Rafael Manchola
Encyclopedia
Rafael Antonio Manchola was a politician and military officer in Mexican Texas
. He twice served as commandant of Presidio La Bahía
. He served two terms in the legislature of the state of Coahuila y Tejas
. At his behest, the community which had grown outside the fort was renamed Goliad and elevated in status to a villa. During his legislative service, Manchola also negotiated official boundaries for the colony of his father-in-law, Martín De León
, and had a commissioner appointed to grant official titles to the settlers in that colony. After returning home, Manchola became the alcade of Goliad and initiated a resolution–then considered illegal– supporting the Constitution of 1824 and Mexican President Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna
. He briefly attended the Convention of 1832
and volunteered to accompany William H. Wharton
in journeying to Mexico City to request separate statehood for Texas. The mission was postponed, and Manchola died of cholera in late 1832 or early 1833.
. Manchola and his wife had one daughter.
in Mexican Texas
. He served as the commandant of the presidio from 1826–7 and then in 1831. Manchola owned a large ranch, and his cattle brand was one of the first registered in the Goliad and Victoria area.
Manchola was very supportive of his father-in-law's colony and became involved in several disputes that de Leon had with fellow empresario Green DeWitt
. The Mexican government had made an error when granting DeWitt lands on which to establish a colony and included part of the land that had already been assigned to de Leon and his settlers. The land disputes may have contributed to a warning that Manchola gave to the Mexican military commander for Texas:
. One of his first acts was to propose a renaming of the town from which he was elected. The town which had grown around the presidio was also known as La Bahía (the bay), despite the fact that neither presidio nor town were currently located on or near a bay. Manchola proposed that the town be renamed after Father Hidalgo, who had played a great role in the Mexican War of Independence
. Rather than name the town Hidalgo, though, Manchola created an anagram
, "Goliad". The request was approved on February 4, 1829. At the same time, the town was elevated to a villa, making it a small capital town with jurisdiction over nearby areas. During his term he also protested to the governor, Agustin Viesca
, insisting that the Mexican government enforce the September 1823 order to secularize all missions that had bee operating for more than 10 years. Manchola prepared detailed documentation of the histories of the missions in his area and incidents in which settlers accused the mission Indians of wrongdoing. Manchola wanted the missions to be disbanded, with the lands sold to settlers. Viesca soon ordered the political chief at San Antonio de Bexar to enforce the secularization order, which was finally implemented in 1830.
Manchola also successfully helped the settlers in his father's colony to resolve title issues. Under his prodding, the legislature finally set official boundaries for de Leon's colony and appointed a commissioner to issue titles to the families which had already settled in that area. This resulted in the creation of a new municipality for the area around Guadalupe Victoria
, the major city in de Leon's colony.
After his legislative term ended, Manchola was elected alcade (mayor) of Goliad. Manchola was a firm believer that Texas deserved separate statehood within Mexico. In August 1832, at the request of his friend, influential empresario
Stephen F. Austin
, Manchola used his influence with the local council to persuade them to make an official declaration of support for Mexican President Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna
and the Mexican Constitution of 1824. At the time, such a declaration was illegal. Soon, however, the governor of Coahuila y Tejas and other communities within the state made similar declarations.
In October 1832, delegates met at the Convention of 1832
to write a constitution for a proposed state of Texas. Manchola reached the convention shortly after the delegates approved the document and had elected William H. Wharton
to bring it to Mexico City. Manchola volunteered to accompany Wharton at his own expense—he and other delegates thought the expedition might have more success if a Tejano
was also involved. Their departure was delayed after Austin and the political leaders in San Antonio de Bexar expressed reservations about the timing of the request. Within a few weeks, a cholera
epidemic reach Texas. Manchola likely died during the epidemic.
Mexican Texas
Mexican Texas is the name given by Texas history scholars to the period between 1821 and 1836, when Texas was an integral part of Mexico. The period began with Mexico's victory over Spain in its war of independence in 1821. For the first several years of its existence, Mexican Texas operated very...
. He twice served as commandant of Presidio La Bahía
Presidio La Bahía
The Presidio Nuestra Señora de Loreto de la Bahía, known more commonly as Presidio La Bahia, or simply La Bahia is a fort constructed by the Spanish Army that became the nucleus of the city of Goliad, Texas, United States. Originally founded in 1721 on the ruins of the failed French Fort Saint...
. He served two terms in the legislature of the state of Coahuila y Tejas
Coahuila y Tejas
Coahuila y Tejas was one of the constituent states of the newly established United Mexican States under its 1824 Constitution.It had two capitals: first Saltillo, and then Monclova...
. At his behest, the community which had grown outside the fort was renamed Goliad and elevated in status to a villa. During his legislative service, Manchola also negotiated official boundaries for the colony of his father-in-law, Martín De León
Martín De León
Martín De León was a rancher and wealthy Mexican empresario descended from Spanish aristocracy. He was the patriarch of one of the prominent founding families of early Texas. De León and his wife Patricia de la Garza established De León's Colony, the only predominantly Mexican colony in Texas...
, and had a commissioner appointed to grant official titles to the settlers in that colony. After returning home, Manchola became the alcade of Goliad and initiated a resolution–then considered illegal– supporting the Constitution of 1824 and Mexican President Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna
Antonio López de Santa Anna
Antonio de Padua María Severino López de Santa Anna y Pérez de Lebrón , often known as Santa Anna or López de Santa Anna, known as "the Napoleon of the West," was a Mexican political leader, general, and president who greatly influenced early Mexican and Spanish politics and government...
. He briefly attended the Convention of 1832
Convention of 1832
The Convention of 1832 was the first political gathering of colonists in Mexican Texas. Delegates sought reforms from the Mexican government and hoped to quell the widespread belief that settlers in Texas wished to secede from Mexico...
and volunteered to accompany William H. Wharton
William H. Wharton
William Harris Wharton was an early colonist, political leader and orator in Texas.Wharton was born in Virginia and was raised by an uncle following the deaths of his parents. He graduated from the University of Nashville and was admitted to the Tennessee bar in 1826...
in journeying to Mexico City to request separate statehood for Texas. The mission was postponed, and Manchola died of cholera in late 1832 or early 1833.
Personal life
Rafael Manchola was descended from an aristocratic Spanish family. He married Marie de Jesus de Leon, fourth daughter of empresario Martín De LeónMartín De León
Martín De León was a rancher and wealthy Mexican empresario descended from Spanish aristocracy. He was the patriarch of one of the prominent founding families of early Texas. De León and his wife Patricia de la Garza established De León's Colony, the only predominantly Mexican colony in Texas...
. Manchola and his wife had one daughter.
Military and business careers
Manchola was a Mexican military officer stationed at Presidio La BahíaPresidio La Bahía
The Presidio Nuestra Señora de Loreto de la Bahía, known more commonly as Presidio La Bahia, or simply La Bahia is a fort constructed by the Spanish Army that became the nucleus of the city of Goliad, Texas, United States. Originally founded in 1721 on the ruins of the failed French Fort Saint...
in Mexican Texas
Mexican Texas
Mexican Texas is the name given by Texas history scholars to the period between 1821 and 1836, when Texas was an integral part of Mexico. The period began with Mexico's victory over Spain in its war of independence in 1821. For the first several years of its existence, Mexican Texas operated very...
. He served as the commandant of the presidio from 1826–7 and then in 1831. Manchola owned a large ranch, and his cattle brand was one of the first registered in the Goliad and Victoria area.
Manchola was very supportive of his father-in-law's colony and became involved in several disputes that de Leon had with fellow empresario Green DeWitt
Green DeWitt
Green DeWitt was an empresario in Mexican Texas. He founded the DeWitt Colony, one of the most successful.-Early years:...
. The Mexican government had made an error when granting DeWitt lands on which to establish a colony and included part of the land that had already been assigned to de Leon and his settlers. The land disputes may have contributed to a warning that Manchola gave to the Mexican military commander for Texas:
"'No faith can be placed in the Anglo-American colonists because they are continually demonstrating that they absolutely refuse to be subordinate, unless they find it convenient to what they want anyway, all of which I believe will be very detrimental to us for them to be our neighbors if we do not in time, clip the wings of their audacity by stationing a strong detachment in each new settlement which will enforce the laws and jurisdiction of a Mexican magistrate which should be placed in each of them, since under their own colonists as judges, they do nothing more than practice their own laws which they have practiced since they were born, forgetting the ones they have sworn to obey, these being the laws of our Supreme Government.'"
Politics
In 1829 and 1830, Manchola served as one of two delegates to represent the area around La Bahía in the legislature of the state of Coahuila y TejasCoahuila y Tejas
Coahuila y Tejas was one of the constituent states of the newly established United Mexican States under its 1824 Constitution.It had two capitals: first Saltillo, and then Monclova...
. One of his first acts was to propose a renaming of the town from which he was elected. The town which had grown around the presidio was also known as La Bahía (the bay), despite the fact that neither presidio nor town were currently located on or near a bay. Manchola proposed that the town be renamed after Father Hidalgo, who had played a great role in the Mexican War of Independence
Mexican War of Independence
The Mexican War of Independence was an armed conflict between the people of Mexico and the Spanish colonial authorities which started on 16 September 1810. The movement, which became known as the Mexican War of Independence, was led by Mexican-born Spaniards, Mestizos and Amerindians who sought...
. Rather than name the town Hidalgo, though, Manchola created an anagram
Anagram
An anagram is a type of word play, the result of rearranging the letters of a word or phrase to produce a new word or phrase, using all the original letters exactly once; e.g., orchestra = carthorse, A decimal point = I'm a dot in place, Tom Marvolo Riddle = I am Lord Voldemort. Someone who...
, "Goliad". The request was approved on February 4, 1829. At the same time, the town was elevated to a villa, making it a small capital town with jurisdiction over nearby areas. During his term he also protested to the governor, Agustin Viesca
Agustín Viesca
Agustín Viesca was a governor of the Mexican state of Coahuila y Tejas in 1835. He was the brother of José María Viesca, also a governor of Coahuila y Tejas during 1827-1831....
, insisting that the Mexican government enforce the September 1823 order to secularize all missions that had bee operating for more than 10 years. Manchola prepared detailed documentation of the histories of the missions in his area and incidents in which settlers accused the mission Indians of wrongdoing. Manchola wanted the missions to be disbanded, with the lands sold to settlers. Viesca soon ordered the political chief at San Antonio de Bexar to enforce the secularization order, which was finally implemented in 1830.
Manchola also successfully helped the settlers in his father's colony to resolve title issues. Under his prodding, the legislature finally set official boundaries for de Leon's colony and appointed a commissioner to issue titles to the families which had already settled in that area. This resulted in the creation of a new municipality for the area around Guadalupe Victoria
Victoria, Texas
Victoria is a city in and the seat of Victoria County, Texas, United States. The population was 60,603 at the 2000 census. The three counties of the Victoria Metropolitan Statistical Area had a population of 111,163 at the 2000 census,...
, the major city in de Leon's colony.
After his legislative term ended, Manchola was elected alcade (mayor) of Goliad. Manchola was a firm believer that Texas deserved separate statehood within Mexico. In August 1832, at the request of his friend, influential empresario
Empresario
An empresario was a person who, in the early years of the settlement of Texas, had been granted the right to settle on Mexican land in exchange for recruiting and taking responsibility for new settlers. The word is Spanish for entrepreneur.- Background :...
Stephen F. Austin
Stephen F. Austin
Stephen Fuller Austin was born in Virginia and raised in southeastern Missouri. He was known as the Father of Texas, led the second, but first legal and ultimately successful colonization of the region by bringing 300 families from the United States. The capital of Texas, Austin in Travis County,...
, Manchola used his influence with the local council to persuade them to make an official declaration of support for Mexican President Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna
Antonio López de Santa Anna
Antonio de Padua María Severino López de Santa Anna y Pérez de Lebrón , often known as Santa Anna or López de Santa Anna, known as "the Napoleon of the West," was a Mexican political leader, general, and president who greatly influenced early Mexican and Spanish politics and government...
and the Mexican Constitution of 1824. At the time, such a declaration was illegal. Soon, however, the governor of Coahuila y Tejas and other communities within the state made similar declarations.
In October 1832, delegates met at the Convention of 1832
Convention of 1832
The Convention of 1832 was the first political gathering of colonists in Mexican Texas. Delegates sought reforms from the Mexican government and hoped to quell the widespread belief that settlers in Texas wished to secede from Mexico...
to write a constitution for a proposed state of Texas. Manchola reached the convention shortly after the delegates approved the document and had elected William H. Wharton
William H. Wharton
William Harris Wharton was an early colonist, political leader and orator in Texas.Wharton was born in Virginia and was raised by an uncle following the deaths of his parents. He graduated from the University of Nashville and was admitted to the Tennessee bar in 1826...
to bring it to Mexico City. Manchola volunteered to accompany Wharton at his own expense—he and other delegates thought the expedition might have more success if a Tejano
Tejano
Tejano or Texano is a term used to identify a Texan of Mexican heritage.Historically, the Spanish term Tejano has been used to identify different groups of people...
was also involved. Their departure was delayed after Austin and the political leaders in San Antonio de Bexar expressed reservations about the timing of the request. Within a few weeks, a cholera
Cholera
Cholera is an infection of the small intestine that is caused by the bacterium Vibrio cholerae. The main symptoms are profuse watery diarrhea and vomiting. Transmission occurs primarily by drinking or eating water or food that has been contaminated by the diarrhea of an infected person or the feces...
epidemic reach Texas. Manchola likely died during the epidemic.