General Fernando Baquedano Rodríguez (May 28, 1796 – October 20, 1862) was a

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the east a ...

an military and

political figure A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, a ...

who served in the Chilean War of Independence and the

War of the Confederation The War of the Confederation ( es, Guerra de la Confederación) was a military confrontation waged by Chile, along with Peruvian dissidents, and the Argentine Confederation against the Peru–Bolivian Confederation between 1836 and 1839. As ...

. Fernando Baquedano was of

Basque Basque may refer to: * Basques, an ethnic group of Spain and France * Basque language, their language Places * Basque Country (greater region), the homeland of the Basque people with parts in both Spain and France * Basque Country (autonomous co ...

descent, his ascendants came from Abarzuza. Fernando Baquedano was born in

Santiago Santiago (, ; ), also known as Santiago de Chile, is the capital and largest city of Chile as well as one of the largest cities in the Americas. It is the center of Chile's most densely populated region, the Santiago Metropolitan Region, whose ...

, the son of Miguel Baquedano y Zebreros and of Isidora Rodríguez Rojas. Miguel Baquedano was born in

Leon Leon, Léon (French) or León (Spanish) may refer to: Places Europe * León, Spain, capital city of the Province of León * Province of León, Spain * Kingdom of León, an independent state in the Iberian Peninsula from 910 to 1230 and again f ...

Nicaragua Nicaragua (; ), officially the Republic of Nicaragua (), is the largest country in Central America, bordered by Honduras to the north, the Caribbean to the east, Costa Rica to the south, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. Managua is the cou ...

in 1772 and sailed to Santiago to farm sheep in 1791. Miguel Baquedano was the son of

Navarrese Navarre (; es, Navarra ; eu, Nafarroa ), officially the Chartered Community of Navarre ( es, Comunidad Foral de Navarra, links=no ; eu, Nafarroako Foru Komunitatea, links=no ), is a foral autonomous community and province in northern Spain, ...

settler and sailor Jose Juan Baquedano who sailed to Honduras from

Pontevedra Pontevedra (, ) is a Spanish city in the north-west of the Iberian Peninsula. It is the capital of both the ''Comarca'' (County) and Province of Pontevedra, and of the Rías Baixas in Galicia. It is also the capital of its own municipality whi ...

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in 1763, moving on to

San Salvador San Salvador (; ) is the capital and the largest city of El Salvador and its eponymous department. It is the country's political, cultural, educational and financial center. The Metropolitan Area of San Salvador, which comprises the capital i ...

before finally settling down in Nicaragua. In 1808, at the age of 12, the adolescent Fernando joined the ranks of the Queen's Dragoons. Baquedano took part in the movement for independence from the very beginning, and during the Chilean War of Independence he served under both

José Miguel Carrera José Miguel Carrera Verdugo (; October 15, 1785 – September 4, 1821) was a Chilean general, formerly Spanish military, member of the prominent Carrera family, and considered one of the founders of independent Chile. Carrera was the most impor ...

and

Bernardo O'Higgins Bernardo O'Higgins Riquelme (; August 20, 1778 – October 24, 1842) was a Chilean independence leader who freed Chile from Spanish rule in the Chilean War of Independence. He was a wealthy landowner of Basque-Spanish and Irish ancestry. Althou ...

in the siege of Chillán, and the battles of El Roble, Quirihue and Cauquenes (1813), Gomero, Alto del Quilo, Paso del Maule, Tres Montes y Quechereguas (1814). After the defeat of

Rancagua Rancagua () is a city and commune in central Chile and part of the Rancagua conurbation. It is the capital of the Cachapoal Province and of the O'Higgins Region, located south of the national capital of Santiago. It was originally named Sant ...

he was forced, together with other patriots, to emigrate to Mendoza,

Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...

. Once there he joined the Army of the Andes, and fought in the battles of

Chacabuco Chacabuco is one of the many abandoned nitrate or "saltpeter" towns ("oficinas salitreras" in Spanish) in the Atacama Desert of northern Chile. Other nitrate towns of the Atacama Desert include Humberstone and Santa Laura Saltpeter Works. Unlik ...

and

Talcahuano Talcahuano () (From Mapudungun ''Tralkawenu'', "Thundering Sky") is a port city and commune in the Biobío Region of Chile. It is part of the Greater Concepción conurbation. Talcahuano is located in the south of the Central Zone of Chile. Geo ...

(1817), Cancha Rayada and Maipu (1818). He married Teresa González de Labra y Ros on July 18, 1819, and together they had three sons, among them the future general

Manuel Baquedano Manuel Jesús Baquedano González (; January 1, 1823 – September 30, 1897) was a Chilean soldier and politician, who served as Commander-in-chief of the Army during the War of the Pacific, and briefly as President of Chile during the civil war ...

. After the death of his first wife, he married for a second time on June 27, 1848, to Mercedes Concha Fuentealba, with whom he had another 6 children. Between 1823 and 1824, Baquedano participated in the

Peruvian War of Independence The Peruvian War of Independence ( es, Guerra de Independencia del Perú, links=no) consisted in a series of military conflicts in Peru beginning with viceroy Abascal military victories in the south frontier in 1809, in La Paz revolution an ...

and later under General

Ramón Freire Ramón Freire Serrano (; November 29, 1787 – December 9, 1851) was a Chilean political figure. He was head of state on several occasions, and enjoyed a numerous following until the War of the Confederation. Ramón Freire was one of the pr ...

in the capture of Chiloé (1826) and all the campaigns between 1827 and 1829. During the Chilean Civil War of 1829 he served under the banners of General

José Joaquín Prieto José is a predominantly Spanish and Portuguese form of the given name Joseph. While spelled alike, this name is pronounced differently in each language: Spanish ; Portuguese (or ). In French, the name ''José'', pronounced , is an old vernacu ...

, and fought at the battles of Ochagavía (1829) and Lircay (1830). During the

, he fought under Manuel Bulnes at the battles of Portada de Guías (1838) and Yungay (1839) where he was injured and promoted to Brigadier General. At the Chilean Revolution of 1851, he was the head of General

José María de la Cruz General José María de la Cruz Prieto ( Concepción, March 25, 1799 – November 23, 1875) was a Chilean soldier. The son of Luis de la Cruz and of Josefa Prieto Sotomayor, and was a cousin of future presidents José Joaquín Prieto and Manuel ...

's rebel army general staff, while the government troops were under the command of General Manuel Bulnes, of whom Baquedano's son Manuel was personal adjutant. The rebel army was defeated at the battle of Loncomilla in December 1851. There, he and his son Eleuterio Baquedano where wounded and captured in battle. He was subsequently pardoned by President

Manuel Montt Manuel Francisco Antonio Julián Montt Torres (; September 4, 1809 – September 21, 1880) was a Chilean statesman and scholar. He was twice elected President of Chile between 1851 and 1861. Biography Montt was born in Petorca, Valparaíso R ...

and reincorporated to the service. In 1858, Baquedano retired completely from the army, and was named a member of the Martial Court of Appeals of Concepción. He died of a stroke at his home in Concepción, at the age of 66.

References

External links

Genealogical chart of Baquedano family
{{DEFAULTSORT:Baquedano, Fernando 1796 births 1862 deaths Chilean Army generals Chilean people of Basque descent Politicians from Santiago People of the War of the Confederation Recipients of Chilean presidential pardons

See also

References

External links