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{{Short description|Spanish politician}}
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{{Infobox officeholder
{{Article for deletion/dated|page=Pedro Zaragoza|timestamp=20180330065424|year=2018|month=March|day=30|substed=yes|help=off}}
| name = Pedro Zaragoza Orts
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| caption =
'''Pedro Zaragoza Orts''' (May 15, 1922 – April 1, 2008) was the [[mayor]] of [[Benidorm]] from 1950 to 1967. He is credited with helping turn the town into one of the most popular [[holiday resort]]s in Spain.<ref name="Telegraph">{{Cite news |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/obituaries/1583716/Pedro-Zaragoza.html |title=Pedro Zaragoza |date=2008-04-02 |access-date=2018-03-30 |language=en-GB |issn=0307-1235}}</ref>
| office = Mayor of [[Benidorm]], Spain
| term_start = 1950
| term_end = 1967
| birth_name =
| birth_date = {{Birth date|1922|05|15}}
| birth_place = [[Benidorm]], Spain
| death_date = {{Death date and age|2008|04|01|1922|5|15}}
| death_place = Benidorm, Spain
| occupation =
| years_active =
| spouse = María Ivars
| children = 4
| residence = Benidorm, Spain
}}
'''Pedro Zaragoza Orts''' (May 15, 1922 – April 1, 2008) was the [[mayor]] of [[Benidorm]], Spain, from 1950 to 1967.<ref name="Telegraph">{{Cite news |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/obituaries/1583716/Pedro-Zaragoza.html |title=Pedro Zaragoza |date=2008-04-02 |work=The Daily Telegraph |access-date=2018-03-30 |language=en-GB |issn=0307-1235}}</ref><ref name="Graham">{{Cite news |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2008/apr/02/spain |title=The man who built Benidorm bows out aged 85 |last=Keeley |first=Graham | work= The Guardian| date=2008-04-02 |access-date=2018-03-30 |language=en}}</ref> He is credited with helping turn the town into one of the most popular [[holiday resort]]s in Spain, creating "Europe's first mass tourist resort."<ref name="independent">{{Cite news |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/obituaries/pedro-zaragoza-developer-of-high-rise-benidorm-804022.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220525/https://www.independent.co.uk/news/obituaries/pedro-zaragoza-developer-of-high-rise-benidorm-804022.html |archive-date=2022-05-25 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |title=Pedro Zaragoza: Developer of high-rise Benidorm |date=2008-04-03 |work=The Independent |access-date=2018-03-30 |language=en-GB}}</ref>


==References==
==Early life==
Zaragoza was born in Benidorm to a family of poor seafarers; his father was a merchant captain. He was able to travel around the world as a child with his father seeing Sydney, London, and Singapore.<ref name="Hickman">{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ysolBYSYv_IC&pg=PA92 |title=The Final Call: Investigating Who Really Pays For Our Holidays |last=Hickman |first=Leo |date=2008-09-04 |publisher=Random House |isbn=9781407036298 |language=en}}</ref>{{rp|94}} He went to school in [[Barcelona]] to learn nautical studies.<ref name="independent" />
* [http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2008/04/03/db0303.xml ''The Telegraph'']
* [https://www.independent.co.uk/news/obituaries/pedro-zaragoza-developer-of-highrise-benidorm-804022.html ''The Independent'']


== Career ==
[[File:Ajuntament de Benidorm edited.jpg|right|thumb|Benidorm Town Hall]]
[[File:Benidorm - panoramio (3).jpg|thumb|right|Skyline of Benidorm. Zaragoza is credited as the "father of modern Benidorm".<ref name="ghosts">{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=icmvfXyxMpoC&pg=PA100 |title=Ghosts of Spain: Travels Through Spain and Its Silent Past |last=Tremlett |first=Giles |date=2008-03-13 |publisher=Bloomsbury Publishing USA |isbn=9780802716743 |language=en}}</ref>]]
=== Early career ===
A lack of funds led Zaragoza to become a traveling salesman. He then became a porter at a rail station in Madrid. He soon became a miner of phosphate but advanced quickly to become manager of the mining company. He returned to Benidorm when his father died and became a bank manager at a branch there.<ref name="independent" /> He was soon promoted to a position in Madrid at the [[Spanish Confederation of Savings Banks]], where he caught the attention of government officials.<ref name="El pais">{{Cite news |url=https://elpais.com/elpais/2008/04/01/actualidad/1207037828_850215.html |title=Fallece Pedro Zaragoza, el ex alcalde que impulsó el Benidorm del turismo |last=EFE |date=2008-04-01 |work=El País |access-date=2018-03-30 |language=es |issn=1134-6582}}</ref>

=== Mayor of Benidorm ===
Zaragoza was appointed mayor in 1950 at the age of 28 by the [[Francoist State]].<ref name="independent" /> At the time Benidorm was a small town without many economic prospects. Spain was still recovering from the [[Spanish Civil War]] that had ended in 1939. Zaragoza felt that the town could be turned into a beachside resort that would draw tourists not just from Spain, but from across Europe.<ref name="Telegraph" /> In 1950, Benidorm only had 102 hotel rooms.<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Tn4TDQAAQBAJ&pg=PT9|title=Flying to the Sun: A History of Britain's Holiday Airlines |last=Woodley |first=Charles |date=2016-03-07 |publisher=The History Press |isbn=9780750968706 |language=en}}</ref>
He became a one-man spokesman for his town by travelling across Europe to promote Benidorm. In [[Stockholm]], Sweden, he left flowering almond branches in department stores. The [[Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother|Queen of the United Kingdom]] received local wine that he had sent.<ref name="economist" /> He planted [[Citrus × sinensis|orange trees]] in the name of famous people such as [[Elizabeth II|Queen Elizabeth]] and [[Charles de Gaulle]], and sent the harvest to them.<ref name="Hickman" />{{rp|94}}

Zaragoza rode a [[Vespa]] nine hours to advocate to [[Francisco Franco]], [[caudillo]] of Spain, that the country should open to tourists. According to ''[[The Economist]]'', "the dictator, amused by this small, round, moustachioed man with motor oil on his trousers, became a fan at once".<ref name="economist">{{Cite news |url=https://www.economist.com/node/11043884 |title=Pedro Zaragoza |date=2008-04-17 |work=The Economist |access-date=2018-03-30 |language=en}}</ref>

In 1952, Zaragoza allowed women to wear the newest fashion of [[bikini]]s anywhere in the town. This prompted some Catholic bishops to threaten to [[Excommunication (Catholic Church)|excommunicate]] him.<ref name="economist" /><ref name="Telegraph" /><ref name="El pais" /><ref name="ghosts" /> Only on the intervention of Franco did the bishops and the Catholic Church back off from their threat.<ref name="independent" />

Zaragoza encouraged the building of high-rises in Benidorm as he felt it helped more people to see the beaches and feel the sea air.<ref name="Telegraph" /> In 2008, Benidorm was home to 330 skyscrapers and attracted over five million visitors.<ref name="Graham" /><ref name="independent" />

===Later career===
In 1967, after stepping down as mayor, Zaragoza's high-energy personality continued into several positions over the years. As a provincial deputy, he voted against the restoration of the Spanish monarchy.<ref name="economist" /> He became president of the [[Province of Alicante]].<ref name="El pais" /> He was chair of the Tourism Commission for 12 years. He completed a law degree in the 1970s, specialising in [[Urban planning|urban development]]. At 82, he received a degree in tourism at [[Alicante University]], which made him an honorary professor.<ref name="independent" />

== Personal life ==
Zaragoza and his wife María Ivars had four children.<ref name="independent" /><ref name="El pais" /> Their marriage lasted 58 years.<ref name="Hickman" />

Zaragoza died of heart failure on 1 April 2008.<ref name="Graham" /> The town of Benidorm observed two days of official mourning for him.<ref name="Graham" />

==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}
{{Authority control}}
{{Authority control}}


{{DEFAULTSORT:Zaragoza, Pedro}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Zaragoza, Pedro}}
[[Category:Mayors of places in Spain]]
[[Category:Mayors of places in the Valencian Community]]
[[Category:1922 births]]
[[Category:1922 births]]
[[Category:2008 deaths]]
[[Category:2008 deaths]]
[[Category:People from Marina Baixa]]
[[Category:People from Benidorm]]
[[Category:Members of the Cortes Generales]]
[[Category:Members of the Cortes Generales]]

Latest revision as of 09:05, 31 December 2023

Pedro Zaragoza Orts
Mayor of Benidorm, Spain
In office
1950–1967
Personal details
Born(1922-05-15)May 15, 1922
Benidorm, Spain
DiedApril 1, 2008(2008-04-01) (aged 85)
Benidorm, Spain
SpouseMaría Ivars
Children4
Residence(s)Benidorm, Spain

Pedro Zaragoza Orts (May 15, 1922 – April 1, 2008) was the mayor of Benidorm, Spain, from 1950 to 1967.[1][2] He is credited with helping turn the town into one of the most popular holiday resorts in Spain, creating "Europe's first mass tourist resort."[3]

Early life

[edit]

Zaragoza was born in Benidorm to a family of poor seafarers; his father was a merchant captain. He was able to travel around the world as a child with his father seeing Sydney, London, and Singapore.[4]: 94  He went to school in Barcelona to learn nautical studies.[3]

Career

[edit]
Benidorm Town Hall
Skyline of Benidorm. Zaragoza is credited as the "father of modern Benidorm".[5]

Early career

[edit]

A lack of funds led Zaragoza to become a traveling salesman. He then became a porter at a rail station in Madrid. He soon became a miner of phosphate but advanced quickly to become manager of the mining company. He returned to Benidorm when his father died and became a bank manager at a branch there.[3] He was soon promoted to a position in Madrid at the Spanish Confederation of Savings Banks, where he caught the attention of government officials.[6]

Mayor of Benidorm

[edit]

Zaragoza was appointed mayor in 1950 at the age of 28 by the Francoist State.[3] At the time Benidorm was a small town without many economic prospects. Spain was still recovering from the Spanish Civil War that had ended in 1939. Zaragoza felt that the town could be turned into a beachside resort that would draw tourists not just from Spain, but from across Europe.[1] In 1950, Benidorm only had 102 hotel rooms.[7]

He became a one-man spokesman for his town by travelling across Europe to promote Benidorm. In Stockholm, Sweden, he left flowering almond branches in department stores. The Queen of the United Kingdom received local wine that he had sent.[8] He planted orange trees in the name of famous people such as Queen Elizabeth and Charles de Gaulle, and sent the harvest to them.[4]: 94 

Zaragoza rode a Vespa nine hours to advocate to Francisco Franco, caudillo of Spain, that the country should open to tourists. According to The Economist, "the dictator, amused by this small, round, moustachioed man with motor oil on his trousers, became a fan at once".[8]

In 1952, Zaragoza allowed women to wear the newest fashion of bikinis anywhere in the town. This prompted some Catholic bishops to threaten to excommunicate him.[8][1][6][5] Only on the intervention of Franco did the bishops and the Catholic Church back off from their threat.[3]

Zaragoza encouraged the building of high-rises in Benidorm as he felt it helped more people to see the beaches and feel the sea air.[1] In 2008, Benidorm was home to 330 skyscrapers and attracted over five million visitors.[2][3]

Later career

[edit]

In 1967, after stepping down as mayor, Zaragoza's high-energy personality continued into several positions over the years. As a provincial deputy, he voted against the restoration of the Spanish monarchy.[8] He became president of the Province of Alicante.[6] He was chair of the Tourism Commission for 12 years. He completed a law degree in the 1970s, specialising in urban development. At 82, he received a degree in tourism at Alicante University, which made him an honorary professor.[3]

Personal life

[edit]

Zaragoza and his wife María Ivars had four children.[3][6] Their marriage lasted 58 years.[4]

Zaragoza died of heart failure on 1 April 2008.[2] The town of Benidorm observed two days of official mourning for him.[2]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b c d "Pedro Zaragoza". The Daily Telegraph. 2008-04-02. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 2018-03-30.
  2. ^ a b c d Keeley, Graham (2008-04-02). "The man who built Benidorm bows out aged 85". The Guardian. Retrieved 2018-03-30.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h "Pedro Zaragoza: Developer of high-rise Benidorm". The Independent. 2008-04-03. Archived from the original on 2022-05-25. Retrieved 2018-03-30.
  4. ^ a b c Hickman, Leo (2008-09-04). The Final Call: Investigating Who Really Pays For Our Holidays. Random House. ISBN 9781407036298.
  5. ^ a b Tremlett, Giles (2008-03-13). Ghosts of Spain: Travels Through Spain and Its Silent Past. Bloomsbury Publishing USA. ISBN 9780802716743.
  6. ^ a b c d EFE (2008-04-01). "Fallece Pedro Zaragoza, el ex alcalde que impulsó el Benidorm del turismo". El País (in Spanish). ISSN 1134-6582. Retrieved 2018-03-30.
  7. ^ Woodley, Charles (2016-03-07). Flying to the Sun: A History of Britain's Holiday Airlines. The History Press. ISBN 9780750968706.
  8. ^ a b c d "Pedro Zaragoza". The Economist. 2008-04-17. Retrieved 2018-03-30.
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