Manuel Codorniu y Ferreras (1 June 1788 – 18 July 1857) was a Spanish military physician, educator and publisher who served in the

Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

(1841–1843) and in the

Constituent Cortes The Constituent Cortes ( es, Las Cortes Constituyentes) is the description of Spain's parliament, the Cortes, when convened as a constituent assembly. In the 20th century, only one Constituent Cortes was officially opened (Cortes are "opened" in ...

(1854–1856) of his native country. During his lifetime, he headed several medical and political publications —including ', an influential

masonic Freemasonry or Masonry refers to Fraternity, fraternal organisations that trace their origins to the local guilds of Stonemasonry, stonemasons that, from the end of the 13th century, regulated the qualifications of stonemasons and their inte ...

newspaper that actively opposed Mexican Emperor

Agustín de Iturbide Agustín de Iturbide (; 27 September 178319 July 1824), full name Agustín Cosme Damián de Iturbide y Arámburu and also known as Agustín of Mexico, was a Mexican army general and politician. During the Mexican War of Independence, he built a ...

in the 1820s— and started an education program in Mexico based on the works of

Joseph Lancaster Joseph Lancaster (25 November 1778 – 23 October 1838) was an English Quaker and public education innovator. He developed, and propagated on the grounds both of economy and efficacy, a monitorial system of primary education. In the first deca ...

Biography

Manuel Codorniu y Ferreras was born in

Esparreguera Esparreguera (; es, Esparraguera) is a municipality in Catalonia, in the province of Barcelona, Spain. It is situated in the comarca A ''comarca'' (, or , or ) is a traditional region or local administrative division found in Portugal, Spain ...

, a small town in the

Province of Barcelona Barcelona (, ) is a province of eastern Spain, in the center of the autonomous community of Catalonia. The province is bordered by the provinces of Tarragona, Lleida, and Girona, and by the Mediterranean Sea. Its area is .Catalonia Catalonia (; ca, Catalunya ; Aranese Occitan: ''Catalonha'' ; es, Cataluña ) is an autonomous community of Spain, designated as a ''nationality'' by its Statute of Autonomy. Most of the territory (except the Val d'Aran) lies on the north ...

, on 1 June 1788. Both his father and grandfather were physicians, and his father, Manuel Codorniu Vidal, served as a military physician as well. He joined the Conciliar Seminary of Barcelona in 1797 and took courses in Latin, Rhetoric, Physics, Mathematics and Metaphysics. In 1804, he graduated with a degree in Philosophy ( es, bachiller en Filosofía) from the

University of Cervera The Royal and Pontifical University of Cervera ( es, Real y Pontificia Universidad de Cervera) was a Spanish university located in Cervera, Province of Lleida, Catalonia. The institution was founded in 1717 by Philip V of Spain, who sought to co ...

and took some courses in

Pathology Pathology is the study of the causes and effects of disease or injury. The word ''pathology'' also refers to the study of disease in general, incorporating a wide range of biology research fields and medical practices. However, when used in ...

and clinical practice at the

University of Valencia The University of Valencia ( ca-valencia, Universitat de València ; also known as UV) is a public research university located in the city of Valencia, Spain. It is one of the oldest surviving universities in Spain, and the oldest in the Vale ...

. After enrolling in a group of volunteers at the

Royal University of Toledo Royal may refer to: People * Royal (name), a list of people with either the surname or given name * A member of a royal family Places United States * Royal, Arkansas, an unincorporated community * Royal, Illinois, a village * Royal, Iowa, a cit ...

—where courses could be accredited without examination— he returned to Cervera and graduated with a degree in Medicine in 1810. He enlisted at the royal army when the

Peninsular War The Peninsular War (1807–1814) was the military conflict fought in the Iberian Peninsula by Spain, Portugal, and the United Kingdom against the invading and occupying forces of the First French Empire during the Napoleonic Wars. In Spain ...

broke out between Spanish monarchists and French imperial forces commanded by

Napoléon Bonaparte Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...

. Carlos Nagués assigned him to the

Sant Ferran Castle The Sant Ferran Castle ( ca, Castell de Sant Ferran; es, Castillo de San Fernando) is situated on a hill in Figueres, Catalonia at the end of Pujada del Castell. It is a large military fortress built in the eighteenth century under the orders of ...

, where he was taken prisoner on 3 May 1811. After the conflict came to and end, he received military awards and a royal pension from King

Ferdinand VII , house = Bourbon-Anjou , father = Charles IV of Spain , mother = Maria Luisa of Parma , birth_date = 14 October 1784 , birth_place = El Escorial, Spain , death_date = , death_place = Madrid, Spain , burial_plac ...

. He joined the Overseas Army ( es, Ejército de Ultramar) and left for the

New Spain New Spain, officially the Viceroyalty of New Spain ( es, Virreinato de Nueva España, ), or Kingdom of New Spain, was an integral territorial entity of the Spanish Empire, established by Habsburg Spain during the Spanish colonization of the Am ...

, arriving to the

Port of Veracruz Veracruz (), known officially as Heroica Veracruz, is a major port city and municipal seat for the surrounding municipality of Veracruz on the Gulf of Mexico in the Mexican state of Veracruz. The city is located along the coast in the central par ...

with liberal Viceroy

Juan O'Donojú Juan de O'Donojú y O'Ryan (, 30 July 1762 – 8 October 1821) was a Spanish-Irish military officer, diplomat and " Jefe Político Superior" ("viceroy") of New Spain from 21 July 1821 to 28 September 1821 during the Mexican War of Independen ...

on 31 June 1821. In Mexico, he researched several endemic diseases and became actively involved in

Scottish Rite The Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite of Freemasonry (the Northern Masonic Jurisdiction in the United States often omits the ''and'', while the English Constitution in the United Kingdom omits the ''Scottish''), commonly known as simply the Sco ...

masonic lodge A Masonic lodge, often termed a private lodge or constituent lodge, is the basic organisational unit of Freemasonry. It is also commonly used as a term for a building in which such a unit meets. Every new lodge must be warranted or chartered ...

s, which at the time served as

Royalist A royalist supports a particular monarch as head of state for a particular kingdom, or of a particular dynastic claim. In the abstract, this position is royalism. It is distinct from monarchism, which advocates a monarchical system of governme ...

political clubs but, in contrast with the local Conservative parties, strongly resisted further influence from the

Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

in public affairs. In

Mexico City Mexico City ( es, link=no, Ciudad de México, ; abbr.: CDMX; Nahuatl: ''Altepetl Mexico'') is the capital and largest city of Mexico, and the most populous city in North America. One of the world's alpha cities, it is located in the Valley o ...

, he founded ''El Sol'', an influential newspaper that opposed Emperor

and cofounded the ' to implement innovative education practices popularized by

through the

British and Foreign School Society The British and Foreign School Society (BFSS) offers charitable aid to educational projects in the UK and around the world by funding schools, other charities and educational bodies. It was significant in the history of education in England, suppor ...

. Spain's persistent refusal to recognize the Mexican independence sparked a nationalist revolt in 1827, and Mexican President

Guadalupe Victoria Guadalupe Victoria (; 29 September 178621 March 1843), born José Miguel Ramón Adaucto Fernández y Félix, was a Mexican general and political leader who fought for independence against the Spanish Empire in the Mexican War of Independence. He ...

ordered the deportation of most Spanish-born citizens. Codorniu's political enemies took advantage of the situation, sent him to a refugees' colony and made sure he abandoned the country. Back in Spain, he was tried by the Purification Tribunal —responsible for exiles and prisoners,— found guilty and discharged from the army in 1829. In 1836, after years practicing medicine privately and volunteering in several epidemic crises, he was readmitted. A few years later, he was elected senator for

Tarragona Tarragona (, ; Phoenician: ''Tarqon''; la, Tarraco) is a port city located in northeast Spain on the Costa Daurada by the Mediterranean Sea. Founded before the fifth century BC, it is the capital of the Province of Tarragona, and part of Tar ...

(1841–1843) and deputy for Castellón to the

(1854–1856). He was grandfather of the notorious forester Ricardo Codorníu y Stárico, who led exemplary reforestations in the 19th century in southeastern Spain. He died 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 ...

on 18 July 1857, at the age of 69.

Books

*' (1820) *' (1825) *' (1826) *' (1838) *' (1838) *' (1845) *' (1849) *' (1850) *' (1854)

Notes and references

{{DEFAULTSORT:Codorniu, Manuel Members of the Senate of Spain Members of the Congress of Deputies (Spain) Spanish military doctors Physicians from Catalonia University of Valencia alumni People from Esparreguera 1788 births 1857 deaths 19th-century Spanish military personnel