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José Antonio Aguirre y Lecube (6 March 1904 – 22 March 1960) was a major political figure of Basque nationalism and the first President of the Basque Autonomous Community, from 1936 to 1960. He assumed the position of first ''lehendakari'' or president of Euzkadi (the Basque lands of Spain not including Navarre) during the Spanish Civil War. However, by the time the government was put together and made effective, most of the Basque region was occupied by the military rebels' troops, except for Biscay. Given the dire circumstances, he set about creating a Basque Army to fight on the side of the Republic. After losing the war, he had to organize the flight of thousands of refugees in the Basque Country. He helped the Allies in the Second World War, hoping that the help would be reciprocated in the fight against Francisco Franco in Spain. He escaped from Spain to Belgium, later to Nazi Germany and spent a year there with a false passport. He went to Argentina to begin a journey in the American continent to re-organize the Basque government in the exile. He finally settled in Paris and spent his last years there, working for the Basque refugees. ==Life== José Antonio Aguirre was born in Bilbao, in Biscay. He studied in the first ikastola of the Basque Country, a school where he was taught completely in the Basque language. He later studied Law at the University of Deusto. In 1920, his father died and Aguirre moved to Algorta, a town close to Bilbao, with his family. At 16 he was forced to become a father figure to his 10 younger brothers and sisters. After finishing his law studies, he began working in the family business ''Chocolates Aguirre''. He later took responsibility of the business and introduced several reforms that improved workers' conditions in the factory, such as free health care, paid holidays, donating a part of the business earning to the poor people, pushing for social housing. He created a new way of managing the business, consistent with the ideas he believed in. Until 1937, “Chocolates Bilbaínos S.A.” was the second biggest business in its sector in Spain. Aguirre was a football player and he played for Athletic Bilbao. During the Spanish Civil War, he was one of the main promoters of the Basque Country national football team. This regional team played in Europe and America to raise funds for the Basque refugee children whose parents had to escape into exile. In 1926 he finished his Law studies and did military service. After this period he began to work as an attorney at Esteban Bilbao's office, but soon created his own law firm to help people he was really interested in. He began working in political issues together with workers' conditions. Spain was ruled by the dictator Miguel Primo de Rivera. He already had very clear political views and as a Basque nationalist, he joined the young political party Basque Nationalist Party, PNV. The party was then divided into two political streams, but he never liked this division. He thought that the Basque Country was above any differences. He worked to join the two parts and he succeeded in 1930. Tough in his beliefs, he became more and more involved in politics, and he published articles in the newspapers Euzko Gaztedia and Euzkadi. As an example of his integrationist views and new ideals, in 1932 he proposed that the party should accept people who were not born in the Basque Country. After the dictatorship of Primo de Rivera finished in 1930, a new political era began in Spain. At the same time, a new and important period began in Aguirre's political life. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「José Antonio Aguirre (politician)」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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