The Marquis of Marianao died in 1933. The first public news had effect in the press through an obituary. La Vanguardia had established itself as the most effective and representative newspaper to insert it. The proof was that very soon it deserved the cover; Sometimes there were so many that they filled several pages and the journalistic information did not appear except below.
It was important, therefore, to at least leaf through it at breakfast time to find out if it was necessary to carry out some of the social acts required in such circumstances.
A large obituary announced the death of such a prominent citizen: “Don Salvador Samá y de Torrents de Mota y de Higuero, Marquis of Marianao, Grandee of Spain, former mayor of Barcelona.”
He was the second marquis, having inherited the title from his great-uncle, who was single and died in Havana; and he also owned another marquisate, that of Villanueva y Geltrú, having received it through the maternal line.
The origin of his great fortune, then one of the largest in the capital, began in Cuba and the Philippines. He was mayor in two terms, councilor, senator for life and deputy for Gandesa, always part of the liberal party.
As soon as the construction of the Eixample began in 1860, the nobility and the big bourgeoisie immediately believed in the benefits of such an adventure. In 1868, the Marquis of Marianao did not hesitate to commission the construction of a mansion by the architect Josep Oriol Mestres on Paseo de Gràcia, 11. Víctor Balaguer, baptist of its streets and squares, declared that it was one of the most notable houses, which which was confirmed in 1872 when it appeared in the publication Photographic album of the most notable monuments and buildings that exist in Barcelona
Its magnificence was concentrated in the interior, not in the facades. Its demolition in 1936 was regrettable.
Manuel Ribé, head of municipal protocol, recounts in his memoirs having advised him in 1910 that as mayor it would be exemplary to pave at his own expense the half of his sidewalk that was still dirt. “I have no obligation to do so,” he replied. He was right: he should be the responsibility of the City Council. Local style.
The photograph shows the sumptuousness of his burial, a spectacle that attracted citizen curiosity.
