Tomás Onésimo Canavery (1839–1913) was an Argentine

Catholic priest The priesthood is the office of the ministers of religion, who have been commissioned ("ordained") with the Holy orders of the Catholic Church. Technically, bishops are a priestly order as well; however, in layman's terms ''priest'' refers only ...

and

military chaplain A military chaplain ministers to military personnel and, in most cases, their families and civilians working for the military. In some cases they will also work with local civilians within a military area of operations. Although the term ''cha ...

, who served under the command of

Bartolomé Mitre Bartolomé Mitre Martínez (26 June 1821 – 19 January 1906) was an Argentine statesman, soldier and author. He was President of Argentina from 1862 to 1868 and the first president of unified Argentina. Mitre is known as the most versatile ...

during the

War of the Triple Alliance The Paraguayan War, also known as the War of the Triple Alliance, was a South American war that lasted from 1864 to 1870. It was fought between Paraguay and the Triple Alliance of Argentina, the Empire of Brazil, and Uruguay. It was the deadlies ...

. He participated in most of the military actions against the Paraguayan forces, being promoted to lieutenant colonel in the same battlefield by order of General

Juan Andrés Gelly y Obes Juan Andrés Gelly y Obes was an Argentine general and politician. He was an advocate for the reform of the Constitution of Argentina in 1860, chief of staff of the Argentine Army during the Paraguayan War as well as a personal friend of Bartol ...

. He had a long career as a parish priest of the Province of Buenos Aires, serving in the curacy of Almirante Brown, Arrecifes, Benito Juárez,

Moreno Moreno may refer to: Places Argentina *Moreno (Buenos Aires Metro), a station on Line C of the Buenos Aires Metro *Moreno, Buenos Aires, a city in Buenos Aires Province, Argentina *Moreno Department, a depatnent of Santiago del Estero Province, A ...

, Ramallo and others.

Biography

Tomás Canavery was born in Buenos Aires, the son of Tomás Canaverys and Macedonia Castillo, belonging to a distinguished family of the city. He did his elementary studies in Buenos Aires, and was ordained as priest in the seminary of

San Lorenzo San Lorenzo is the Italian and Spanish name for Lawrence of Rome, Saint Lawrence, the 3rd-century Christian martyr, and may refer to: Places Argentina * San Lorenzo, Santa Fe * San Lorenzo Department, Chaco * Monte San Lorenzo, a mountain on t ...

. He started his military career being almost a child. At the age of 13 years, he participated in the

Battle of Caseros The Battle of Caseros ( es, Batalla de Caseros) was fought near the town of El Palomar, Buenos Aires Province, Argentina, on 3 February 1852, between the Army of Buenos Aires commanded by Juan Manuel de Rosas and the Grand Army (''Ejército ...

, as

sub-lieutenant Sub-lieutenant is usually a junior officer rank, used in armies, navies and air forces. In most armies, sub-lieutenant is the lowest officer rank. However, in Brazil, it is the highest non-commissioned rank, and in Spain, it is the second high ...

, and was among the defenders of the city, during the conflict of September 11, 1852, between Buenos Aires Province and the

Argentine Confederation The Argentine Confederation (Spanish: ''Confederación Argentina'') was the last predecessor state of modern Argentina; its name is still one of the official names of the country according to the Argentine Constitution, Article 35. It was the name ...

. He left the habits for a brief period and entered the Conciliar Seminary of Buenos Aires in 1860. He served as a military chaplain during the Paraguayan War, and for his heroic behavior was promoted to Lieutenant colonel. Canavery was present at the battles of Yatay, Battle of Tuyutí,

Battle of Curupayty The Battle of Curupayty was a key battle in the Paraguayan War. On the morning on 22 September 1866, the joint force of Brazilian, Argentine, and Uruguayan armies attacked Paraguayan fortified trenches on Curupayty. The Paraguayans were led by ge ...

and

Battle of Lomas Valentinas The Battle of Lomas Valentinas (also known as the Battle of Itá Ybaté) was fought in the Central Department of Paraguay on December 21–27, 1868. The Paraguayan Army, led personally by president Francisco Solano López, were decisively defeate ...

, occurred on December 27, 1868. Finished the war he was added to troops who occupied the city of

Asunción Asunción (, , , Guarani: Paraguay) is the capital and the largest city of Paraguay. The city stands on the eastern bank of the Paraguay River, almost at the confluence of this river with the Pilcomayo River. The Paraguay River and the Bay of ...

. He was the first Chaplain who served in Villa Occidental, being replaced in the position by José Pablo Lynch y Cabrera. He was the most prominent member of the Canaverys family in the Río de la Plata. He was awarded the following medals: commemorative for the taking of Uruguaiana; cordon of

Tuyutí Tuyutí ( pt, Tuiuti), "white mud" in guaraní, is a marsh with a pond located in the southwest corner of Paraguay. It became famous during the Paraguayan War, while the allied army bivouacked on it for two years. The Battle of Tuyutí in 1866 was ...

; shield of Curupayty; star of Guardia Nacional of

Buenos Aires Province Buenos Aires (), officially the Buenos Aires Province (''Provincia de Buenos Aires'' ), is the largest and most populous Argentine province. It takes its name from the city of Buenos Aires, the capital of the country, which used to be part of th ...

. And the crosses granted by the

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

ian and

Uruguay Uruguay (; ), officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay ( es, República Oriental del Uruguay), is a country in South America. It shares borders with Argentina to its west and southwest and Brazil to its north and northeast; while bordering ...

an government. He served as the Governor's Chaplain in the

Gran Chaco The Gran Chaco or Dry Chaco is a sparsely populated, hot and semiarid lowland natural region of the Río de la Plata basin, divided among eastern Bolivia, western Paraguay, northern Argentina, and a portion of the Brazilian states of Mato Gro ...

, which also included territories of

Formosa Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is an island country located in East Asia. The main island of Taiwan, formerly known in the Western political circles, press and literature as Formosa, makes up 99% of the land area of the territorie ...

and Paraguay. In 1897 he obtained his retirement from the Argentine army by decree of the then President

José Evaristo Uriburu José Félix Evaristo de Uriburu y Álvarez de Arenales (November 19, 1831 – October 23, 1914) was President of Argentina from 23 January 1895 to 12 October 1898. He was an adept diplomat; participating as arbiter on the peace negotiati ...

. In 1880, Tomás Canavery served as chaplain in the Penitenciaría Nacional of Buenos Aires, and also served as parish priest in the village of Benito Juárez. He was holder in the municipalidad of Ramallo, city where he also served as priest in the

Saint Francis Xavier Church of Ramallo Saint Francis Xavier Church of Ramallo (in Spanish: Parroquia San Francisco Javier) is an Argentine Catholic church located in the town of Ramallo, province of Buenos Aires. History The parish of Ramallo was inaugurated on February 18, 1878, b ...

. He was also dedicated to teaching, he served as

preceptor A preceptor (from Latin, "''praecepto''") is a teacher responsible for upholding a ''precept'', meaning a certain law or tradition. Buddhist monastic orders Senior Buddhist monks can become the preceptors for newly ordained monks. In the Buddhi ...

of elementary school in the towns of Ramallo and Ministro Rivadavia (Greater Buenos Aires), being also the priest of the Parish Nuestra Señora del Tránsito of that locality in 1877. Tomás Canavery took part in several national events, such as the installation of the Railways in 1857. He also attended the inauguration of the Ramallo Railway Station of the Central Argentine Railway in 1886, and supported the privatization of the railways in 1890. His last public appearances was in 1908 when he attended the senses tributes celebrated to the Warriors of Paraguay in the Recoleta Cemetery, and during the Centenary of the

May Revolution The May Revolution ( es, Revolución de Mayo) was a week-long series of events that took place from May 18 to 25, 1810, in Buenos Aires, capital of the Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata. This Spanish colony included roughly the terri ...

in 1910. At the moment a street of the district of Nuñez, Autonomous City of Buenos Aires takes its name in its honor. In the city of Ramallo is located the primary education establishment known as ''Escuela Nº5 Capellan Cnel. Tomás O. Canavery''.

Family

Tomás Onésimo Canavery was baptized on September 2, 1839, in the parish of San Miguel Arcángel, son of Tomás José Canaverys and Macedonia Castillo, a Creole woman related to Juan Bautista Rondeau. His father Tomás, was baptized with that name for being born on December 29 ( St Thomas's Day). He had several brothers, including

Ángel Canavery Angel Mateo Canavery (1850 - 1916) was an Argentine military man, who participated in the Conquest of the Desert under the command of General Julio Argentino Roca. He also took part against the Montoneras of Ricardo López Jordán (Rebelión jord ...

(1850-1916), a military man who participated in the Conquest of the Desert. His sister María Juana Canavery, was married to

Enrico Mosconi Enrico Mosconi (1843-1910) was an Italian engineer and the father of the General Enrique Mosconi. He actively participated in the construction of the railways in the Argentine Republic. Biography Enrico Mosconi was born in 1843 in Milan, Italy, ...

, an engineer born in Milán, who had been hired by the government for the construction of Central Argentine Railway. Enrico and María Juana were the parents of Enrique Mosconi, a prestigious military and engineer, first President of the ''

Yacimientos Petrolíferos Fiscales YPF S.A. (, formerly ; English: "Fiscal Oilfields") is a vertically integrated, majority state-owned Argentine energy company, engaged in oil and gas exploration and production, and the transportation, refining, and marketing of gas and petr ...

'', the main oil company of Argentina. He also was brother of Justino Canavery, which is registered in the census of 1855 along with several members of the Rondeau family. His grandparents were Mariano Canaverys and Tiburcia Sosa Ravelo, belonging to a Creole family of Buenos Aires,

Caparica Caparica is a former civil parish in the municipality (''concelho'') of Almada, Lisbon metropolitan area, Portugal. In 2013, the parish merged with the civil parish of Trafaria into the new parish Caparica e Trafaria. The population in 2011 was 2 ...

and San Juan Province. His grandfather was tutor in Escuela de la Piedad, a primary school located in the neighborhood of San Nicolás. He and his wife also had opened a private school for boys and girls in the towns of Olivos. Like all schoolmasters of the time, Mariano was instructed by James Diego Thompson, who had arrived in Buenos Aires to apply modern techniques of education created by

Joseph Lancaster Joseph Lancaster (25 November 1778 – 23 October 1838) was an English Quaker and public education innovator. He developed, and propagated on the grounds both of economy and efficacy, a monitorial system of primary education. In the first deca ...

. Tomás Canavery was linked to the family of Rafael Macedo Ferreyra, a politician who was murdered by the

Mazorca The Sociedad Popular Restauradora ( es, Popular Restorer Society) was an Argentine security agency that worked for Juan Manuel de Rosas in the mid-nineteenth century. It is usually equated to the organization called the "Mazorca", which was actuall ...

in 1842. He attended as a sponsor at the wedding of his parents, and at the baptism of his uncle Rafael Canavery. Among his cousins were prominent jurists, military men and also musicians like Carlos Canaveris, a

pianist A pianist ( , ) is an individual musician who plays the piano. Since most forms of Western music can make use of the piano, pianists have a wide repertoire and a wide variety of styles to choose from, among them traditional classical music, ja ...

and

guitarist A guitarist (or a guitar player) is a person who plays the guitar. Guitarists may play a variety of guitar family instruments such as classical guitars, acoustic guitars, electric guitars, and bass guitars. Some guitarists accompany themselv ...

, who had participated in

musical ensembles A musical ensemble, also known as a music group or musical group, is a group of people who perform instrumental and/or vocal music, with the ensemble typically known by a distinct name. Some music ensembles consist solely of instrumentalists, ...

with Ernesto Ponzio, and Isabel Cecilia Canavery (1881-1945), the author of the poem ''El cardo azul'', recorded by

Carlos Gardel Carlos Gardel (born Charles Romuald Gardès; 11 December 1890 – 24 June 1935) was a French-born Argentine singer, songwriter, composer and actor, and the most prominent figure in the history of tango. He was one of the most influential inte ...

and

José Razzano José Francisco Razzano (1887–1960) was an Uruguayan singer and composer. He joined singer Carlos Gardel on a duo until 1925 when Razzano left due to vocal cord problems. Since then, Razzano became Gardel's manager until 1933. Biography Jos ...

for the label

Odeon Records Odeon Records is a record label founded in 1903 by Max Straus and Heinrich Zuntz of the International Talking Machine Company in Berlin, Germany. The label's name and logo come from the Odéon-Théâtre de l'Europe in Paris. History Straus an ...

. Although his paternal surname is not of Irish origin, it is possible that some of his paternal ancestors were of French-Irish roots. Tomás Canavery was the priest who conducted the wedding of Juan Emiliano O'Leary (father of Juan O'Leary) and Dolores Urdapilleta, event celebrated on February 3, 1870 in

Villa Hayes Villa Hayes () is a city in Paraguay, and is the capital of Presidente Hayes Department. Name Known as "the City of the Five Names", it was eventually named in honor of Rutherford B. Hayes, 19th President of the United States. Weather The c ...

. He also served as parish priest for the Irish community established in Ramallo. He was personal friend and comrade of

, President of Argentina from 1862 to 1868, and

Ricardo Gutiérrez Ricardo is the Spanish and Portuguese cognate of the name Richard. It derived from Proto-Germanic ''*rīks'' 'king, ruler' + ''*harduz'' 'hard, brave'. It may be a given name, or a surname. People Given name *Ricardo de Araújo Pereira, Portugue ...

, distinguished medical doctor. He also maintained friendship with Cornelio Casablanca, a relative in law, who served as Manager of the Spanish Bank of the Rio de la Plata. Tomás Canavery died on September 13, 1913 and his remains were deposited in the pantheon of the warriors of Paraguay in the Cementerio de la Recoleta. He was a direct descendant of Juan Canaverys (1748-1822), employed in the Court of Auditors of Buenos Aires during the

Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata The Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata ( es, Virreinato del Río de la Plata or es, Virreinato de las Provincias del Río de la Plata) meaning "River of the Silver", also called "Viceroyalty of the River Plate" in some scholarly writings, in ...

, and one of the neighbors that attended the Cabildo abierto of 22 of May 1810.

References

External links

Tomás Canavery - revisionistas.com.ar

Bautismos 1811-1819

Bautismos 1833-1835,1837-1852

Matrimonios 1878-1906 (vicario Tomás Canavery)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Canavery, Tomas 1839 births 1913 deaths People from Buenos Aires Argentine colonels Argentine military personnel of the Paraguayan War Burials at La Recoleta Cemetery 19th-century Argentine Roman Catholic priests 20th-century Argentine Roman Catholic priests Argentine lieutenant colonels