José Bernardo Maximiliano Gutiérrez de Lara (August 20, 1774 – May 13, 1841) was an advocate and organizer of Mexican independence and the first constitutional governor of the state of

Tamaulipas Tamaulipas, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Tamaulipas, is a state in Mexico; one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the 32 federal entities of Mexico. It is divided into 43 municipalities. It is located in nor ...

, and a native of Revilla, today

Ciudad Guerrero Guerrero is one of the 67 municipalities of Chihuahua, in northern Mexico. The municipal seat lies at Vicente Guerrero (aka Ciudad Guerrero). The municipality covers an area of 5,603.6 km2. As of 2010, the municipality had a total populatio ...

, Mexico.

Early life

, José Bernardo Maximiliano Gutiérrez de Lara, Celebrating Texas, retrieved December 9, 2017 Gutiérrez was obsessed with the idea of freeing Mexico from

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

, and he began by recruiting and arming twenty-one men in

Spanish Texas Spanish Texas was one of the interior provinces of the colonial Viceroyalty of New Spain from 1519 until 1821. Spain claimed ownership of the region in 1519. Slave raids by Spaniards into what became Texas began in the 16th century and created ...

. Together with José Menchaca, he spoke with the Indians and convinced them to fight with him against the Spanish.

Freedom fighter and rebel leader

After the suppression of an 1811 insurrection in

Nuevo Santander Nuevo Santander (New Santander) was a region of the Viceroyalty of New Spain, covering the modern Mexican state of Tamaulipas and extending into modern-day southern Texas in the United States. Nuevo Santander was named after Santander, Cantabri ...

, Gutiérrez, a strong supporter of the revolutionary movement, traveled to Washington, D.C. He can be viewed as the first Mexican diplomat in

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

, since on December 10, 1812, he went to the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Artic ...

to request support for the cause of Mexican independence. He was welcomed with much interest, but the U.S. government could not offer assistance without jeopardizing relations with Spain.

The Gutiérrez–Magee Expedition and aftermath

Nevertheless, he managed to raise a private force. In ''The Herald'', a newspaper out of

Alexandria, Louisiana Alexandria is the ninth-largest city in the state of Louisiana and is the parish seat and largest city of Rapides Parish, Louisiana, Rapides Parish, Louisiana, United States. It lies on the south bank of the Red River of the South, Red River ...

, he published notice on August 31, 1812, of what he called the “Republicans of

Nacogdoches Nacogdoches ( ) is a city in East Texas and the county seat of Nacogdoches County, Texas, United States. The 2020 U.S. census recorded the city's population at 32,147. Stephen F. Austin State University is located in Nacogdoches and specia ...

" to recruit volunteers. The troops under Gutiérrez de Lara's command consisted of only 450 men, many of whom were military adventurers from the United States. The force, known as the

Gutiérrez–Magee Expedition The Gutiérrez–Magee Expedition or Texan Revolt of 1812–1813 was a joint filibustering expedition by Mexico and the United States against Spanish Texas during the early years of the Mexican War of Independence. Background In 1810, Father ...

and commanded by men such as Augustus Magee and Samuel Kemper, invaded Texas in 1812, taking possession of several cities and driving back the forces of

Manuel María de Salcedo Manuel María de Salcedo y Quiroga, (1776 in Málaga, History of Spain (1700-1808), Spain – executed, April 3, 1813), was a governor of Spanish Texas, Texas from 1808 until his execution in 1813. Salcedo gained leadership experience helpin ...

and

Simón de Herrera Simón de Herrera y Leyva (1754–1813) was a lifelong political and military professional for Spain, primarily in the lands known as New Spain and at times ventured to Europe. He became an interim governor of Spanish Texas at San Antonio and ...

. In addition, he allowed these two governors and other officials to be executed by Antonio Delgado. On April 6, 1813, he declared the independence of

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

from the kingdom of Spain, proclaimed its first constitution, and declared himself the first president of Texas. Warned of these developments,

José Joaquín de Arredondo José is a predominantly Spanish and Portuguese form of the given name Joseph. While spelled alike, this name is pronounced very differently in each of the two languages: Spanish ; Portuguese (or ). In French, the name ''José'', pronounced , ...

, whose forces were quartered in the Valley del Maíz, marched to engage Gutiérrez, collecting men and material on the way through Nuevo Santander. Colonel

Ignacio Elizondo Francisco Ignacio de Elizondo Villarreal, (born Salinas Valley, New Kingdom of León, New Spain, March 9, 1766 - died San Marcos, Texas, New Spain, c. September 12, 1813), was a royalist military officer during the Mexican war of independence ag ...

, sent in advance, allowed himself to be drawn into an engagement, and was totally routed. A few weeks later, on 13 August 1813, Arredondo himself defeated the insurgents, now under the command of

José Álvarez de Toledo y Dubois José Álvarez de Toledo y Dubois (14 May 1779 in Havana – 16 April 1858 in Paris) was a politician and leader of a military force against Spanish rule in Texas. Álvarez de Toledo was the son of Luis Álvarez de Toledo y Liche, a navy captain ...

, who had replaced Gutiérrez, at the Battle of Medina. Many prisoners were executed, including all of the captured United States citizens, in what was the bloodiest battle on Texas soil, ending all hope of aid from the United States.''History of the North Mexican States and Texas'', Vol. II 1801-1889. (San Francisco: The History Company, 1889), Chapter 24 After the failure to create an independent Texas, Gutiérrez supported the Spanish general

Francisco Javier Mina Francisco is the Spanish and Portuguese form of the masculine given name ''Franciscus''. Meaning of the name Francisco In Spanish, people with the name Francisco are sometimes nicknamed " Paco". San Francisco de Asís was known as ''Pater Comm ...

in his expedition of 1817 in support of the

Spanish Constitution of 1812 The Political Constitution of the Spanish Monarchy (), also known as the Constitution of Cádiz () and nicknamed ''La Pepa'', was the first Constitution of Spain and one of the earliest codified constitutions in world history. The Constitution ...

, and later accompanied Mina in his expeditions in 1818 and 1819.

Politician

Agustín de Iturbide Agustín Cosme Damián de Iturbide y Arámburu (; 27 September 178319 July 1824), commonly known as Agustín de Iturbide and later by his regnal name Agustín I, was the first Emperor of Mexico from 1822 until his abdication in 1823. An offi ...

, forming a broad coalition under the

Plan de Iguala The Plan of Iguala, also known as the Plan of the Three Guarantees ("Plan Trigarante") or Act of Independence of North America, was a revolutionary proclamation promulgated on 24 February 1821, in the final stage of the Mexican War of Independenc ...

, recognized Bernardo Gutiérrez for his activities in support of Mexican independence. In 1824 he returned to Revilla, and one year later he was made the first constitutional

governor A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...

of Tamaulipas.

Later life and death

He moved to live in

Linares, Nuevo León Linares is a small city in the state of Nuevo León, Mexico. The city serves as the administrative centre for the surrounding municipality of the same name and it is the largest urban centre of the so-called "orange belt" region. The city had a 20 ...

with his son José Ángel. He fell ill on a trip to

Santiago Santiago (, ; ), also known as Santiago de Chile (), is the capital and largest city of Chile and one of the largest cities in the Americas. It is located in the country's central valley and is the center of the Santiago Metropolitan Regi ...

and died May 13, 1841. He was buried in the church at Santiago.

Legacy

An accredited Mexican Medical School, the José Bernardo Gutiérrez de Lara School of Medicine, was founded in his name in 2007.

References

Sources

* ''Gutiérrez de Lara: The Mexican Experience in Texas'' Rie Jarratt, (New York: Arno Press, 1976). * ''Green Flag Over Texas: A Story of the Last Years of Spain in Texas'' Julia Kathryn Garrett, (Austin: Pemberton Press, 1939). * ''Coahuila y Texas en la época colonial'' Vito Alessio Robles, (Mexico City: Editorial Cultura, 1938; 2d ed). {{DEFAULTSORT:Gutierrez de Lara, Bernardo Governors of Tamaulipas People from New Spain People from Tamaulipas 1841 deaths Year of birth unknown Mexican independence activists 1774 births