Xavier María de Munibe e Idiáquez, Count of Peñaflorida (23 October 1729 — 13 January 1785) was a Spanish writer and intellectual, known for his leading work in

Enlightenment Spain The ideas of the Age of Enlightenment ( es, Ilustración) came to Spain in the 18th century with the new Bourbon dynasty, following the death of the last Habsburg monarch, Charles II, in 1700. The period of reform and ' enlightened despotism' u ...

and

Basque literature Although the first instances of coherent Basque phrases and sentences go as far back as the San Millán glosses of around 950, the large-scale damage done by periods of great instability and warfare, such as the clan wars of the Middle Ages, the ...

. He founded the

Royal Basque Society of Friends of the Country 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 ...

Bergara es, vergarés, vergaresa , population_note = , population_density_km2 = auto , blank_name_sec1 = Official language(s) , blank_info_sec1 = BasqueSpanish , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 ...

in 1748, which would become the first

Sociedad Económica de los Amigos del País The ''Sociedades Económicas de Amigos del País'' (Economic Societies of Friends of the Country) were private associations established in various cities throughout Enlightenment Spain, and to a lesser degree in some of Spain's overseas territories ...

, a society inextricably linked to the Real Compañía Guipuzcoana de Caracas.

Early life

Peñaflorida studied in

Toulouse Toulouse ( , ; oc, Tolosa ) is the prefecture of the French department of Haute-Garonne and of the larger region of Occitania. The city is on the banks of the River Garonne, from the Mediterranean Sea, from the Atlantic Ocean and from Par ...

, where he established contacts with the

Society of Jesus , image = Ihs-logo.svg , image_size = 175px , caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits , abbreviation = SJ , nickname = Jesuits , formation = , founders ...

. He returned to

Gipuzkoa Gipuzkoa (, , ; es, Guipúzcoa ; french: Guipuscoa) is a province of Spain and a historical territory of the autonomous community of the Basque Country. Its capital city is Donostia-San Sebastián. Gipuzkoa shares borders with the French depa ...

—a semi-autonomous Basque territory—in 1746, settled in

Azkoitia , population_note = , population_density_km2 = auto , blank_name_sec1 = Official language(s) , blank_info_sec1 = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST = CEST , utc ...

and became a senior official in the

Regional In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as zones, lands or territories, are areas that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and the interaction of humanity and t ...

Government (''Diputación'') in 1750.

Enlightenment figure

Peñaflorida closely associated with two other men, the Marqués de Narros (José María de Eguía) and Manuel Ignacio Altuna. The three men came to be known as the "Gentlemen of Azkoitia" (''los Caballeritos de Azcoitia'') and the "Triumvirate of Azkoitia" (''el Triunvirato de Azcoitia'') and were responsible for promoting Enlightenment thought in Spain. In Peñaflorida's home, they founded an Enlightenment-style "

academy An academy ( Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of secondary or tertiary higher learning (and generally also research or honorary membership). The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy ...

" to discuss intellectual issues. For years the group maintained a regular program of discussing on

mathematics Mathematics is an area of knowledge that includes the topics of numbers, formulas and related structures, shapes and the spaces in which they are contained, and quantities and their changes. These topics are represented in modern mathematics ...

on Mondays,

physics Physics is the natural science that studies matter, its fundamental constituents, its motion and behavior through space and time, and the related entities of energy and force. "Physical science is that department of knowledge which r ...

on Tuesdays,

history History (derived ) is the systematic study and the documentation of the human activity. The time period of event before the History of writing#Inventions of writing, invention of writing systems is considered prehistory. "History" is an umbr ...

and

literature Literature is any collection of written work, but it is also used more narrowly for writings specifically considered to be an art form, especially prose fiction, drama, and poetry. In recent centuries, the definition has expanded to include ...

on Wednesdays,

geography Geography (from Greek: , ''geographia''. Combination of Greek words ‘Geo’ (The Earth) and ‘Graphien’ (to describe), literally "earth description") is a field of science devoted to the study of the lands, features, inhabitants, and ...

on Fridays, and

current events News is information about current events. This may be provided through many different media: word of mouth, printing, postal systems, broadcasting, electronic communication, or through the testimony of observers and witnesses to events. New ...

on Saturdays. It devoted Thursdays and Sundays to

concert A concert is a live music performance in front of an audience. The performance may be by a single musician, sometimes then called a recital, or by a musical ensemble, such as an orchestra, choir, or band. Concerts are held in a wide variety a ...

s, including works written by members of the "Gentlemen of Azkoitia" such as Fray

José de Larrañaga Fray José de Larrañaga (17281806) was a Franciscan friar, organist, ''maestro de capilla'' of the Sanctuary of Arantzazu, composer, and was active in the Basque musical and cultural movement of the 18th century. Life Larrañaga was born in Azkoit ...

. Out of these meetings evolved a more formal association, the

Real Sociedad Bascongada de Amigos del País The Royal Basque Society of Friends of the Country (in Basque ''Euskalerriaren Adiskideen Elkartea'' and in Spanish ''Real Sociedad Bascongada de Amigos del País''), also known as ''La Bascongada'' or ''Bascongada Society'', was founded in the m ...

. Its incorporation charter and bylaws were presented to the government in 1763 and approved two years later. Peñaflorida, as its main proponent, was selected as its director for life. The three men also created in 1767 the Seminario de Vergara (Bergara). These two institutions proved to be key centers of Spanish Enlightenment thought and science.

Works

Peñaflorida was the author of many works in his lifetime. They include ''Los aldeanos críticos'' (1758), ''Ensayo de la Sociedad Bascongada de amigos del país'' (1766), and ''Gabon-Sariac'' (1762) a religious epic dealing with the life of

Louise de La Vallière Françoise ''Louise'' de La Vallière, Duchess of La Vallière and Vaujours, born Françoise Louise de La Baume Le Blanc de La Vallière, Mademoiselle de La Vallière (6 August 1644 – 7 June 1710) was a French noblewoman and the first mistress ...

(although some attribute this one to Manuel Larramendi). He also wrote the music and

libretto A libretto (Italian for "booklet") is the text used in, or intended for, an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata or Musical theatre, musical. The term ''libretto'' is also sometimes used to refer to the t ...

s of two

bilingual Multilingualism is the use of more than one language, either by an individual speaker or by a group of speakers. It is believed that multilingual speakers outnumber monolingual speakers in the world's population. More than half of all E ...

(

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Cana ...

Basque Basque may refer to: * Basques, an ethnic group of Spain and France * Basque language, their language Places * Basque Country (greater region), the homeland of the Basque people with parts in both Spain and France * Basque Country (autonomous co ...

)

comic opera Comic opera, sometimes known as light opera, is a sung dramatic work of a light or comic nature, usually with a happy ending and often including spoken dialogue. Forms of comic opera first developed in late 17th-century Italy. By the 1730s, a ne ...

s, ''El borracho burlado'' (1764) and ''Comedia famosa''.

Literature

* ''Los aldeanos críticos'' (1758) * ''Ensayo de la Sociedad Bascongada de amigos del país'' (1766) * ''Gabon-Sariac'' (1762)

Operas

* ''El borracho burlado'' (1764) * ''Comedia famosa''

Sources