Josep Irla i Bosch

Who was Josep Irla i Bosch?

Josep Irla i Bosch was a Catalan politician from Sant Feliu de Guixols.

He was a deputy in the Catalan Parliament and the Spanish Congress in 1932, as an Esquerra Republicana de Catalunya affiliate. He was also the last President of Parliament of Catalonia at the end of Republican Catalan resistance in the Spanish Civil War, before Francisco Franco abolished the Generalitat de Catalunya. He was elected President of the Parliament of Catalonia on 1 October 1938. In office, Irla pushed for cooperation with the allies, Basque nationalists and other anti-Francoist groups, though excluding the communists.

He became the President-in-exile of the Generalitat after Lluís Companys was executed. During his time as President-in-exile, he established a Government in exile, and appointed Josep Tarradellas as Conseller en Cap. He resigned as President in 1954.

He worked in his father's inn when he was young. He was the eldest son; his brothers were Francesc and Nicolau.

He died in Provence, France in 1958.