Wikipedia

Francisco de Ceballos y Vargas

Francisco de Paula de Ceballos and Vargas[1] was a Spanish Lieutenant General who acted as captain general in Catalonia and Cuba.[2] He was also Senator for life as Senator, representing Santander Province.[3]

Francisco de Ceballos y Vargas
Minister of War of Spain
In office
December 21, 1875 – March 7, 1879
MonarchAlfonso XII
Prime MinisterAntonio Cánovas del Castillo
Preceded byJoaquín Jovellar
Succeeded byArsenio Martínez Campos
Captain General of Catalonia
In office
1873–1874
Prime MinisterEmilio Castelar
Preceded byArsenio Martínez Campos
Succeeded bySegundo de la Portilla Gutiérrez [ca]
Captain General of Cuba
In office
July 11, 1872 – April 18, 1873
Prime MinisterManuel Ruiz Zorrilla
Preceded byBlas Villate
Succeeded byCándido Pieltaín
Personal details
Born(1814-10-09)October 9, 1814
Torrelavega, Cantabria, Spain
DiedMarch 9, 1883(1883-03-09) (aged 68)
Madrid, Community of Madrid, Spain
Military service
Allegiance Kingdom of Spain
Spanish Republic
Branch Spanish Army
Years of service1833 — 1883
RankLieutenant General
Battles/warsFirst Carlist War
Hispano-Moroccan War
Ten Years' War
Cantonal Revolution

Throughout his military career, he participated in the First Carlist War on the Liberal allegiance, the Hispano-Moroccan War with Leopoldo O'Donnell, the Uprising of the San Gil barracks [es], and the Spanish Glorious Revolution which began the Sexenio Democrático. He served the Spanish Monarchy in the reigns of Isabella II and Alfonso XII as well as the First Spanish Republic.

He was Minister of War during the government of Antonio Cánovas del Castillo, under the reign of Alfonso XII. In addition, he was a member of the Conservative Party.

Biography edit

Early years edit

Francisco de Ceballos y Vargas was born on October 9, 1814, in the Cantabrian municipality of Torrelavega. [a] He was the son of Juan Pablo de Ceballos Prieto who was a lawyer for the Council of Castile, and his wife Basilisa Vicenta María Díaz de Vargas Gutiérrez.

Coming from a family with a tradition in law, from a very young age he showed interest in starting a military career. At the age of 19, on July 11, 1833, he entered the Guardia de Corps [es] of Fernando VII although shortly after, on September 29, 1833, Fernando died and on October 6, General Santos Ladrón de Cegama [es] proclaimed Carlos María Isidro de Borbón as King of Spain in the Riojan town of Tricio, the date on which he began the First Carlist War.

Participation in the First Carlist War edit

 
Infante Carlos María Isidro proclaimed himself king of Spain, which started the First Carlist War.

On the death of Fernando VII, Ceballos supported the cause of Isabel II and the regent María Cristina de Borbón against the brother of the late King Fernando, Carlos María Isidro. The Basque Country was one of the main scenes of the First Carlist War. Bilbao, a liberal and economic nucleus, was a main objective for the Carlists.[4] General Tomás de Zumalacárregui tried to capture the town in 1835, but failed and was wounded in the vicinity of Begoña, four days after his death in Cegamanative. The following year, it resisted a second siege in which Baldomero Espartero defeated the Carlists in the Battle of Luchana.[5] Ceballos participated in the northern front, playing a prominent role; In 1836, he took part of his first military action in the Army of Operations of the North under the command of the then Colonel, Ramón Castañeda, then continuing to the action of Castrejana, where he was wounded, and that of Archanda.

In 1838 he was present in the actions of Gandesa, Daroca and Morella; in 1843 at the siege of Zaragoza, after the siege, he participated in the fights of the highlands of Durango, the siege of Morella, Cuitorres, and Torre Miró. At the end of the war, Ceballos had been promoted to lieutenant colonel and had received the 1st Class Cross of the Laureate Cross of Saint Ferdinand on August 17, 1838, for the assault on Torre Miró and was Captain of the Laredo Provincial Regiment No. 19.[6]

Deputy Governor of Cienfuegos and Santa Clara edit

On March 21, 1845, he embarked at the port of Santander bound for the island of Cuba where, at his own request, he joined the military forces stationed there. In Cuba he held different positions,[7] both military and political, holding the positions of deputy governor of Cienfuegos and deputy governor of Santa Clara. During his stay on the Caribbean island, he reorganized the public administration and devoted great attention to public charity: the Hospital de la Caridad de Cienfuegos was due to his initiative.[7]

In Cuba, he carried out a remarkable number of actions favorable to the interests of the crown, among which his victory against the secessionist attempt of General Narciso López stood out, he also saved the British ship Winlon from its wreck, which earned him the Great Medal of British gold.

Military and political career in Spain and Captain General of Cuba edit

 
His Majesty Alfonso XII granted him the title of Marquis of Torrelavega.

Upon his return to Spain in 1859, with the rank of Colonel,[8] he was appointed Field Assistant to the Captain General of the Army of Africa, Leopoldo O'Donnell, taking part in the Hispano-Moroccan War and participating in the actions of the Castillejos, the Plains of Tetouan, the Valley of Samsa and in the Battle of Wad-Ras [es]; Ceballos ended the contest with the rank of Brigadier General.

On July 22, 1866, he intervened in the San Gil Barracks Uprising [es], a mutiny against Queen Isabella II that took place in Madrid under the auspices of the Progressive Party and the Democratic Party with the intention of overthrowing the monarchy. Ceballos contributed from the first moments in quelling the rebellion, losing his horse during the action and receiving several bullets. At the end of the uprising, the Queen promoted him to the rank of Field Marshal. During the Glorious Revolution, he put down the republican uprising in Andalusia, which led to him being awarded the Great Red Cross of Military Merit.[8]

On February 11, 1873, the First Spanish Republic was established and the President of the Government, Nicolás Salmerón, appointed him Colonel General First Chief of the 1st Distinguished Battalion of Chiefs and Officers that created the republican government for the reorganization of the army. In 1872 he was again assigned to the island of Cuba;[7] being named Captain General of Cuba on July 11, 1872, a position he held until 18 April 1873.[9]

Back in Spain, he was assigned to the site of the Canton of Cartagena,[7] which maintained its independence from the Spanish unitary Republic for six months between 1873 and 1874, during the so-called Cantonal Revolution. On September 8, 1873, he was appointed lieutenant general for war merits, having served the army for 49 years, 7 months and 29 days. On December 21, 1875, he replaced Joaquín Jovellar as Minister of War, a position he held until March 7, 1879.[10] One of his most important acts at that time was his signature as Minister of War in the Constitution of 1876.

In March 1876 he accompanied Alfonso XII to visit the hospitals that had been established in Santander to care for the wounded in the civil war and on March 15 they went to Torrelavega so that the King could get to know the town and was Senator for life of the Senate of Spain, representing Santander.[11] Half a year later, on October 24, 1876, he was granted the title of Marquis of Torrelavega.[12] Among other services, Ceballos performed the function of Chief of the King's Military Quarter.[13] He felt a special predilection for the town of Cohicillos [es] where his parents were from and the Romanesque temple of Santa María de Yermo [es] which, being practically destroyed, restored it at their own expense.

After his death on March 9, 1883, at the age of 68, in Madrid, he was succeeded as marquis by his son from his second marriage, Pablo de Ceballos y Avilés, married to Joaquina López-Doriga y López-Dóriga;[2] who reached the rank of Lieutenant of Cavalry.[14]

Awards edit

 
In 1858, Queen Victoria I of the United Kingdom awarded him the Great Gold Medal of Great Britain for saving the British ship Winlon from the wreck.

Foreign awards edit

References edit

  1. ^ Serrano Valls, Luis (2005). LSV & JCLL Editores (ed.). Las Carolinas Orientales: 1890, la última victoria en el Pacífico antes del eclipse. Spain. p. 63. ISBN 978-84-612-4612-0. Retrieved April 1, 2011.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  2. ^ a b de Valenzuela, Adolfo Barreda (1964). "Torrelavega (Marqués de)". Hidalguía: La Revista de Genealogía, Nobleza y Armas; Publicación Bimestral. Hidalguía: la revista de genealogía, nobleza y armas (p. 745): 67. ISSN 0018-1285.
  3. ^ Senado de España. Archivo. Expediente personal. Accessed on 17 November 2017
  4. ^ Quiroga, Ramón; Marrodán, Miguel Ángel (2001): p. 68.
  5. ^ Sánchez-Beaskoetxea, Javier (2006): p. 42.
  6. ^ "Gaceta del Aula: Noticiario del Aula Militar Bermúdez de Castro" (PDF). Spain. September 2002. Retrieved April 1, 2011.
  7. ^ a b c d El Diario Montañés (ed.). "Francisco de Ceballos y Vargas". Spain. Retrieved April 1, 2011.
  8. ^ a b Ediciones Hidalguía, ed. (1955). Comunicaciones y conclusiones del III Congreso Internacional de Genealogía y Heráldica. Madrid: Insituto Internacional de Genealogía y Heráldica. pp. 299–300. Retrieved April 1, 2011.
  9. ^ Latin American Studies (ed.). "Cuba Heads of State". Retrieved April 1, 2011.
  10. ^ Cañete Páez, Francisco Ángel (May 2006). "Escalafón de los ministros de la guerra 1475-2006" (PDF). Sevilla. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 4, 2016. Retrieved April 1, 2011.
  11. ^ «Senado: I Legislatura» Senado de España. Accessed on April 1, 2011.
  12. ^ González-Doria, Fernando (April 1, 2011). Bitácora (ed.). Diccionario heráldico y nobiliario de los Reinos de España. Madrid. p. 254. ISBN 978-84-8683-200-1.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  13. ^ Máxtor, ed. (2002). Cantabria: letras, artes, historia. Su vida actual. Valladolid. p. 265. ISBN 84-9761-016-4. Retrieved April 1, 2011.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  14. ^ Universidad de Oxford, ed. (1878). Revista de España. p. 169.

Notes edit

  1. ^ Torrelavega was not a city until María Cristina de Habsburgo-Lorena granted it this title on January 29, 1895.

Further reading edit

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