Pedro Jiménez de Góngora, 1st Duke of Almodovar del Río
Encyclopedia
Pedro Francisco Luján y Góngora, 1st Duke of Almodóvar del Río (1727–1794) was a Spanish nobleman, ambassador and writer.
, and became the 7th Marqués de Almodóvar del Río. He was made a Grandee of Spain in 1779 and was created 1st Duke on 11 July 1780 by King Charles III of Spain
. He was the fourth director of the Spanish Academy of History from 6 January 1792 to 14 May 1794 when he died, although his death has also been quoted as 1796.
He was an Embassy Officer and Ambassador to Russia from 1759 to 1763, Ambassador to Portugal from around 1765 to 1778 and Ambassador to London in 1778. The following year he was forced to leave the position because of disputes with the British over issues concerning the American War of Independence. He was elected a Foreign Honorary Member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
in 1789.
He had been living in the Kingdom of Naples
, under King Charles VII of Naples (later also king of Spain), when he was met by the Spanish traveler and intellectual Antonio Ponz
around 1751.
Abbé Guillaume Thomas François Raynal
published four volumes entitled Histoire philosophique et politique des établissements et du commerce des Européens dans les deux Indes in Amsterdam in 1770 about the negative influence of Spanish civilization on the colonization of foreign lands and, under the name "Eduardo Malo de Luque", Suarez published a Spanish account, in five volumes, "with the Comments of a Catholic Spaniard".
The first two volumes mirror Raynal's design but he added a voluminous appendix entitled The English Constitution and the Affairs of the English East India Company, a feature not found in Raynal's original work. In Ximénez de Góngora, the third volume, he appended a 68 page essay entitled The Political and Economic State of France.
Moreover, although the Duke's fourth and Raynal's third volumes examine Scandinavian, Prussian, and Russian colonial ventures the Spaniard thought fit to add a supplement named Analytical Memoirs Relative to the History and Present State of Russia, drawn primarily from materials and recollections of his diplomatic service in St. Petersburg.
Career
Suarez was born to a noble family from Córdoba, SpainCórdoba, Spain
-History:The first trace of human presence in the area are remains of a Neanderthal Man, dating to c. 32,000 BC. In the 8th century BC, during the ancient Tartessos period, a pre-urban settlement existed. The population gradually learned copper and silver metallurgy...
, and became the 7th Marqués de Almodóvar del Río. He was made a Grandee of Spain in 1779 and was created 1st Duke on 11 July 1780 by King Charles III of Spain
Charles III of Spain
Charles III was the King of Spain and the Spanish Indies from 1759 to 1788. He was the eldest son of Philip V of Spain and his second wife, the Princess Elisabeth Farnese...
. He was the fourth director of the Spanish Academy of History from 6 January 1792 to 14 May 1794 when he died, although his death has also been quoted as 1796.
He was an Embassy Officer and Ambassador to Russia from 1759 to 1763, Ambassador to Portugal from around 1765 to 1778 and Ambassador to London in 1778. The following year he was forced to leave the position because of disputes with the British over issues concerning the American War of Independence. He was elected a Foreign Honorary Member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
American Academy of Arts and Sciences
The American Academy of Arts and Sciences is an independent policy research center that conducts multidisciplinary studies of complex and emerging problems. The Academy’s elected members are leaders in the academic disciplines, the arts, business, and public affairs.James Bowdoin, John Adams, and...
in 1789.
He had been living in the Kingdom of Naples
Kingdom of Naples
The Kingdom of Naples, comprising the southern part of the Italian peninsula, was the remainder of the old Kingdom of Sicily after secession of the island of Sicily as a result of the Sicilian Vespers rebellion of 1282. Known to contemporaries as the Kingdom of Sicily, it is dubbed Kingdom of...
, under King Charles VII of Naples (later also king of Spain), when he was met by the Spanish traveler and intellectual Antonio Ponz
Antonio Ponz
Antonio Ponz was a Spanish painter.He was born at Bejís in the province of Valencia. He was a pupil of Antonio Richarte at Valencia, then in 1746 moved to Madrid, where he studied for five years. He then went to Rome for a short time, but soon returned to help in repainting and compilation of the...
around 1751.
Writings
In 1780 he published ten letters on the "State of contemporary literature in France" described as Década Epistolar sobre el Estado de las letras de Francia which included some comments on the works of François Marie Arouet Voltaire.Abbé Guillaume Thomas François Raynal
Guillaume Thomas François Raynal
Guillaume Thomas Raynal was a French writer and man of letters during the Age of Enlightenment.He was born at Lapanouse in Rouergue...
published four volumes entitled Histoire philosophique et politique des établissements et du commerce des Européens dans les deux Indes in Amsterdam in 1770 about the negative influence of Spanish civilization on the colonization of foreign lands and, under the name "Eduardo Malo de Luque", Suarez published a Spanish account, in five volumes, "with the Comments of a Catholic Spaniard".
The first two volumes mirror Raynal's design but he added a voluminous appendix entitled The English Constitution and the Affairs of the English East India Company, a feature not found in Raynal's original work. In Ximénez de Góngora, the third volume, he appended a 68 page essay entitled The Political and Economic State of France.
Moreover, although the Duke's fourth and Raynal's third volumes examine Scandinavian, Prussian, and Russian colonial ventures the Spaniard thought fit to add a supplement named Analytical Memoirs Relative to the History and Present State of Russia, drawn primarily from materials and recollections of his diplomatic service in St. Petersburg.