Laureano de Torres y Ayala (1645–1722), Marquis of Casa Torres and

Knight of Santiago The Order of Santiago (; es, Orden de Santiago ), is a religious and military order founded in the 12th century. It owes its name to the Patron Saint of Spain, "Santiago" ( St. James the Greater). Its initial objective was to protect the pilgr ...

, was a Spanish military officer and royal governor of '' La Florida'' (1693–1699) and of

Cuba Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribbea ...

(1708–1711 and 1713–1716). During his administration in Florida, he completed the construction of the

Castillo de San Marcos The Castillo de San Marcos (Spanish for "St. Mark's Castle") is the oldest masonry fort in the continental United States; it is located on the western shore of Matanzas Bay in the city of St. Augustine, Florida. It was designed by the Spanish ...

fortress in St. Augustine (''San Agustín''), the provincial capital.

Biography

Laureano José de Torres Ayala a Duadros Castellanos was born in 1645 in

Seville Seville (; es, Sevilla, ) is the capital and largest city of the Spanish autonomous community of Andalusia and the province of Seville. It is situated on the lower reaches of the River Guadalquivir, in the southwest of the Iberian Peninsula ...

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

, and grew up in

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 ...

, where his parents settled when he was still a small child. Ayala came from a noble family, being the son of Tomás de Torres y Ayala and Elvira de Quadros Castellanos. His father was a judge in

in 1649 and mayor, governor and

Captain General Captain general (and its literal equivalent in several languages) is a high military rank of general officer grade, and a gubernatorial title. History The term "Captain General" started to appear in the 14th century, with the meaning of Command ...

of Mérida and

La Grita La Grita is a town in the north west of Táchira state, Venezuela. It has a population of 80.000. Located in an Andean valley, La Grita has a beautiful natural setting and fertile land. The town includes colonial style houses and open plazas. The ...

(in

Venezuela Venezuela (; ), officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ( es, link=no, República Bolivariana de Venezuela), is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many islands and islets in th ...

). He had three brothers: Pedro Ignacio, Cristóbal and Diego Torres Ayala y Quadros. In his youth he joined the

Spanish army The Spanish Army ( es, Ejército de Tierra, lit=Land Army) is the terrestrial army of the Spanish Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is one of the oldest active armies — dating back to the late 15th century. The ...

. In June 1693, Ayala joined a Spanish expedition in '' La Florida'' which passed through what is now

Okaloosa County Okaloosa County is located in the northwestern portion of the U.S. state of Florida, extending from the Gulf of Mexico to the Alabama state line. As of the 2020 census, the population was 211,668. Its county seat is Crestview. Okaloosa County ...

and crossed the natural bridge of the spring-fed Chipola River. On September 21, 1693, Torres y Ayala was appointed Governor of Spanish Florida, replacing

Diego de Quiroga y Losada Diego de Quiroga y Losada was the acting Governor of Spanish Florida 1687–1693. His administration was mainly concerned with building fortifications, including the Castillo de San Marcos, which his predecessors began to defend ''La Florida'' ag ...

. Like the previous governors since 1672, Torres y Ayala oversaw construction of the

, completed in 1695. During his administration, the San Carlos de los Chacatos mission was attacked by

Alibamu The Alabama or Alibamu ( akz, Albaamaha) are a Southeastern culture people of Native Americans, originally from Alabama. They were members of the Muscogee Creek Confederacy, a loose trade and military organization of autonomous towns; their home ...

Indian warriors in 1696. In 1698, the first European settlement (

Presidio Santa Maria de Galve The Presidio Santa María de Galve, founded in 1698 by Spanish colonists, was the first European settlement of Pensacola, Florida after that of Tristan de Luna in 1559–1561. It was in the area of Fort Barrancas at modern-day Naval Air Station Pe ...

) and the first fort (Fort San Carlos de Austria) were founded at the site of present-day

Pensacola Pensacola () is the westernmost city in the Florida Panhandle, and the county seat and only incorporated city of Escambia County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 54,312. Pensacola is the principal ci ...

. He held the post of governor of Florida until 1699, when he returned to Spain, being replaced by

José de Zúñiga y la Cerda José de Zúñiga y la Cerda (1654–1725) was a Spanish nobleman, field marshal and governor of Spanish Florida (1699–1706) and Cartagena de Indias in present-day Colombia (1712–18). He served twenty-seven years in the Spanish Netherlands ...

Between 1704 and 1707, Ayala fought in the

War of the Spanish Succession The War of the Spanish Succession was a European great power conflict that took place from 1701 to 1714. The death of childless Charles II of Spain in November 1700 led to a struggle for control of the Spanish Empire between his heirs, Phil ...

in Europe. On January 18, 1708, Ayala was appointed Governor General of

, and worked mainly at Havana, where he was principally concerned with the island's economic problems and defenses. A Spanish official and landowner, Orri, had proposed a project to sell tobacco for the Cuban government. Ayala thought that the idea would be advantageous to Spain and lent the plan his full support, but had to contend with the opposition of the speculators who legally bypassed customs duties when they shipped tobacco to other ports in America and Spain. The government tobacco monopoly was very successful, and Ayala was rewarded with the title of Marquis de Casa-Torre, notwithstanding his disputes with

Lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations. The meaning of lieutenant differs in different militaries (see comparative military ranks), but it is often sub ...

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Jose Fernandez de Córdoba. On February 18, 1711, the ''

oidor An ''oidor'' () was a judge of the Royal ''Audiencias'' and ''Chancillerías'', originally courts of Kingdom of Castile, which became the highest organs of justice within the Spanish Empire. The term comes from the verb ''oír'', "to hear," referr ...

'' (judge of the

Real Audiencia A ''Real Audiencia'' (), or simply an ''Audiencia'' ( ca, Reial Audiència, Audiència Reial, or Audiència), was an appellate court in Spain and its empire. The name of the institution literally translates as Royal Audience. The additional des ...

) Pablo Cavera had Ayala temporarily suspended while the matter was investigated. After sailing to Spain to explain his case, Ayala was reinstated as governor of Cuba on February 14, 1713. The administration of Governor Ayala was a period of relative peace. On June 9, 1714, he ordered the construction of a hospital for

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in Havana; after collecting several large donations, he began construction of the Hospital de San Lazaro and its church on a plot located near Havana city. Ayala founded the city of Santiago del Bejucal. The tobacco industry expanded greatly during his governorship, and the tobacco plant began to be widely cultivated in the

Vuelta Abajo Vuelta Abajo (or Vueltabajo, literally: The lower roundtrip) is a geographic region in the Pinar del Río Province of Cuba. It lies in the extreme western part of the island, bordered on the north by the Sierra de los Órganos mountains.

district. Ayala died in 1722 in

Havana Havana (; Spanish: ''La Habana'' ) is the capital and largest city of Cuba. The heart of the La Habana Province, Havana is the country's main port and commercial center.

Personal life

Laureano de Torres y Ayala married the Cuban Catalina Gertrudis Bayona y Chacón on August 5, 1687 in Havana. He had three children: Tomasa María, Laureano Antonio José, and Sor Manuela de San Laureano.

In popular culture

Laureano de Torres y Ayala appears in the 2013 video game '' Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag'', in which he is portrayed as the Grand Master of the

West Indies The West Indies is a subregion of North America, surrounded by the North Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea that includes 13 independent island countries and 18 dependencies and other territories in three major archipelagos: the Greater A ...

Rite of the

Templar Order , colors = White mantle with a red cross , colors_label = Attire , march = , mascot = Two knights riding a single horse , equipment ...

and the main antagonist. Under the guise of cleaning up

piracy in the Caribbean ]The era of piracy in the Caribbean began in the 1500s and phased out in the 1830s after the navies of the nations of Western Europe and North America with colonies in the Caribbean began combating pirates. The period during which pirates were ...

, he uses his resources to search for a mythical place called the Observatory, which would allow the Templars to spy on anyone on the globe, as well as the only man who can access it:

Bartholomew Roberts ) , type=Pirate , birth_place = Casnewydd Bach, near Puncheston, Pembrokeshire, Wales, Kingdom of England , death_place = At sea off of Cape Lopez, Gabon , allegiance= , serviceyears=1719–1722 , base of operations= Off the coast of the Americas ...

. In the game, Ayala is killed by the protagonist

Edward Kenway Edward James Kenway is a fictional character in Ubisoft's ''Assassin's Creed'' video game franchise. He was introduced as a supporting character in '' Assassin's Creed: Forsaken'', a companion novel to the 2012 video game ''Assassin's Creed III' ...

shortly after finding the Observatory in

Jamaica Jamaica (; ) is an island country situated in the Caribbean Sea. Spanning in area, it is the third-largest island of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean (after Cuba and Hispaniola). Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, and west of His ...

. His recorded historical death in Havana is explained by the use of a body double, who is also killed by Kenway after being mistaken for the real Ayala.

References

External links

– Governor of Cuba
(in Spanish) {{DEFAULTSORT:Torres y Ayala, Laureano 1645 births 1722 deaths People from Havana Spanish explorers of North America Cuban people of Spanish descent Royal Governors of La Florida Cuban politicians Governors of Cuba Knights of Santiago