Baldomero Argente

Baldomero Argente del Castillo (1877–1965) was a Spanish politician, sociologist, lawyer, economist, writer and journalist. He was a disseminator of the ideas of georgism in Spain. A member of the Liberal Party, he briefly served as Minister of Supply from 1918 to 1919.

Baldomero Argente
Minister of Supply
In office
December 1918 – February 1919
Preceded byPablo Garnica
Succeeded byLeonardo Rodríguez Díaz
Personal details
Born6 February 1877
Province of Granada, Spain
Died28 September 1965
Madrid, Spain
NationalitySpanish
Political partyLiberal Party (romanonista)
OccupationJournalist, politician, economist, sociologist, lawyer, writer
Signature

Biography

Born on 6 February 1877 in the province of Granada (sources report as birthplace either Jerez del Marquesado or "Granada"),[1][2][3] he was the natural son of a priest, and was raised by his aunt.[4]

He took baccalaureate studies in Granada.[2] He began university studies in Law in Valencia, ending them in Manila, earning the licentiate degree in 1896.[2] He served as lecturer in Mechanics at a school in the Philippines.[2] He also worked as lead writer for the Diario de Manila and as editor of El Porvenir de Bisayas.[2] He served as volunteer in a cavalry regiment, fighting against the insurgent tagalos.[2] Following the loss of the Philippines at the 1898 Spanish–American War, Argente returned to Mainland Spain by mid 1899.[2]

José Francos Rodríguez appointed him as ed-in-chief of El Globo.[2] He took an interest in the reading of books on Economy, Administration and Sociology, becoming an adept of the theories of Henry George.[2] Translator of the American economist's works,[5] Argente had a central role in the dissemination of the ideas of georgism in Spain.[6]

Argente opened a law firm in Madrid, and was appointed as substitute prosecutor of the Audiencia of Madrid.[7] He did not stop writing books and collaborating in newspapers, such as Diario Universal, Heraldo de Madrid, and El Imparcial,[7] as well as magazines,[7] such as Nuevo Mundo.[8]

Political cartoon by Tovar depicting Argente in 1919 as Minister of Supply throwing paper sheets, "In the absence of bread, good is my prose".

He was elected member of the Congress of Deputies in representation of Alcaraz (Albacete) at the 1910 election.[9][10] He was elected as Madrid municipal councillor at the 1911 municipal election and was appointed as deputy major in 1912.[11][12] He earned a parliamentary seat in representation of Las Palmas at the 1914, 1916, 1918, 1919,[n. 1] 1920 and 1923 elections,[13] and as representative of Fregenal de la Sierra (Badajoz) at the 1919 election.[14]

A follower of the Count of Romanones,[1] he was appointed as Minister of Supply in December 1918, only to leave the portfolio in February 1919.[15]

He became a member of the executive board of the Asociación Española Pro Sociedad de Naciones (AEPSDN), established in April 1920 (repeating as member in the new board appointed in January 1929).[16]

He took office as member of the Royal Academy of Moral and Political Sciences on 1 June 1924, reading La Reforma Agraria, a discourse replied by Eduardo Sanz Escartín.[17]

During the dictatorship of Primo de Rivera, Argente served as member of the National Assembly and the Council of State.[18]

He died on 28 September 1965,[19] in Madrid.[3]

References
Informational notes
  1. Although, as he was elected also in representation of Fregenal de la Sierra in 1919, he was chosen to remain exclusively as representative of that district after a draw.
Citations
  1. "Argente del Castillo, Baldomero". Diputación Provincial de Badajoz.
  2. Arco 1918, p. 558.
  3. Cuenca Toribio & Miranda García 1992, p. 114.
  4. Cuenca Toribio & Miranda García 1992, p. 105.
  5. Martín Rodríguez 2000, p. 246.
  6. Perdices de Blas 2015, p. 68.
  7. Arco 1918, p. 559.
  8. Urrutia León 1999, p. 162.
  9. "Argente del Castillo, Baldomero. 46. Elecciones 8.5.1910". Congress of Deputies.
  10. "Candidatos a concejales. Baldomero Argente". La Correspondencia de España. LXII (19623). 3 November 1911.
  11. Soldevilla 1919, p. 406.
  12. "Los nuevos concejales madrileños". Las ocurrencias. I (28): 3. ISSN 2444-6718.
  14. "Argente del Castillo, Baldomero. 50. Elecciones 1.6.1919". Congreso de los Diputados.
  15. "Reinado de Alfonso XIII. (25.11.1885/14.04.1931)". CSIC.
  16. Pérez Casanova 2015, pp. 196; 296–297.
  17. Yanguas Messía 1965, p. 252.
  18. "Argente del Castillo, Baldomero. 53. 12.9.1927". Congreso de los Diputados.
  19. Yanguas Messía 1965, p. 251.
Bibliography
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