Alonso García de Ramón
Encyclopedia
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
soldier and twice Royal Governor of Chile
Royal Governor of Chile
The Royal Governor of Chile ruled over the Spanish colonial administrative district known as the Kingdom of Chile. This district was also called the Captaincy General of Chile, and as a result the Royal Governor also held the title of a Captain General...
: first temporarily from July of 1600 to February of 1601, and then from March of 1605 to August of 1610. He was born in Cuenca
Cuenca, Spain
-History:When the Iberian peninsula was part of the Roman Empire there were several important settlements in the province, such as Segóbriga, Ercávica and Gran Valeria...
, Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
in 1552.
Early life
He served from the age of 16 in the Spanish ArmySpanish Army
The Spanish Army is the terrestrial army of the Spanish Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is one of the oldest active armies - dating back to the 15th century.-Introduction:...
first against the Morisco revolt
Morisco Revolt
The Morisco Revolt , also known as War of Las Alpujarras or Revolt of Las Alpujarras, in what is now Andalusia in southern Spain, was a rebellion against the Crown of Castile by the remaining Muslim converts to Christianity from the Kingdom of Granada.-The defeat of Muslim Spain:In the wake of the...
in Granada
Granada
Granada is a city and the capital of the province of Granada, in the autonomous community of Andalusia, Spain. Granada is located at the foot of the Sierra Nevada mountains, at the confluence of three rivers, the Beiro, the Darro and the Genil. It sits at an elevation of 738 metres above sea...
. The he was in Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
and Sicily
Sicily
Sicily is a region of Italy, and is the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. Along with the surrounding minor islands, it constitutes an autonomous region of Italy, the Regione Autonoma Siciliana Sicily has a rich and unique culture, especially with regard to the arts, music, literature,...
, where he was cabo de escuadra, in the squadron of Juan of Austria in the 1572 battle of Navarino
Battle of Navarino
The naval Battle of Navarino was fought on 20 October 1827, during the Greek War of Independence in Navarino Bay , on the west coast of the Peloponnese peninsula, in the Ionian Sea. A combined Ottoman and Egyptian armada was destroyed by a combined British, French and Russian naval force...
following the battle of Lepanto
Battle of Lepanto (1571)
The Battle of Lepanto took place on 7 October 1571 when a fleet of the Holy League, a coalition of Catholic maritime states, decisively defeated the main fleet of the Ottoman Empire in five hours of fighting on the northern edge of the Gulf of Patras, off western Greece...
. Then in 1574, he was in the garrison of Goleta
La Goulette
La Goulette is the port of Tunis, the capital of Tunisia. The Kasbah fortress was built in 1535 by Charles I of Spain but was captured by the Ottoman Turks in 1574...
during the campaign of Juan of Austria in Tunis
Tunis
Tunis is the capital of both the Tunisian Republic and the Tunis Governorate. It is Tunisia's largest city, with a population of 728,453 as of 2004; the greater metropolitan area holds some 2,412,500 inhabitants....
. In 1576 he survived under Alvaro de Bazan, Marquess of Santa Cruz in the Battle of Querquenes at the Kerkennah Islands
Kerkennah Islands
Kerkennah Islands are a group of islands lying off the east coast of Tunisia in the Gulf of Gabes, at . The Islands are low-lying being no more than 13 metres above sea level. The main islands are Chergui and Gharbi. The archipelago has an area of 160 km2 and a population of 14,400...
.
He next went to Flanders
Flanders
Flanders is the community of the Flemings but also one of the institutions in Belgium, and a geographical region located in parts of present-day Belgium, France and the Netherlands. "Flanders" can also refer to the northern part of Belgium that contains Brussels, Bruges, Ghent and Antwerp...
as a sergeant under Alexander Farnese, Duke of Parma
Alexander Farnese, Duke of Parma
Alexander Farnese was Duke of Parma and Piacenza from 1586 to 1592, and Governor of the Spanish Netherlands from 1578 to 1592.-Biography:...
. He was in the assault of the city of Sichen, the attack of Bourgerhoutum and the siege and assault of Maestricht
Siege of Maastricht (1579)
The Siege of Maastricht was a battle of the Eighty Years' War it lasted from March 12 - July 1, 1579. The Spanish were victorious.-Prelude:In 1579 the city of Maastricht was in the hands of the Dutch rebels. On March 12 1579 the Spanish General Alexander Farnese started to lay siege to the city...
where he was of the first that mounted the walls; twice wounded taking two flags, for which the awarded twelve ducados by the Duke.
Military Service in Chile and Peru
He returned to Spain and then went to ChileChile
Chile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...
, fighting with skill and bravery for Governor
Royal Governor of Chile
The Royal Governor of Chile ruled over the Spanish colonial administrative district known as the Kingdom of Chile. This district was also called the Captaincy General of Chile, and as a result the Royal Governor also held the title of a Captain General...
Alonso de Sotomayor
Alonso de Sotomayor
Alonso de Sotomayor y Valmediano was a Spanish conquistador from Extremadura, and a Royal Governor of Chile.-Early life:He was born in Trujillo, in the province of Extremadura, the son of Gutiérrez de Sotomayor e Hinojosa and Beatriz de Valmediano...
against the Mapuche
Mapuche
The Mapuche are a group of indigenous inhabitants of south-central Chile and southwestern Argentina. They constitute a wide-ranging ethnicity composed of various groups who shared a common social, religious and economic structure, as well as a common linguistic heritage. Their influence extended...
. His most famous action was at the siege
Siege
A siege is a military blockade of a city or fortress with the intent of conquering by attrition or assault. The term derives from sedere, Latin for "to sit". Generally speaking, siege warfare is a form of constant, low intensity conflict characterized by one party holding a strong, static...
of Puren
Puren
Puren may refer to:*Purén, city in Chile*Jin Youzhi, brother of Puyi, the last Emperor of China...
where he killed the Toqui
Toqui
Toqui is a title conferred by the Mapuche to those who are chosen as their leaders during times of war. The toqui is chosen in an assembly or parliament of the chieftains of the various clans or confederation of clans , allied during the war in question...
Cadeguala
Cadeguala
Cadeguala or Cadiguala was a Mapuche toqui elected in 1585 following the death in battle of the previous toqui Nangoniel. Cadeguala was a noted warrior and the first Mapuche toqui known to have used cavalry successfully in battle...
in mounted single combat. Soon after Martín García Óñez de Loyola
Martín García Óñez de Loyola
Don Martín García Óñez de Loyola was a Spanish Basque soldier and Royal Governor of Chile.-Early life:...
replaced Sotomayor, García de Ramón moved to Peru
Peru
Peru , officially the Republic of Peru , is a country in western South America. It is bordered on the north by Ecuador and Colombia, on the east by Brazil, on the southeast by Bolivia, on the south by Chile, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean....
, and earned the confidence of the Viceroy of Peru, García Hurtado de Mendoza, 5th Marquis of Cañete who entrusted him with many positions, that he carried out with brilliance including those of corregidor
Corregidor
Corregidor Island, locally called Isla ng Corregidor, is a lofty island located at the entrance of Manila Bay in southwestern part of Luzon Island in the Philippines. Due to this location, Corregidor was fortified with several coastal artillery and ammunition magazines to defend the entrance of...
of Arica
Arica
Arica is a city in northern Chile. "Arica" may also refer to:Places* Arica and Parinacota Region, Chile* Arica Airport , Chile* Arica, Amazonas, town in Colombia* Rio Aricá-açu, tributary of the Cuiabá River south of Cuiabá, BrazilOther...
and Potosí
Potosí
Potosí is a city and the capital of the department of Potosí in Bolivia. It is one of the highest cities in the world by elevation at a nominal . and it was the location of the Spanish colonial mint, now the National Mint of Bolivia...
. From 1599, when Francisco de Quiñónez
Francisco de Quiñónez
Francisco de Quiñónez ; Spanish soldier who was appointed as governor of Chile for thirteen months, between May 1599 and June 1600....
was sent to Chile, he was Maestro de Campo
Maestro de Campo
Maestro de Campo was a rank created in 1534 by the Emperor Carlos V, inferior in rank only to the Capitán General and acted as a chief of staff. He was chosen by the monarch in the Council of State, and commanded a tercio. Their powers were similar to those of the old Marshals of the Kingdom of...
of all Peru and was one of the most trusted military advisors of Viceroy, Luis de Velasco
Luis de Velasco, marqués de Salinas
Luis de Velasco, marqués de Salinas , Spanish nobleman, son of the second viceroy of New Spain, and himself the eighth viceroy. He governed from January 27, 1590 to November 4, 1595, and again from July 2, 1607 to June 10, 1611...
.
First Governorship of Chile
García de Ramón was sent to relieve Francisco de Quiñónez as interim governor arriving in Chile on July 29, 1600. He arrived in Santiago the next day and was installed as governor. He soon discovered things were worse in southern Chile than he had known in Peru, La ImperialLa Imperial, Chile
La Imperial or Ciudad Imperial was a city founded by Pedro de Valdivia on April 16, 1552 and named in honor of the Emperor Charles V. It was abandoned on April 5, 1600 and destroyed as a result of the Mapuche Uprising of 1598 during the War of Arauco. The ruins were called Antigua Imperial...
had been lost in April. Without reinforcements from Peru he was forced to extract men, arms and supplies from the cities of Chile by means of imposing extraordinary contributions, special taxes, and confiscating cattle, horses, saddles and arms that allowed him quickly form a well equipped army of 400 men by December 1600.
By early January his army had marched to Chillán
Chillán Viejo
Chillán Viejo is a city and commune in the Ñuble Province of Chile's eighth region of Biobío . According to the 2002 census, the population of the commune was 22,084 and it has an area of .-History:...
were he was forced to leave a detachment to prevent Mapuche incursions above the Itata River
Itata River
The Itata River flows in the Bío-Bío Region, southern Chile.Until the Conquest of Chile the Itata was the natural limit between the Mapuche, located to the south, and Picunche, to the north.-References:* . - External links :*...
. He moved on to Concepcion
Penco
Penco is a Chilean city and commune in Concepción Province, Biobío Region on the Bay of Concepción. Founded as the city of Concepción del Nuevo Extremo on February 12, 1550 by Pedro de Valdivia, it is the third oldest city in the country after Santiago founded first in 1541 and La Serena second...
where he planned to relieve the remaining besieged fort Valdivia
Valdivia, Chile
Valdivia is a city and commune in southern Chile administered by the Municipality of Valdivia. The city is named after its founder Pedro de Valdivia and is located at the confluence of the Calle-Calle, Valdivia and Cau-Cau Rivers, approximately east of the coastal towns of Corral and Niebla...
and cities of Villarica
Villarrica, Chile
Villarrica is a city and commune in southern Chile located on the western shore of Villarrica Lake in the Province of Cautín, Araucanía Region south of Santiago and close to the Villarrica Volcano ski center to the south east. Residents of Villarrica are known as Villarriquences.Tourism, grain and...
, and Osorno
Osorno, Chile
Osorno is a city and commune in southern Chile and capital of Osorno Province in the Los Lagos Region. It had a population of 145,475, as of the 2002 census...
. His attempt to send aid by ship to Valdivia and Chiloé
Chiloé Island
Chiloé Island , also known as Greater Island of Chiloé , is the largest island of the Chiloé Archipelago off the coast of Chile, in the Pacific Ocean...
failed when the ship was stolen by deserters from the army fleeing Chile for Peru. Unwilling to give up he planned to advance south via the central valley, to Angol
Angol
Angol is a commune and capital city of the Malleco Province in the Araucanía Region of southern Chile. It is located at the foot of the Nahuelbuta Range and next to the Vergara River, that permitted communications by small boats to the Bío-Bío River and Concepción. This strategic position explains...
, Purén
Purén
Purén is a city and commune in Malleco Province of Araucanía Region, Chile. It is located in the west base of the Nahuelbuta mountain range . The economical activity of Purén is based in forest exploitation and agriculture...
and Lumaco
Lumaco
Lumaco is a town and commune in Malleco Province in the Araucanía Region of Chile. Its name in Mapudungun means "water of luma". Lumaco is located to northeast of Temuco and from Angol...
, to aid Villarrica, and on to Osorno
Osorno, Chile
Osorno is a city and commune in southern Chile and capital of Osorno Province in the Los Lagos Region. It had a population of 145,475, as of the 2002 census...
in the south linking up with Francisco del Campo advancing from fort Valdivia
Valdivia, Chile
Valdivia is a city and commune in southern Chile administered by the Municipality of Valdivia. The city is named after its founder Pedro de Valdivia and is located at the confluence of the Calle-Calle, Valdivia and Cau-Cau Rivers, approximately east of the coastal towns of Corral and Niebla...
. However he and 310 men had not advanced further than Quillacoya when he had word that Arauco
Arauco, Chile
Arauco is a city and commune in Chile, located in Arauco Province in the Biobio Region. The meaning of Arauco means Chalky Water in Mapudungun. The region was a Moluche aillarehue...
was now under siege and required relief. He had turned back to go to its aid when he was informed that Alonso de Ribera
Alonso de Ribera
Alonso de Ribera de Pareja was a Spanish soldier and twice Spanish royal governor of Chile .-Early life:...
had arrived to assume the governorship in February 1601.
Second Governorship of Chile
Appointed in 1605 to replace Alonso de Ribera as Governor of Chile, he a used the base of fortsLa Frontera (geographical region)
La Frontera is name given to a geographical region in Chile, between the Bío-Bío and Toltén Rivers, now part of the administrative regions of Bío-Bío and Araucanía...
established by his predecessor as bases for his campaigns against the Mapuche.
In 1606 the Spanish forces of Garcia Ramon fought the Mapuche army under the caciques Ainavilu, Anganamen, Pelantaru and Longoñongo in the Battle of Boroa. Approximately 500 Spaniards, defeated 6,000 Mapuches. García de Ramón then built Fort San Ignacio de la Redención
San Ignacio de la Redención
San Ignacio de la Redención was a fort established in 1606 by the Governor Alonso García de Ramón in a plain, located in the region of Boroa on the north bank of the Cautín River. In forty days he constructed a large fort, surrounded by a wide ditch, defended by a solid and thick wood palisade, and...
near Boroa but it was soon abandoned after the ambush of most of its garrison.
In 1607 García de Ramón rebuilt Fort Purén and San Jerónimo de Millapoa
San Jerónimo de Millapoa
San Jerónimo de Millapoa was a fort founded by Alonso de Sotomayor in 1585. It dominated the small valleys of the eastern slopes of the Nahuelbuta Range of Catirai, in the upper part of the Culenco River, in the mountainous area 25 kilometers south of the modern commune of Santa Juana...
in Catirai
Catirai
Catirai or Catiray is the region of the Moluche Aillarehue of Catiray in old Araucanía. It is now the Santa Juana commune of the Concepción Province and the Nacimiento commune of the Biobío Province of the Biobío Region, of Chile...
but as a result of the Parliament of Catirai he soon dismantled the later.
Source
- José Toribio MedinaJosé Toribio MedinaJosé Toribio Medina Zavala was a Chilean bibliographer, prolific writer, and historian. He was of Basque descent.-Biography:...
, Diccionario biográfico colonial de Chile, Impr. Elziviriana, Santiago, 1906, Pg. 338 - 341 Alonso García de Ramón - Diego Barros AranaDiego Barros AranaDiego Jacinto Agustín Barros Arana was an educator, diplomat and Chilean historian. He is considered the most important Chilean historian of the 19th century and his most famous work is the General History of Chile...
, Historia general de Chile. Tomo tercero