Rosa Campuzano Cornejo was an activist affiliated with the cause of freedom in the struggle for the independence of

Peru , image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg , image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg , other_symbol = Great Seal of the State , other_symbol_type = National seal , national_motto = "Firm and Happy f ...

, born in

Guayaquil , motto = Por Guayaquil Independiente en, For Independent Guayaquil , image_map = , map_caption = , pushpin_map = Ecuador#South America , pushpin_re ...

Viceroyalty of Peru The Viceroyalty of Peru ( es, Virreinato del Perú, links=no) was a Spanish imperial provincial administrative district, created in 1542, that originally contained modern-day Peru and most of the Spanish Empire in South America, governed fro ...

on April 13, 1796 and died in

Lima Lima ( ; ), originally founded as Ciudad de Los Reyes (City of The Kings) is the capital and the largest city of Peru. It is located in the valleys of the Chillón, Rímac and Lurín Rivers, in the desert zone of the central coastal part of ...

in 1851. She was called "the protectress" for being the mistress of General

José de San Martín José Francisco de San Martín y Matorras (25 February 177817 August 1850), known simply as José de San Martín () or '' the Liberator of Argentina, Chile and Peru'', was an Argentine general and the primary leader of the southern and centr ...

, the exalted "Protector of Peru."

Biography

Rosa was the illegitimate daughter of Francisco Herrera Campuzano y Gutierrez, officer, rich cocoa producer, who conceived her with a "mulata" named Felipa Cornejo.Diccionario Bibliográfico del Ecuador por Rodolfo Perez Pimentel
/ref> Rosita is described by the chroniclers as a beautiful woman with fair skin and blue eyes, intelligent, breezy and literate. She came to Lima in 1817, the 21 years old mistress of a wealthy Spaniard and soon she became well known in Lima's society. Her social circle was frequented by prominent people. She took advantage of her position as mistress of a

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 governm ...

general to obtain military information that she supplied to the Peruvian patriot forces. She hid, in her house, official royal army deserters and then; she helped them to join the Patriot Military Forces. Because of this clandestine and subversive activities she was detained for several days. Also, for these activities and attend the same social circles she met

Manuela Sáenz Doña Manuela Sáenz de Vergara y Aizpuru (27 December 1797 – 23 November 1856) was an Ecuadorian revolutionary heroine of South America who supported the revolutionary cause by gathering information, distributing leaflets and protesting for ...

, establishing between them a great friendship and complicity in the conspiracy work. Also in 1818 was denounced to the Inquisition for having banned books. On Saturday night, July 28, 1821, the Cabildo of Lima organized a party in the city hall in honor of San Martín and the proclamation of independence. The General and Rosita met there and the next day, Sunday, July 29, San Martin returned the deference with another dance, now in the halls of the Palace of the

Viceroy A viceroy () is an official who reigns over a polity in the name of and as the representative of the monarch of the territory. The term derives from the Latin prefix ''vice-'', meaning "in the place of" and the French word ''roy'', meaning " ...

s and saw again the beautiful

Guayaquil , motto = Por Guayaquil Independiente en, For Independent Guayaquil , image_map = , map_caption = , pushpin_map = Ecuador#South America , pushpin_re ...

. According to several testimonies Rosa and the General became lovers. When "the Protector" included her in the 112 women that received the Order of the Sun, the traditional society Lima considered it an affront. The day San Martín left Peru, they were barely able to say goodbye. By 1832 Rosita began a relationship with the German businessman John Weniger, owner of two valuable shoe stores on the St. Augustine silversmiths' street. They had a son named Alexander Weniger Campuzano, who she didn't raise because John took him when they ended their relationship. In Rosa's testament she claims that she was married to Ernesto Gaber, who left her by going off to

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a subcontinent of Eurasia and it is located entirel ...

, and to have a son named Alexander. Rosa died almost in poverty in 1851, at age 55. She was buried in the church of San Juan Bautista de Lima.

References

Bibliography

* Tradiciones peruanas completas, by Ricardo Palma, Compiled by Edith Palma. Published by Aguilar, 1968, Lima, Peru. * El general San Martín: su vida y su acción continental en relación con la historia de Bolívar, by Alfonso Rumazo González. Published by Ministerio de Educación, Dirección de Información y Relaciones, División de Publicaciones, 1982, Lima, Peru. * * El Ecuador profundo: mitos, historias, leyendas, recuerdos, anécdotas y tradiciones del país, by Rodolfo Pérez Pimentel. Published by Edit. de la Universidad de Guayaquil, 198 {{DEFAULTSORT:Campuzano, Rosa 1796 births 1851 deaths José de San Martín Recipients of the Order of the Sun of Peru