Jesus Aguirre; Inspired Post-Franco Renaissance

Jesus Aguirre, the Duke of Alba, who was credited with inspiring a renaissance in Spanish culture after the intellectually deadening dictatorship of Gen. Francisco Franco, has died. He was 66.

The Duke of Alba died of a pulmonary embolism Friday at the Liria Palace, home of one of Spain’s legendary aristocratic dynasties. He had been ill for some time.

Fernando Lazaro Carreter, the director of the Royal Spanish Academy, earlier described Aguirre as “one of the great intellectual figures of Spain.”

Aguirre was born June 9, 1934, in Madrid. He studied philosophy and became a Jesuit priest before going abroad to study in the mid-1950s.

He returned home in the 1960s after doctoral studies in West Germany, where he was influenced by the leftist ideas of the Frankfurt Institute for Social Research. In 1969, he abandoned the priesthood, explaining that “it didn’t answer all my questions.”

By the early 1970s he had become involved in publishing, and had organized regular meetings between Christians and Marxists--despite fascist dictator Franco’s hatred of communism.

After the death of Franco in 1975, Spain began its transition to democracy, and gradually a rebirth of the arts began. Aguirre was editorial director of Taurus publishing house, where he translated and introduced works of Frankfurt School icons such as Walter Benjamin and Theodor Adorno.

In 1978, he became Duke of Alba, and gained a position of influence by marrying a widowed duchess eight years his senior.

Appointed director general of music in the Ministry of Culture, he helped launch two national ballet companies and promoted orchestral music. In the 1980s, Aguirre became a member of the Royal Spanish Academy and the Royal Academy of Fine Arts. He was commissioner of the Seville World Expo in 1992.