Luis Martínez de Irujo, Duque de Alba

Luis Martínez de Irujo (1919-1972) married Cayetana Fitz-James Stuart, future Duchess of Alba, in 1947. Since then, the weight of the name and the survival of the House of Alba marked his destiny. His life passed between the legacy of his father-in-law Jacobo and the personality of his wife. Luis seemed doomed to pale before these two brilliant personalities. However, his decisions in different areas were decisive for the future of the dukedom. His premature death caused a deep shock in Cayetana and her children and caused her figure to fall into unfair oblivion. This exhaustive biography of José Miguel Hernández Barral -who has delved into the enormous documentation of the great family archive- was necessary to recover the legacy of a man who is not given to appearing, whose commitment and successful management of the economic and cultural heritage, achieved continuity of the House of Alba and its adaptation to the change of times.