José Martín Antonio Gautier Benítez (April 12, 1848 – January 24, 1880) was a Puerto Rican

poet A poet is a person who studies and creates poetry. Poets may describe themselves as such or be described as such by others. A poet may simply be the creator ( thinker, songwriter, writer, or author) who creates (composes) poems (oral or writte ...

of the

Romantic Era Romanticism (also known as the Romantic movement or Romantic era) was an artistic, literary, musical, and intellectual movement that originated in Europe towards the end of the 18th century, and in most areas was at its peak in the approximate ...

Early years

Gautier Benítez was born in

Caguas, Puerto Rico Caguas (, ) is a city and municipality of Puerto Rico located in the Central Mountain Range of Puerto Rico, south of San Juan and Trujillo Alto, west of Gurabo and San Lorenzo, and east of Aguas Buenas, Cidra, and Cayey. Caguas was founded ...

to Rodulfo Gautier and the Puerto Rican poet, Alejandrina Benitez de Gautier. His great-aunt,

María Bibiana Benítez María Bibiana Benítez Batista (December 10, 1783 – April 18, 1873 or 1875) was Puerto Rico's first female poet and one of its first playwrights. She was the first of three renowned poets in her family, the others being her niece and adopted d ...

, was also a well known Puerto Rican poet. He was mostly influenced by the exponents of the Romantic poetry of the 19th century. His great-great-uncle was José Benítez, mayor of Ponce in 1800. Gautier Benítez's father wanted him to take up a military career and so in 1865, he was sent to military school in

San Juan San Juan, Spanish for Saint John, may refer to: Places Argentina * San Juan Province, Argentina * San Juan, Argentina, the capital of that province * San Juan, Salta, a village in Iruya, Salta Province * San Juan (Buenos Aires Underground), ...

. When he graduated, he went to

Madrid Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the second-largest city in the European Union (EU), and ...

, Spain, where he continued his military education. When Gautier Benítez returned to Puerto Rico from Spain, he found a job in the provincial government office. According to his military records, between September 26 and November 8 of 1868, Gautier Benítez fought against the members of the "Revolution Committee of Puerto Rico" involved in "

El Grito de Lares ''El Grito de Lares'' (''The Cry of Lares''), also referred to as the Lares uprising, the Lares revolt, the Lares rebellion, or the Lares revolution, was the first major revolt against Spanish rule in Puerto Rico. The revolt was planned by Ra ...

", a short lived independence

revolt Rebellion, uprising, or insurrection is a refusal of obedience or order. It refers to the open resistance against the orders of an established authority. A rebellion originates from a sentiment of indignation and disapproval of a situation and ...

against Spanish rule in

Puerto Rico Puerto Rico (; abbreviated PR; tnq, Boriken, ''Borinquen''), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, link=yes, Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, lit=Free Associated State of Puerto Rico), is a Caribbean island and Unincorporated ...

. In 1873 he joined the Liberal Reformist Party and became a principal force behind the creation of the ''

Ateneo Puertorriqueño The Ateneo Puertorriqueño (Puerto Rican Athenaeum), is a cultural institution in Puerto Rico. Founded on April 30, 1876, it has been called Puerto Rico's oldest cultural institution, however, it is actually its third oldest overall and second c ...

''. In 1878 he became the co-founder, along with his friend Manuel de Elzabura, of the ''Puerto Rican Review''. That same year he wrote his first poem ''A Puerto Rico'' (To Puerto Rico), was highly acclaimed by his contemporaries as one of his greatest works. ''A Puerto Rico'' also received an award from the ''Ateneo''.

Later years

In 1879, Gautier Benítez's mother, Alejandrina, died and he also became terminally ill with

tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease usually caused by '' Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can also affect other parts of the body. Most infections show no symptoms, in ...

. He retired to his house where he would live until he died. Gautier Benítez died in

, aged 32 years of age and is laid to rest in

Santa Maria Magdalena de Pazzis Cemetery Santa Claus, also known as Father Christmas, Saint Nicholas, Saint Nick, Kris Kringle, or simply Santa, is a legendary figure originating in Western Christian culture who is said to bring children gifts during the late evening and overnight ...

Old San Juan Old San Juan ( es, Viejo San Juan) is a historic district located at the "northwest triangle" of the Isleta de San Juan, islet of San Juan. Its area roughly correlates to the Ballajá, Old San Juan, Ballajá, Catedral, Old San Juan, Catedral, Ma ...

. Gautier Benítez's verses, entitled ''Poemas'' (Poems) were published posthumously in 1880.

Poems by Gautier Benítez

Among his works are: ''A Puerto Rico (Ausencia)'' (To Puerto Rico (Absence)), ''A Puerto Rico (Regreso)'' (To Puerto Rico (Return)) and the following:. *Americana *Como Tu Quieras *Deber De Amar *El Manzanillo *El Poeta *Ella y Yo *Enfermo *INSOMNIO *La Barca *La Nave *Las Aves De Paso *Los Ojos De T. *Oriental *Romance *Un Encargo A Mis Amigos *Un Sueño *Zoraida

Legacy and honors

The city of

Caguas Caguas (, ) is a city and municipality of Puerto Rico located in the Central Mountain Range of Puerto Rico, south of San Juan and Trujillo Alto, west of Gurabo and San Lorenzo, and east of Aguas Buenas, Cidra, and Cayey. Caguas was founded ...

named a

high school A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper seconda ...

and

public housing Public housing is a form of housing tenure in which the property is usually owned by a government authority, either central or local. Although the common goal of public housing is to provide affordable housing, the details, terminology, def ...

project after Gautier Benítez. The

island An island (or isle) is an isolated piece of habitat that is surrounded by a dramatically different habitat, such as water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, skerries, cays or keys. An island ...

–

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality'' may also mean the go ...

Vieques Vieques (; ), officially Isla de Vieques, is an island and municipality of Puerto Rico, in the northeastern Caribbean, part of an island grouping sometimes known as the Spanish Virgin Islands. Vieques is part of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, ...

honored him by naming its

public library A public library is a library that is accessible by the general public and is usually funded from public sources, such as taxes. It is operated by librarians and library paraprofessionals, who are also Civil service, civil servants. There are ...

the ''José Gautier Benítez Public Library''. In the municipality of Hatillo an

elementary school A primary school (in Ireland, the United Kingdom, Australia, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, and South Africa), junior school (in Australia), elementary school or grade school (in North America and the Philippines) is a school for primary ed ...

was named after him. The song "

Lamento Borincano "Lamento Borincano" ('Puerto Rican Lament') is Rafael Hernández Marín's acclaimed composition in Puerto Rico's patriotic tradition. It takes its name from the free musical form Lament (Latin, ''lāmentor''), and from Borinquen, an indigenous n ...

", from Rafael Hernández mentions Gautier Benítez in it "Borinquen, la tierra del edén. La que al cantar, el gran Gautier llamó la perla de los mares." In 2019 construction began on the José Gautier Benítez Development, a mixed-income residential area in Caguas.

Note

References