Mercedes Abrego de Reyes (died 1813) was a heroine of the

Colombia Colombia (, ; ), officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country in South America with insular regions in North America—near Nicaragua's Caribbean coast—as well as in the Pacific Ocean. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Car ...

n independence movement. She was born and raised in

Cúcuta Cúcuta (), officially San José de Cúcuta, is a Colombian municipality, capital of the department of Norte de Santander and nucleus of the Metropolitan Area of Cúcuta. The city is located in the homonymous valley, at the foot of the Eastern ...

. She was married off to José Marcelo Reyes at a very young age. They had three sons, and her husband died a few years later.

Life

When the war of independence began, Abrego gave her enthusiastic support to the freedom fighters. She was a fervent admirer of

Simón Bolívar Simón José Antonio de la Santísima Trinidad Bolívar y Palacios (24 July 1783 – 17 December 1830) was a Venezuelan military and political leader who led what are currently the countries of Colombia, Venezuela, Ecuador, Peru, Panama and B ...

, whom she came to know during the latter's military campaigns in Cúcuta. Abrego actively worked with the patriotic armies which were fighting in the Cucuta valley against the Spanish colonial forces of Ramón Correa and Bartolomé Lizón. When Bolívar was organizing his troops for the

Admirable Campaign The Admirable Campaign () was a military action led by Simón Bolívar in which the provinces of Mérida, Barinas, Trujillo and Caracas were conquered by the Patriots.Arana, M., 2013, Bolivar, New York: Simon & Schuster, Its objective was to fr ...

of 1813, Abrego presented him with a coat embroidered in gold and sequins that she had made herself. Through her numerous contacts, she maintained secret communications with General

Francisco de Paula Santander Francisco José de Paula Santander y Omaña (Villa del Rosario, Norte de Santander, Colombia, April 2, 1792 – Santafé de Bogotá, Colombia, May 6, 1840), was a Colombian military and political leader during the 1810–1819 independ ...

, advising him about the movements of the royalist army. Abrego's information network contributed to Santander's victories in San Faustino and Capacho, against the troops of Matute and Cañas. After Santander was defeated on the plains of Carrillo in October 1813, the Spanish commander Bartolomé Lizón occupied Cucuta and captured Abrego. She was accused of conspiring against the colonial army and aiding and abetting the revolutionary guerrillas. Her death sentence was carried out on 21 October 1813.Bio
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References

{{Authority control Colombian revolutionaries 19th-century Colombian people 19th-century Colombian women 1813 deaths Female revolutionaries