Gabino Gaínza

Gabino Crispín Gaínza Fernández de Medrano[1] was born in Pamplona, the capital of Navarre, Spain, on October 25, 1753.[2] He is the second son of José Javier de Gaínza y Monzón, lord of the Gaínza Palace in the Arraíz valley, and Eulalia Fernández de Medrano y Jiménez de Tejada; daughter of Don Enrique Fernandez de Medrano y Vicuña and Maria Francisca Ximenez de Tejada y Mirafuentes. His mother Eulalia Fernandez de Medrano was also the great-niece of Friar Francisco Jiménez de Tejada, 69th Prince and Grand Master of the Order of Malta in the early 18th century.[3] His mother is also related to the 1st Marquises of Ximénez de Tejada, Pedro Gregorio Ximénez de Tejada y Eslava (1708-1794) and Joaquina de Argaiz y Velaz de Medrano (Peralta, b. 1711).[4][5]

On October 25, 1799, at the age of 46, Gaínza married Gregoria Rocafuerte y Bejarano, only 20 years old, at the Matriz Church in Guayaquil. They settled in the port, and over time they had six children, at least 4 sons and 2 daughters. Gregoria Rocafuerte was the sister of the future Ecuadoran patriot and president Vicente Rocafuerte.[6] Doña Manuela Gregoria de Rocafuerte was born on May 11, 1779. She was baptized at the main parish of Guayaquil with the names María Manuela Gregoria on May 17, 1779. She was the daughter of Don Juan Antonio de Rocafuerte y Antolí, born in Morelia, Valencia, in the year 1740, and his wife Doña María Josefa Tecla Rodríguez de Bejarano y Lavayen, who was the sister of the aforementioned Knight of Santiago, Colonel Don Jacinto Bejarano. The father-in-law of the hero Gaínza was a resident of Guayaquil and a captain of artillery.[7]

His military career began when he was only sixteen years old, when he entered the Soria Infantry Regiment on July 27, 1769, founded in 1509 under the name of Tercio de Zamudio, thus being the oldest military unit in active service of the world. Gaínza participated in some of the main battles in the history of Spain, in theaters of operations as far away as Italy, Africa, Flanders, Florida or Peru. The first destinations in his unit were Pamplona itself in 1770, San Sebastián in 1774, Zaragoza from this year until 1777, and Cartagena until 1779. On September 11, 1777, Gaínza was promoted to the rank of second lieutenant,[8] and later to lieutenant and captain in 1779, being assigned to the North African plaza of Oran, Algeria. The following year he participated in the blockade of Gibraltar, his unit was stationed in Algeciras and Campo de Gibraltar, from its beginning until April 1780. Part of the troops of his regiment went in the eighties to garrisons or regiments for the defense of the Americas against the British threat and the American War of Independence, with a garrison in Havana, and later in Cuzco and Lima.[9]

Overseas, Gaínza embarked in the fleet of Lieutenant General Victorio de Navia, being detached from Havana to the Mobila garrison, now Mobile. According to his own words, "not having been able to enter this place due to mishaps at sea, in which I ran a great risk, I headed for the province of Louisiana by way of the Mississippi River". Gaínza later went to Florida, where he participated in the siege of Panzacola, present-day Pensacola. In the Panzacola expedition, in which he participated, according to his words, from beginning to end, we find him as a trench assistant and it is noted that he remained without supplies in one of the trenches for twelve consecutive days, until the surrender of the plaza.[10] Gaínza was later assigned to Havana, participated in various campaigns garrisoning the ships of the Barlovento Squadron, with actions in the Bahamas archipelago on the nao Paula, and made two trips to Guárico.

In 1782, he was in Havana, leading a military life for five years, mingling with the island's society and becoming friends with numerous noblewomen. He even secretly became engaged, and when he was about to request permission from King Carlos IV, his plans were discovered, and his superiors sent him away to Madrid. He arrived there in 1787 and resided at the court for several months. There, he received the appointment of Aide-de-Camp to Brigadier Carlos del Corral, who was appointed Military Chief of the Cusco District in Peru, to suppress the uprising of the Chief of Tungasuca, José Gabriel Condorcanqui, better known as Tupac Amaru II, who posed a constant threat to the authorities in those regions. After signing peace with Great Britain, Gaínza went with his regiment to the Kingdom of Peru. Corral and Gaínza departed from La Coruña, via Panama, Guayaquil, and Lima, and arrived in the Viceroyalty's capital in 1788, when Tupac Amaru had already been executed. He crossed the Isthmus of Panama, where, due to the rugged terrain and the insane nature of the country, according to his own words, he suffered a serious breakdown in his health. After recovering his health, Gaínza traveled throughout the district as an Advisor to Brigadier Corral, and after Corral's death, Gaínza was elected Lieutenant Colonel of the Army and Secretary of the Military Sub-Inspectorate.

His military career continued without any setbacks. He was appointed in 1792 knight of the Order of St. John. He was a confidant of several Peruvian viceroys. That year, he was promoted to Commander General of Trujillo in Peru, with the obligation to fortify and defend the northern coasts from English attacks, once again at war with Spain. He had to clear the seas in that area to ensure uninterrupted trade between Lima, Túmbez, Guayaquil, and Panama. In 1799, he reinforced the military garrisons of the Santa Marta and Túmbez rivers, captured an English whaling frigate, destroyed a corsair schooner, and visited Guayaquil three times. In 1804, Gaínza pacified the rebellious Indigenous peoples of Lambayeque, then became the Military Chief of the Province of Trujillo, fortified the port of Paita, and captured several English schooners. In 1805, he became the Military Commander and Royal Judge of the Province of Chancay and Major General of the Army.

With the rank of Lieutenant Colonel, he served in the Royal Lima when his superior, Manuel González, was sent to the Philippines. Gaínza took command of the Royal Lima unit, and after Pareja's death in Chile in 1810, he devised a comprehensive Plan of Military Operations to halt the Argentine army's march on Chile and Peru.[11] The plan was approved by Fernando VII. This leadership position allowed Gaínza to exert significant influence over military affairs in the region. In 1811, he launched operations against the insurgents and achieved victories in Gamero and Talca, restoring communications between Talcahuano and Lima, which had long been intercepted. For these triumphs, he received the title of Brigadier of the Royal Armies, becoming the highest-ranking military officer in the Viceroyalty of Peru.[12]

After the death of Antonio José Pareja y Serrano de León, brigadier of the Navy, in Chillán on May 21, 1813, Viceroy José Fernando de Abascal y Sousa, Marqués de la Concordia named Gaínza his successor, instructing him to disembark in Arauco,[13] improve their fortifications, spread the king's cause among the population and troops, warn of the promotions made by Pareja and study the possibility of a defensive war or take the offensive. He also entrusted Gaínza with convincing the insurgent army of Chile to lay down its arms and thus avoid bloodshed, under the promise of absolute pardon, and his oath of the monarch and of the new Constitution of Spain.[14] Gaínza left the port of El Callao on December 31 of the same year, with fifteen hundred spears, money, tobacco, sugar, 5 artillerymen, and 2 cannons from his regiment, in the corvette Sebastiana and the brig Potrillo. He arrived in Arauco without incident, crossed the Bio Bio River, and fortified Chillán. There, he handed over command to Colonel Juan Francisco Sánchez.[15]

In January 1814, he was sent to Chile by Viceroy José Fernando de Abascal y Sousa as captain general of the kingdom of Chile and commanding general of the royalist forces. Gaínza arrived in Chile on January 31, 1814. He replaced Juan Francisco Sánchez, a captain who led the royalist forces in Chillán after the death of Brigadier Antonio Pareja. The instructions of Viceroy Abascal were to revive the war against the Chilean insurgents, which had fallen into a state of inactivity. Gaínza embarked from El Callao at the head of a force of 125 chosen men. This was augmented by the addition of 700 militiamen from Chiloé, after the arrival in Chile.

The landing of Gaínza in Arauco on January 31, 1814, could not be prevented by the troops of Bernardo O'Higgins, commander of the insurgents in this sector. In Arauco on February 3, 1814, he met with numerous Mapuches and obtained promises of their support and recognition of old treaties with the crown, as well as the promise of Toqui (War Chief) Mañil to supply 6,000 soldiers. After arriving at Arauco Bay on the following January 31 and finding a Chiloé battalion there, he entered into relations with the main Mapuche leaders, celebrating with them at Parliament of Quilín, to whom Gaínza gave batons, medals and other gifts.

One of his columns, commanded by Ildefonso de Elorriaga, took Talca on March 3, 1814. In this action a small, isolated unit of patriots was massacred. This incident, together with the heroic death of the commander of the insurgents, Colonel Carlos Spano, provoked a political crisis in Santiago. The Superior Governing Council presided over by Agustín Eyzaguirre had abandoned Talca only a few days before, moving towards the capital with nearly all the royalist forces of Talca as their escort. However, one result of this embarrassing situation in Talca was the fall of the Council. Francisco de la Lastra took control of the government as Supreme Director.

The following day (March 4), Gaínza received another stroke of luck from one of his militia units, commanded by Clemente Lataño. This unit took prisoner José Miguel Carrera and Luis Carrera, old chiefs of the patriot army.

Gaínza was victorious at Cancha Rayada on the 29th of the same month; he also expanded the royalist territory with the squares of Concepción and Talcahuano. The successes of the royalist side had political repercussions among the insurgents. However, the outcome of the campaign became less certain with time. Neither side could achieve a decisive victory. Gaínza and his officers were alternately victorious and defeated in the following actions:

• The Battle of Cucha-Cucha
• The Battle of Gamero
• The Battle of El Quilo
• The Battle of El Membrillar
• The First Battle of Cancha Rayada
• The Battle of Guajardo
• The Battle of Río Claro
• The Battle of Quechereguas

At the conclusion of the last action, on April 5, 1814, both armies were exhausted and in terrible logistic conditions. After three months of operations under Gaínza's command, the royalists had increased the territory under their control, taking Talcahuano and Concepción, but the royalist force had been seriously weakened.

Because of this, the arrival of English Commodore James Hillyar with instructions from Viceroy Abascal to negotiate with the rebels was considered opportune. After negotiations, Gaínza signed the Treaty of Lircay, committing himself to leave the Province of Concepción. In exchange, he obtained promises of loyalty to Ferdinand VII on the part of the patriot envoys, Bernardo O'Higgins and Juan Mackenna.

Everything indicated that the treaty was nothing else except a way in which both sides could obtain a truce. Gaínza did not abandon his positions by the agreed date, nor did the rebels live up to the agreement.

Nevertheless, Viceroy Abascal was infuriated when he read the text of the Treaty of Lircay. He removed Gaínza from command, replacing him with Mariano Osorio. Not content with that, he had Gaínza court martialed in Lima, accused of exceeding his orders. Gaínza had to wait under guard for the conclusion of the court martial in Lima. In 1816, he was acquitted, but his reputation in the army was seriously damaged. Therefore, he moved to Quito, under the jurisdiction of the viceroy of New Granada.

On March 9, 1821, Lieutenant General Carlos Luis de Urrutia, in order to restore his health, which according to his own words had been quite ailing since the previous August, temporarily delegated command of the province in all its aspects to Brigadier Gaínza, deputy general director of the troops, in accordance with the Royal Order on the matter, which he communicated to the First Secretary of State on March 18. On the same date, Gaínza also reported on said delegation. In both files, the testimony by which the Captain General, Superior Political Chief, temporarily delegated command is preserved.

According to it, at five in the afternoon on March 9, and on the advice of doctors Pedro Molina and Vicente Carranza, who considered that the absolute separation of the general for some time from command was urgently necessary, once informed of the Provincial Council and with its agreement and conformity, the political, military and financial command was delegated in Gaínza. Likewise, it was ordered that the ruling be communicated to the Most Excellent Provincial Directorate, to the Superior Court of the Territorial Court, to the Most Illustrious diocesan prelates and to the other bodies, chiefs and authorities of these provinces, notifying His Majesty of this.

After that, Gaínza took and signed a military oath, placed his right hand on the sacred four Gospels, swore to defend the mystery of the Immaculate Conception (patron saint of the Spanish infantry) and to uphold the Political Constitution of the Spanish Monarchy sanctioned by the General and Extraordinary Cortes of the nation. On June 1, he informed the inhabitants of the pardon that the Cortes had issued on October 9 of the previous year, which had been communicated to him by Royal Decree of October 20, in which a general pardon was granted in places where the inhabitants had recognized the Constitution, with the immediate release of all the prisoners and return to their homes of the exiles.[16] Gaínza had officially been given the position of Captaincy General of Guatemala, with its territory in Soconusco (Chiapas) and five provinces: Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua and Costa Rica. He assumed governmental power on March 9, 1821.

The new viceroy of Peru, Joaquín de la Pezuela, protested against this appointment, arguing that Gaínza was sympathetic to the rebels.

Plan Pacífico (of the Independence of the Captaincy General of the Kingdom of Guatemala)[17] is an important document likely drafted by Mariano and Juan José de Aycinena, Pedro Molina, Mariano de Beltranena, and José Francisco Barrundia in late August 1821, at the Aycinena family's house. It served as the basis for organizing the independence on September 15, 1821. This was a plan for peaceful independence and to appoint Gaínza at the head of this newly formed government.

"In the name of the Supreme Being: Article 1. We do not have a leader for this endeavor. We hereby choose, of our own free will and general consent, El señor Don Gabino Gaínza, our current interim leader. If he accepts, he will become the leader in all the capacity and legitimacy conferred upon him by the people's choice. He will receive the honors and rewards due to his merit, our gratitude, and that of our posterity."

Article 2 states that the acceptance of the Leader (Gaínza) will have as its first effect the convocation of a General Assembly of residents (under the pretext of preventing disorder in case the people decide on independence), in which only those attending will be secretly proposed to vote for or against it. Once the vote is taken, two scrutineers will be appointed to count the votes and publish the results. Article 4 states that this board will be appointed immediately and must consist of two individuals from each province, striving for them to be natives of those provinces. The named individuals will be called immediately, and they will be sworn in to faithfully fulfill their duties. The Board will be considered installed once this is done. Its initial task will be to extend the corresponding reports of this prior step toward independence to the higher and lower political leaders, and constitutional mayors of the towns with whom the Leader (Gaínza) will form the government. In subsequent sessions, the Board will focus on preparing the elements that the National Congress must consist of, the way to convene it, etc., etc.

This document is significant because it clearly states in Article 7 that nothing will be changed regarding the government, and there will be no discussion of removing any employee unless they are considered a danger to the immediate future system. It openly declares in article 8 that they will be natural allies of the Peninsula and confederates of the new American Governments, and in the subsequent articles, that European Spaniards will not only be persecuted but protected, they will obtain the same rights they currently have, and maintain privileges concerning trade with foreigners. This was their means to proclaim their independence and the equitable principles upon which it must be based, as well as the relationships they maintained with the Spaniards. It was then stated that if Gaínza accepts this position, he will proceed to the Cathedral to give thanks to the Most High, and the rest of the people will disperse throughout the city to make the corresponding demonstrations.

On September 14, 1821, one day before the independence act was signed, Gaínza hastily called a meeting on the morning of September 15, 1821 at the National Palace. Gaínza had arrived in the country in March of that same year from the Kingdom of Chile and since then he has temporarily assumed command of the Kingdom of Guatemala. At the meeting called by Gaínza, the declaration of independence was signed, which was approved with 23 votes in favor and 7 against. There participated representatives of the government, municipality, Catholic Church, University of San Carlos, Trade Council, legal board among other groups. This act was an outright declaration of independence from Spain. On the 15th of September, a council meeting at which independence was finally declared and chaired by Gaínza, and the text of the Act itself was written by Honduran intellectual and politician José Cecilio del Valle and signed by representatives of the various Central American provinces, including José Matías Delgado, José Lorenzo de Romaña and José Domingo Diéguez. Gaínza was one of the signers of the Act of Independence of Central America. The city government decided that their act would have to be ratified by a national congress, to be inaugurated on March 1, 1822. Until that occurred, the royal officials, political, military and administrative, were to remain in their positions. After the Junta was appointed, Gaínza appeared on a balcony and shouted, "Long live independence!". The Provisional Preparatory Junta was presented at the same location and Gaínza introduced it to the people. In this way, Gaínza became, de facto, the first President "Jefe Politico Superior" of the independent nation of Central America (Jefe político in the words of the Act of Independence) extending from Soconusco (in Chiapas) through Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua and Costa Rica.

There was one important point that the Act of Independence of September 15 did not address—the relation of the Kingdom of Guatemala to the recently created Mexican Empire. In August 1821, Mexico achieved its independence, under the rule of Emperor Agustín de Iturbide. The success of neighboring Mexico in its own war of independence led some in Central America to see it as the region's best chance of continued unity, while others wished for absolute independence for their own gain, for idealistic reasons, or because they feared Mexico could not protect their economic interests. Article 2 of the Act of Independence provided for the formation of a congress to "decide the point of absolute general independence and fix, in case of agreement, the form of government and the fundamental law of governance" for the new state. This constituent assembly was meant to meet the following March, but the opportunity never came. Instead, on 29 October 1821 the president of the provisional governing council of newly independent Mexico, Agustín de Iturbide, sent a letter to Gaínza (now the president of the interim government of Central America) and the council of delegates representing the provinces of Chiapas, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua and Costa Rica with a proposal that Central America join the Mexican Empire under the terms of the Three Guarantees of the Treaty of Córdoba. Earlier he had written to encourage the Central Americans to send delegates to the constituent congress scheduled to meet in Mexico City. But the new letter ended with the announcement of a more concrete political reality—a large Mexican army had been sent to the border with Guatemala.

Gaínza answered a month later, on December 3, 1821, that it was necessary to consult with various city governments in order to respond to the invitation. He concluded his answer with the words "I hope that Your Excellency will suspend your decisions and stop the advance of your army until the arrival of my answer, which I will send by mail on January 3, 1822."

Two days after that date, Gaínza was able to send his response, although it was not complete. 32 city governments accepted annexation; 104 accepted with conditions; 2 opposed the plan; and another 21 felt that the question could be decided only by the congress scheduled to meet in March.

This last group was correct; although Gaínza's plan to consult the city governments bought some time, it was a clear violation of Article 2 of the Act of Independence: "Congress must decide the point of absolute general independence and fixm, in case of agreement, the form of government and the fundamental law of governance."

In addition, suspicions arose about the count. The secretary of the consultative junta that advised Gaínza, Mariano Gálvez, was accused of having manipulated the results to favor annexation.

But it was also true that many towns (Comayagua, Ciudad Real, Quetzaltenango, Sololá, the intendencias of Nicaragua) joined the Empire on their own initiative, jumping over the chain of command that included Guatemala City. There was much pressure to adopt this decision. Gaínza and the Consultative Provisional Junta thus declared the union of the Kingdom of Guatemala to the Mexican Empire in an act signed January 5, 1822 in Guatemala City.

The consequences included:

• On January 11, 1822, El Salvador denounced the annexation as illegitimate and declared itself in rebellion, and under the direction of José Matías Delgado and Manuel José Arce it prepared for armed resistance.
• On January 23, 1822, Iturbide named Gaínza provisional captain general of Guatemala.
• On February 25, 1822, Gaínza ordered an oath of adhesion to the Mexican Empire.
• On March 30, 1822, Iturbide gave Gaínza the title of lieutenant general of the Kingdom and offered him the position of governor of a province of the Empire or of Nueva Galicia, as a reward for his services. He was appointed Knight of the Grand Cross of the Imperial Order of Our Lady of Guadalupe.
• Gaínza asked for the dispatch of the Mexican troops already at the border (600 men under the command of Vicente Filísola) to Central America.
• On June 12, 1822 Filísola's troops arrived in Guatemala City.
• On June 23, 1822, by order of Iturbide, Gaínza turned over power to Filísola and left the country for Mexico.

As far as is known, Iturbide did not fulfill his promises to Gaínza. The old soldier did not receive the government of a single island. All that is known is that he died in dire poverty in Mexico City around the year 1829.

His widow returned to Guayaquil, with his numerous decorations and an agreement of the city government of Guatemala City that granted her husband a military pension of 10,000 pesos for life annually from 1821, but there is no record that these payments were made.

• Gabino Gaínza This article is a free translation of the article in the Spanish Wikipedia.
• Héctor Gaitán A., Los Presidentes de Guatemala. Artemis & Edinter, Guatemala 1992, ISBN 84-89452-25-3.

Wikisource has original text related to this article:

Acta de Independencia de Centroamérica

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Tratado de Lircay

• Short biography (in Spanish) Archived 2016-03-03 at the Wayback Machine