Baleztena brothers strived to rebuild clandestine[144] or semi-official[145] Carlist structures, both counted among Navarrese Carlist leaders.[146] In 1952 Ignacio engineered one of the most humiliating snubs thatFranco had to take.[147] As late as 1954 he occasionally went into hiding, having been easy target of Falangist vengeance.[148]
Carlist standard
The Baleztenas voiced against a union withJuanistas,[149] which did not necessarily amount to endorsingDon Javier's claim to the throne.[150] In the mid-1950s they criticisedFal Conde as too conciliatory towards Francoism.[151] Some scholars claim that they engineered a plot to remove Fal,[152] though his actual dismissal and new course adopted by Carlism suited the competing "unionistas"[153] faction more. When theHuguistas appeared on the scene in the late 1950s, the Baleztenas seemed rather skeptical.[154] Though they lent some support toCarlos Hugo[155] and maintained cordial relations with the Carlist claimant Don Javier until the late 1960s,[156] they confronted the progressives when power struggle erupted within Carlism in the mid-1960s.[157] The last success of the Baleztenas was regaining control overEl Pensamiento Navarro in 1970,[158] a short-lived victory[159] as early 1970s Ignacio was expulsed from the socialist-dominatedPartido Carlista.[160]
^named "Torrea" and "Petrorena"; Javier Baleztena Abarrategui,Premín de Iruña blog availablehere, entry 08.09.11
^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, seehere
^José Andrés-Gallego, Pedro Pegenaute Garde,Navarra ca.1900-ca.1975, s.l., availablehereArchived 2014-11-08 at theWayback Machine, pp. 546-547
^compare David Allegría Suescun,Historia del abastecimiento de agua en la Comarca de Pamplona availablehereArchived 2014-11-08 at theWayback Machine
^Albert Carreras,Doctor Jordi Nadal: la industrialització i el desenvolupament econòmic d'Espanya, vol. 2, Barcelona 1999,ISBN8447521451, 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, availablehere
^elected on the Carlist-Basque ticket listed, García-Sanz 2001, pp. 623-5
^seeJoaquín Baleztena Muñagorri entry atAuñamendi Eusko Entziklopedia availablehere
^Eugenio was Teniente de Alcalde of Pamplona, while Juan Pedro was the Alcalde himself, see Araiza genealogy availablehere
^seeBALEZTENA ASCARATE, Pedro María entry atGran Enciclopedia Navarra availablehereArchived 2014-11-08 at theWayback Machine, orPedro María Baleztena Ascarate entry atAuñamendi Eusko Entziklopedia availablehere; Luis Baleztena Abarrategui, son of Ignacio, was also a locally known athlete, seeAuñamendi Eusko Entziklopedia availablehere
^(1905-1992), daughter ofBenito Abarrategui Zubía and Ascensión Gorosabel Eguidazu, seeGeni genealogy service availablehere
^Geni genealogy service availablehere, see also the obituary inABC 09.02.92 availablehere
^in 1988, during the first visit ofJuan Carlos de Borbón and his wife to Pamplona, the Baleztenas kept all windows and shutters closed (except the premises inhabited by Joaquincho Baleztena), seeABC 22.10.13 availablehere
^Silvia Baleztena Abarrategui unsuccessfully ran for theCortes in 2011 on theDerecha 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 againstETA; in 1996 and 2012 it was assaulted by the Basque nationalists with the Spanish banner torn away from the balcony and burnt down, seeABC 20.08.96 availablehere andABC 16.08.12 availablehere
^son of Joaquincho Baleztena and Pancha Navarrete, co-founder ofUPN and an activist bent on fighting ETA
^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, seeNoticias de Navarra 19.12.13 availablehereArchived 2014-11-07 atarchive.today
^specialising ingeriatrics and co-founder ofPeña Mutilzarra; the association, founded in 1992, declares itself unpolitical and dedicated to traditional local customs; see its website availablehere
^for filmography seehere, for a sample of her movie performance seehere
^Premín de Iruña blog, entry 18.11.10; Baleztena continued to research, organize and design the Leitza santiburcios also later on, seePremín de Iruña blog, entry 25.08.12, compare also the 1996 santiburcios assault on Casa Baleztena,ABC 20.08.96
^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, availablehere
^his extravert and jolly behaviour produced conflict with the college authorities,Premín de Iruña blog, entry 17.11.10
^where he met and admiredde Unamuno,Premín de Iruña blog, entry 17.11.10,Auñamendi Eusko Entziklopedia
^Premín de Iruña blog, entry 12.11.10. These juvenile attempts marked Baleztena's fascination withperforming arts, especiallypantomime, disguise, masks,puppetry etc
^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,ISBN8493508187, pp. 523-530
^Premín de Iruña blog, entry 23.11.10;Auñamendi Eusko Entziklopedia says it was in 1912
^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,ISBN8481363995, 9788481363999, p. 83
^Premín de Iruña blog, entry 10.02.11. Some sources claim he engaged in politics half-heartedly, as his genuine passion was culture, seehereArchived 2014-10-05 at theWayback Machine
^Premín de Iruñablog, entry 18.02.11,Auñamendi Eusko Entziklopedia
^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 anIntegrist,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
^Premín de Iruña blog, entry 26.05.11,Auñamendi Eusko Entziklopedia
^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
^Premín de Iruña blog, entries 22.03.11, 27.06.11; he demanded reinstating traditional Navarrese establishments, Andrés-Gallego, Pegenaute 1975, p. 572
^Baleztena clashed with some fellow Carlists led byPradera, who vehemently opposed the monument as a means fostering Basque separatism, see Manuel Martorell Pérez,La continuidad ideológica del carlismo tras la Guerra Civil [PhD thesis], Valencia 2009, p. 359, José Javier López Antón,Trayectoria ideológica del carlismo bajo Don Jaime III (1909-1931): aproximación y estudio de los postulados regionalistas del Jaimismo Navarro (1918-1931), [in:]Aportes 6/15 (1991), p. 46
^Premín de Iruña blog, entry 12.03.11,Auñamendi Eusko Entziklopedi
^his nomination was opposed by the civil governor, see Floren Aoiz,El jarrón roto: la transición en Navarra: una cuestión de Estado, Tafalla 2005,ISBN8481363294, 9788481363296, p. 30; the book mentions the episode when discussing emergence of "navarrismo de orientación claramente fascista"', though it is not clear whether, according to author, Baleztena represented or opposed "fascismo navarro"
^initially it was intended to be named Museo de las Guerras Carlistas; the name was abandoned due to the pressure on part of the Francoist regime,Premín de Iruña blog, entry 9.1.14; the building is now hostingMuseo Pablo Sarasate, see turismo.navarra availablehere
^as part of a wider agreement, Museo de Recuerdos Históricos was to be moved to the Citadel of Pamplona, which was about to be handed over by the army to municipal authorities. Amidst mutual accusations between the Baleztenas and the Pamplona Ayuntamiento, most of the objects ended up in the Baleztena house. Once Dolores Baleztena became the general depositary, she started to make the objects available on various periodical displays and exhibitions. They were seized from one of them byEuskalherriko Karlista Alderdia, a vasconavarrese branch ofPartido Carlista, in 1975. The Baleztena family lost the ensuing lawsuit against EKA. Thirty years later some of the objects were donated by EKA toMuseum of Carlism, where they are currently on display. EKA is unhappy with the way Museum presents Carlism (children of the deceased EKA leaderJosé Ángel Pérez-Nievas Abascal rejected invitation to attend the opening ceremony) and considers depositing other objects somewhere else, see José Fermín Garralda Arizcun blog availablehere and Javier Hermoso de Mendoza blog availablehere; analysis of Pamplona ayuntamiento politics during late Francoism see María del Mar Larraza Micheltorena,El ayuntamiento pamplonés en el tardofranquismo, [in:]La Transició de la dictadura franquista a la democràcia, Barcelona 2005,ISBN8460973972, pp. 68-79, availablehereArchived 2014-11-09 at theWayback Machine
^some authors claim Baleztena was director of "Museo de Navarra", which seems to be a currently existingmuseum in Pamplona, see Mercedes Vázquez de Prada Tiffe,La reorganización del carlismo vasco en los sesenta. Entre la pasividad y el "separatismo, [in:]Vasconia: Cuadernos de historia - geografía, 38 (2012), p. 1115, Mercedes Vázquez de Prada Tiffe,El nuevo rumbo político del carlismo hacia la colaboración con el régimen (1955-56), [in:]Hispania 69/231 (2009), p. 185, Egaña 2005, p. 83. On the other hand, del Burgo 1954, p. 144 claims he was director of "Museos de Navarra", which sounds like a department within the provincial administrative board
^Premín de Iruña blog, entry 09.11.10; "pappy" or "daddy" in English; between 1940 and 1970 Pamplona changed from a mid-size provincial city of 50,000 inhabitants, providing services for the neighboring rural area, to an anonymous industrial urban centre of 150,000 people, "el Japón con boina roja", see Micheltorena 2005, p. 69. Currently none of the tourist leaflets distributed by the Pamplona tourist office mentions Baleztena and the staff is unaware of the Baleztena name
^the old medieval ritual was reinstated by the city council around the year of 1860, see sanfermines.net availablehere
^the figure ofKing Baltasar was later sort of reserved for Ignacio Baleztena; when due to age he was unable to carry the harness, member of his family took over,Premín de Iruña blog, entry 30.11.10
^in 1920 Baleztena published his first book,Iruñerías, a collection of his earlier pieces published inRadica and styled as tales from old Pamplona. His other books areRelaciones de la Santa Sede con los Monarcas navarros y sus legitimos herederos (1921),La Insignia de las Cinco Llagas (1932),Los toros en Navarra (1932),Los gigantes de Pamplona. Historia de esos simpáticos monigotes que tantosratos felices han proporcionado a Premin de Iruña (1933),De cómo Kilikizarra murió y estiró la garra (1935),Recuerdos históricos- El Capitán D. Manuel Vidondo y la batalla de Gulina (1942), see del Burgo 1954, p. 144
^he contributed to numerous newspapers, mostly Navarrese ones (El Pensamiento Navarro,Pregón,Diario de Navarra), though also toEl Pueblo Vasco (San Sebastián),Euskalerria (Montevideo),Vida Vasca (Vitoria),La Fiesta Brava (Barcelona),Estampa Tradicionalista (Tolosa),Tradición Vasca (San Sebastian), listed after del Burgo 1954, 144; his pen-names were Premín de Iruña, Tiburcio de Okabío and José Miel,Premín de Iruña blog, entry 10.11.10. For a sample seeEl Siglo Futuro 04.07.1935, availablehere
^Javier Dronda Martínez,Con Cristo o contra Cristo. Religión y movilización antirrepublicana en navarra (1931-1936), Tafalla 2013,ISBN8415313314, 9788415313311, p. 53
^in terms of attendance in the 1960s theJavieradas were eclipsed by another Carlist annual gatherings, namely theMontejurra aplecs, which were also launched by Baleztena, namely Ignacio's sister Dolores, see Francisco Javier Caspistegui Gorasurreta,Navarra y el carlismo durante el régimen de Franco: la utopía de la identidad unitaria, [in:]Investigaciones históricas: Época moderna y contemporánea, 17 (1997), p. 309. In 1970s Montejurra dramatically lost popularity and attracts few hundreds now, see Jeremy MacClancy,The Decline of Carlism, Reno 2000,ISBN9780874173444, p. 275, his alsoAn anthropological approach to carlist ritual: Montejurra during francoism, [in:]Violencias fraticidas. Jornadas de Estudio del Carlismo, Estella 2009,ISBN9788423531653, pp. 299-322. The Javierada of 2014 attracted 24,000 people, see navarrese local service availablehere
^officially the pilgrimage was organised by Hermandad de Caballeros Voluntarios de la Cruz, the organisation co-founded by Baleztena,Premín de Iruña blog, entry 03.12.13; see also Javier Ugarte,El carlismo hacia los años treintadel siglo xx. Un fenómeno señal, [in:]Ayer 38 (2000), p. 173
^sort of organizing committee,Premín de Iruña blog, entry 02.07.12
^both were worked out together with Baleztena's friend and musicianSilvano Cervantes Iñigo,Premín de Iruña blog, entry 13.12.10;
^he also the author of other popular songs, likeLa Antoni e Ignacio,Levántate pamplónica,El cordero de Francisco,La procesión del Viernes Santo, listed after del Burgo 1954, p. 144
^in 1963 the Carlists staged a demonstration in favor ofCarlos Hugo in front of the Ayuntamiento, in 1964, when the newly-wed Carlos Hugo ran with the bulls, Plaza del Castillo turned into a battlefield between Carlists andFalangists. The same year in Javier the locals prepared banners reading "Carlos e Irene, vosotros si podeis entrar", a reference to incidents earlier that year, when Juan Carlos de Borbón and his wife turned back toAragon having learnt that the locals await them with sticks and stones, Javier Lavardín [José Antonio Parilla],Historia del ultimo pretendiente a la corona de España, Paris 1976, pp. 175, 240
^in 1960s Baleztena-style Traditionalist feasts and celebrations, strongly saturated with religious element, were subject to increasing secularisation until the confessional dimension disappeared altogether, see Francisco Javier Caspistegui Gorasurreta,El proceso de secularización de lasfiestas carlistas, [in:]Zainak. Cuadernos de Antropología-Etnografía, 26 (2004), pp. 781-802; first attempts to vandalise Carlist monuments, like graffiti on the Pamplona Monument of the Fallen walls, started to appear in the mid-1960s, see Francisco Javier Caspistegui Gorasurreta,Navarra y el carlismo durante el régimen de Franco: la utopía de la identidad unitaria, [in:]Investigaciones históricas: Época moderna y contemporánea 17 (1997)p. 302
^Baleztena was active in Principe de Viana and contributed some scholarly works (e.g.Toponimia del término de Pamplona, [in:]Actas de la I Reunión de Toponimia Pirenaica, Zaragoza 1949), though in general he tended to underline his amateurish stance and to mock scientists and scientific realm with all its rituals: conferences, lectures, universities, grades, professors, faculties, books, scientific articles etc; he was a rare guest at the Etnologia Vasca faculty atUniversidad de Navarra, headed byJosé Miguel de Barandiarán
^for a sample seeEl Siglo Futuro 31.10.1935, availablehere; it is worth noting that he fell short of directly contributing to the wartime propaganda; he is not mentioned in Francisco Javier Caspistegui,"Spain's Vendee": Carlist identity in Navarre as a mobilising model, [in:]Chris Ealham, Michael Richards (eds.),The Splintering of Spain, Cambridge 2005,ISBN9780511132636, pp. 177-195
^he demonstrated vivid interest only in carnivalesque, ludic forms of entertainment closely related to folk customs, with much less focus on opera, drama theatre (except puppetry), literature etc
^Javier Ugarte Tellería,Un episodio de "estilización" de la política antirrepublicana: la fiesta de San Francisco Javier de 1931 en Pamplona, [in:] L. Castells (ed.),El rumor de lo cotidiano, Estudios sobre el País Vasco contemporáneo, Bilbao 1999, pp. 159-182. In his other work,La nueva Covadonga insurgente: orígenes sociales y culturales de la sublevación de 1936 en Navarra y el País Vasco, Madrid 1998,ISBN847030531X, 9788470305313, Javier Ugarte Tellería makes repeated parallel references to Carlism and Nazism, e.g. comparing alliance between Carlism and upper strata to alliance between NSDAP and plutocracy (p. 38), Navarrese social fabric to East Prussian social fabric (p. 40), Requete standby of July 36 to SA standby in January 1933 (p. 148), Traditionalist means of cultural mobilization to Nazi means of cultural mobilization (p. 160), Navarrese conservative stronghold to Bavarian conservative stronghold (p. 231), mechanism of Spaniards embracing authoritarianism to mechanisms of Germans embracing authoritarianism (p. 245), the role of Bible to the role of Mein Kampf (p. 250), Carlists dumping electoral strategy to Hitler dumping insurrectionist strategy (p. 262), provocative Requete demonstrations to provocative SA demonstrations (p. 273), marginalization of socially radical Carlist aetistas to marginalization of socially radical Rohm faction in SA (p. 293, 426), Navarrese sense of foralism to German sense of Heimat (p. 306). Ignacio Baleztena is mentioned by Ugarte as a politician and "extravagant figure" rather than as a man of culture. Another author highlighting similarity between Carlist and Nazi cultural policy advances a somewhat competitive thesis, namely that the two promoted not traditional, but modern means of social mobilisation, named "reactionary modernism", see Francisco Javier Caspistegui Gorasurreta,Paradójicos reaccionarios: la modernidad contra la República de la Comunión Tradicionalista, [in:]El Argonauta Espanol 9 (2012), availablehere
^Premín de Iruña blog, entry 03.06.14, compare also Caspistegui 1997, esp. p. 314
^his father spokeBasque as his mothertongue; his mother, María Dolores Ascárate Echeverría, was bilingual (her father was castellano-speaker, her mother was Basque-speaker),Premín de Iruña blog, entry 12.04.11
^according to his son, Baleztena was guided by 3 ideas: to preserve Vasco-Navarrese traditions, to confront the Basque nationalism, and to promote Catholic andTraditionalist perspective,Premín de Iruña blog, entry 01.03.12. His amateurish and politicized approach to Basque ethnicity paradoxically brought him close to scholarly anthropological work ofCaro Baroja, who denied that persistence of uniform Basque culture over considerable geographical area and throughout all the time is shown by a mere fact that a few vestiges were found that pertained to a Basque cultural cycle, see Jesus Azcona,To Be Basque and to Live in Basque Country The Inequalities of Difference, [in:] Carol J. Greenhouse, Roshanak Kheshti (eds.),Democracy and Ethnography: Constructing Identities in Multicultural Liberal States, New York 1998,ISBN079143964X, 9780791439647, p. 166
^it was issued in Spanish,Premín de Iruña blog, entry 24.11.10; it was aimed directly against the euzkadiano periodicalNapartarra,Premín de Iruña blog, entry 09.02.11
^his Arraiza Baleztena cousins were the very founders of the society, seeFrancisco Javier Arraiza Baleztena entry atAuñamendi Eusko Entziklopedia availablehere
^Premín de Iruña blog, entry 12.04.11, he specialised in studying popular feasts, e.g. in the 1920 congress he was Secretary of the Comisión de Festejos, seehere
^introducing dances posed as traditional, though in fact heavily redesigned or plainly invented, like xingola-dantza, el aurresku, la espatadantza de Amaia, la uztai-dantza, Banako, Binako y Launako, la zahagi-dantza, makil-dantza, see Muthiko web page availablehereArchived 2014-10-05 at theWayback Machine
^Premín de Iruña blog, entry 01.02.12; some define his Carlism as lifestyle rather than ideology, and consider his cultural activities - Muthiko in particular - part of this outlook, seehereArchived 2014-10-05 at theWayback Machine; similar approach was demonstrated in Gipuzkoa by the Gipuzkoan Carlist Jefe,Antonio Arrue, see Manuel Martorell,Antonio Arrue, el carlista que colaboró en el relanzamiento de Euskaltzaindia, [in:]Euskera: Euskaltzaindiaren lan eta agiriak 56/3 (2011), pp. 847-872
^like electoral meetings,Premín de Iruña blog, entry 24.2.12
^the group was considered "foco de falcondismo", see Martorell Pérez 2009, pp. 268, 352; during the sanfermines of 1939Ramón Serrano Suñer intervened withLuis Arellano to prevent Muthiko from shouting "Viva el Rey", Martorell Pérez 2009, p. 247; "gritaremos todos juntos: ¡Viva el Rey!" was the customary cry which used to commence all Muthiko performances,Muthiko web pageArchived 2014-10-05 at theWayback Machine
^the years of 1962-1974 are considered "golden age" of the organisation by the current Muthikos; during that period the association opened new sections: mountain tourism, football, weight lifting and so on; its office was at the prestigious Plaza del Castillo; compare also the list of activities flavoured by anti-Francoism published atMuthiko web page[permanent dead link] l
^compare the vision of Carlist participation in the Civil War offered by the official web site of Muthiko, "La realidad de todos es sabida, vista con la perspectiva y la objetividad que dan los años: los voluntarios son manipulados por los intereses de las clases dominantes y se ven envueltos en una lucha fratricida de tres años, pueblo contra pueblo, sin otro vencecor que la oligarquía" atMuthiko web pageArchived 2014-10-05 at theWayback Machine
^see postcard collections atMuthiko web pageArchived 2014-10-05 at theWayback Machine; note also the Muthiko graphical production, mocking the clergy and the popes
^one source claims that Ignacio (not Joaquin) was at that time jefe regional de Navarra, see César Alcalá,Cruzadistas y carloctavistas: historia de una conspiración, Barcelona 2012,ISBN9788493884253, p. 20
^Baleztena did not seem particularly belligerent or intransigent on dynastical side, as he did take part and possibly even strived to organise religious celebrations attended by Alfonso XIII,Premín de Iruña blog, entry 04.04.11
^and even issued an electoral proclamation, see Alberto García Umbón,Las Proyectadas elecciones del general Berenguer en Navarra (1930), [in:]Cuadernos de sección. Historia-Geografía San Sebastián, 10 (2008), p. 218
^Martin Blinkhorn,Carlism and Crisis in Spain 1931-1939, Cambridge 1975,ISBN9780521207294, p. 50
^Premín de Iruña blog, entry 27.09.11; Irujo Aranzadi accused Ignacio of avoiding tangible commitments and breaking the agreement, Manuel Ferrer Muñoz,La Cuestión estatutaria en Navarra durante la Segunda República, [in:]Príncipe de Viana 52 (1991), pp. 197, 200, Manuel Ferrer Muñoz,Los frustrados intentos de colaboración entre el partido nacionalista vasco y la derecha navarra durante la segunda república, [in:] Principe de Viana 49 (1988), pp. 129, 132
^Junta Regional Carlista de Navarra, headed by his brother Joaquin,Premín de Iruña blog, entry 28.09.11; Ignacio served later as a liaison between his expulsed brother and Navarrese Carlist authorities,Premín de Iruña blog, entry 15.02.12; he also sustained the movement financially, Blinkhorn 1975, p. 222
^after its partial burning in April 1932 the family moved to Leitza and San Sebastián,Premín de Iruña blog, entries 02.11.11 to 22.12.11; his son claims that the perpetrators were led by an unidentified Teniente de Alcalde,Premín de Iruña blog, entry 16.01.12. The Baleztenas accused Gobiernador Civil,Manuel Andrés Casaus, of inertia; Baleztena was also engaged in extinguishing fire following assaults on other institutions, likeEl Pensamiento Navarro,El Diario de Navarra and finally, in March 1936, on Diputación Foral,Premín de Iruña blog, entry 27.04.12
^he replacedAgustín Tellería,Premín de Iruña blog, entry 15.02.12, to the disappointment ofGeneroso Huarte, active on earlier organisation phases, Antonio Lizarza,Memorias de la conspiración, [in:]Navarra fue la primera, Pamplona 2006,ISBN8493508187, p. 27; Baleztena Abarrategui claims his father handed over toLizarza late 1933,Premín de Iruña blog, entry 15.02.12; Lizarza claims that his appointment came in September 1934, Lizarza 2006, pp. 39-40. Slightly different version in Julio Aróstegui,Combatientes Requetés en la Guerra Civil española, 1936-1939, Madrid 2013,ISBN9788499709758, p. 77
^Premín de Iruña blog, entry 02.05.12, Juan Carlos Peñas Bernaldo de Quirós,El Carlismo, la República y la Guerra Civil (1936-1937). De la conspiración a la unificación, Madrid 1996,ISBN8487863523, 9788487863523, pp. 28-29, Arostegui 2013, pp. 103-104
^Blinkorn 1975, pp. 238, 248; according to some "attitude of the Baleztenas was extremely difficult to grasp", see Martorell Peréz 2009, pp. 120-121. For dramatic discussion between the Baleztena-led Navarrese andDon Javier in San Jean de Luz on July 12 see Lizarza 2006, p. 106. Javier Baleztena Abarrategui notes there were differences amongst the Carlists, but presents the stance of his father as a struggle to maintain unity, seePremín de Iruña blog, entry 17.05.12.
^the Pamplona house served as a press centre, the Leitza house served as military headquarters,Premín de Iruña blog, entries 06.06.12, 12.6.12
^formed mostly by residents of Leitza, nearby villages and refugees from the neighboring Gipuzkoa,Premín de Iruña blog, entry 22.07.12
^Premín de Iruña blog, entries 24.07.12, 31.07.12; though some episodes are contested, see Martorell Peréz 2009, p. 119
^Auñamendi Eusko Entziklopedia claims he volunteered with his 6 sons, which seems unlikely given the oldest one was born in 1929
^Premín de Iruña blog, entry 28.08.12, also Juan Carlos Peñas Bernaldo de Quirós,El Carlismo, la República y la Guerra Civil (1936-1937). De la conspiración a la unificación, Madrid 1996,ISBN8487863523, p. 178; the rank-and-file soldiers of this battalion considered him "superhombre", Arostegui 2013, p. 407; formally he commanded a company (requeté), Arostegui 2013, p. 421; he continued to organise feasts and composed chants in the trenches, see Arostegui 2013, p. 871
^Premín de Iruña blog, entry 14.10.12, though he could have also served in Tercio de Lacar or Tercio de Navarra, see Pablo Larraz, Víctor Sierra-Sesúmaga,Requetés. De las trincheras al olvido, Madrid 2010,ISBN9788497349734, p. 714
^e.g. on leaves to take part in funeral of Alfonso Carlos in Vienna in autumun of 1936, to host Don Javier in Leitza in the summer of 1937, to organise Pamplona homages in October 1937 or to celebrate birth of his son in April 1938
^his son claims Baleztena viewed unification as treason on part of the militrary, seePremín de Iruña blog, entry 05.03.13. Some suggest the Baleztenas took advantage of paralysis of Carlist governing bodies and pushed with the unification, see Javier Ugarte Telleria,El carlismo en la guerra del 36: la formación de un cuasi-estado nacional-corporativo y foral en la zona vasco-navarra, [in:]Historia Contemporanea 38 (2009). pp. 69-70. Penas Bernaldo 1996, pp. 265-7, 270 quotes Ignacio saying that except the monarchical issue, there were no major discrepancies between Carlism and Partido Unico; anxious to stay loyal to Don Javier, Baleztena agreed that for the time being national interest demanded compliance. Blinkhorn 1975, pp. 288-9 claims that the Baleztenas pressed Don Javier to accept the unification. The latest work, Mercedes Peñalba Sotorrío,Entre la boina roja y la camisa azul, Estella 2013 does not mention either of the Baleztenas when describing the amalgamation process (though see p. 132). Some claim that the Baleztenas contested the intransigent opposition to unification of Fal Conde, but Don Javier kept considering them loyal, as he authorised Joaquín to enter the Falangist Consejo Naciónal, see Martorell Peréz 2009, pp. 38-40, 49. It remains undisputed that in July 1937 Don Javier entrusted Baleztena with reorganisation of Navarrese Carlism, see Aurora Villanueva Martinez,Organizacion, actividad y bases del carlismo navarro durante el primer franquismo [in:]Geronimo de Uztariz 19 (2003), p. 101
^he engineered ice-cold welcome of Franco during his visit to Pamplona in the autumn of 1937,Premín de Iruña blog, entry 05.03.13
^Baleztena participated in the Carlist efforts to saveEl Pensamiento Navarro from amalgamation in the Francoist propaganda machine; the plot consisted of converting the party newspaper into a paper owned by a shareholding company by creatingEditorial Navarra; out of 600 shares,de Rodezno held 200, Arellano 150 and Baleztena brothers 50 each,Eduardo González Calleja,La prensa carlista y falangista durante la Segunda República y la Guerra Civil (1931-1937), [in:]El Argonauta español 9 (2012), p. 29
^especially members of the French Resistance, though also fleeing Jews, providing shelter in Pamplona, Leitza and other locations,Premín de Iruña blog, entries 16.10.13, 25.01.14; see also Martorell Peréz 2009, pp. 266-8. Among the refugees there wasEnrique Roberto Fernando María Luis Felipe de Orleans, the French pretendent to the throne, seeABC 22.10.13
^the Baleztenas entertained the British Foreign SecretarySamuel Hoare in 1941, which was sort of political demonstration aimed against Spain joining the Axis,Premín de Iruña blog, entry 01.03.14; the Baleztenas opposed the apparently the pro-German stance taken byEl Pensamiento Navarro, see Martorell Peréz 2009, pp. 263-264; for an opposite anti-British view, seehere
^Martorell Peréz 2009, p. 856, though there are other views. Villanueva Martínez 2003, p. 105 claims that Baleztena asked Fal to accept his resignation in 1942. Vazquez Prada 2012, p. 1131-3 presents the Baleztenas as pursuing an "independent" line until Joaquín was replaced as Navarrese jefe in 1957, though as late as the early 1960s he was appointed by Don Javier to represent Navarre in a planned Junta Foral Vasco-Navarra
^in November 1937 Ignacio Baleztena was nominated member of Comisión Depuradora, entrusted with purging Navarrese libraries; moreover, he represented Delegación de Cultura de la F.E.T. y de las J.O.N.S. in this body; the commission reported completing its works in September 1938; the issue is not clear as Baleztena was on the frontline at that time, see Reyes Berruezo Albéniz,Depuración de bibliotecas y censura de libros en Navarra durante la Guerra Civil de 1936, p. 57 availablehere[permanent dead link]; during the 1942 crisis, triggered by the Begoña incident, Ignacio insisted Carlists do not withdraw from the Pamplona ayuntamiento, Villanueva Martínez 2003, p. 106. For confrontation between Carlists and the Falangists civil governors see Alvaro Baraibar Etxeberria,La Navarra sotto il Franchismo: la lotta per il controllo provinciale tra i governatori civili e la Diputacion Foral (1945-1955), [in:]Nazioni e Regioni, Bari 2013,ISSN2282-5681
^some scholars consider Hermandad de Caballeros Voluntarios de la Cruz, founded by Baleztena as religious pilgrimage group, an attempt to create semi-official Carlism organisation, Martorell Peréz 2009, pp. 190-191
^in 1953 Fal talked to him on reconstruction of Carlist network, Martorell Peréz 2009, p. 344. The Baleztena grip on Navarrese Carlism is sometimes dubbed caciquismo, see Lavardín 1976, p. 160
^Franco visited Pamplona to open new housing quarters and was scheduled to speak from the balcony of the Ayuntamiento building. Despite lavish decorations elsewhere, the neighboring Baleztena house was all closed and seemed abandoned, with immense portrait of San Francisco Javier on its facade. The bottom line of the message was manifestation of support to the Carlist regent, Don Javier. Indignant Franco cut down his speech to a minimum; the Baleztenas received threats from the Falangist Frente de Juventudes afterwards, Martorell Peréz 2009, p. 343.
^Premín de Iruña blog, entry 27.06.13; the Baleztenas voted against publishingEcto de Estoril in Pensamiento, Mercedes Vázquez de Prada Tiffé,El papel del carlismo navarro en el inicio de la fragmentación definitiva de la comunión tradicionalista (1957-1960), [in:]Principe de Viana 2011, p. 402
^in 1941 Samuel Hoare understood from the Baleztenas that they were - under some conditions - prepared to accept Don Juan as a Carlist claimant, see Samual Hoare,Complacent Dictator, London 1947, p. 141; during the emotional sessions of early 1956, Joaquin (the brothers are always referred to as very close to each other) addressed Don Javier "de Alteza", while the others used the "de Majestad" form, see Lavardin 1976, p. 27. The position of the Baleztenas is summarised by the author as "poca consistencia". Joaquin was also opposed (as the only member of the Navarrese junta) to Carlos Hugo appearing in Montejurra in 1957, Lavardín 1976 p. 40, and the family were not sure what to expect of him, Lavardín 1976, p. 160
^by some the Baleztenas are counted among "los guipuzcoanos", a group (including also Antonio Arrue, Lascurain, marques del Valle de Santiago, Pablo Iturria, the young Larramendi, Gambra) which maintained personal rather than political rivalry with Fal, who was nevertheless accused by them of inactivity and inefficiency, see Lavardin 1976, p. 15
^Mercedes Vázquez de Prada,El nuevo rumbo político del carlismo hacia la colaboración con el régimen (1955-56), [in:]Hispania: Revista española de historia 69 (2009), p. 185, Vázquez de Prada 2011, p. 1115. In 1955 the Baleztenas were closely in touch with Don Javier, who even visited Leitza around the time he dismissed Fal, Lavardín 1976, p. 24. The same author claims the Baleztenas were criticised by younger Carlists for as running a clerical policy; a phrase was coined against them "menos accion catolica y mas accion carlista"
^the pro-Juanista Carlists like Arauz de Robles or Rafael Olazábal criticised Fal as too rigid, see Martorell Peréz 2009, pp. 392-393; Joaquin was dismissed in 1957 as his intransingent stance towards Francoism was incompatible with the new Carlist policy, Lavardín 1976, p. 160
^In 1963 the Baleztenas hosted princess Alicia, than 87, which was viewed as counterweight to the Carlos Hugo sister, princess Maria Teresa, at that time spending a year in Pamplona, see Lavardín 1976, pp. 160, 163.
^e.g. in 1964 Dolores Baleztena defendedIrene, the newly wed wife of Carlos Hugo, Lavardín 1976, p. 220
^in 1968, weeks before his expulsion from Spain, Don Javier stayed in Leitza visiting Ignacio Baleztena, Lavardín 1976, p. 284
^though due to their age, the Baleztenas were at the sidelines of current politics; the most comprehensive work on the issue, Francisco Javier Caspistegui Gorasurreta,El naufragio de las ortodoxias : el carlismo, 1962-1977, Pamplona 1997,ISBN8431315644, 9788431315641 does not mention Ignacio Baleztena at all; for confrontation of different cultural visions see Josep Miralles Clement,Aspectos de la cultura política del carlismo en el siglo XX, [in:]Espacio, tiempo y forma 17 (2005), pp. 147-174, esp. the chapter La experiencia juvenil y estudiantil; see also MacClancy 2000
^following removal ofJavier María Pascual Ibañez as editor-in-chief after his 4-year tenure, seeLa Vanguardia 26.08.1970 availablehere, also Martorell Peréz 2009, pp. 470-471; the partisan Huguista perspective in Josep Carles Clemente,Historia del Carlismo contemporaneo, Barcelona 1977,ISBN9788425307591, esp. the chapterEl "affaire" de "El Pensamiento Navarro", pp. 63-71. Four years earlier Baleztena considered Pascual an appropriate candidate for leading the paper and endorsed him, Mercedes Vázquez de Prada,El final de una ilusión. Auge y declive del tradicionalismo carlista (1957-1967), Madrid 2016,ISBN9788416558407, p. 304. It is worth noting that in 1968 Joaquíncho Baleztena intervened withManuel Fraga to get Pascual released from jail,ABC 22.10.13 availablehere; for details see Rosa Marina Errea,Javier María Pascual y "El pensamiento navarro": "con él llego el escándalo" (1966-1970), Pamplona 2007,ISBN8477681929, 9788477681922
^another crisis inEl Pensamiento Navarro followed in 1971, seeLa Vanguardia 21.12.1971 availablehere
^Josep Carlos Clemente,Breve historia de las guerras carlistas, Madrid 2011, p. 248, the paragraph titledIgnacio y Joaquin Baleztena, caciques de Franco en Navarra; Clemente 1977, p. 68 does not mention Ignacio and claims that it was his brother and his two sons who were expulsed in July 1970
Javier Baleztena Abarrategui,Premín de Iruña blog online
Jaime del Burgo,BALEZTENA [ASCARATE], Ignacio entry, [in:]Catálogo bio-bibliográfico, Pamplona 1954
Manuel Martorell Pérez,La continuidad ideológica del carlismo tras la Guerra Civil [PhD thesis inHistoria Contemporanea, Universidad Nacional de Educación a Distancia], Valencia 2009
