Manuel Benito de Castro
Encyclopedia
Manuel Benito de Castro (1751-1826) was a Neogranadine politician. He became President of the State
of Cundinamarca
in 1812 in place of Antonio Nariño
.
José Solís Folch de Cardona
, became a monk
, his mother was Teresa Díaz de Arcaya, also a rich woman, daughter of the Captain of the Cavalry of the Viceroyalty Guard.
Castro was a Jesuit novice
when he was young, for this he was known a "Father Manuel".
, also a pateador, who included him in his cabinet. On June 25, 1812, Castro was left in charge of the Presidency of the State
of Cundinamarca
by Nariño, who went to Tunja
to fight the Royalist forces in the South. He was officially elected President of the State on August 19, and served until September 12 when Nariño returned and assumed power again.
After the Spanish Reconquista of the New Granada
, Pablo Morillo
expelled Castro from Santafé de Bogotá and sent him to Tunja, leaving all his fortune behind. Castro eventually returned to Bogotá after the defeat of the Royalists, and died at the age of 75 in Bogotá on March 5, 1826.
When he assumed the presidency, one of his conditions was, that he could leave the sessions of Congress at a certain time, to go and feed his dog; in another occasion, it is said, that when he was called to appear to go to the Counsel, he replied that he would go after he finished grooming his dog. His time in power was complicated by the confrontation between centralists and federalists, and Nariño was forced to come back and take back the presidency.
Pablo Morillo
did not know what to do with him, he was too eccentric, and during his time in power was criticized for being too inept, he posed no danger to the Reconquista, and Morillo finally decided to expel him from Bogotá, and sent him to Tunja, with the excuse of having weapons in his house, the weapon being a ceremonial sword he always carried,
After his death, the newspaper La Miscelánea, printed a very critical obituary of him for being single his whole life, because, as he said "...It is to much to risk uniting with a woman, whose character may be assumed, but never understood...".
President of Colombia
The President of Colombia is the head of state and head of government of the Republic of Colombia. The office of president was established upon the ratification of the Constitution of 1819, by the Congress of Angostura, convened in December 1819, when Colombia was part of "la Gran Colombia"...
of Cundinamarca
Free and Independent State of Cundinamarca
The Free and Independent State of Cundinamarca was a rebel state in modern Colombia between 1810 and 1815 during the Patria Boba period at the beginning of the Latin American wars of independence...
in 1812 in place of Antonio Nariño
Antonio Nariño
Antonio de la Santísima Concepción Nariño y Álvarez was an ideological Colombian precursor and one of the early political and military leaders of the independence movement in the New Granada - Early political activity :Nariño was born to an aristocratic family...
.
Early life
Castro was born on January 21, 1751, in Santafé de Bogotá, the capital of the Viceroyalty of the New Granada. His father, also named Manuel Benito de Castro, was a rich man who had inherited his fortune when the ViceroyViceroy
A viceroy is a royal official who runs a country, colony, or province in the name of and as representative of the monarch. The term derives from the Latin prefix vice-, meaning "in the place of" and the French word roi, meaning king. A viceroy's province or larger territory is called a viceroyalty...
José Solís Folch de Cardona
José Solís Folch de Cardona
José Solís y Folch de Cardona, grande de España and knight of the Order of Santiago was a Spanish colonial administrator and viceroy of New Granada from November 24, 1753 to February 25, 1761.-Background:...
, became a monk
Monk
A monk is a person who practices religious asceticism, living either alone or with any number of monks, while always maintaining some degree of physical separation from those not sharing the same purpose...
, his mother was Teresa Díaz de Arcaya, also a rich woman, daughter of the Captain of the Cavalry of the Viceroyalty Guard.
Castro was a Jesuit novice
Novice
A novice is a person or creature who is new to a field or activity. The term is most commonly applied in religion and sports.-Buddhism:In many Buddhist orders, a man or woman who intends to take ordination must first become a novice, adopting part of the monastic code indicated in the vinaya and...
when he was young, for this he was known a "Father Manuel".
Presidency
Castro was a pateador, a centralist, who believed that the government should be a centralized one, with the capital in Santafé de Bogotá, he was a supporter of Antonio NariñoAntonio Nariño
Antonio de la Santísima Concepción Nariño y Álvarez was an ideological Colombian precursor and one of the early political and military leaders of the independence movement in the New Granada - Early political activity :Nariño was born to an aristocratic family...
, also a pateador, who included him in his cabinet. On June 25, 1812, Castro was left in charge of the Presidency of the State
President of Colombia
The President of Colombia is the head of state and head of government of the Republic of Colombia. The office of president was established upon the ratification of the Constitution of 1819, by the Congress of Angostura, convened in December 1819, when Colombia was part of "la Gran Colombia"...
of Cundinamarca
Free and Independent State of Cundinamarca
The Free and Independent State of Cundinamarca was a rebel state in modern Colombia between 1810 and 1815 during the Patria Boba period at the beginning of the Latin American wars of independence...
by Nariño, who went to Tunja
Tunja
Tunja is a city and municipality located in the central part of Colombia, in the region of "Alto Chicomocha". As of the 2005 Census it had 152,419 inhabitants. It is the capital of the Department of Boyacá and part of the subregion of the Central Boyacá Province. It is approximately 145 km...
to fight the Royalist forces in the South. He was officially elected President of the State on August 19, and served until September 12 when Nariño returned and assumed power again.
After the Spanish Reconquista of the New Granada
Reconquista (Spanish America)
In colonial Spanish America, the Reconquista refers to the period following the defeat of Napoleon in 1814 during which royalist armies were able to gain the upper hand in the Spanish American wars of independence...
, Pablo Morillo
Pablo Morillo
Pablo Morillo y Morillo, Count of Cartagena and Marquess of La Puerta, aka El Pacificador was a Spanish general....
expelled Castro from Santafé de Bogotá and sent him to Tunja, leaving all his fortune behind. Castro eventually returned to Bogotá after the defeat of the Royalists, and died at the age of 75 in Bogotá on March 5, 1826.
Controversy and criticism
Castro was an eccentric man, who was described as wearing a cape, a ceremonial sword, a large pointy hat, and other such articles of man's fashion from 1767.When he assumed the presidency, one of his conditions was, that he could leave the sessions of Congress at a certain time, to go and feed his dog; in another occasion, it is said, that when he was called to appear to go to the Counsel, he replied that he would go after he finished grooming his dog. His time in power was complicated by the confrontation between centralists and federalists, and Nariño was forced to come back and take back the presidency.
Pablo Morillo
Pablo Morillo
Pablo Morillo y Morillo, Count of Cartagena and Marquess of La Puerta, aka El Pacificador was a Spanish general....
did not know what to do with him, he was too eccentric, and during his time in power was criticized for being too inept, he posed no danger to the Reconquista, and Morillo finally decided to expel him from Bogotá, and sent him to Tunja, with the excuse of having weapons in his house, the weapon being a ceremonial sword he always carried,
After his death, the newspaper La Miscelánea, printed a very critical obituary of him for being single his whole life, because, as he said "...It is to much to risk uniting with a woman, whose character may be assumed, but never understood...".