Mateu Morral

Who was Mateu Morral?

Mateu Morral Roca was a Spanish anarchist, known for his assassination attempt on the lives of Alfonso XIII of Spain and his wife Victoria Eugenia.

The son of a Barcelona textile merchant, Morral learned several languages, and traveled to Germany – where he was exposed to anarchist beliefs. Back in Spain, he decided to quit the family business, and instead started working as a librarian for Francesc Ferrer i Guàrdia.

In 1906 he went to Madrid and started plotting the regicide, using a bomb that was concealed in a bouquet and thrown towards the procession from a balcony on Calle Mayor. The monarchs escaped the attempt with just spots of blood on the queen's dress, but several bystanders and horses died.

After the attempt, Morral tried to get lost in the crowd, but he was recognized by several people. Hunted down by the authorities, he appeared to be surrendering peacefully. However, he managed to shoot and kill the guard who was taking him to Torrejón de Ardoz prison, and to commit suicide the moment after. For a while, the two bodies were displayed in the town hall.