Ignacio Elizondo
Encyclopedia
Francisco Ignacio Elizondo Villarreal, (Salinas Valley, New Kingdom of León
, New Spain
, March 9, 1766 - San Marcos, Texas
, New Spain
, September 2, 1813), was a New Leonese royalist general, mostly known for his victorious plot to seek to capture important insurgency precursors of the Mexican War of Independence
such as Miguel Hidalgo
, Ignacio Allende
, and Juan Aldama
in Baján
, Coahuila
in 1811. Elizondo was born in the village of Salinas (now Salinas Victoria
). He was son of José Marcos de Elizondo and María Josefa de Villarreal. He was of Spanish and Basque ancestry.
, Nuevo León). His father owned many agricultural ranch stock properties then known as hacienda
s. In 1787, at the age of twenty-one he married María Gertrudis. She died on March 6, 1797, when she was giving birth his son, José Rafael Eusebio.
Ignacio Elizondo started his militar career in 1798, after being designated Lieutenant
of Pesquería's provincial militia company. Two years later, he was honoured Captain of Punta de Lampazos provincial Dragons, one of the largest militar 'presidio' of the New Kingdom of León. However, one year later Elizondo occupied again his former position at the Pesquería's provincial militia. In 1806, governor
Pedro de Herrera y Levya, commend him the control of the Eighth Dragon's company who would help Texas
against the concurrent apache
attacks, already present in northern towns of the New Kingdom of León. Elizondo demanded viceroy through a letter to exempt himself from his position at the military command because this was making serious financial problems in some of his ranches and stock properties, among them some he previously bought to the church, in the same letter, he expressed the reprisals from governor Pedro de Herrera, that would cause the action of Elizondo's desertion. After, falling out with Herrera, indebted with the purchase of several haciendas from the church, he married María Romana Carrasco the same year, then he decided to change his residency to the Hacienda of San Juan de Canoas, in the province of Coahuila, where he also administrated the Hacienda of Alamo, jurisdiction of Monclova
.
and the outbreak of the Mexican War of Independence
.
In the Eastern Internal Provinces, the independence movement was not well received at first.
Coahuila
, Nuevo Santander
, and Texas
declared themselves for the royalists,
but several towns eventually joined the cause.
The governor of Nuevo León
, Manuel de Santa María, eventually joined the rebels. Within Texas, Lt. José Menchaca and various filibuster
expeditions acted to support the rebellion. Elizondo also joined the rebellion and commanded a small force in the Casas Revolt, in January 1811.
However, Elizondo, vacillated in his support, marched through Nuevo León, Nuevo Santander, and Texas for the royalists, confronting the Gutiérrez-Magee Expedition
in San Antonio, at the Battle of Alazan Creek
, in 1813. Governor Santa María was removed from his post for the royalist Simon de Herrera. Some historians debate whether General Ramon Díaz de Bustamante or Bishop Primo Feliciano Marín de Porras finally won Elizondo over to the royalists, while others believe, he was converted by Manuel María de Salcedo
of Texas and Simón de Herrera of Nuevo León, while the royalist governors were his prisoners, during his participation in the Casas Revolt
. He was instrumental in the capture of Father Hidalgo, General Allende, and other rebel leaders at the Wells of Bajan (Norias de Bajan) in February 1811, which effectively ended the first phase of the rebellion. On August 18, 1813, at the Battle of Medina
, he successfully defeated the Republican Army of the North and crushed the Gutiérrez-Magee Expedition, in Texas.
, (executing and imprisoning hundreds), he gained many enemies, hence hated by many insurgents, Ignacio Elizondo was critically wounded by Lieutenant Miguel Serrano, while sleeping on his encampment at the edge of the Brazos River
and buried a few days later on the San Marcos River
, in Texas, New Spain.
New Kingdom of León
The New Kingdom of León , was an administrative territory of the Spanish Empire, politically ruled by the Viceroyalty of New Spain. It was located in an area corresponding generally to the present-day northeastern Mexican state of Nuevo León.-Origins:...
, New Spain
New Spain
New Spain, formally called the Viceroyalty of New Spain , was a viceroyalty of the Spanish colonial empire, comprising primarily territories in what was known then as 'América Septentrional' or North America. Its capital was Mexico City, formerly Tenochtitlan, capital of the Aztec Empire...
, March 9, 1766 - San Marcos, Texas
Spanish Texas
Spanish Texas was one of the interior provinces of New Spain from 1690 until 1821. Although Spain claimed ownership of the territory, which comprised part of modern-day Texas, including the land north of the Medina and Nueces Rivers, the Spanish did not attempt to colonize the area until after...
, New Spain
New Spain
New Spain, formally called the Viceroyalty of New Spain , was a viceroyalty of the Spanish colonial empire, comprising primarily territories in what was known then as 'América Septentrional' or North America. Its capital was Mexico City, formerly Tenochtitlan, capital of the Aztec Empire...
, September 2, 1813), was a New Leonese royalist general, mostly known for his victorious plot to seek to capture important insurgency precursors of the Mexican War of Independence
Mexican War of Independence
The Mexican War of Independence was an armed conflict between the people of Mexico and the Spanish colonial authorities which started on 16 September 1810. The movement, which became known as the Mexican War of Independence, was led by Mexican-born Spaniards, Mestizos and Amerindians who sought...
such as Miguel Hidalgo
Miguel Hidalgo
Miguel Gregorio Antonio Ignacio Hidalgo y Costilla y Gallaga Mandarte Villaseñor , more commonly known as Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla or simply Miguel Hidalgo, was a Mexican priest and a leader of the Mexican War of Independence.In 1810 Hidalgo led a group of peasants in a revolt against the dominant...
, Ignacio Allende
Ignacio Allende
Ignacio José de Allende y Unzaga , born Ignacio Allende y Unzaga, was a captain of the Spanish Army in Mexico who came to sympathize with the Mexican independence movement. He attended the secret meetings organized by Josefa Ortiz de Domínguez, where the possibility of an independent New Spain was...
, and Juan Aldama
Juan Aldama
Juan Aldama was a Mexican revolutionary rebel soldier during the Mexican War of Independence in 1810. He was also the brother of Ignacio Aldama....
in Baján
Bajan
Bajan is an English-based creole language spoken on the Caribbean island of Barbados. Bajan, like many other English-based Caribbean creole languages, consists of a West African substrate and an English superstrate...
, Coahuila
Coahuila
Coahuila, formally Coahuila de Zaragoza , officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Coahuila de Zaragoza is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico...
in 1811. Elizondo was born in the village of Salinas (now Salinas Victoria
Salinas Victoria
Salinas Victoria, is a municipality located to in the center of the state of Nuevo León, Mexico. It shares borders with 11 municipalities including, to the north Villaldama and Sabinas Hidalgo; to the south Escobedo and Apodaca; to the east Higueras, Ciénega de Flores and General Zuazua; and...
). He was son of José Marcos de Elizondo and María Josefa de Villarreal. He was of Spanish and Basque ancestry.
Personal life
During his childhood, Elizondo lived in the village of Pesquería Grande (present-day GarciaGarcía
García or Garcia is a Spanish surname referring to:People with García as the full name:*Kings of Pamplona/Navarre**Garc%C3%ADa %C3%8D%C3%B1iguez of Pamplona, king of Pamplona 851/2-882...
, Nuevo León). His father owned many agricultural ranch stock properties then known as hacienda
Hacienda
Hacienda is a Spanish word for an estate. Some haciendas were plantations, mines, or even business factories. Many haciendas combined these productive activities...
s. In 1787, at the age of twenty-one he married María Gertrudis. She died on March 6, 1797, when she was giving birth his son, José Rafael Eusebio.
Ignacio Elizondo started his militar career in 1798, after being designated 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...
of Pesquería's provincial militia company. Two years later, he was honoured Captain of Punta de Lampazos provincial Dragons, one of the largest militar 'presidio' of the New Kingdom of León. However, one year later Elizondo occupied again his former position at the Pesquería's provincial militia. In 1806, governor
Governor of Nuevo León
The Mexican state of Nuevo León has been governed by more than a hundred individuals in its history, who have had various titles and degrees of responsibility depending on the prevailing political regime of the time....
Pedro de Herrera y Levya, commend him the control of the Eighth Dragon's company who would help Texas
Spanish Texas
Spanish Texas was one of the interior provinces of New Spain from 1690 until 1821. Although Spain claimed ownership of the territory, which comprised part of modern-day Texas, including the land north of the Medina and Nueces Rivers, the Spanish did not attempt to colonize the area until after...
against the concurrent apache
Apache
Apache is the collective term for several culturally related groups of Native Americans in the United States originally from the Southwest United States. These indigenous peoples of North America speak a Southern Athabaskan language, which is related linguistically to the languages of Athabaskan...
attacks, already present in northern towns of the New Kingdom of León. Elizondo demanded viceroy through a letter to exempt himself from his position at the military command because this was making serious financial problems in some of his ranches and stock properties, among them some he previously bought to the church, in the same letter, he expressed the reprisals from governor Pedro de Herrera, that would cause the action of Elizondo's desertion. After, falling out with Herrera, indebted with the purchase of several haciendas from the church, he married María Romana Carrasco the same year, then he decided to change his residency to the Hacienda of San Juan de Canoas, in the province of Coahuila, where he also administrated the Hacienda of Alamo, jurisdiction of Monclova
Monclova
On the other hand, temperatures during late spring and summer can have bouts of extreme heat, with evenings above 40°C for many consecutive days. In recent decades the hottest records have climbed as high as 43°C on July 13, 2005 and 45°C on May 4, 1984. However nighttime low temperatures are...
.
Counter-insurrection movement
Elizondo briefly left his military service prior to the Grito de DoloresGrito de Dolores
The Grito de Dolores also known as El Grito de la Independencia , uttered from the small town of Dolores, near Guanajuato on April 19, 1810 is the event that marks the beginning of the Mexican War of Independence and is the most important national holiday observed in Mexico...
and the outbreak of the Mexican War of Independence
Mexican War of Independence
The Mexican War of Independence was an armed conflict between the people of Mexico and the Spanish colonial authorities which started on 16 September 1810. The movement, which became known as the Mexican War of Independence, was led by Mexican-born Spaniards, Mestizos and Amerindians who sought...
.
In the Eastern Internal Provinces, the independence movement was not well received at first.
Coahuila
Coahuila
Coahuila, formally Coahuila de Zaragoza , officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Coahuila de Zaragoza is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico...
, Nuevo Santander
Nuevo Santander
Nuevo Santander was a region of the Virreinato de Nueva España, corresponding generally to the modern Mexican state of Tamaulipas and southern Texas. Nuevo Santander was named after Santander, Spain, and settled by Spanish American colonists in a concerted settlement campaign peaking in 1748-1750...
, and Texas
Coahuila y Tejas
Coahuila y Tejas was one of the constituent states of the newly established United Mexican States under its 1824 Constitution.It had two capitals: first Saltillo, and then Monclova...
declared themselves for the royalists,
but several towns eventually joined the cause.
The governor of Nuevo León
New Kingdom of León
The New Kingdom of León , was an administrative territory of the Spanish Empire, politically ruled by the Viceroyalty of New Spain. It was located in an area corresponding generally to the present-day northeastern Mexican state of Nuevo León.-Origins:...
, Manuel de Santa María, eventually joined the rebels. Within Texas, Lt. José Menchaca and various filibuster
Filibuster (military)
A filibuster, or freebooter, is someone who engages in an unauthorized military expedition into a foreign country to foment or support a revolution...
expeditions acted to support the rebellion. Elizondo also joined the rebellion and commanded a small force in the Casas Revolt, in January 1811.
However, Elizondo, vacillated in his support, marched through Nuevo León, Nuevo Santander, and Texas for the royalists, confronting the Gutiérrez-Magee Expedition
Gutiérrez-Magee Expedition
The Gutiérrez-Magee Expedition was an 1812–13 joint Mexican-American filibustering expedition against Spanish Texas during the early years of the Mexican War of Independence.-Background:...
in San Antonio, at the Battle of Alazan Creek
Battle of Alazan Creek
The Battle of Alazan Creek, occurred on the banks of Alazan Creek in Coahuila y Tejas on June 20, 1813, during the Mexican War of Independence...
, in 1813. Governor Santa María was removed from his post for the royalist Simon de Herrera. Some historians debate whether General Ramon Díaz de Bustamante or Bishop Primo Feliciano Marín de Porras finally won Elizondo over to the royalists, while others believe, he was converted by Manuel María de Salcedo
Manuel María de Salcedo
Manuel María de Salcedo y Quiroga , Manuel María de Salcedo y Quiroga , Manuel María de Salcedo y Quiroga , (Malaga, Spain, (1776 - executed, 3 April 1813), was a governor of Spanish Texas from 1808 until his execution in 1813. Salcedo gained leadership experience helping his father Juan Manuel de...
of Texas and Simón de Herrera of Nuevo León, while the royalist governors were his prisoners, during his participation in the Casas Revolt
Juan Bautista de las Casas
Juan Bautista de las Casas led a revolt against the governor of Spanish Texas in 1811 and served as head of the province for 39 days until he was deposed.-Revolt:...
. He was instrumental in the capture of Father Hidalgo, General Allende, and other rebel leaders at the Wells of Bajan (Norias de Bajan) in February 1811, which effectively ended the first phase of the rebellion. On August 18, 1813, at the Battle of Medina
Battle of Medina
The Battle of Medina was fought approximately 20 miles south of San Antonio de Bexar on August 18, 1813 as part of the Mexican War of Independence against Spanish authority in Mexico...
, he successfully defeated the Republican Army of the North and crushed the Gutiérrez-Magee Expedition, in Texas.
Death
Elizondo's victory was praised by royalists, and even King Fernando VII, appointed him with a higher rank in the royalist army. However, his well-being didn't last too long, while trying to convert many towns in New Spain to realismRealism
Realism, Realist or Realistic are terms that describe any manifestation of philosophical realism, the belief that reality exists independently of observers, whether in philosophy itself or in the applied arts and sciences. In this broad sense it is frequently contrasted with Idealism.Realism in the...
, (executing and imprisoning hundreds), he gained many enemies, hence hated by many insurgents, Ignacio Elizondo was critically wounded by Lieutenant Miguel Serrano, while sleeping on his encampment at the edge of the Brazos River
Brazos River
The Brazos River, called the Rio de los Brazos de Dios by early Spanish explorers , is the longest river in Texas and the 11th longest river in the United States at from its source at the head of Blackwater Draw, Curry County, New Mexico to its mouth at the Gulf of Mexico with a drainage...
and buried a few days later on the San Marcos River
San Marcos River
The San Marcos River rises from the San Marcos Springs, the location of Aquarena Springs, in San Marcos, Texas. The springs are home to several threatened or endangered species, including the Texas Blind Salamander, Fountain Darter, and Texas Wild Rice...
, in Texas, New Spain.