Alonso Fernández de Heredia
| Alonso Fernández de Heredia | |
|---|---|
| 39ºRoyal Governor of La Florida | |
| In office 18 Apr 1751/55 – 21 Apr 1758 | |
| Preceded by | Fulgencio García de Solís |
| Succeeded by | Lucas Fernando Palacios |
| 77º Colonial Governor of Yucatán | |
| In office 1758–1761 | |
| Preceded by | Melchor de Navarrete |
| Succeeded by | Jose Crespo y Honorato |
| 37º Governor of Guatemala | |
| In office 1761–1771 | |
| Preceded by | Juan de Vera |
| Succeeded by | José González Rancaño |
| Governor of Honduras | |
| In office 1747/1761 – ? | |
| Preceded by | Juan de Vera |
| Succeeded by | Diego de Tablada |
| Governor of Nicaragua | |
| In office 1761–1771 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | unknown Cetina, Zaragoza, Spain |
| Died | March 19, 1782 Guatemala City |
| Spouse(s) | Elena Marin de Villanueva e Hijar |
| Profession | captain general and Politician |
Alonso Fernández de Heredia (died March 19, 1782) was a Spanish captain general and politician who belonged to the Captaincy General of Guatemala and ruled Florida (1751–1758), Yucatan (Mexico) (1758–?), Nicaragua (1761–1771) and Honduras (1761-?).
Biography
Alonso Fernández de Heredia was born Cetina, Zaragoza, Spain, in the 18th century. He was son of Antonio Fernandez de Heredia y Liñan Altarriba, Count II of Contamina, and of Beatriz Ximenez de Cerdan y Gurrea, Marquesa II de Barboles. He was captain of the Spanish army general and Field Marshal of the royal armies.[1] In 1749, he became involved in a smuggling case well known at this time, so twenty nine years later, he was sentenced along with other contributors. Interestingly, both Alonso Fernandez, like all other people accused of smuggling were the promoters of the plan of defense of the Atlantic Coast and they had fought against the British. Two years after of smuggling, in 1751 (or in 18 Apr 1755, according the sources[2]), he was appointed governor of Florida,[3] where he established a naval stores industry.[4] During his government in this - in these time - province, the Spanish crown send Spanish settler groups with the goal of repopulating this region. So, between 1757 and 1759, were send to Florida 154 families hailed from Canary Island.[5] Heredia left the government of there in 21 Apr 1758,[2] when he became the governor of Yucatan, Mexico.[3]
In Yucatan, he published a royal decree which exempted to Indian women from all taxes and carried out several modifications to the fortification of Campeche.[6]
Later, on June 14, 1761, Alonso Fernandez moved to Guatemala to become Captain General.[3] During this time, he asked the crown of creation of the viceroyalty of Guatemala based on elements of the region such as higher livestock, sugar mills, fruit and cocoa and the great development of their cities, but the request was rejected.[7] This year, he was also governor of Nicaragua (although according to some sources, he was governor of Nicaragua, in fact, between 1746–1753) and he was elected at the same time as acting governor of Honduras. His government in Honduras implemented a series of changes such as the reorganization of taxation, an attack against the Guatemalan town hall and an extension of state jurisdiction on social sectors. These objectives were met with great success due to provincial relations that he had achieved in previous positions. Fernández Alonso was also able to change their local government relations, getting, well, processing applications for the people of Tegucigalpa. On June 18, 1762 he obtained the title of Villa Real de Tegucigalpa de Heredia (however, it was the royal decree of July 17, 1768 which confirmed the appointment as Villa). On March 12, 1768, he left the Captaincy General of Guatemala. Alonso Fernandez also was recognized by the construction of Tegucigalpa in the construction of Omoa, where many people died due to harsh climate of the region and its difficulty to adapt to him.[3]
He died on March 19, 1782 in Guatemala City where he fixed his last residence.
Personal life
Alonso Fernández de Heredia married with Countess III San Clemente Elena Marin de Villanueva e Hijar and they had one daughter: Maria Magdalena Fernandez de Heredia y Marin de Villanueva [8]
References
- ↑ AFHC. Asociación para el fomento de los Estudios Históricos en Centroamérica: Alonso Fernández de Heredia, Presidente y Capitán General de Guatemala (Translation: AFHC. Association for the Promotion of Historical Studies in Central America: Alonso Fernández de Heredia, President and Captain General of Guatemala) (In Spain).
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 U.S. States F-K.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 Luis Pedro Taracena (November 26, 2008). (In Spanish) "Ilusión minera y poder político: La Alcaldía mayor de Tegucigalpa, siglo XVIII, por Luis Pedro Taracena (Translation: Illusion mining and political power: the Mayor of Tegucigalpa, the 18th century)". Retrieved May 22–26, 2010. Check date values in:
|accessdate=(help) - ↑ Economic Problems of Florida Governors 1700-1763. Posted by John J. Tepaske. Retrieved in January 26, 2014, to 01:15 pm.
- ↑ Hernández González, Manuel. La emigración canaria a América (Canarian Emigration to the Americas). Page 43 - 44. First Edition January, 2007
- ↑ Molina Solís, Juan Francisco. Historia de Yucatán durante la dominación española (In Spanish: History of Yucatan during the Spanish domination). Editorial: Imprenta de la Lotería del Estado, Mérida de Yucatán, 1913. Tomo III, pages 228.
- ↑ "Background of the independence of Central America" (in Spanish). El rincón del vago.
- ↑ Antepasados de LUIS ANTONIO ORTIZ DE PINEDO ANGULO (In Spain: Ancestors of LUIS ANTONIO ORTIZ DE ANGULO PINEDO). 21 March 2009.
External links
- Cantones: Heredia (In Spain).