Juan Vicente de Güemes, 2nd Count of Revillagigedo facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
The Most Excellent
The Count of Revillagigedo
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| 52nd Viceroy of New Spain | |
| In office October 16, 1789 – July 11, 1794 |
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| Monarch | Charles IV |
| Preceded by | Manuel Antonio Flórez |
| Succeeded by | Miguel de la Grúa Talamanca, 1st Marquis of Branciforte |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
Juan Vicente de Güemes Padilla Horcasitas y Aguayo
April 5, 1738 Habana, Cuba |
| Died | May 2, 1799 (aged 61) Madrid, Spain |
Juan Vicente de Güemes Padilla Horcasitas y Aguayo was a Spanish military officer and the 2nd Count of Revillagigedo. He was born in Havana, Cuba, on April 5, 1738, and died in Madrid, Spain, on May 2, 1799.
He served as the viceroy of New Spain (which is now Mexico) from October 17, 1789, to July 11, 1794. He is remembered as a great reformer and one of the best leaders during the Spanish colonial period. Many consider him to be the last very capable viceroy of New Spain.
Contents
Early Life and Military Career
From a young age, Juan Vicente de Güemes Padilla Horcasitas y Aguayo joined the army. He showed great skill during the Spanish attack on British Gibraltar. He quickly moved up in rank to lieutenant colonel.
He was also a knight of the military Order of Charles III. This was a special honor given to people who served the king well. He was also a baron and a lord in the royal court.
Starting as Viceroy
Güemes Padilla arrived in Veracruz on October 8, 1789. He officially became the viceroy, captain general, and president of the Audiencia (a high court) on October 17. He was the third viceroy of New Spain who was born in the Americas, known as a Criollo.
His father, Juan Francisco de Güemes, 1st Count of Revillagigedo, was also a viceroy of New Spain before him. People said that Juan Vicente de Güemes Padilla slept only a few hours each night. He would wake up very early, around 1 a.m., to start his work day.
Soon after he took office, a group of criminals murdered a merchant named Joaquín Dongo and ten of his workers. Güemes Padilla quickly found the gang, put them on trial, and had them punished within 13 days. Because of his quick action, people often called him the Vindicator of Justice.
Two other important murders happened during his time as viceroy. In 1790, a priest killed the head of the Merced monastery. In 1792, Lucas de Gálvez, the governor of Yucatán, was also murdered.
Challenges in New Spain
When Güemes Padilla became viceroy, he found the capital city, Mexico City, to be very run down and dirty. The streets, markets, and public areas were not well kept. Many people wore simple clothes and old straw hats. Houses were poorly built and not cared for.
Public education was also in bad shape. There were no free primary schools, and other public schools were not good enough. Most streets were not maintained, making it hard to travel except on foot or by mule. Even the army was not in good condition.
His Important Reforms
Güemes Padilla immediately began to make changes. He ordered the viceroy's palace to be cleaned and removed food stalls from the area. He also made rules against throwing trash in the streets. He had stray animals removed from public places.
He ordered that no new buildings could be built without official permission. He also continued the work of paving streets with cobblestones outside the city center.
He worked hard to reduce bribery and corruption among government workers. He improved a new system of administration called "intendancies," which a previous viceroy had started. He also reorganized the courts and created schools for Indigenous people in different cities.
He hired skilled teachers for the Academy of San Carlos and started a new class in mathematics. He also set up a class in anatomy at the General Hospital for Natives.
Güemes Padilla ordered maps to be made for the main cities. He encouraged the building of factories and continued work on Mexico City's drainage system. He promoted the growing of plants like cotton, hemp, flax, and mulberry for making textiles. He also regulated how wood was cut.
He cleaned up Mexico City and continued to install street lights there and in other cities. By the end of his term, all the main streets in Mexico City had lights. He also improved the construction of highways to important cities like Veracruz and Acapulco. He started a mail service that ran twice a week to the capitals of the different regions.
He supported the building of needed public buildings and aqueducts. He also started night patrols and fire brigades to keep the city safe. He created the colony's general archives, bringing together old and important documents. He ordered that cemeteries be built outside the city. He also had new ships built to protect the coasts.
Because of the French Revolution, he stopped books and newspapers with new ideas from coming into New Spain. Spain's war with France was very costly. Güemes Padilla sent a lot of money to Spain, in addition to the usual payments.
He started excavations in Mexico City's Plaza de Armas. During this work, the famous Aztec calendar stone was discovered in 1790. In 1792, he founded the Royal College of Mining. He also supported the study of plants by Martín Sessé y Lacasta. This work later led to the book Flora mexicana. He ordered a count of the colony's population, which found 4,484,000 people.
Sponsoring Explorations
In 1791, Alejandro Malaspina, a commander of two ships, arrived in Mexico. He was on a scientific and political journey through the Spanish colonies. Malaspina asked some of his officers to look through colonial records. This was part of his expedition's goals, and he had special permission from the king to access any documents.
While in Mexico, Malaspina received orders from the king to investigate a rumored Northwest Passage in Alaska. Güemes Padilla had already been planning an expedition to explore the Strait of Juan de Fuca since 1791. This expedition was to use two new ships, Mexicana and Sutil.
Malaspina took control of these ships and sent them to explore the Strait of Georgia. This exploration happened in 1792. Because Malaspina was put in prison later, the story of his expedition was never fully published. The account of the Strait of Georgia exploration was published in 1802. However, it removed all mention of Malaspina. Instead, it said that the exploration was done under Güemes Padilla's direction. This idea is still often mentioned today.
Because he supported these explorations, several places in North America are named after him. These include San Juan Island, Orcas Island, Revillagigedo Island, Padilla Bay, and Guemes Island. When he became viceroy in 1789, Spain's claims in North America were at their largest. Even though he supported exploration, he did not think keeping control of the Pacific Northwest was worth the cost. He did not want to build up the army there.
End of His Time as Viceroy
In 1794, the city government (Ayuntamiento) made complaints against Güemes Padilla. This led to a special investigation called a juicio de residencia before the Council of the Indies. He had made enemies because he fought against corruption.
The viceroy was ordered to return to Spain to defend himself against the charges. He was found innocent, and those who complained had to pay the costs.
Despite his good work and popularity with the people, Güemes Padilla was viceroy for only five years. Although King Charles IV was the king, his queen, Maria Luisa of Parma, and her friend, Manuel de Godoy, held most of the power. Godoy did not agree with Güemes Padilla's reforms or his lack of interest in expanding in the Pacific Northwest. Godoy replaced him as soon as he could.
Death and Lasting Impact
Revillagigedo Island in southeast Alaska was named after him. So were the San Juan Islands in Washington, United States. The Revillagigedo Islands southwest of the Baja California peninsula in Mexico also bear his name. There is also a palace called Palacio de Revillagigedo in Gijón, Spain.
He died on May 2, 1799, in Madrid. People in New Spain were very sad when he died. To honor him, King Charles IV made his family members important nobles in Spain.
See also
In Spanish: Juan Vicente de Güemes para niños
