Juan Almonte
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Juan Nepomuceno Almonte (May 15, 1803—March 21, 1869) was a nineteenth century Mexican official, soldier and diplomat. A veteran of the Battle of the Alamo during the Texas Revolution, he was a leader of the Conservatives in Mexico in the 1860s, who served as regent after the Second Mexican Empire was established by Napoleon III of France.
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[edit] Early life and career
Almonte was born in Nocupétaro, Caracuaro distric, state of Michoacán. He was allegedly the son of a Catholic priest named José María Morelos y Pavon who took part in revolutionary actions against the Spanish. His mother, Brigida Almonte, was said to be pure Indian blood. On 9 August 1814, his father appointed him a brigadier general because of his " ..love of the Cause, his valor, eagerness, honor and talent." In 1815 Almonte was sent to New Orleans, Louisiana. Here he had a little education, learned English and worked as a clerk for hardware merchant Puech & Bein. His time in America was cut short when his father was executed on 22 December 1815 in the village of San Cristobal Ecatepec.
In 1822-24 Almonte was on the staff of insurgent rebel leader José Félix Trespalacios in Texas and then was sent as a part of the Mexican delegation to London. Almonte assisted Ambassador José Mariano Michelena in negotiating a commercial and amity treaty with England. This was Mexico's first treaty as a new nation. In 1830, while serving in the Mexican Congress, Almonte became an object of government attention as editor of El Atleta. He accused President Anastasio Bustamante of allowing foreign intervention in national affairs. Because of his stance, Almonte's arrest was ordered on 16 April 1830. He was forced to seek refuge in New Orleans due to government pressure, and the paper collapsed due to heavy fines levied by Bustamante’s government. Later, Bustamante relented and appointed Almonte secretary of the Mexican Legation Extraordinary in 1831. His new job was to represent Mexico in the Republics of South America and the Empire of Brazil. Almonte wed Dolores Quesada in 1840 and they had a daughter named Guadalupe.
[edit] Texas Revolution
In 1834 Vice President Valentín Gómez Farías appointed Almonte and Col. Jose Maria Diaz Noriega to make an inspection tour of Texas and write a status report on what they witnessed. In late January 1836 Almonte was appointed aide-de-camp to Antonio López de Santa Anna and accompanied him to Texas in an attempt to quell the rebelling Mexican state. It was Almonte who was instrumental in saving the lives of Susannah Dickinson and her child Angelina. He persuaded Santa Anna to release her as a messenger of Texan defeat. Almonte also sent along his personal cook Ben to escort her.
On 21 April 1836 Almonte, at the head of part of the Guerrero battalion, surrendered to Texan Thomas J. Rusk at the Battle of San Jacinto. Almonte led the last organized resistance of the panicked army. Santa Anna also was taken prisoner. When an escape plot was later discovered, Almonte and Santa Anna were each forced to wear a heavy ball and chain for almost two months. Following a brief incarceration on Galveston Island, Almonte, Ramon Caro, Texas Vice-President Lorenzo de Zavala and Bailey Hardeman were sent along with Santa Anna to the United States.
Through the efforts of Stephen Austin and Sam Houston, Almonte and Santa Anna were taken to Washington, D.C., where they had several meetings with U.S. President Andrew Jackson. After eight days in Washington, they left the U.S. on 31 January 1837. The party returned to Mexico in February. By then, Santa Anna had been replaced as President of Mexico and went into retirement. Almonte, though, continued his diplomatic and military career and eventually rose to the rank of general in command of a division. He published a book on geography in late 1837.
[edit] Political life
In January 1838, Almonte became a member of the Junta Directiva, which governed the Normal School of the Army. In March 1838 he was appointed secretary of the Mexican legation to London. In June 1839 Almonte headed the Mexican legation to Belgium. From July 1839 to October 1841, he was secretary of war and marine under President Bustamante. Almonte was later appointed minister plenipotentiary to Washington in 1841-1845 under President José Joaquín de Herrera. With the annexation of the Republic of Texas to the United States, Almonte packed his bags on 6 March and returned to Mexico via Veracruz. Almonte favored the installation of Gen. Mariano Paredes y Arrillaga at this time. But while stopping in Havana, Cuba as minister to France, Almonte re-joined forces with the exiled former president and general Santa Anna and together they traveled back to Mexico.
When the Mexican-American War broke out, José Mariano Salas was ad interim president for Santa Anna and Almonte served as Secretary of War until he was replaced with Valentín Canalizo. In February 1847 Almonte and a few other Mexican generals tried to oust Gomez Farias from power, but failed. They were arrested and jailed for a time in the convent of Santiago Tlaltelolco.
After the war, Almonte served as senator from Oaxaca for four years, then served as Mexico's representative to the U.S. under President Santa Anna (his last time as president). In 1856 he was appointed minister to England, France and Spain. Once overseas, Almonte became involved in the promotion of foreign intervention and monarchical schemes for Mexico. He envisioned himself on the throne of Mexico. His machinations culminated in the French intervention in Mexico. In 1858, Benito Juárez was elected president of the United States of Mexico to defend the Mexican Constitution established on 5 February 1857. After much internal struggle, Juárez was re-elected in 1861. Because of financial instability, the Mexican Congress suspended foreign debt repayment for two years.
[edit] See also
[edit] Further reading
- Jackson, Jack & Wheat, John; Almonte's Texas; Texas State Historical Association; ISBN 0-87611-191-6
[edit] External links
- Read Don Juan N. Almonte's entry in The Biographical Encyclopedia of Texas hosted by the Portal to Texas History.
| Preceded by Félix María Zuloaga |
Supreme Chief of the Nation 1862–1863 |
Succeeded by Regency |
| Preceded by himself as Supreme Chief of the Nation |
Regent of Mexico with Juan Bautista de Ormaechea and José Mariano Salas 1863–1864 |
Succeeded by Maximilian I (Emperor of Mexico) |
