SPANISH SAHARA
SPANISH DEPENDENCY OF THE RÍO DE ORO AND THE SAGUÍA EL-HAMRA
Modern Spanish presence on the West African coast started in 1881 when the Canarian -African Fishery Cy (Sociedad Pesquerías Canario-Africanas) constructed a pontoon at the place that would later become Villa Cisneros (present-day Dakhla). (1) This first move was followed in 1884 by the establishment of new facilities by the Spanish Society of Africanists and Colonists (Sociedad Española de Africanistas y Colonistas), the signing of protectorate treaties with the nomadic tribes of the area and the formal proclamation of a Spanish protectorate (Confirmed by the final act of the Conference of Berlin in 1885). (2) (1) Spanish presence in the area was not new : - there had already existed - between 1476 and 1524 - a settlement of Santa Cruz de la Mar Pequeña somewhere on the coast (see Ifni), - Spanish fishers from the Canary islands operated on the coasts since the 18th century at least. (2) At the moment of the proclamation of the protectorate the Spanish zone only included the coastal area of the Río de Oro between Cape Bojador and Cape Blanc. In 1886 two expeditions extended the protectorate to include : - the Saguía el-Hamra, the zone between Cape Bojador and Morocco, - the inland of the Río de Oro as far as th Emirate of Adrar (transferred to France in 1912 when the frontiers between the possessions were fixed) Until the end of the 1920's Spanish rule was largely nominal and actually limited to the military settlements of Villa Cissneros and La Guëra and it was only after the conquest of Smara in 1934 that Spanish authority was firmly established. Smara The town of Smara was founded in 1895 by Sheikh Ma al-Ainín (1838 - 1910), a local political and religious leader (Mahdi in 1910) who became the major opponent to French and Spanish expansion in Mauretania, the Saguía el-Hamra and southern Morocco. After his death his son Mohammed bin Ma al-Hiba (1... - 1919) continued the resistance, even proclaiming himself Sultan of Morocco (the "Blue Sultan") in 1912. In 1913 the French burned Smara, but the town remained the symbolic center of the resistance until its final occupation in 1934 . __________________________________________________________________________________SPANISH CHIEF ADMINISTRATORS
Royal Commissioner Comisario Regio 1885 - 1887 Emilio Bonelli y Hernando 1854 - 1926 From 1887 to 1903 the Spanish territories on the African West coast were under the authority of the military commanders of the Canary islands, locally represented by a Subgovernor. Captains General of the Canary Islands Capitánes Generales de las Islas Canarias 1885 - 18.. LtGen. Buenaventura Carbó y Aloy 18.. - 1894 ... 1894 - 1898 LtGen. Manuel Macías y Casado 1845 - 1937 1898 LtGen. ... Montero 1898 - 1899 LtGen. Manuel Delgado y Zuleta 1842 - 1915 1900 - 1906 LtGen. Ignacio Pérez Galdós Political and Military Subgovernors Subgobernadores político y militar 1887 - 190. Emilio Bonelli y Hernando s.a. 1902 - 1903 Ángel Villalobos In 1903 a separate political and military governor was appointed. Political and Military Governors Gobernadores político y militar [Directly subordinated to the central colonial administrators in Madrid until 1934, then to the Spanish High Commissioners in Morocco - Since 1916 also delegates of the Spanish High Commissioners in Morocco for Tarfaya (= the southern part of the Spanish protectorate in Morocco) - Since 1934 also Political and Military Governors of Ifni] 1903 - 1925 Col. Francisco Bens Argandona 1867 - 1949 1925 - 1932 LtCol. Guillermo de la Peña Cursi 1932 - 1933 Eduardo Canizares Navarro 1933 - 1934 José González Deleito 1934 - 1936 Benigno Martínez Portillo 1936 Carlos Pedemonte Sabin 1936 - 1937 Rafael Gallego Sainz 1937 - 1940 Antonio de Oro Pulido 1940 - 1946 José Bermejo López, continued as Governor of Spanish West Africa until 1949
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