Antonio Villavicencio
Encyclopedia
Antonio Villavicencio y Verástegui (January 9, 1775 - June 6, 1816) was a Neogranadine
Lieutenant
statesman and soldier, born in Quito
, and educated in Spain
. He served in the Battle of Trafalgar
as an office in the Spanish Navy
. He was sent as a representative of the Crown to the New Granada
, and his arrival was used as an excuse in Santafé de Bogotá to start a revolt, this was known as the Florero de Llorente which culminated with the proclamation of Independence from Spain. After this incident he resigned his office and joined the Independence cause. He was later captured and became the first martyr executed during the reign of terror of Pablo Morillo
.
, Ecuador
, which at the time formed part of the Viceroyalty of the New Granada. His parents were Juan Fernando de Villavicencio y Guerrero, II Count of the Real Agrado and Knight of the Order of Santiago
, and doña Joaquina Verástegui y Dávila, daughter of the Oidor
and Mayor of the Real Audiencia of Santa Fe de Bogota.
Villavicencio attended Our Lady of the Rosary University
and afterwards his parents sent him to Spain to study in the College of Noble Americans in the city of Granada
, where he studied in the Spanish Armada
, and earning the grade of Second Lieutenant
in the Navy.
He returned to New Granada in Cartagena de Indias as a Frigate
Lieutenant
patrolling the Atlantic Cost.
In 1804 he returned to Spain, this time serving in the Navy in the Napoleonic Wars
. He fought in the Battle of Trafalgar
on October 25, 1805 serving as Second Lieutenant of Antonio de Escaño
.
had been received in America. The Court decided to send Regency commissioners to serve as its ambassadors to America and to explain the situation in Spain. Two Criollos
and one Peninsular
were chosen for South America, Carlos Montúfar as envoy to Quito
, José de Cos Iriberri, as ambassador to the Viceroyalty of Peru
, and Villavicencio, as envoy to New Granada.
in the schooner
HM La Carmen, on March 1, and arriving at La Guajira
on March 18, from there, they were urged to sail to Caracas
. Villavicencio arrived in Caracas in time to witness the events of April 19, the day on which the people of Caracas deposed the Captain General of Venezuela, Vicente Emparán
, and established a Venezuelan Supreme Junta, which gave way to the start of the First Republic of Venezuela.
, a sort of public forum, to discuss the situation and devise a solution, but the Governor opposed to this. Antonio Villavicencio, however, did not, and using his position as Representative of the Crown, called for the open cabildo. On May 10 the Ayuntamiento
of Cartagena formed a Junta
, it was formed by Spaniards and Americans alike, among them, Antonio Villavicencio, Carlos Montúfar, Governor Francisco Montes, José María García de Toledo. The Junta Recognized the Crown of Spain and Ferdinand VII, not Joseph Bonaparte
, as their King. Villavicencio, found no reason to oppose the desire for local autonomy as long as the Junta de Cartagena acknowledge the supremacy of the crown. This event set giant waves of revolution across the land, and it was soon followed by other Juntas, Santiago de Cali
on July 3, Pamplona
on July 4, and Socorro
on July 9.
visited the Viceroy Antonio José Amar y Borbón
to see if his request to open a cabildo had been granted, the viceroy dismissed the idea with arrogance. This drove the revolutionists to start planning a plot for independence. Using the arrival of Villavicencio as an excuse, they went to the house of José Gonzales Llorente to borrow a flower vase, he refused and on top of that insulted them. Francisco José de Caldas
used this to incite the crowds to stand up to the Peninsulars, José Miguel Pey mayor of Bogotá, had to step in to save Llorente, by that night things were heated up so much a special Cabildo was called in session. This led to the Declaration of Independence of the New Granada from Spain.
Villavicencio was informed of the events of July 20 when he was in Honda
by Juan Merino the alcalde
of Honda. When he arrived in Bogotá he was informed that the Junta no longer recognized the authority of the Regency Commission, he responded by resigning to the commission and embracing the patriotic cause of independence.
Villavicencio immersed himself in the fight for independence, he was appointed commander of a battalion in Southern Campaign of Antonio Nariño
. In 1814 he was made the Military Advisor
to the United Provinces of New Granada
.
, a three member executive body, to govern the nation. Custodio García Rovira
, one of the members of the Triumvirate, presented his resignation on July 11, 1815 to Congress. Congress named Villavicencio to replace him. Villavicencio accepted and on August 12, he resigned his post as Governor of Tunja, and headed to Santafé de Bogotá, where he was inaugurated as President of President of the Triumvirate of the United Provinces of the New Granada.
His presidency was short lived, on November 15, 1815, Congress once again changed the executive power, trusting it onto a President Dictator, and a Vice President.
, where on May 20, 1816 he was captured by the Royalist Army and transported to Santafé. On June 1 the Permanent Council of War sentenced Villavicencio to death. On June 6, he was taken out of his cell, they removed his military insignia and status degrading him, and he was executed by a firing squad
. Villavicencio died at the age of 41, he whose visit to Santafé had led to the breakup of the colonies, had instigated the anger of the royalists, and he became the first victim of the reign of terror of Pablo Morillo
, who sentenced to death many other heroes, barred and imprisoned more, and persecuted the ones who got away.
New Kingdom of Granada
The New Kingdom of Granada was the name given to a group of 16th century Spanish colonial provinces in northern South America governed by the president of the Audiencia of Bogotá, an area corresponding mainly to modern day Colombia and parts of Venezuela. Originally part of the Viceroyalty of...
Lieutenant
Second Lieutenant
Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces.- United Kingdom and Commonwealth :The rank second lieutenant was introduced throughout the British Army in 1871 to replace the rank of ensign , although it had long been used in the Royal Artillery, Royal...
statesman and soldier, born in Quito
Quito
San Francisco de Quito, most often called Quito , is the capital city of Ecuador in northwestern South America. It is located in north-central Ecuador in the Guayllabamba river basin, on the eastern slopes of Pichincha, an active stratovolcano in the Andes mountains...
, and educated in 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...
. He served in the Battle of Trafalgar
Battle of Trafalgar
The Battle of Trafalgar was a sea battle fought between the British Royal Navy and the combined fleets of the French Navy and Spanish Navy, during the War of the Third Coalition of the Napoleonic Wars ....
as an office in the Spanish Navy
Spanish Navy
The Spanish Navy is the maritime branch of the Spanish Armed Forces, one of the oldest active naval forces in the world. The Armada is responsible for notable achievements in world history such as the discovery of Americas, the first world circumnavigation, and the discovery of a maritime path...
. He was sent as a representative of the Crown to the New Granada
Viceroyalty of New Granada
The Viceroyalty of New Granada was the name given on 27 May 1717, to a Spanish colonial jurisdiction in northern South America, corresponding mainly to modern Colombia, Ecuador, Panama, and Venezuela. The territory corresponding to Panama was incorporated later in 1739...
, and his arrival was used as an excuse in Santafé de Bogotá to start a revolt, this was known as the Florero de Llorente which culminated with the proclamation of Independence from Spain. After this incident he resigned his office and joined the Independence cause. He was later captured and became the first martyr executed during the reign of terror of Pablo Morillo
Pablo Morillo
Pablo Morillo y Morillo, Count of Cartagena and Marquess of La Puerta, aka El Pacificador was a Spanish general....
.
Early life
Villavicencio was born on January 9, 1775, in QuitoQuito
San Francisco de Quito, most often called Quito , is the capital city of Ecuador in northwestern South America. It is located in north-central Ecuador in the Guayllabamba river basin, on the eastern slopes of Pichincha, an active stratovolcano in the Andes mountains...
, Ecuador
Ecuador
Ecuador , officially the Republic of Ecuador is a representative democratic republic in South America, bordered by Colombia on the north, Peru on the east and south, and by the Pacific Ocean to the west. It is one of only two countries in South America, along with Chile, that do not have a border...
, which at the time formed part of the Viceroyalty of the New Granada. His parents were Juan Fernando de Villavicencio y Guerrero, II Count of the Real Agrado and Knight of the Order of Santiago
Order of Santiago
The Order of Santiago was founded in the 12th century, and owes its name to the national patron of Galicia and Spain, Santiago , under whose banner the Christians of Galicia and Asturias began in the 9th century to combat and drive back the Muslims of the Iberian Peninsula.-History:Santiago de...
, and doña Joaquina Verástegui y Dávila, daughter of the Oidor
Oidor
Oidor is the Spanish name of the member judge of the Royal Audiencias and Chancillerías, originally courts of Kingdom of Castile, which became the highest organs of justice within the Spanish Empire...
and Mayor of the Real Audiencia of Santa Fe de Bogota.
Villavicencio attended Our Lady of the Rosary University
Our Lady of the Rosary University
The Universidad del Rosario is a university originally founded on Roman Catholic principles, in 1653 by Fray Cristobal de Torres. Located in Bogotá, Colombia, due to its important place in Colombian history, it is known as "The Cradle of the Republic". It had also a primary and secundary school...
and afterwards his parents sent him to Spain to study in the College of Noble Americans in the city of 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...
, where he studied in the Spanish Armada
Spanish Armada
This article refers to the Battle of Gravelines, for the modern navy of Spain, see Spanish NavyThe Spanish Armada was the Spanish fleet that sailed against England under the command of the Duke of Medina Sidonia in 1588, with the intention of overthrowing Elizabeth I of England to stop English...
, and earning the grade of Second Lieutenant
Second Lieutenant
Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces.- United Kingdom and Commonwealth :The rank second lieutenant was introduced throughout the British Army in 1871 to replace the rank of ensign , although it had long been used in the Royal Artillery, Royal...
in the Navy.
He returned to New Granada in Cartagena de Indias as a Frigate
Frigate
A frigate is any of several types of warship, the term having been used for ships of various sizes and roles over the last few centuries.In the 17th century, the term was used for any warship built for speed and maneuverability, the description often used being "frigate-built"...
Lieutenant
Lieutenant
A lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer in many nations' armed forces. Typically, the rank of lieutenant in naval usage, while still a junior officer rank, is senior to the army rank...
patrolling the Atlantic Cost.
In 1804 he returned to Spain, this time serving in the Navy in the Napoleonic Wars
Napoleonic Wars
The Napoleonic Wars were a series of wars declared against Napoleon's French Empire by opposing coalitions that ran from 1803 to 1815. As a continuation of the wars sparked by the French Revolution of 1789, they revolutionised European armies and played out on an unprecedented scale, mainly due to...
. He fought in the Battle of Trafalgar
Battle of Trafalgar
The Battle of Trafalgar was a sea battle fought between the British Royal Navy and the combined fleets of the French Navy and Spanish Navy, during the War of the Third Coalition of the Napoleonic Wars ....
on October 25, 1805 serving as Second Lieutenant of Antonio de Escaño
Antonio de Escaño
Antonio de Escaño y García de Cáceres was a Spanish army and navy officer. From 1808 to 1810 he was Spain's Minister for the Navy....
.
Villavicencio as representative of the Crown
In 1810 the Regency in Spain was worried about how news of the dissolution of the Supreme Central JuntaJunta (Peninsular War)
In the Napoleonic era, junta was the name chosen by several local administrations formed in Spain during the Peninsular War as a patriotic alternative to the official administration toppled by the French invaders...
had been received in America. The Court decided to send Regency commissioners to serve as its ambassadors to America and to explain the situation in Spain. Two Criollos
Criollo people
The Criollo class ranked below that of the Iberian Peninsulares, the high-born permanent residence colonists born in Spain. But Criollos were higher status/rank than all other castes—people of mixed descent, Amerindians, and enslaved Africans...
and one Peninsular
Peninsulares
In the colonial caste system of Spanish America, a peninsular was a Spanish-born Spaniard or mainland Spaniard residing in the New World, as opposed to a person of full Spanish descent born in the Americas or Philippines...
were chosen for South America, Carlos Montúfar as envoy to Quito
Quito
San Francisco de Quito, most often called Quito , is the capital city of Ecuador in northwestern South America. It is located in north-central Ecuador in the Guayllabamba river basin, on the eastern slopes of Pichincha, an active stratovolcano in the Andes mountains...
, José de Cos Iriberri, as ambassador to the Viceroyalty of Peru
Viceroyalty of Peru
Created in 1542, the Viceroyalty of Peru was a Spanish colonial administrative district that originally contained most of Spanish-ruled South America, governed from the capital of Lima...
, and Villavicencio, as envoy to New Granada.
Caracas
Villavicencio and his colleagues left from CádizCádiz
Cadiz is a city and port in southwestern Spain. It is the capital of the homonymous province, one of eight which make up the autonomous community of Andalusia....
in the schooner
Schooner
A schooner is a type of sailing vessel characterized by the use of fore-and-aft sails on two or more masts with the forward mast being no taller than the rear masts....
HM La Carmen, on March 1, and arriving at La Guajira
Department of La Guajira
La Guajira is a department of Colombia. It occupies most of its namesake peninsula, the Guajira Peninsula in the northeast region of the country, facing the Caribbean Sea and Venezuela in the northern most part of South America...
on March 18, from there, they were urged to sail to Caracas
Caracas
Caracas , officially Santiago de León de Caracas, is the capital and largest city of Venezuela; natives or residents are known as Caraquenians in English . It is located in the northern part of the country, following the contours of the narrow Caracas Valley on the Venezuelan coastal mountain range...
. Villavicencio arrived in Caracas in time to witness the events of April 19, the day on which the people of Caracas deposed the Captain General of Venezuela, Vicente Emparán
Vicente Emparán
Vicente Emparán was a Spanish Basque Captain General.Emparán was born in Azpeitia, Guipúzcoa, Basque Country, in 1747. He was governor of Cumaná Province in the Captaincy General of Venezuela between 1792 and 1804, where he had gained a favorable reputation among Venezuelans.By 1808, Emparán had...
, and established a Venezuelan Supreme Junta, which gave way to the start of the First Republic of Venezuela.
Cartagena de Indias
After his stop in Venezuela, Villavicencio headed to Cartagena de Indias, where he arrived on May 8. There he found the political situation very tense, the Governor of Cartagena Francisco Montes was using violence and terror to control the province, the people of Cartagena had called for an open cabildoCabildo (council)
For a discussion of the contemporary Spanish and Latin American cabildo, see Ayuntamiento.A cabildo or ayuntamiento was a former Spanish, colonial administrative council that governed a municipality. Cabildos were sometimes appointed, sometimes elected, but were considered to be representative of...
, a sort of public forum, to discuss the situation and devise a solution, but the Governor opposed to this. Antonio Villavicencio, however, did not, and using his position as Representative of the Crown, called for the open cabildo. On May 10 the Ayuntamiento
Ayuntamiento
Ayuntamiento In other languages of Spain:*Catalan/Valencian .*Galician .*Basque . is the general term for the council of a municipality, or sometimes the municipality itself, in Spain and Latin America. Historically Ayuntamiento was often preceded by the word excelentísimo , when referring to...
of Cartagena formed a Junta
Junta (Peninsular War)
In the Napoleonic era, junta was the name chosen by several local administrations formed in Spain during the Peninsular War as a patriotic alternative to the official administration toppled by the French invaders...
, it was formed by Spaniards and Americans alike, among them, Antonio Villavicencio, Carlos Montúfar, Governor Francisco Montes, José María García de Toledo. The Junta Recognized the Crown of Spain and Ferdinand VII, not Joseph Bonaparte
Joseph Bonaparte
Joseph-Napoléon Bonaparte was the elder brother of Napoleon Bonaparte, who made him King of Naples and Sicily , and later King of Spain...
, as their King. Villavicencio, found no reason to oppose the desire for local autonomy as long as the Junta de Cartagena acknowledge the supremacy of the crown. This event set giant waves of revolution across the land, and it was soon followed by other Juntas, Santiago de Cali
Santiago de Cali
Santiago de Cali , simply referred to as Cali, is a city in western Colombia and the capital of the Valle del Cauca Department. With a population of 2.5 million, Cali is the third largest city in the country. It has one of the fastest growing economies and infrastructure in the country because...
on July 3, Pamplona
Pamplona
Pamplona is the historial capital city of Navarre, in Spain, and of the former kingdom of Navarre.The city is famous worldwide for the San Fermín festival, from July 6 to 14, in which the running of the bulls is one of the main attractions...
on July 4, and Socorro
Socorro, Santander
Socorro is a town and municipality in the Santander Department in northeastern Colombia. It was founded in 1681 by Don José de Archila and Don José Díaz Sarmiento.The town was very influential in the history of Colombia...
on July 9.
Santafé de Bogotá
In Santafé de Bogotá, capital of the Viceroyalty, word arrived about the events of Cartagena, and the arrival of the Regency Commissioner Villavicencio, and the people of Santafé were waiting anxiously for his arrival, as they hoped, it would bring hope for independence. On the morning of July 20, 1810, Joaquín CamachoJoaquín Camacho
José Joaquín Justo Camacho Lago was a Neogranadine statesman, lawyer, journalist and professor, who worked for the Independence of the New Granada, what is now Colombia, and participated in the Open Cabildo which declared the Act of Independence, of which he was also a signer...
visited the Viceroy Antonio José Amar y Borbón
Antonio José Amar y Borbón
Antonio José Amar y Borbón Arguedas was a Spanish military officer and colonial official. From September 16, 1803 to July 20, 1810 he was viceroy of New Granada . During his mandate he faced the beginning of the independence movement...
to see if his request to open a cabildo had been granted, the viceroy dismissed the idea with arrogance. This drove the revolutionists to start planning a plot for independence. Using the arrival of Villavicencio as an excuse, they went to the house of José Gonzales Llorente to borrow a flower vase, he refused and on top of that insulted them. Francisco José de Caldas
Francisco José de Caldas
Francisco José de Caldas was a Colombian lawyer, naturalist, and geographer who died a martyr by orders of Pablo Morillo during the Reconquista for being a precursor of the Independence of New Granada ....
used this to incite the crowds to stand up to the Peninsulars, José Miguel Pey mayor of Bogotá, had to step in to save Llorente, by that night things were heated up so much a special Cabildo was called in session. This led to the Declaration of Independence of the New Granada from Spain.
Villavicencio was informed of the events of July 20 when he was in Honda
Honda, Tolima
Honda is a town and municipality in the Tolima department of Colombia. The population of the municipality was 26,873 as of the 2005 census. Along with Líbano, Honda is the seat of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Líbano-Honda...
by Juan Merino the alcalde
Alcalde
Alcalde , or Alcalde ordinario, is the traditional Spanish municipal magistrate, who had both judicial and administrative functions. An alcalde was, in the absence of a corregidor, the presiding officer of the Castilian cabildo and judge of first instance of a town...
of Honda. When he arrived in Bogotá he was informed that the Junta no longer recognized the authority of the Regency Commission, he responded by resigning to the commission and embracing the patriotic cause of independence.
Villavicencio immersed himself in the fight for independence, he was appointed commander of a battalion in Southern Campaign of Antonio Nariño
Antonio Nariño
Antonio de la Santísima Concepción Nariño y Álvarez was an ideological Colombian precursor and one of the early political and military leaders of the independence movement in the New Granada - Early political activity :Nariño was born to an aristocratic family...
. In 1814 he was made the Military Advisor
Military advisor
Military advisors, or combat advisors, are soldiers sent to foreign nations to aid that nation with its military training, organization, and other various military tasks. These soldiers are often sent to aid a nation without the potential casualties and political ramifications of actually...
to the United Provinces of New Granada
United Provinces of New Granada
The United Provinces of New Granada was a country in South America from 1811 to 1816, a period known in Colombian history as the Patria Boba. It was formed from areas of the New Kingdom of Granada. The government was a federation with a parliamentary system, consisting of a weak executive and...
.
Triumvirate
On October 5, 1814, The Congress of the United Provinces replaced the presidency with a TriumvirateTriumvirate
A triumvirate is a political regime dominated by three powerful individuals, each a triumvir . The arrangement can be formal or informal, and though the three are usually equal on paper, in reality this is rarely the case...
, a three member executive body, to govern the nation. Custodio García Rovira
Custodio García Rovira
José Custodio Cayetano García Rovira was a Neogranadine general, statesman and painter, who fought for the independence of New Granada from Spain, and became President of the United Provinces of the New Granada in 1816...
, one of the members of the Triumvirate, presented his resignation on July 11, 1815 to Congress. Congress named Villavicencio to replace him. Villavicencio accepted and on August 12, he resigned his post as Governor of Tunja, and headed to Santafé de Bogotá, where he was inaugurated as President of President of the Triumvirate of the United Provinces of the New Granada.
His presidency was short lived, on November 15, 1815, Congress once again changed the executive power, trusting it onto a President Dictator, and a Vice President.
Capture, trial and execution
After participating in the triumvirate, Villavicencio became Governor of HondaHonda, Tolima
Honda is a town and municipality in the Tolima department of Colombia. The population of the municipality was 26,873 as of the 2005 census. Along with Líbano, Honda is the seat of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Líbano-Honda...
, where on May 20, 1816 he was captured by the Royalist Army and transported to Santafé. On June 1 the Permanent Council of War sentenced Villavicencio to death. On June 6, he was taken out of his cell, they removed his military insignia and status degrading him, and he was executed by a firing squad
Execution by firing squad
Execution by firing squad, sometimes called fusillading , is a method of capital punishment, particularly common in the military and in times of war.Execution by shooting is a fairly old practice...
. Villavicencio died at the age of 41, he whose visit to Santafé had led to the breakup of the colonies, had instigated the anger of the royalists, and he became the first victim of the reign of terror of Pablo Morillo
Pablo Morillo
Pablo Morillo y Morillo, Count of Cartagena and Marquess of La Puerta, aka El Pacificador was a Spanish general....
, who sentenced to death many other heroes, barred and imprisoned more, and persecuted the ones who got away.