Juan González de la Pezuela y Cevallos, (Lima, 16 May 1810 - Madrid, 1 November 1906), I Count of Cheste, I Marquis de la Pezuela, I viscount of Ayala, Grandee of Spain, was a conservative Spanish politician, soldier and writer.

Life

He was the second son of Joaquín de la Pezuela, 1st Marquess of Viluma and Angela de Cevallos Y Olarria. His elder brother was Manuel de la Pezuela, 2nd Marquess of Viluma. He lived in Peru until 1821. In 1833 he had the rank of a captain and fought in the First Carlist War for the

Christinos The Christinos (Spanish: Cristinos) (sometimes called the ''Isabellinos'' or the ''Liberales'') was the name for the supporters of the claim of Isabel II to the throne of Spain during the First Carlist War. The Christinos drew their name from Mar ...

, distinguishing himself in the battle of Cheste. During the government of

Baldomero Espartero Baldomero Fernández-Espartero y Álvarez de Toro (27 February 17938 January 1879) was a Spanish marshal and statesman. He served as the Regent of the Realm, three times as Prime Minister and briefly as President of the Congress of Deputies. ...

, he was involved in a military conspiracy of supporters of Maria Christina, which tried to seize power in Madrid on 7 October 1841, but failed. After two years in exile, he became a member of the Cortes, and in 1846, he was appointed Minister of Navy for a few weeks, then in 1848, he became Captain General of Madrid. Later during the same year, he was appointed

Governor of Puerto Rico The governor of Puerto Rico ( es, gobernador de Puerto Rico) is the head of government of the Commonwealth (U.S. insular area), Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and commander-in-chief of the Puerto Rico National Guard. The governor has a duty ...

, as a successor to Juan Prim. He held this position until 1851. He founded the Royal Academy of Belles Letters in Puerto Rico, and banned the new dance Merengue for its "corrupting influence".
Between 1853 and 1854, he was

Governor of Cuba This is a list of colonial heads of Cuba. Dates in italics indicate ''de facto'' continuation of office. For continuation after independence ''see'' List of presidents of Cuba. See also * List of governors of Provincia de Santiago de Cuba *Ti ...

. He then returned to Spain to serve as

Captain General of Catalonia The office of Captain General of Catalonia ( es, Capitán general de Cataluña; ca, Capitá general de Catalunya) was created in 1713 by the Nueva Planta decrees of King Philip V of Spain to replace that of Viceroy of Catalonia This is a list of ...

and Captain general of the Army from October 1867. During the 1868 Revolution, he defended the monarchy of Isabella II of Spain, and as a consequence of the defeat, he was then marginalized from important positions under the reign of Amadeo I and under the First Republic. After the rise to the throne of King Alfonso XII in 1874, he was rehabilitated. Pezuela was elected to seat ''a'' of the

Real Academia Española The Royal Spanish Academy ( es, Real Academia Española, generally abbreviated as RAE) is Spain's official royal institution with a mission to ensure the stability of the Spanish language. It is based in Madrid, Spain, and is affiliated with ...

, he took up his seat on 2 December 1875. He became its director on 2 December 1875, and in the same year, he was awarded the

Order of the Golden Fleece The Distinguished Order of the Golden Fleece ( es, Insigne Orden del Toisón de Oro, german: Orden vom Goldenen Vlies) is a Catholic order of chivalry founded in Bruges by Philip the Good, Duke of Burgundy, in 1430, to celebrate his marriage ...

. He dedicated the last 30 years of his life to literature, and translated several works, including the Portuguese epic poem Os Lusíadas of Luís de Camões, and the Divine Comedy of Dante.

References

Sources

Real Academia de la HistoriaEnciclopedia catalana
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pezuela y Cevallos, Juan de la 1809 births 1906 deaths 19th-century Spanish politicians Governors of Cuba Grandees of Spain Marquesses of Spain Military personnel of the First Carlist War Writers from Lima Spanish captain generals Politicians from Lima