Official visits and fundraising events after the flood of Santa Teresa in Murcia in 1879

Abstract

During the reign of Alfonso XII (1874-1885) there were three major natural disasters – the Santa Teresa flood in 1879; the Granada earthquake in 1884; and a particularly virulent cholera epidemic in 1885 - which led to the organization of official visits to the devastated areas and private fundraising events.

These three major catastrophes were followed by the media of the time, which reported both their intensity and the loss of human lives, infrastructures and livelihoods. They also reported on public and private efforts to raise funds and help the victims. Of great importance for the press were the visits of the Head of State. Visits that required a meticulous preparation and that were carried out in devastated areas, in which the formalities and honours to be dispensed to the highest authority of the State and his companions were not neglected.

Far from the devastated areas, concerts, dances, raffles and cultural evenings were held. Private events aimed at raising funds to help the victims of the disaster. To this must be added that, in a confessional Spain of the nineteenth century, masses and prayers were celebrated asking for the end of the catastrophe and the charity of the faithful. All these acts were followed in detail by the media and consumed by their readers.

This paper analyses two events that were a consequence of the Santa Teresa flooding in 1879, in the first place, an official act, the visit of the Head of State to the devastated area and on the second, a private fundraising event, a large event held in Paris that was promoted by the international press.