Morral Affair (1906)

Thu May 31, 1906

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Image: Photograph of the assassination attempt on King Alfonso XIII and Victoria Eugenia at the moment of the bomb’s explosion [Wikipedia]

On this day in 1906, revolutionary anarchist Mateu Morral attempted to assassinate Spanish King Alfonso XIII and his bride via bomb. The attack failed, killing 24 bystanders, and caused state persecution of other anarchists.

Mateu Morral was a young, wealthy anarchist who had recently worked at Escuela Moderna, an anarchist school in Barcelona, Spain, founded and ran by Francisco Ferrer. In the weeks leading up to the attack, Mateu took a leave of absence from the school, citing illness.

On May 31st, 1906, Mateu Morral threw a bomb, obscured in a bouquet of flowers, from a hotel balcony at King Alfonso XIII’s car as he returned with his bridge Victoria Eugenie from their wedding in Madrid. While the King and Queen were unscathed, 24 bystanders and soldiers were killed, and over 100 more wounded.

Morral fled the scene and sought refuge from Republican (although explicitly anti-anarchist) journalist José Nakens. Nakens reluctantly gave Morral shelter, but Mateu grew mistrustful the same night and fled. A few days later, he was discovered at a Madrid railway station and killed a police officer and himself rather than be taken into custody.

Authorities used the 1906 regicide attempt as a pretext to suppress Ferrer and his educational work. Ferrer was arrested within a week of the attack and charged with both its organization and recruiting of Morral. He was imprisoned for a year while prosecutors pursued evidence for his trial, and was ultimately acquitted.

Modern historians disagree to the extent of Ferrer’s involvement. Historian of anarchism Paul Avrich has stated “Barring the discovery of conclusive evidence, Ferrer’s role in the Morral affair must remain an open question.”

Ferrer was executed by the Spanish government three years later, after a farcical trial convicted him of orchestrating a period of insurrection known as Barcelona’s “Tragic Week”.