Pedro Antonio de Cevallos Cortés y Calderón, also spelled Ceballos (29 June 1715 – 26 December 1778), was a Spanish military

Governor of Buenos Aires The Governor of Buenos Aires Province ( es, Gobernador de la Provincia de Buenos Aires) is a citizen of the Buenos Aires Province of Argentina, holding the office of governor for the corresponding period. The governor is elected alongside a vic ...

between 1757 and 1766, and the first Viceroy of the Río de la Plata in 1776.

Biography

Pedro Antonio de Cevallos was born in

Cádiz Cádiz (, , ) is a city and port in southwestern Spain. It is the capital of the Province of Cádiz, one of eight that make up the autonomous community of Andalusia. Cádiz, one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in Western Europe, ...

, and came from a renowned

Cantabria Cantabria (, also , , Cantabrian: ) is an autonomous community in northern Spain with Santander as its capital city. It is called a ''comunidad histórica'', a historic community, in its current Statute of Autonomy. It is bordered on the east ...

n family. He is best remembered for conquering the Colonia de Sacramento twice : in his first expedition in 1762–1763 during and in the aftermath of the defeated

Spanish invasion of Portugal (1762) The 1762 Spanish invasion of Portugal between 5 May and 24 November, was a military episode in the wider Fantastic War in which Spain and France were defeated by the Anglo-Portuguese Alliance with broad popular resistance. It involved at firs ...

, and in his second expedition in 1776–1777 during the Spanish–Portuguese War, 1776–1777. On 12 October 1776 he sailed with an army from Cadiz, and spent the Southern Hemisphere summer in Buenos Aires, where he had been appointed Viceroy. On 22 April 1777 he landed in Montevideo with a force of 9316 men. He then marched to

Colonia del Sacramento , settlement_type = Capital city , image_skyline = Basilica del Sanctísimo Sacramento.jpg , imagesize = , image_caption = Basílica del Santísimo Sacramento , pushpin_map = Uruguay , subdivisio ...

, a disputed Portuguese city in present-day Uruguay, which surrendered almost immediately. He then marched towards Rio Grande do Sul in Brazil, conquered

Santa Catarina island Santa Catarina Island ( pt, Ilha de Santa Catarina) is an island in the Brazilian state of Santa Catarina, located off the southern coast. It is home to the state capital, Florianópolis. Location Santa Catarina Island is approximately 54 k ...

, but received word from a treaty having been signed between Spain and Portugal and turned back. He then returned to Buenos Aires where he reassumed the post of Viceroy on 15 October 1777. He introduced the Law of free Commerce of 1778, which allowed

Buenos Aires Buenos Aires ( or ; ), officially the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires ( es, link=no, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires), is the capital and primate city of Argentina. The city is located on the western shore of the Río de la Plata, on South ...

to trade directly with Spain, instead of being forced to trade by way of the Viceroyalty of Peru. He also forbid to move silver out of the limits of the Viceroyalty. This law gave a boost to the development of

. He promoted agriculture and the commerce of slaves. He died on 26 December 1778 in the Capuchin Convent of Córdoba (Spain), where he was staying on his way to the Spanish Court. He was buried in the Cordoba Cathedral in a sumptuous ceremony, a memorable event in the city's history. He was married to María Luisa Pinto y Ortega. His son Pedro Antonio de Ceballos Pinto was Agriculture Minister of Argentine general

Martín Miguel de Güemes Martín Miguel de Güemes (8 February 1785 – 17 June 1821) was a military leader and popular caudillo who defended northwestern Argentina from the Spain, Spanish royalist army during the Argentine War of Independence. Biography Güemes was bor ...

when he was governor of

Salta Salta () is the capital and largest city in the Argentine province of the same name. With a population of 618,375 according to the 2010 census, it is also the 7th most-populous city in Argentina. The city serves as the cultural and economic ce ...

. His sister ''Antonia de Cevallos Cortés Hoyos y Calderón'' received from King Charles III after his death the title of "Marchioness de la Colonia".

Bibliography

External links

Pedro de Cevallos (1715-1778)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cevallos, Pedro De 1715 births 1778 deaths Politicians from Cádiz Viceroys of the Río de la Plata 18th-century Argentine people Governors of the Río de la Plata Spanish captain generals