Felipe de Sotelo Osorio was a Spanish military leader who served as Governor of

New Mexico ) , population_demonym = New Mexican ( es, Neomexicano, Neomejicano, Nuevo Mexicano) , seat = Santa Fe , LargestCity = Albuquerque , LargestMetro = Tiguex , OfficialLang = None , Languages = English, Spanish ( New Mexican), Navajo, Ker ...

between 1625 and 1630.

Biography

Felipe de Sotelo Osorio was not a practicing Catholic, so he did not usually go to Mass. He joined the Spanish Navy in his youth, eventually becoming an

Admiral Admiral is one of the highest ranks in some navies. In the Commonwealth nations and the United States, a "full" admiral is equivalent to a "full" general in the army or the air force, and is above vice admiral and below admiral of the fleet, ...

. (se
Sotelo information
He was appointed Governor of

Santa Fe de Nuevo México Santa Fe de Nuevo México ( en, Holy Faith of New Mexico; shortened as Nuevo México or Nuevo Méjico, and translated as New Mexico in English) was a Kingdom of the Spanish Empire and New Spain, and later a territory of independent Mexico. The ...

on 21 December 1625. At that time, Osorio lived in the modern-Mexico. However, he traveled to Santa Fe without the aid of any means of transport, which involved travelling 1500 miles. Accompanied by the Fray

Alonso de Benavides Alonso de Benavides, OFM ( pt, Afonso de Benavides) (c.1578-1635) was a Portuguese Franciscan missionary active in New Mexico, in the early part of the seventeenth century. His use of the term '' Navaho'' is said to be the first printed reference ...

, they reached the city on 6 February 1626. After becoming governor, Sotelo rejected the

Roman Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

that he viewed as a

dictatorship A dictatorship is a form of government which is characterized by a leader, or a group of leaders, which holds governmental powers with few to no limitations on them. The leader of a dictatorship is called a dictator. Politics in a dictatorship are ...

, thus provoking clashes with the institution. It is said that Sotelo once joined a Catholic mass when this one had already started, and reproached some of his soldiers for not standing when they saw him entering the enclosure. Although the soldiers reminded him that they should alway remain seated before the

Sanctus The Sanctus ( la, Sanctus, "Holy") is a hymn in Christian liturgy. It may also be called the ''epinikios hymnos'' ( el, ἐπινίκιος ὕμνος, "Hymn of Victory") when referring to the Greek rendition. In Western Christianity, the ...

, Sotelo angrily insisted that they always had to stand up in his presence. Sotelo also said that if he was

excommunicated Excommunication is an institutional act of religious censure used to end or at least regulate the communion of a member of a congregation with other members of the religious institution who are in normal communion with each other. The purpose ...

by the church, he would force a priest to suspend that excommunication in just two hours. These statements (considered blasphemies by the Clergy) resulted in legal charges, which were led by the

Inquisition The Inquisition was a group of institutions within the Catholic Church whose aim was to combat heresy, conducting trials of suspected heretics. Studies of the records have found that the overwhelming majority of sentences consisted of penances, ...

. Felipe de Sotelo Osorio was replaced by

Francisco Manuel de Silva Nieto Francisco Manuel de Silva Nieto (died 1632) was Governor of New Mexico at a time when it was a province of New Spain. Biography Captain Don Francisco Manuel de Silva Nieto left Mexico City on 4 September 1628, reaching Santa Fe on 1 May 1629, w ...

in 1630.Colonial Governors, 1614–1625
Edited by José García.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Osorio, Felipe de Sotelo Colonial governors of Santa Fe de Nuevo México