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Jose Fernando De AbascalSpanish military officer and government official in America, Viceroy of Peru from 1806 to 1816
Date of Birth: 03.06.1743
Country:  Spain |
Content:
- Early Life and Military Career
- Governor of New Galicia and Rio de la Plata
- Viceroy of Peru
- Challenges and Accomplishments
- Political Views and Legacy
Early Life and Military Career
José Fernando de Abascal y Sousawas born into an aristocratic family in Asturias, Spain, in 1743. At the age of 19, he joined the army and served in mainland Spain for the next 20 years, rising to the rank of colonel. During the war against France, he earned the rank of brigadier general.
Governor of New Galicia and Rio de la Plata
In 1796, Abascal participated in the defense of Havana against the British. Three years later, he was appointed intendant (governor) of the Spanish colony of New Galicia (western Mexico), a position he held until 1804. In 1804, he was appointed to the post of viceroy of Rio de la Plata but never assumed the position.
Viceroy of Peru
Abascal was finally appointed to the viceroyalty of Peru in 1806, but not without incident. He was captured by the British while en route from Spain. During his tenure, he abolished the Inquisition in the colony, following reforms implemented in Spain. Abascal's rule was generally positive for the colony, as he conducted educational reforms, reorganized the army, and suppressed minor rebellions.
In 1806, the last shipment of African slaves arrived in Peru during his reign. At the time, an adult male slave cost 600 pesos in Peru. The Balmis Expedition, a Spanish-led mission to vaccinate against smallpox in the Americas, also arrived in Peru during Abascal's rule.
Challenges and Accomplishments
Early in his reign, Abascal faced the daunting task of restoring Lima after a severe earthquake and tsunami, which devastated the port city of Callao. The damage caused by the earthquake amounted to approximately 150,000 pesos. A medical school was founded in San Fernando in 1810.
After the May Revolution in Buenos Aires, Abascal ordered the occupation of the provinces of Cordoba, Potosi, La Paz, and Charcas, which had been transferred to the newly created Viceroyalty of Rio de la Plata in 1776. Abascal, sensing the threat of revolution, reasserted Spanish control over these territories. He also reintegrated Chile and Quito with Peru, which had previously been administered by the Viceroyalty of New Granada.
Political Views and Legacy
Abascal was a staunch monarchist and supporter of absolute monarchy. After Napoleon's invasion of Spain, he provided financial and military aid to the Spanish resistance. Abascal's authority within the viceroyalty was virtually unlimited, restricted only by the payments he was required to send to Spain. Peru became a center of loyalist resistance in South America thanks in part to his efforts, effectively opposing the wave of independence movements that swept the region.
After the adoption of a new liberal constitution in Spain in 1812, Abascal resisted its implementation in Peru, leading to rebellions in Cusco, Tacna, and Arequipa, which were brutally suppressed. In 1814, Rafael Maroto arrived in Callao from Spain to quell the uprisings. Abascal dispatched 2,400 soldiers under Antonio Pareja to join Maroto's forces and march into Chile to suppress a rebellion there.
In 1812, José Fernando Abascal was granted the title of Marquis of La Concordia. In 1816, he left his position as viceroy at his own request with the approval of the king and returned to Spain. He was succeeded by Joaquín de la Pezuela. Abascal died in 1821 at the age of 79.
