Francisco Martínez Marina

Who was Francisco Martínez Marina?

Francisco Xavier Martinez Marina was a noted Spanish jurist, historian and priest.

Born in Oviedo, capital city of the Principality of Asturias in northern Spain, he was director of the Real Academia de la Historia, an institution dedicated to the study of Spain's political, civilian, ecclesiastical and military history. He also served as director of the Real Academia Española, an institution responsible for regulating the Spanish language.

During his lifetime, Marina published a number of well-known texts, including a treatise on the history and geography of Asturias, Diccionario geográfico-histórico de Asturias, and a study of principles of morality as they relate to legal policy and legislation, Principios naturales de la moral, de la política y de la legislación.

Marina also wrote diverse works on the history of Spanish law, including Ensayo histórico-crítico sobre la legislación y principales cuerpos legales de los reinos de León y Castilla especialmente sobre el código de las Siete Partidas de D. Alonso el Sabio, and a work entitled Juicio crítico de la Novísima Recopilación.