Ambrosio José Gonzales
Encyclopedia
Colonel Ambrosio José Gonzales (October 3, 1818 – July 31, 1893) was a Cuban revolutionary who became a Colonel in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War. Gonzales, as a revolutionary, wanted the United States to annex Cuba. During the American Civil War he served as the Chief of artillery in the Department of South Carolina, Georgia, and Florida.
and New York City
, where he received his primary and secondary education. He returned to Cuba and attended the University of Havana
where he earned degrees in arts and sciences and later in law, graduating in 1839. He returned to Matanzas and became a teacher and later a professor for the University of Havana, where he taught languages (he claimed fluency in English, French, Spanish, and Italian), mathematics, and geography. In 1845, following the death of his father, he began two years traveling in Europe and the United States, returning to Cuba to resume his post at the university.
, following the U.S. annexation of Texas in 1845.
The Havana Club group pursued its goal of annexation to the U.S. through a combination of financial, diplomatic and military means. His association and influence with prominent U.S. southerners led him to author a manifesto encouraging U.S. annexation of Cuba. By 1849, Gonzales became interested in the revolutionary plans of General Narciso López
, who ultimately led several military expeditions, known as filibuster
s, to try to liberate Cuba from Spain. Between 1849 and 1851, Gonzales accompanied López in several of his filibuster expeditions. The Spanish authorities set up a trap to capture López, but López was able to escape and sought asylum in the United States.
In 1849 Gonzales became a naturalized United States citizen under a law that offered citizenship to free white
s who had lived in the country for at least three years before the age of 21. Thereafter, he was commissioned by the Junta of Havana seek help from General William J. Worth
, a United States veteran of the Mexican-American War. Together with Worth, Gonzales was to prepare an expedition of five thousand North-American veterans, who would disembark in Cuba and aid the Cuban patriots headed by López who would rise in arms. The plan did not materialize because of Worth's untimely death.
Gonzales and López then organized the Creole expedition with forty thousand dollars that they acquired after selling Cuban bonds. Among those in the expedition was John A. Quitman
, a former General in the United States Army who also participated in the Mexican-American War. Gonzáles led the expedition as Chief of Staff. On the night of May 19, 1850, López gave the order to advance and Gonzáles and his men attacked the Governor's palace. The expedition failed because it lacked the support from the people in the island who did not respond to the call of the filibusters and because they were no match for the Spanish military reinforcements. Gonzáles, López and their men returned to the Creole. Once the Creole was back at sea, it was chased by the Spanish warship Pizarro and changed its course. The Creole then headed for Key West, Florida
, where Gonzales spent three weeks recovering from wounds received in the incident. On December 16, 1850 Lopez, Gonzales, Quitman and the members of the failed expedition were tried in New Orleans for having violated the laws of neutrality; after three attempts to convict them the prosecution was abandoned.
Gonzales settled in Beaufort, South Carolina
, after the failure of filibuster efforts in 1851. In the United States, he continued to seek assistance for Cuban independence, meeting with political leaders including U.S. President Franklin Pierce
and Secretary of War Jefferson Davis
.
In 1856, he married Harriet Rutledge Elliot, the 16-year-old daughter of William Elliott
(1788–1863), a prominent South Carolina
State Senator, planter and writer. Ambrosio and Harriet Elliott Gonzales were to become the parents of six children; Ambrose E. Gonzales
(1857–1926), Narciso Gener Gonzales
(1858–1903), Alfonso Beauregard Gonzales (1861–1908), Gertrude Ruffini Gonzales (1864–1900), Benigno Gonzales (1866–1937), and Anita Gonzales (1869–?).
and Maynard Arms Company
rifles to state legislature
s in the South.
Upon the outbreak of the American Civil War, Gonzales joined the Confederate Army and was commissioned a Colonel
. He was assigned to the Department of South Carolina, Georgia and Florida under the command of General Pierre Gustave Toutant Beauregard
, who had been his schoolmate in New York City. Gonzales was active during the bombardment of Fort Sumter
and because of his actions was appointed Colonel of artillery and assigned to duty as Chief of Artillery. Gonzales, who served as a special aide to the governor of South Carolina, submitted plans for the defense of the coastal areas of his homeland state. According to Major D. Leadbetter in a letter to the Secretary of War:
. The Battle of Honey Hill was the third battle of Sherman's March to the Sea
fought in Savannah, Georgia
. Jefferson Davis
, President of the Confederate States, declined Gonzales's request for promotion to general six times. The reasons behind Davis' decision were that he (Davis) disliked General P. G. T. Beauregard and Gonzales was one of the men who had served under him. Also, Davis did not consider that Gonzales was command material because of his experience with the failed Cuban filibusters and because of his contentious relationships with Confederate officers in Richmond, Virginia
.
In 1869, Gonzales and his family moved to Cuba, where his wife Harriet Elliott Gonzales died of yellow fever
. Gonzales returned to South Carolina with four of his children, leaving two children, Narciso and Alfonso, in Cuba with friends for a year. By 1870, all the Gonzales children were back in the United States, where they were raised by their grandmother, Ann Hutchinson Smith Elliott, and their aunts, Ann and Emily Elliott. Gonzales faced not only financial loss but also sorrows over the death of his wife and his sister-in-law's successful efforts to poison the relationships between Gonzales and his children.
Gonzales' sons, Ambrose
and Narciso
, became notable journalists. In 1891, they founded The State, a newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina
. Narciso waged a crusade against Benjamin "Pitchfork Ben" Tillman
, a U.S. Senator and former Governor of South Carolina, and his nephew and heir apparent, Lt. Governor James H. Tillman, in his newspaper, helping ensure the younger Tillman's defeat in the 1902 South Carolina governor's race. On January 15, 1903, Narciso was shot by James H. Tillman (nephew of Benjamin) and died four days later. A memorial cenotaph
for Narciso was later erected on Senate Street across from the State House in Columbia, purportedly on the route Tillman regularly walked home.
Ambrose Gonzales is recognized and remembered in South Carolina as a pioneering journalist and the writer of black dialect sketches on the Gullah
people of the South Carolina and Georgia low country. In 1986 he was inducted into the South Carolina Business Hall of Fame.
Early years
Gonzales was born in the town of Matanzas, Cuba, in 1818. His father was a schoolmaster and founder of the first daily newspaper in Matanzas. His mother was a member of a prominent local family. After the death of his mother, his father sent the nine-year-old Ambrosio to EuropeEurope
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
and New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, where he received his primary and secondary education. He returned to Cuba and attended the University of Havana
University of Havana
The University of Havana or UH is a university located in the Vedado district of Havana, Cuba. Founded in 1728, the University of Havana is the oldest university in Cuba, and one of the first to be founded in the Americas...
where he earned degrees in arts and sciences and later in law, graduating in 1839. He returned to Matanzas and became a teacher and later a professor for the University of Havana, where he taught languages (he claimed fluency in English, French, Spanish, and Italian), mathematics, and geography. In 1845, following the death of his father, he began two years traveling in Europe and the United States, returning to Cuba to resume his post at the university.
Cuban revolutionary
In 1848, Gonzales joined with a secret organization named the Havana Club that sought to have Cuba annexed by the United States in order to liberate the island from Spanish rule. The movement found encouragement from a surge of expansionism in the United States, particularly in the SouthSouthern United States
The Southern United States—commonly referred to as the American South, Dixie, or simply the South—constitutes a large distinctive area in the southeastern and south-central United States...
, following the U.S. annexation of Texas in 1845.
The Havana Club group pursued its goal of annexation to the U.S. through a combination of financial, diplomatic and military means. His association and influence with prominent U.S. southerners led him to author a manifesto encouraging U.S. annexation of Cuba. By 1849, Gonzales became interested in the revolutionary plans of General Narciso López
Narciso López
Narciso López was a Venezuelan adventurer and soldier, best known for an expedition aimed at liberating Cuba from Spain in the 1850s..- Life in Venezuela, Cuba, and Spain:...
, who ultimately led several military expeditions, known as 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...
s, to try to liberate Cuba from Spain. Between 1849 and 1851, Gonzales accompanied López in several of his filibuster expeditions. The Spanish authorities set up a trap to capture López, but López was able to escape and sought asylum in the United States.
In 1849 Gonzales became a naturalized United States citizen under a law that offered citizenship to free white
White people
White people is a term which usually refers to human beings characterized, at least in part, by the light pigmentation of their skin...
s who had lived in the country for at least three years before the age of 21. Thereafter, he was commissioned by the Junta of Havana seek help from General William J. Worth
William J. Worth
William Jenkins Worth was a United States general during the Mexican-American War.-Early life:Worth was born in 1794 in Hudson, New York, to Thomas Worth and Abigail Jenkins. Both of his parents were Quakers, but he rejected the pacifism of their faith...
, a United States veteran of the Mexican-American War. Together with Worth, Gonzales was to prepare an expedition of five thousand North-American veterans, who would disembark in Cuba and aid the Cuban patriots headed by López who would rise in arms. The plan did not materialize because of Worth's untimely death.
Gonzales and López then organized the Creole expedition with forty thousand dollars that they acquired after selling Cuban bonds. Among those in the expedition was John A. Quitman
John A. Quitman
John Anthony Quitman was an American politician and soldier. He served as Governor of Mississippi from 1835 to 1836 as a Whig and again from 1850 to 1851 as a Democrat and one of the leading Fire-Eaters.-Early life:John A. Quitman studied Classics at Hartwick Seminary, graduating in 1816...
, a former General in the United States Army who also participated in the Mexican-American War. Gonzáles led the expedition as Chief of Staff. On the night of May 19, 1850, López gave the order to advance and Gonzáles and his men attacked the Governor's palace. The expedition failed because it lacked the support from the people in the island who did not respond to the call of the filibusters and because they were no match for the Spanish military reinforcements. Gonzáles, López and their men returned to the Creole. Once the Creole was back at sea, it was chased by the Spanish warship Pizarro and changed its course. The Creole then headed for Key West, Florida
Key West, Florida
Key West is a city in Monroe County, Florida, United States. The city encompasses the island of Key West, the part of Stock Island north of U.S. 1 , Sigsbee Park , Fleming Key , and Sunset Key...
, where Gonzales spent three weeks recovering from wounds received in the incident. On December 16, 1850 Lopez, Gonzales, Quitman and the members of the failed expedition were tried in New Orleans for having violated the laws of neutrality; after three attempts to convict them the prosecution was abandoned.
Gonzales settled in Beaufort, South Carolina
Beaufort, South Carolina
Beaufort is a city in and the county seat of Beaufort County, South Carolina, United States. Chartered in 1711, it is the second-oldest city in South Carolina, behind Charleston. The city's population was 12,361 in the 2010 census. It is located in the Hilton Head Island-Beaufort Micropolitan...
, after the failure of filibuster efforts in 1851. In the United States, he continued to seek assistance for Cuban independence, meeting with political leaders including U.S. President Franklin Pierce
Franklin Pierce
Franklin Pierce was the 14th President of the United States and is the only President from New Hampshire. Pierce was a Democrat and a "doughface" who served in the U.S. House of Representatives and the Senate. Pierce took part in the Mexican-American War and became a brigadier general in the Army...
and Secretary of War Jefferson Davis
Jefferson Davis
Jefferson Finis Davis , also known as Jeff Davis, was an American statesman and leader of the Confederacy during the American Civil War, serving as President for its entire history. He was born in Kentucky to Samuel and Jane Davis...
.
In 1856, he married Harriet Rutledge Elliot, the 16-year-old daughter of William Elliott
William Elliott (writer)
William Elliott was a South Carolina writer of non-fiction.-Biography:He born in Beaufort, South Carolina. He entered Harvard at age 18, and did well. He returned to South Carolina without completing his studies, but received a degree in 1810...
(1788–1863), a prominent South Carolina
South Carolina
South Carolina is a state in the Deep South of the United States that borders Georgia to the south, North Carolina to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Originally part of the Province of Carolina, the Province of South Carolina was one of the 13 colonies that declared independence...
State Senator, planter and writer. Ambrosio and Harriet Elliott Gonzales were to become the parents of six children; Ambrose E. Gonzales
Ambrose E. Gonzales
Ambrose Elliott Gonzales was born on a plantation in Colleton County, South Carolina. Gonzales was the son of Colonel Ambrosio José Gonzales and Harriet Rutledge Elliot. His father was a Colonel in the Confederate Army who played an instrumental role in the defenses of South Carolina during the...
(1857–1926), Narciso Gener Gonzales
Narciso Gener Gonzales
Narciso Gener Gonzales was born in St. Paul's Parish, South Carolina, South Carolina. He and his brother, Ambrose E. Gonzales, were the founders of The State newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina....
(1858–1903), Alfonso Beauregard Gonzales (1861–1908), Gertrude Ruffini Gonzales (1864–1900), Benigno Gonzales (1866–1937), and Anita Gonzales (1869–?).
American Civil War
As civil war approached in the late 1850s, Gonzales went into business as a sales agent for firearms manufacturers, demonstrating and selling the LeMat revolverLeMat Revolver
The LeMat revolver was a .42 or .36 caliber cap & ball black powder revolver invented by Dr. Jean Alexandre LeMat of New Orleans, which featured a rather unusual secondary 16 gauge smoothbore barrel capable of firing buckshot, and saw service with the armed forces of the Confederate States of...
and Maynard Arms Company
Edward Maynard
-External links:*...
rifles to state legislature
State legislature
In the United States of America, a state legislature is a generic term referring to the legislative body of any of the country's 50 states. The formal name varies from state to state. In 24 states, the legislature is simply called the "Legislature", or the "State Legislature", while in 19 states,...
s in the South.
Upon the outbreak of the American Civil War, Gonzales joined the Confederate Army and was commissioned a Colonel
Colonel (United States)
In the United States Army, Air Force, and Marine Corps, colonel is a senior field grade military officer rank just above the rank of lieutenant colonel and just below the rank of brigadier general...
. He was assigned to the Department of South Carolina, Georgia and Florida under the command of General Pierre Gustave Toutant Beauregard
P. G. T. Beauregard
Pierre Gustave Toutant Beauregard was a Louisiana-born American military officer, politician, inventor, writer, civil servant, and the first prominent general of the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War. Today he is commonly referred to as P. G. T. Beauregard, but he rarely used...
, who had been his schoolmate in New York City. Gonzales was active during the bombardment of Fort Sumter
Fort Sumter
Fort Sumter is a Third System masonry coastal fortification located in Charleston Harbor, South Carolina. The fort is best known as the site upon which the shots initiating the American Civil War were fired, at the Battle of Fort Sumter.- Construction :...
and because of his actions was appointed Colonel of artillery and assigned to duty as Chief of Artillery. Gonzales, who served as a special aide to the governor of South Carolina, submitted plans for the defense of the coastal areas of his homeland state. According to Major D. Leadbetter in a letter to the Secretary of War:
"The project of auxiliary coast defense herewith, as submitted by Col. A. J. Gonzales, though not thought to be everywhere applicable, is believed to be of great value under special circumstances. In the example assumed at Edisto Island, where the movable batteries rest on defensive works and are themselves scarcely exposed to surprise and capture, a rifled 24-pounder, with two small guns, rallying and reconnoitering from each of the fixed batteries, would prove invaluable. A lighter gun than the 24-pounder, and quite as efficient, might be devised for such service, but this is probably the best now available. Colonel Gonzales’ proposed arrangements for re-enforcing certain exposed and threatened maritime Posts seem to be judicious and to merit attention."Gonzales was able to fend off Union gunboat attempts to destroy railroads and other important points on the Carolina coast by placing his heavy artillery on special carriages for increased mobility. On November 30, 1864, Gonzales served as Artillery Commander at the Battle of Honey Hill
Battle of Honey Hill
-References:** * Eicher, David J., The Longest Night: A Military History of the Civil War, Simon & Schuster, 2001, ISBN 0-684-84944-5.* The Union Army; A History of Military Affairs in the Loyal States, 1861–65 — Records of the Regiments in the Union Army — Cyclopedia of Battles...
. The Battle of Honey Hill was the third battle of Sherman's March to the Sea
Sherman's March to the Sea
Sherman's March to the Sea is the name commonly given to the Savannah Campaign conducted around Georgia from November 15, 1864 to December 21, 1864 by Maj. Gen. William Tecumseh Sherman of the Union Army in the American Civil War...
fought in Savannah, Georgia
Savannah, Georgia
Savannah is the largest city and the county seat of Chatham County, in the U.S. state of Georgia. Established in 1733, the city of Savannah was the colonial capital of the Province of Georgia and later the first state capital of Georgia. Today Savannah is an industrial center and an important...
. Jefferson Davis
Jefferson Davis
Jefferson Finis Davis , also known as Jeff Davis, was an American statesman and leader of the Confederacy during the American Civil War, serving as President for its entire history. He was born in Kentucky to Samuel and Jane Davis...
, President of the Confederate States, declined Gonzales's request for promotion to general six times. The reasons behind Davis' decision were that he (Davis) disliked General P. G. T. Beauregard and Gonzales was one of the men who had served under him. Also, Davis did not consider that Gonzales was command material because of his experience with the failed Cuban filibusters and because of his contentious relationships with Confederate officers in Richmond, Virginia
Richmond, Virginia
Richmond is the capital of the Commonwealth of Virginia, in the United States. It is an independent city and not part of any county. Richmond is the center of the Richmond Metropolitan Statistical Area and the Greater Richmond area...
.
Later years
After the war Gonzales pursued a variety of vocations, all of which were marginally successful, but like many others he never provided the security he sought for his extended family. His efforts were similar to those of other formerly wealthy Southerners who sought to recover their estates and social status.In 1869, Gonzales and his family moved to Cuba, where his wife Harriet Elliott Gonzales died of yellow fever
Yellow fever
Yellow fever is an acute viral hemorrhagic disease. The virus is a 40 to 50 nm enveloped RNA virus with positive sense of the Flaviviridae family....
. Gonzales returned to South Carolina with four of his children, leaving two children, Narciso and Alfonso, in Cuba with friends for a year. By 1870, all the Gonzales children were back in the United States, where they were raised by their grandmother, Ann Hutchinson Smith Elliott, and their aunts, Ann and Emily Elliott. Gonzales faced not only financial loss but also sorrows over the death of his wife and his sister-in-law's successful efforts to poison the relationships between Gonzales and his children.
Gonzales' sons, Ambrose
Ambrose E. Gonzales
Ambrose Elliott Gonzales was born on a plantation in Colleton County, South Carolina. Gonzales was the son of Colonel Ambrosio José Gonzales and Harriet Rutledge Elliot. His father was a Colonel in the Confederate Army who played an instrumental role in the defenses of South Carolina during the...
and Narciso
Narciso Gener Gonzales
Narciso Gener Gonzales was born in St. Paul's Parish, South Carolina, South Carolina. He and his brother, Ambrose E. Gonzales, were the founders of The State newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina....
, became notable journalists. In 1891, they founded The State, a newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina
Columbia, South Carolina
Columbia is the state capital and largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina. The population was 129,272 according to the 2010 census. Columbia is the county seat of Richland County, but a portion of the city extends into neighboring Lexington County. The city is the center of a metropolitan...
. Narciso waged a crusade against Benjamin "Pitchfork Ben" Tillman
Benjamin Tillman
Benjamin Ryan Tillman was an American politician who served as the 84th Governor of South Carolina, from 1890 to 1894, and as a United States Senator, from 1895 until his death in office. Tillman's views were a matter of national controversy.Tillman was a member of the Democratic Party...
, a U.S. Senator and former Governor of South Carolina, and his nephew and heir apparent, Lt. Governor James H. Tillman, in his newspaper, helping ensure the younger Tillman's defeat in the 1902 South Carolina governor's race. On January 15, 1903, Narciso was shot by James H. Tillman (nephew of Benjamin) and died four days later. A memorial cenotaph
Cenotaph
A cenotaph is an "empty tomb" or a monument erected in honour of a person or group of people whose remains are elsewhere. It can also be the initial tomb for a person who has since been interred elsewhere. The word derives from the Greek κενοτάφιον = kenotaphion...
for Narciso was later erected on Senate Street across from the State House in Columbia, purportedly on the route Tillman regularly walked home.
Ambrose Gonzales is recognized and remembered in South Carolina as a pioneering journalist and the writer of black dialect sketches on the Gullah
Gullah
The Gullah are African Americans who live in the Lowcountry region of South Carolina and Georgia, which includes both the coastal plain and the Sea Islands....
people of the South Carolina and Georgia low country. In 1986 he was inducted into the South Carolina Business Hall of Fame.
Final years
Gonzales became ill as he became older and his sons sent him to Key West, where Gonzales attended meetings of the Chiefs of the War of 68 and the Delegate of the Cuban Revolutionary Party. He was later interned in a hospital in Long Island, New York. Gonzales died on July 31, 1893 and is buried at Woodlawn Cemetery, Plot: Lot A, Range 131, Grave 20 in the Bronx, New York.See also
- Hispanics in the American Civil WarHispanics in the American Civil WarHispanics in the American Civil War fought on both the Union and Confederate sides of the conflict. It is estimated that approximately 3,500 Hispanics, mostly Mexican-Americans, Puerto Ricans and Cubans living in the United States joined the war: 2500 for the Confederacy and 1000 for the Union...
- List of Cuban-Americans
External links
- Biography of Colonel Gonzales
- Works by Ambrosio José Gonzales at Internet ArchiveInternet ArchiveThe Internet Archive is a non-profit digital library with the stated mission of "universal access to all knowledge". It offers permanent storage and access to collections of digitized materials, including websites, music, moving images, and nearly 3 million public domain books. The Internet Archive...
(scanned books original editions)