HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Hugh O'Conor (1732 — March 8, 1779), better known by his
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 countries in the Americas **Spanish cuisine **Spanish history **Spanish culture ...
name Hugo O'Cónor, was a
military A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. Militaries are typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with their members identifiable by a d ...
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 northern Mexico. He was appointed governor of Texas by the Spanish viceroy of
New Spain New Spain, officially the Viceroyalty of New Spain ( ; Nahuatl: ''Yankwik Kaxtillan Birreiyotl''), originally the Kingdom of New Spain, was an integral territorial entity of the Spanish Empire, established by Habsburg Spain. It was one of several ...
in 1767. It is recorded that O'Conor rode well over on horseback in the course of conducting his duties. O'Conor was called "The Red Captain" by the
Apache The Apache ( ) are several Southern Athabaskan language-speaking peoples of the Southwestern United States, Southwest, the Southern Plains and Northern Mexico. They are linguistically related to the Navajo. They migrated from the Athabascan ho ...
, both for the color of his hair and his formidable military leadership. O'Conor was the founding father of the city of
Tucson, Arizona Tucson (; ; ) is a city in Pima County, Arizona, United States, and its county seat. It is the second-most populous city in Arizona, behind Phoenix, Arizona, Phoenix, with a population of 542,630 in the 2020 United States census. The Tucson ...
, having authorized the construction of a military
fort A fortification (also called a fort, fortress, fastness, or stronghold) is a military construction designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from La ...
in that location in 1775. In 1777, O'Conor requested, due to his failing health, to be transferred to the Yucatan Peninsula, whereupon he was promoted to brigadier general and appointed Governor of Yucatan Peninsula. He served there until his death in 1779.


Biography

Hugh O'Conor was born in 1732 in
Dublin Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...
,
Kingdom of Ireland The Kingdom of Ireland (; , ) was a dependent territory of Kingdom of England, England and then of Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain from 1542 to the end of 1800. It was ruled by the monarchs of England and then List of British monarchs ...
, into the Gaelic-Irish aristocratic
O'Conor Don The O'Conor dynasty (Middle Irish: ''Ó Conchobhair''; Modern ) are an Irish noble dynasty and formerly one of the most influential and distinguished royal dynasties in Ireland. The O'Conor family held the throne of the Kingdom of Connacht up ...
Family. He was a descendant of Toirdhealbhach Mór Ua Conchobhair,
King of Connacht The Kings of Connacht were rulers of the ''cóiced'' (variously translated as portion, fifth, province) of Connacht, which lies west of the River Shannon, Ireland. However, the name only became applied to it in the early medieval era, being named ...
and
High King of Ireland High King of Ireland ( ) was a royal title in Gaelic Ireland held by those who had, or who are claimed to have had, lordship over all of Ireland. The title was held by historical kings and was later sometimes assigned anachronously or to leg ...
. Because of the
Penal Laws Penal law refers to criminal law. It may also refer to: * Penal law (British), laws to uphold the establishment of the Church of England against Catholicism * Penal laws (Ireland) In Ireland, the penal laws () were a series of Disabilities (C ...
which restricted the political, religious and commercial rights of Irish Catholics, O'Conor left his homeland and moved to
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 ...
where his cousins Alexander (Alejandro) and Dominic O'Reilly, were serving as officers in the Spanish Royal Army. He was established in
Aragon Aragon ( , ; Spanish and ; ) is an autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community in Spain, coextensive with the medieval Kingdom of Aragon. In northeastern Spain, the Aragonese autonomous community comprises three provinces of Spain, ...
. In his youth he joined the regiment of Volunteers of Aragon, eventually acquiring the title of major. During his years in the military, he was sent to
Cuba Cuba, officially the Republic of Cuba, is an island country, comprising the island of Cuba (largest island), Isla de la Juventud, and List of islands of Cuba, 4,195 islands, islets and cays surrounding the main island. It is located where the ...
and
Mexico City Mexico City is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Mexico, largest city of Mexico, as well as the List of North American cities by population, most populous city in North America. It is one of the most important cultural and finan ...
. There he distinguished himself by his ability as a military strategist and was appointed captain for Mexico's Northern Territory to exercise dominion in the region.Casares G. Cantón, Raúl; Duch Colell, Juan; Antochiw Kolpa, Michel; Zavala Vallado, Silvio. Yucatán en el Tiempo (English transliteration: Yucatan in the Times). 1998. . Mérida, Yucatán He went to Texas to investigate a dispute around San Agustín de Ahumada
Presidio A presidio (''jail, fortification'') was a fortified base established by the Spanish Empire mainly between the 16th and 18th centuries in areas under their control or influence. The term is derived from the Latin word ''praesidium'' meaning ''pr ...
between Governor Ángel de Martos y Navarrete and Rafael Martínez Pacheco (future governor of Texas). It was at this time that he obtained the title of inspector general of the Provincias Internas (general inspector of the Interior Provinces). Later, in 1767, he was appointed governor of Texas, in replacement of Martos y Navarrete. When he took office, he found that one of its major cities, San Antonio, was shattered by frequent attacks of several Indian tribes. Therefore, the new governor set up a garrison at Los Adaes to protect the city. In 1771 he became commander of the Chihuahua frontier and on January 20, 1773, he was appointed commandant inspector of presidios under the office of Coronel. He and Governor
Juan María Vicencio de Ripperdá Juan María Vicencio de Ripperdá, Baron de Ripperdá (Madrid, History of Spain (1700-1808), Spain, 1 September 1725 - Province of Comayagua,Captaincy General of Guatemala, New Spain 21 October 1780) was the Spanish people, Spanish govern of Span ...
rejected the petition of
Antonio Gil Y'Barbo Dón Antonio Gil Ybarbo (1729–1809), also known as ''Gil Ybarbo'' or ''Gil Ibarbo'' was a Spanish military personnel and trader of the Spanish Texas times, who played a crucial role in the development of Nacogdoches, Texas in 1779. Biography ...
that the settlers could return to their original homes. To strengthen the protection of Nueva Vizcaya,
Coahuila Coahuila, formally Coahuila de Zaragoza, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Coahuila de Zaragoza, is one of the 31 states of Mexico. The largest city and State Capital is the city of Saltillo; the second largest is Torreón and the thi ...
, Sonora, Mexico he decided to expel the Apaches in the region, making war against these peoples in 1775 and 1776. Many Apaches died in the war. The Apaches who survived fled to more western areas. In 1777, he suffered a serious illness and was sent to the Yucatan Peninsula, with the title of governor and brigadier general of the Mexican province, which was a lesser charge to that which he usually occupied. He died on March 8, 1779, at Quinta de Miraflores, in
Mérida, Yucatán Mérida (, ) is the capital of the List of states of Mexico, Mexican state of Yucatán, and the largest city in southeastern Mexico. The city is also the seat of the Mérida Municipality, eponymous municipality. It is located slightly inland fro ...
.


Legacy

In modern English translation, the order that founded the fort at what is now Tucson read as follows.


See also

* List of Texas Governors and Presidents * Presidio San Augustin del Tucson *
Irish military diaspora The Irish military diaspora refers to the many people of either Irish birth or extraction (see Irish diaspora) who have served in overseas military forces, regardless of rank, duration of service, or success. Many overseas military units were ...


Footnotes


External links


Irish Migration Studies in Latin America document containing information about Hugo Oconór
{{DEFAULTSORT:Oconor, Hugo Governors of Spanish Texas Governors of Yucatán (state) 1779 deaths 1732 births
Hugh Hugh is the English-language variant of the masculine given name , itself the Old French variant of '' Hugo (name)">Hugo'', a short form of Continental Germanic Germanic name">given names beginning in the element "mind, spirit" (Old English ). ...
Irish emigrants to Spain