Francisco Serrano Domínguez Cuenca y Pérez de Vargas, 1st Duke of la Torre,

Grandee of Spain Grandee (; es, Grande de España, ) is an official aristocratic title conferred on some Spanish nobility. Holders of this dignity enjoyed similar privileges to those of the peerage of France during the , though in neither country did they ...

, Count of San Antonio (17 December 1810 – 25 November 1885) was a Spanish

marshal Marshal is a term used in several official titles in various branches of society. As marshals became trusted members of the courts of Medieval Europe, the title grew in reputation. During the last few centuries, it has been used for elevated o ...

and statesman. He was

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in 1868–69 and regent in 1869–70.

Early life and education

Serrano was born on 17 December 1810 in the

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(current day San Fernando), in the

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. He was son of Francisco Serrano y Cuenca and Isabel Domínguez de Guevara Vasconcelos. His father, born in Lopera, parish of Purísima Concepción, was a

general officer A general officer is an officer of high rank in the armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry. In some usages the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colonel."general, adj. and n.". OED ...

and a Liberal. His mother was born in

Marbella Marbella ( , , ) is a city and municipality in southern Spain, belonging to the province of Málaga in the autonomous community of Andalusia. It is part of the Costa del Sol and is the headquarters of the Association of Municipalities of the reg ...

circa 1780. Serrano began his studies at Vergara in the Basque provinces.

Military career

Following his father into the military, he became a cadet in 1822 in the Sagunto regiment,

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in 1833 in the

lancer A lancer was a type of cavalryman who fought with a lance. Lances were used for mounted warfare in Assyria as early as and subsequently by Persia, India, Egypt, China, Greece, and Rome. The weapon was widely used throughout Eurasia during the ...

s of

Sagunto Sagunto ( ca-valencia, Sagunt) is a municipality of Spain, located in the province of Valencia, Valencian Community. It belongs to the modern fertile ''comarca'' of Camp de Morvedre. It is located c. 30 km north of the city of Valencia, ...

, and passed into the carabiniers in 1829. When the

Carlist Carlism ( eu, Karlismo; ca, Carlisme; ; ) is a Traditionalist and Legitimist political movement in Spain aimed at establishing an alternative branch of the Bourbon dynasty – one descended from Don Carlos, Count of Molina (1788–1855) – o ...

agitation began in 1833, he transferred into the

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s. He formed part of the escort that accompanied

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, the first pretender and brother of Ferdinand VII, to the frontier of

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. As '' aide-de-camp'' of

Espoz y Mina Francisco Espoz Ilundáin (17 June 1781 – 24 December 1836), being better known as Francisco Espoz y Mina, was a Spanish guerrilla leader and general. Biography He was born in Idocin in Navarre. His father, Juan Esteban Espoz y Mina, and hi ...

, then under the orders of generals Córdoba and Espartero, in the armies of Queen Isabella, Serrano took such an active part in the

First Carlist War The First Carlist War was a civil war in Spain from 1833 to 1840, the first of three Carlist Wars. It was fought between two factions over the succession to the throne and the nature of the Spanish monarchy: the conservative and devolutionist ...

from 1834 to 1839, that he rose from the rank of captain to that of brigadier-general. He was awarded the

Cross of San Fernando The Royal and Military Order of Saint Ferdinand ( es, Real y Militar Orden de San Fernando), is a Spanish military order whose decoration, known as Laureate Cross of Saint Ferdinand ( es, Cruz Laureada de San Fernando), is Spain's highest mili ...

and many medals. He was also granted the 155th

Grand Cross Grand Cross is the highest class in many orders, and manifested in its insignia. Exceptionally, the highest class may be referred to as Grand Cordon or equivalent. In other cases, there may exist a rank even higher than Grand Cross, e.g. Grand ...

of the

Order of the Tower and Sword The Ancient and Most Noble Military Order of the Tower and of the Sword, of the Valour, Loyalty and Merit ( pt, Antiga e Muito Nobre Ordem Militar da Torre e Espada, do Valor, Lealdade e Mérito), before 1910 Royal Military Order of the Tower an ...

. In 1839, he was elected as a member of

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for the first time for

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. In 1840 he was promoted to the rank of general of division and commander of the district of

Valencia Valencia ( va, València) is the capital of the autonomous community of Valencia and the third-most populated municipality in Spain, with 791,413 inhabitants. It is also the capital of the province of the same name. The wider urban area al ...

, which he relinquished to take his seat in congress.

Political career

El capitán general Francisco Serrano, duque de la Torre

From that day Serrano became one of the chief military politicians of Spain. In 1841, he helped Espartero to overthrow the regency of Maria Christina of Bourbon-Sicily. In 1843, at

Barcelona Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...

he made a ''pronunciamiento'' against Espartero. He was appointed as the minister of war in the cabinet of Joaquín María López y López, which convoked the Cortes that declared Queen Isabella of age at thirteen. He served in the same capacity in an Olozaga cabinet, sulked as long as the Moderates (') were in office. In 1845, he was appointed as a senator, and in 1848 as

captain-general Captain general (and its literal equivalent in several languages) is a high military rank of general officer grade, and a gubernatorial title. History The term "Captain General" started to appear in the 14th century, with the meaning of Command ...

Granada Granada (,, DIN: ; grc, Ἐλιβύργη, Elibýrgē; la, Illiberis or . ) is the capital city of the province of Granada, in the autonomous community of Andalusia, Spain. Granada is located at the foot of the Sierra Nevada mountains, at the c ...

. From 1846 to 1853, he was away from politics, living on his

Andalusia Andalusia (, ; es, Andalucía ) is the southernmost autonomous community in Peninsular Spain. It is the most populous and the second-largest autonomous community in the country. It is officially recognised as a "historical nationality". The ...

n estates or traveling abroad. On 29 September 1850 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 ...

, Serrano married his first cousin, Antonia Domínguez y Borrell, Guevara y Lemus, 2nd Countess of San Antonio, with whom he had five children. Serrano assisted Marshal Leopoldo O'Donnell in the military movements of 1854 and 1856, and was his staunch follower for twelve years.

Captain-General of Cuba

O'Donnell appointed Serrano as marshal in 1856 and

Cuba Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribb ...

from 1859 to 1862. Serrano governed that island with success, and helped carry out the

war in Santo Domingo The Dominican Restoration War or the Dominican War of Restoration () was a guerrilla war between 1863 and 1865 in the Dominican Republic between nationalists and Spain, who had recolonized the country 17 years after its independence. The war r ...

. He was the first viceroy to advocate political and financial reforms in the colony.

Return to the Peninsula

On his return to

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, O'Donnell made him Duke of la Torre ('), Grandee of Spain of the first class, and the 139th

Minister of Foreign Affairs A foreign affairs minister or minister of foreign affairs (less commonly minister for foreign affairs) is generally a cabinet minister in charge of a state's foreign policy and relations. The formal title of the top official varies between co ...

, serving from 18 January to 2 March 1863. Serrano risked his life in helping O'Donnell quell the insurrection of 22 June 1866 at Madrid. He was awarded with the

Order of the Golden Fleece The Distinguished Order of the Golden Fleece ( es, Insigne Orden del Toisón de Oro, german: Orden vom Goldenen Vlies) is a Catholic order of chivalry founded in Bruges by Philip the Good, Duke of Burgundy, in 1430, to celebrate his marriag ...

. After the death of O'Donnell, Serrano became the leader of the Liberal Union Party. As president of the senate, he assisted Ríos Rosas to draw up a petition to Queen Isabella against her Moderate ministers, for which both were exiled.

The Glorious Revolution

Serrano began to conspire with Antoine, Duke of Montpensier,

Prim Prim may refer to: People *Prim (given name) *Prim (surname) Places * Prim, Virginia, unincorporated community in King George County *Dolní Přím, village in the Czech Republic; as Nieder Prim (Lower Prim) site of the Battle of Königgrätz * ...

and Sagasta. On 7 July 1868, González Bravo had Serrano and other generals arrested and taken to the

Canary Islands The Canary Islands (; es, :es:Canarias, Canarias, ), also known informally as the Canaries, are a Spanish Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community and archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean, in Macaronesia. At their closest point to ...

. There Serrano remained until Admiral Topete sent a steamer to bring him to Cadiz on 18 September that same year. On landing he signed the manifesto of the

revolution In political science, a revolution (Latin: ''revolutio'', "a turn around") is a fundamental and relatively sudden change in political power and political organization which occurs when the population revolts against the government, typically due ...

with Prim, Topete, Sagasta, Martos and others, and accepted the command of the revolutionary army. He routed the troops of Queen Isabella under the orders of the Marquess of

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at the bridge of

Alcolea Alcolea is a municipality of Almería province, in Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond ...

. The queen fled to France, and Serrano, having entered Madrid, formed a Provisional Government.

1868–1871 Provisional Government

In February 1869, he convoked the Cortes Constituyentes; he was appointed successively as president of the executive,

, and

Regent A regent (from Latin : ruling, governing) is a person appointed to govern a state '' pro tempore'' (Latin: 'for the time being') because the monarch is a minor, absent, incapacitated or unable to discharge the powers and duties of the monarchy ...

from 3 October 1868 to 18 June 1869. Serrano ruled impartially, respecting the independence of the Cortes and cabinets. He acceded to their selection of Amadeus I of Savoy as king, although he would have preferred Montpensier. As soon as Amadeus reached Madrid, after the death of Prim, Serrano consented to form a coalition cabinet, which lasted only a few months. Serrano resigned and took the command of the Italian king's army against the

s in northern Spain. He tried to form one more cabinet under King Amadeus as the 65th

on 6 June 1872, but resigned on 12 June when that monarch declined to give his ministers dictatorial powers and sent for Ruiz Zorrilla. His mistakes led to Amadeus abdicating the throne on 11 February 1873.

Conspirations against the Republic

Serrano opposed the

federal republic A federal republic is a federation of states with a republican form of government. At its core, the literal meaning of the word republic when used to reference a form of government means: "a country that is governed by elected representatives ...

, and conspired with other generals and politicians to overthrow it on 23 April 1873. Having failed, he went into exile in France. On the eve of his

coup d'état A coup d'état (; French for 'stroke of state'), also known as a coup or overthrow, is a seizure and removal of a government and its powers. Typically, it is an illegal seizure of power by a political faction, politician, cult, rebel group, m ...

of 3 January 1874 that sought to thwart the Federal Republic, the leading instigator, the General Pavía, sent for Serrano to take the leadership. Coat of Arms of Francisco Serrano, 1st Duke of la Torre

Coat of Arms of Francisco Serrano, 1st Duke of la Torre

Dictatorship of Serrano

Serrano again took the title of president of the executive; he tried to form a coalition cabinet, but Cristino Martos and Sagasta soon quarrelled. His next cabinet was presided over by Sagasta. The military and political unrest continued, and at the end of December 1874, the

Bourbons The House of Bourbon (, also ; ) is a European dynasty of French origin, a branch of the Capetian dynasty, the royal House of France. Bourbon kings first ruled France and Navarre in the 16th century. By the 18th century, members of the Spani ...

were restored by another ''pronunciamiento.'' During the eleven months he remained in office, Serrano devoted his attention chiefly to the reorganization of finance, the renewal of relations with American and European powers, and the suppression of revolt.

Later life

After

Alfonso XII Alfonso XII (Alfonso Francisco de Asís Fernando Pío Juan María de la Concepción Gregorio Pelayo; 28 November 185725 November 1885), also known as El Pacificador or the Peacemaker, was King of Spain from 29 December 1874 to his death in 1885 ...

ascended the throne in 1875, Serrano spent some time in France. He returned to Madrid in 1876, attended palace receptions, took his seat as a marshal in the senate, and flirted politically with Sagasta and his party in 1881. He finally gave his support to the formation of a dynastic Left with a democratic program defended by his nephew, General López Domínguez. He died in Madrid on 25 November/26 November 1885, twenty-four hours after Alfonso XII, son of

Isabella II Isabella II ( es, Isabel II; 10 October 1830 – 9 April 1904), was Queen of Spain from 29 September 1833 until 30 September 1868. Shortly before her birth, the King Ferdinand VII of Spain issued a Pragmatic Sanction to ensure the successi ...

, and purportedly, her husband and cousin

Francis Francis may refer to: People *Pope Francis, the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State and Bishop of Rome * Francis (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters * Francis (surname) Places *Rural ...

, although Alfonso's true biological paternity is uncertain.

Notes

References

Attribution: *

Bibliography

External links

* , - , - , - , - , - , - , - , - , - , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Serrano, Francisco 1810 births 1885 deaths People from San Fernando, Cádiz Ambassadors of Spain to France Governors of Cuba Spanish captain generals Cuban nobility 101 Grandees of Spain Knights of the Golden Fleece of Spain Laureate Cross of Saint Ferdinand Leaders of political parties in Spain Liberal Union (Spain) politicians Prime Ministers of Spain Regents of Spain Defence ministers of Spain Viceroys of New Granada 19th-century South American people Military personnel of the First Carlist War Grand Masters of the Order of Isabella the Catholic Presidents of the Senate of Spain Presidents of the Executive Power of the First Spanish Republic Spanish military personnel of the Third Carlist War (Governmental faction)