Fdez de Cordova Baides y Laso de la Vega

Luis Fernández de Córdoba y Arce was a Spanish sailor and military man who was

Governor of Chile The Royal Governor of Chile ruled over the Spanish colonial administrative district called the Captaincy General of Chile, and as a result the Royal Governor also held the title of a Captain General. There were 66 such governors or captains du ...

between May 1625 and December 1629.

Biography

A Spanish noble gentleman of El Carpio, in the Province of Cordova and member of an influential family, Luis Fernandez de Cordoba y Arce made his military career in the navy becoming a general of the Navy of the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

. After that he was given a post, by his uncle the

Viceroy of Peru The viceroys of Peru ruled the Viceroyalty of Peru from 1544 to 1824 in the name of the monarch of Spain. The territories under ''de jure'' rule by the viceroys included in the 16th and 17th century almost all of South America except eastern Brazi ...

Diego Fernández de Córdoba, Marquis of Guadalcázar Diego is a Spanish masculine given name. The Portuguese equivalent is Diogo. The name also has several patronymic derivations, listed below. The etymology of Diego is disputed, with two major origin hypotheses: ''Tiago'' and ''Didacus''. E ...

. He was made general of the

plaza A town square (or square, plaza, public square, city square, urban square, or ''piazza'') is an open public space, commonly found in the heart of a traditional town but not necessarily a true geometric square, used for community gatherings. ...

and

presidio A presidio ( en, jail, fortification) was a fortified base established by the Spanish Empire around between 16th century, 16th and 18th century, 18th centuries in areas in condition of their control or influence. The presidios of Captaincy Genera ...

of El Collo, one of the major naval bases in the Spanish

Pacific The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the continen ...

at the time. When the ''Marquess of Guadalcázar'', heard of the death of the Governor of Chile,

Pedro Osores de Ulloa Pedro Osores de Ulloa (Saa, Vigo, 1554 – Concepcion, Chile, September 18, 1624) was Royal Governor of Chile from November 1621 to September 1624. He replaced Cristóbal de la Cerda y Sotomayor. On his death bed Osores appointed his brother-i ...

, he decided to replace the temporary governor, Francisco de Alava and Nureña. Nureña was the brother-in-law of the deceased Osores, designated by Osores during his final hours. In order to replace him the viceroy designated as temporary Governor his own nephew Luis Fernández de Córdoba y Arce, hoping that he would have occasion to display his military skills in the

War of Arauco The Arauco War was a long-running conflict between colonial Spaniards and the Mapuche people, mostly fought in the Araucanía (historic region), Araucanía. The conflict began at first as a reaction to the Spanish conquerors attempting to estab ...

. He was later confirmed in the position by king

Philip III of Spain Philip III ( es, Felipe III; 14 April 1578 – 31 March 1621) was King of Spain. As Philip II, he was also King of Portugal, Naples, Sicily and Sardinia and Duke of Milan from 1598 until his death in 1621. A member of the House of Habsburg, Phi ...

. From his arrival in Chile, the governor was immediately in the most urgent situation with the

Mapuche The Mapuche ( (Mapuche & Spanish: )) are a group of indigenous inhabitants of south-central Chile and southwestern Argentina, including parts of Patagonia. The collective term refers to a wide-ranging ethnicity composed of various groups who sha ...

toqui Toqui (or Toki) ( Mapudungun for ''axe'' or ''axe-bearer'') is a title conferred by the Mapuche (an indigenous Chilean and Argentinian people) on those chosen as leaders during times of war. The toqui is chosen in an assembly or parliament ('' ...

Butapichún making frequent incursions into Spanish territory north of the Bio-Bio River. In order to contain him, the new governor divided the border into two districts; one under the command of its

maestre de campo ''Maestre de campo'' was a rank created in 1534 by the Emperor Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, Carlos V, inferior in rank only to the ''captain general, capitán general'' and acted as a chief of staff. He was chosen by the monarch in the Council o ...

Alonso de Cordova y Figueroa, and the other run by his Sargento Mayor Juan Fernandez Rebolledo. To each of these commanders he gave a well equipped force, so that as a mobile force it could be used in pursuing Butapichún. Despite these measures and some lucky blows against the natives, the

Malón ''Malón'' (from the Mapudungun ''maleu,'' to inflict damage to the enemy) is the name given to plunder raids carried out by Mapuche warriors, who rode horses into Spanish, Chilean and Argentine territories from the 17th to the 19th centuries, as ...

es of Butapichún continued. He suffered some defeats with the worst being the

Battle of Las Cangrejeras A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and force ...

. He also suggested to the king, without success, the transfer of the Real Audiencia of Chile from

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 ...

to Concepcion.

Sources

* Royal Governors of Chile Spanish generals Year of death unknown 17th-century Chilean people Year of birth unknown People from Campiña Sur (Córdoba) {{Spain-mil-bio-stub