El zorro rojo

The death of Santiago Carrillo on October 28, 2012 put an end to ninety-seven years lived intensely and in the forefront of politics. Son of Wenceslao Carrillo, a socialist leader, his first memory was visiting his father in prison. While still a teenager, he participated in the 1934 strike and spent time in prison, where he became radicalized. After a trip to Moscow he managed to unify the youth of the PSOE and the PCE on the eve of the Civil War, to then join the communists. During the war, one of the darkest episodes of his life occurred, the massacre of rebel prisoners in Paracuellos, when he was responsible for security in Madrid. After the war he remained in exile for thirty-eight years, always in the communist leadership, which he exercised with an iron fist. His turn towards Eurocommunism and his fundamental role in the Transition lightened his figure.