María de las Mercedes Barbudo
Encyclopedia
María de las Mercedes Barbudo (1773–1849) was a political activist who was the first Puerto Rican female "Independentista", meaning that she was the first Puerto Rican woman to become an avid advocate of Puerto Rican Independence or "Freedom Fighter". She was involved with the Puerto Rican Independence Movement which had ties with the Venezuelan rebels led by Simón Bolívar
and who were against Spanish colonial rule in Puerto Rico.
, the capital of Puerto Rico, to a Spanish
father, Domingo Barbudo and Puerto Rican
mother, Belén Coronado. Her father was an officer in the Spanish Army
and being the daughter of a military officer benefited her greatly. At the time the only people who had access to the libraries and who could afford books were either appointed Spanish government officials or wealthy land owners. The poor had to resort to oral story-telling in what are traditionally known in Puerto Rico as Coplas and Decimas. Mercedes Barbudo was well educated and became interested in politics and social activism.
Mercedes Barbudo was well known in San Juan and was befriended and often visited by some of the islands most distinguished Puerto Rican celebrities, among them Admiral Ramón Power y Giralt
(Joaquín's son), Bishop Juan Alejo de Arizmendi
and artist José Campeche
. She had a liberal mind and as such would often hold meetings with intellectuals in her house. There they would discuss the political, social and economic situation of Puerto Rico and the Spanish Empire in general and propose solutions to help improve the well being of the island.
This was at a time when Simón Bolívar and Brigadier General Antonio Valero de Bernabé
a Puerto Rican who is also known as "The Liberator from Puerto Rico", dreamed of creating a unified Latin America, which included Puerto Rico and Cuba. Mercedes Barbudo was inspired by Bolivar and became a follower of the independence ideal for Puerto Rico upon learning that Bolivar dreamed of eventually engendering an American Revolution-style federation between all the newly independent republics, with a government ideally set-up solely to recognize and uphold individual rights. She befriended and wrote to many Venezuelan revolutionists, among them José María Rojas, with whom she regularly corresponded. She also received magazines and newspapers from Venezuela which upheld the ideals of Bolivar.
, were suspicious of the correspondence between her and the rebel factions of Venezuela. Secret agents of the Spanish Government had retained some of her mail and delivered it to Governor de la Torre. He ordered an investigation and had her mail confiscated. The Government believed that the correspondence served as propaganda of the Bolivian ideals and that it would also serve to motivate Puerto Ricans to seek their independence.
Governor Miguel de la Torre ordered her arrest on the charge that she planned to overthrow the Spanish Government in Puerto Rico. Since Puerto Rico did not have a women’s prison she was held without bail at the Castillo San Cristóbal. Among the evidence which the Spanish authorities presented against her was a letter dated October 1, 1824, from Rojas in which he told her that the Venezuelan rebels had lost their principal contact with the Puerto Rican Independence movement in the Danish island of Saint Thomas and therefore the secret communication which existed between the Venezuelan rebels and the leaders of the Puerto Rican independence movements was in danger of being discovered.
On October 22, 1824, Mercedes Barbudo did not go on trial, she did however go before a magistrate. The Government presented as evidence against her various letters which included five letters from Rojas, 2 copies of the newspaper "El Observador Caraqueño"; 2 copies of the newspaper "El Cometa" and one copy each of the newspapers "El Constitucional Caraqueño" and "El Colombiano", which were sympathetic to Bolivar’s ideals. When asked if she recognized the correspondence, she answered in the affirmative and refused to answer any more questions. The government also presented as evidence various anti-monarchy propaganda pamphlets to be distributed throughout the island which exhorted the people of Puerto Rico to demand the right to own property and the right to elect their own government. Mercedes Barbudo was found guilty and her fate was in the hands of Governor de la Torre.
Upon her arrival in Cuba, she was placed in an institution in which women accused of various crimes were housed. Mercedes Barbudo escaped with the help of the revolutionary factions which were also operating in Cuba, and made her way to the island of Saint Thomas. From there she made her way to La Guaira
in Venezuela, where she was met by her friend José María Rojas. She proceeded to Caracas, the capital of Venezuela, where she met and befriended Simón Bolívar. Mercedes Barbudo established a close relationship with the members of Bolívar's cabinet, which included José María Vargas
who would, in the future, become the 4th president of Venezuela, and she became one of their main collaborators.
Mercedes Barbudo, who never married nor had any children, never returned to her homeland Puerto Rico. She died in 1849, and is buried in the Cathedral of Caracas
next to Simon Bolivar, an honor reserved only for the church hierarchy and the very rich. In 1996, a documentary was made about the life of Mercedes Barbudo titled Camino sin retorno, el destierro de María de las Mercedes Barbudo ("Road of no return, the exile of María de las Mercedes Barbudo"). It was produced and directed by Sonia Fritz.
Simón Bolívar
Simón José Antonio de la Santísima Trinidad Bolívar y Palacios Ponte y Yeiter, commonly known as Simón Bolívar was a Venezuelan military and political leader...
and who were against Spanish colonial rule in Puerto Rico.
Early years
Mercedes Barbudo (birth name: María de las Mercedes Barbudo y Coronado) was one of four siblings born in San JuanSan Juan, Puerto Rico
San Juan , officially Municipio de la Ciudad Capital San Juan Bautista , is the capital and most populous municipality in Puerto Rico, an unincorporated territory of the United States. As of the 2010 census, it had a population of 395,326 making it the 46th-largest city under the jurisdiction of...
, the capital of Puerto Rico, to a Spanish
Spanish people
The Spanish are citizens of the Kingdom of Spain. Within Spain, there are also a number of vigorous nationalisms and regionalisms, reflecting the country's complex history....
father, Domingo Barbudo and Puerto Rican
Puerto Rican people
A Puerto Rican is a person who was born in Puerto Rico.Puerto Ricans born and raised in the continental United States are also sometimes referred to as Puerto Ricans, although they were not born in Puerto Rico...
mother, Belén Coronado. Her father was an officer in the Spanish Army
Spanish Army
The Spanish Army is the terrestrial army of the Spanish Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is one of the oldest active armies - dating back to the 15th century.-Introduction:...
and being the daughter of a military officer benefited her greatly. At the time the only people who had access to the libraries and who could afford books were either appointed Spanish government officials or wealthy land owners. The poor had to resort to oral story-telling in what are traditionally known in Puerto Rico as Coplas and Decimas. Mercedes Barbudo was well educated and became interested in politics and social activism.
Political activist
Mercedes Barbudo's family were well-to-do and as such she was able to establish a store in San Juan specialising in the sale of buttons, threads and cloth. She eventually became a successful personal loan provider and had commercial dealings with Joaquín Power y Morgan, an immigrant who came to Puerto Rico in connection with the Compañía de Asiento de Negros, which regulated the slave trade on the island.Mercedes Barbudo was well known in San Juan and was befriended and often visited by some of the islands most distinguished Puerto Rican celebrities, among them Admiral Ramón Power y Giralt
Ramon Power y Giralt
Captain Ramón Power y Giralt , commonly known only as "Ramón Power", was, according to Puerto Rican historian Lidio Cruz Monclova, among the first native born Puerto Ricans to refer to himself as a "Puerto Rican" and to fight for the equal representation of Puerto Rico in front of the parliamentary...
(Joaquín's son), Bishop Juan Alejo de Arizmendi
Juan Alejo de Arizmendi
Bishop Juan Alejo de Arizmendi was a patriot and the first Puerto Rican to be consecrated Bishop.-Early years:...
and artist José Campeche
José Campeche
José Campeche , born in San Juan, Puerto Rico, is the first known Puerto Rican visual artist and considered by many as one of the best rococo artists in the Americas.-Early years:...
. She had a liberal mind and as such would often hold meetings with intellectuals in her house. There they would discuss the political, social and economic situation of Puerto Rico and the Spanish Empire in general and propose solutions to help improve the well being of the island.
This was at a time when Simón Bolívar and Brigadier General Antonio Valero de Bernabé
Antonio Valero de Bernabe
Brigadier General Antonio Valero de Bernabé , aka The Liberator from Puerto Rico, was a military leader who fought for the independence of South America together with Simón Bolívar and who wanted the independence of Puerto Rico...
a Puerto Rican who is also known as "The Liberator from Puerto Rico", dreamed of creating a unified Latin America, which included Puerto Rico and Cuba. Mercedes Barbudo was inspired by Bolivar and became a follower of the independence ideal for Puerto Rico upon learning that Bolivar dreamed of eventually engendering an American Revolution-style federation between all the newly independent republics, with a government ideally set-up solely to recognize and uphold individual rights. She befriended and wrote to many Venezuelan revolutionists, among them José María Rojas, with whom she regularly corresponded. She also received magazines and newspapers from Venezuela which upheld the ideals of Bolivar.
Held without bail or trial
Unknown to Mercedes Barbudo, the Spanish authorities in Puerto Rico under Governor Miguel de la TorreMiguel de la Torre
Miguel de la Torre y Pando, conde de Torrepando was a Spanish General, Governor and Captain General, who served in Spain, Venezuela, Colombia and Puerto Rico during the Spanish American wars of independence and after.At the age of fourteen he joined the Spanish Army as a soldier during the War of...
, were suspicious of the correspondence between her and the rebel factions of Venezuela. Secret agents of the Spanish Government had retained some of her mail and delivered it to Governor de la Torre. He ordered an investigation and had her mail confiscated. The Government believed that the correspondence served as propaganda of the Bolivian ideals and that it would also serve to motivate Puerto Ricans to seek their independence.
Governor Miguel de la Torre ordered her arrest on the charge that she planned to overthrow the Spanish Government in Puerto Rico. Since Puerto Rico did not have a women’s prison she was held without bail at the Castillo San Cristóbal. Among the evidence which the Spanish authorities presented against her was a letter dated October 1, 1824, from Rojas in which he told her that the Venezuelan rebels had lost their principal contact with the Puerto Rican Independence movement in the Danish island of Saint Thomas and therefore the secret communication which existed between the Venezuelan rebels and the leaders of the Puerto Rican independence movements was in danger of being discovered.
On October 22, 1824, Mercedes Barbudo did not go on trial, she did however go before a magistrate. The Government presented as evidence against her various letters which included five letters from Rojas, 2 copies of the newspaper "El Observador Caraqueño"; 2 copies of the newspaper "El Cometa" and one copy each of the newspapers "El Constitucional Caraqueño" and "El Colombiano", which were sympathetic to Bolivar’s ideals. When asked if she recognized the correspondence, she answered in the affirmative and refused to answer any more questions. The government also presented as evidence various anti-monarchy propaganda pamphlets to be distributed throughout the island which exhorted the people of Puerto Rico to demand the right to own property and the right to elect their own government. Mercedes Barbudo was found guilty and her fate was in the hands of Governor de la Torre.
Exile and escape to Venezuela
Governor de la Torre consulted with the prosecutor Francisco Marcos Santaella as to what should be done with Mercedes Barbudo. Santaella suggested that she be exiled from Puerto Rico and sent to Cuba never to return. On October 23, 1824, de la Torre ordered that Mercedes Barbudo be held under house arrest at the Castillo de San Cristóbal under the custody of Captain Pedro de Loyzaga. The following day Mercedes Barbudo wrote to the governor a letter requesting that she be permitted the liberty to go into town to fix her financial and her personal obligations before she was exiled to Cuba. The Governor denied her request and on October 28 she was placed aboard the ship El Marinero.Upon her arrival in Cuba, she was placed in an institution in which women accused of various crimes were housed. Mercedes Barbudo escaped with the help of the revolutionary factions which were also operating in Cuba, and made her way to the island of Saint Thomas. From there she made her way to La Guaira
La Guaira
La Guaira is the capital city of the Venezuelan state of Vargas and the country's chief port. It was founded in 1577 as an outlet for Caracas, to the southeast. The town and the port were badly damaged during the December 1999 floods and mudslides that affected much of the region...
in Venezuela, where she was met by her friend José María Rojas. She proceeded to Caracas, the capital of Venezuela, where she met and befriended Simón Bolívar. Mercedes Barbudo established a close relationship with the members of Bolívar's cabinet, which included José María Vargas
José María Vargas
José María Vargas was the 4th President of Venezuela from 1835–1836.-Life and career:...
who would, in the future, become the 4th president of Venezuela, and she became one of their main collaborators.
Mercedes Barbudo, who never married nor had any children, never returned to her homeland Puerto Rico. She died in 1849, and is buried in the Cathedral of Caracas
Caracas Cathedral
The Caracas Cathedral is the seat of the archdiocese of Caracas, located in one corner of the Plaza Bolívar in Caracas, Venezuela. The colonial chapel of the Trinity is notable because it is where the parents and wife of Simón Bolívar are buried.-History:...
next to Simon Bolivar, an honor reserved only for the church hierarchy and the very rich. In 1996, a documentary was made about the life of Mercedes Barbudo titled Camino sin retorno, el destierro de María de las Mercedes Barbudo ("Road of no return, the exile of María de las Mercedes Barbudo"). It was produced and directed by Sonia Fritz.
Further reading
- "Maria de las Mercedes Barbudo: Primera mujer independentista de Puerto Rico, 1773–1849"; by: Raquel Rosario Rivera; Publisher: R. Rosario Rivera; 1. ed edition (1997); ISBN 978-0965003629.
- "Mercedes"; by: Jaime L. Marzán Ramos; Publisher:Isla Negra Editores; ISBN 978-9945-455-54-0.
- "From Eve to Dawn, A History of Women in the World, Volume IV: Revolutions and Struggles for Justice in the 20th Century"; by: Marilyn French; Publisher: The Feminist Press at CUNY; ISBN 978-1558615847
- "Women in Latin America and the Caribbean: Restoring Women to History (Restoring Women to History)"; by: Marysa Navarro; Publisher: Indiana University Press; ISBN 978-0253213075
See also
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- Mariana BracettiMariana BracettiMariana Bracetti was a patriot and leader of the Puerto Rico independence movement in the 1860s. She is attributed with having knitted the flag that was intended to be used as the national emblem of Puerto Rico in its attempt to overthrow the Spanish government on the island, and to establish the...
- Blanca CanalesBlanca CanalesBlanca Canales Torresola was a Puerto Rican nationalist leader. Canales may possibly have been the first woman to have led a revolt against the United States when she led the The Jayuya Uprising.-Early years:...
- Lolita LebronLolita LebrónDolores "Lolita" Lebrón Sotomayor was a Puerto Rican nationalist who wasconvicted of attempted murder and other crimes after leading an assault on the United States House of Representatives in 1954,...
- Antonio Valero de BernabéAntonio Valero de BernabeBrigadier General Antonio Valero de Bernabé , aka The Liberator from Puerto Rico, was a military leader who fought for the independence of South America together with Simón Bolívar and who wanted the independence of Puerto Rico...
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- List of famous Puerto Ricans