Luis de Onís y Gonzalez-Vara (1762–1827) was a Spanish

Spain

Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...

 diplomat. Born in Cantalapiedra

Cantalapiedra

Cantalapiedra is a village and municipality in the province of Salamanca, western Spain, part of the autonomous community of Castile-León. It is located 69 kilometres from the city of Salamanca and has a population of 1250 people. The municipality covers an area of 24.85 km².It is 50 km...

, Salamanca and educated at the University of Salamanca

University of Salamanca

The University of Salamanca is a Spanish higher education institution, located in the town of Salamanca, west of Madrid. It was founded in 1134 and given the Royal charter of foundation by King Alfonso IX in 1218. It is the oldest founded university in Spain and the third oldest European...

, he served as the Spanish

Spain

Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...

 minister to the United States from 1809 to 1819. He is remembered for negotiating the Adams-Onís Treaty

Adams-Onís Treaty

The Adams–Onís Treaty of 1819, also known as the Transcontinental Treaty or the Purchase of Florida, was a treaty between the United States and Spain in 1819 that gave Florida to the U.S. and set out a boundary between the U.S. and New Spain . It settled a standing border dispute between the two...

 with United States Secretary of State

United States Secretary of State

The United States Secretary of State is the head of the United States Department of State, concerned with foreign affairs. The Secretary is a member of the Cabinet and the highest-ranking cabinet secretary both in line of succession and order of precedence...

 John Quincy Adams

John Quincy Adams

John Quincy Adams was the sixth President of the United States . He served as an American diplomat, Senator, and Congressional representative. He was a member of the Federalist, Democratic-Republican, National Republican, and later Anti-Masonic and Whig parties. Adams was the son of former...

 in 1819.

De Onis invited the Circus of Pepin and Breschard

Circus of Pepin and Breschard

The equestrian theatre company of Pépin and Breschard, American Victor Pépin and Frenchman Jean Baptiste Casmiere Breschard, arrived in the United States of America from Madrid, Spain , in November 1807. They toured that new country until 1815...

 to sail from Spain to perform in the United States, which they did in 1807. Don Luis married in Dresden

Dresden

Dresden is the capital city of the Free State of Saxony in Germany. It is situated in a valley on the River Elbe, near the Czech border. The Dresden conurbation is part of the Saxon Triangle metropolitan area....

, 9 August 1788, Federika Christina von Mercklein, and had three children: Mauricio

Mauricio Carlos de Onís y Mercklein

Mauricio Carlos de Onís y Mercklein was a Spanish politician and diplomat who served as Minister of State in 1840 and as President of the Congress of Deputies....

, Narcisa and Clementina.