Rafael Casanova

Rafael Casanova i Comes
Statue in Barcelona by Rossend Nobas (1888)
Head Councillor of Barcelona
In office November 30, 1713 – September 11, 1714
Monarch	Charles VI, Holy Roman Emperor
Preceded by	Manuel Flix i Ferreró
Personal details
Born	circa 1660 Moià
Died	May 2, 1743(1743-05-02) (aged 83) Sant Boi de Llobregat
Nationality	Spanish
Political party	Austriacist
Spouse(s)	Maria Bosch i Barba
Occupation	Lawyer
Signature

Rafael Casanova i Comes (Catalan pronunciation: [rəˈfɛɫ ˌkazəˈnɔβə]) (Moià, 1660 – Sant Boi de Llobregat,2 May 1743) was a Catalan jurist, and supporter of Charles VI, Holy Roman Emperor as a claimant to the Crown of Spain during the War of the Spanish succession. He became mayor of Barcelona and commander in chief of Catalonia during the Siege of Barcelona until he was wounded in combat while commanding La Coronela during the counterattack on the Saint Peter front on the last day of the siege, September 11, 1714. He recovered from his wounds, and after the war he continued his fight against absolutism as a lawyer. It has been claimed that he is the author of the book Record de l'Aliança fet el Sereníssim Jordi Augusto Rey de la Gran Bretanya (Remembrance of the Alliance to George I of Great Britain) in which Catalonia reminds England of the Treaty of Genoa and their obligation to Catalonia.

Rafael was born in Moià around 1660 and lived there until he turned 14 years old, his birth home now houses two museums, one which is dedicated to Rafael himself and the other being the Archaeology and Paleontology Museum - Caves of the Toll of Moià.

He was one of eleven children of Rafael Casanova i Solà (1625 - 1682), a landowner of a rural estate in Moià, and Maria Comes i Sors († 1684), from Lliçà d'Amunt. At the time of his birth, the Casanova family enjoyed a solid financial position based on the usage of their land and the trade of grain and wool to supply the powerful textile industry in the subvegueria of Moianès. The Casanovas had a long tradition of participating in public affairs: his father was the head of a Catalan paramilitary organization called Sometent (dissolved 1978) in 1650, Councillor of the People (1652) and the head of the Moianès subvegueria (1659).