General José María Yáñez Carrillo (1803 – August 10, 1880) was a Mexican soldier who fought in the

Mexican War of Independence The Mexican War of Independence (, 16 September 1810 – 27 September 1821) was an armed conflict and political process resulting in Mexico's independence from the Spanish Empire. It was not a single, coherent event, but local and regional ...

. He also served in the

Mexican-American Mexican Americans are Americans of full or partial Mexican descent. In 2022, Mexican Americans comprised 11.2% of the US population and 58.9% of all Hispanic and Latino Americans. In 2019, 71% of Mexican Americans were born in the United State ...

war and the war against the French attempt to create an empire in Mexico.

Biography

He was born to peasants in Valle de Santiago,

Guanajuato Guanajuato, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Guanajuato, is one of the 32 states that make up the Political divisions of Mexico, Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided into Municipalities of Guanajuato, 46 municipalities and its cap ...

, and ran away from home as a child to see other lands and customs of the people. At the age of 18, he joined the

Ejército Trigarante At the end of the Mexican War of Independence, the Army of the Three Guarantees ( or ) was the name given to the army after the unification of the Spanish troops led by Agustín de Iturbide and the Mexican insurgent troops of Vicente Guerrero, c ...

to fight for the Independence of Mexico where he was promoted, and had his best performance in the defense of

Tampico Tampico is a city and port in the southeastern part of the Mexican state of Tamaulipas. It is located on the north bank of the Pánuco River, about inland from the Gulf of Mexico, and directly north of the state of Veracruz. Tampico is the fif ...

against an expedition eight years after the independence was consummated. In 1838, he contributed to the successful defense of

Veracruz Veracruz, formally Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave, is one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the 32 Political divisions of Mexico, Federal Entit ...

against French invaders when they attacked during the ''

Pastry War The Pastry War (; ), also known as the first French intervention in Mexico or the first Franco-Mexican war (1838–1839), began in November 1838 with the naval blockade of some Centralist Republic of Mexico, Mexican ports and the capture of the ...

''. On May 20, 1846, he revolted against

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...

Mariano Paredes y Arrillaga, who was a conservative trying to turn the republic into a monarchy. As a general in

Jalisco Jalisco, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Jalisco, is one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the 32 Political divisions of Mexico, Federal Entities of Mexico. It is located in western Mexico and is bordered by s ...

, commanding an army of 500 men and six artillery pieces, he attacked the invading

U.S. Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of the United Stat ...

, which had arrived through the San Blas port, forcing the Americans to retreat. In 1852, he was designated

governor of Jalisco The following is a list of governors of the Mexican state of Jalisco from 1821. The current Constitution indicates a term of six years in length, which cannot be renewed under any circumstances. It also stipulates the qualifications for becoming ...

, by the conservatives who supported, with José María Blancarte, the Hospice Plan. In November 1853 he commanded the forces that defeated William Walker and filibusters who tried to seize Baja California and Sonora to create an independent republic. One of the most notable military facts about Yáñez, was the defense of

Guaymas Guaymas () is a city in Guaymas Municipality, in the southwest part of the List of states of Mexico, state of Sonora, in northwestern Mexico. The city is south of the state capital of Hermosillo, and from the Mexico – United States border, U.S. ...

. He was designated

governor of Sonora List of governors of the Mexican state of Sonora since 1911: *2021–present Alfonso Durazo Morena (political party), MORENA *2015–2021 Claudia Pavlovich Arellano Institutional Revolutionary Party, PRI *2009–2015 Guillermo Padré ...

on April 19, 1854, and, on July 13 of the same year, he defended the state against an army under the command of

Count Count (feminine: countess) is a historical title of nobility in certain European countries, varying in relative status, generally of middling rank in the hierarchy of nobility. Pine, L. G. ''Titles: How the King Became His Majesty''. New York: ...

Gaston de Raousset-Boulbon Charles René Gaston Gustave de Raousset-Boulbon (May 5, 1817 – August 13, 1854) was a French adventurer, filibuster and entrepreneur and, by some accounts a pirate, and a theoretician of colonialism. Early life Gaston de Raousset-Boulbon was ...

. In that month, the state of

Sonora Sonora (), officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Sonora (), is one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the Administrative divisions of Mexico, Federal Entities of Mexico. The state is divided into Municipalities of Sonora, 72 ...

was invaded by 400

filibuster A filibuster is a political procedure in which one or more members of a legislative body prolong debate on proposed legislation so as to delay or entirely prevent a decision. It is sometimes referred to as "talking a bill to death" or "talking ...

s from France, Germany and

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in western South America. It is the southernmost country in the world and the closest to Antarctica, stretching along a narrow strip of land between the Andes, Andes Mountains and the Paci ...

, under the command of Boulbon who was trying to seize the

Mexican state A Mexican State (), officially the Free and Sovereign State (), is a constituent federative entity of Mexico according to the Constitution of Mexico. Currently there are 31 states, each with its own constitution, government, state governor, a ...

and found an independent country. Count Boulbon had tried to convince Yáñez to give up Guaymas without resistance and, after his refusal, attacked the port on July 13. Neighboring Mexican states joined the army commanded by Yañez and Boulbon was arrested and executed on August 13. President Santa Anna criticized Yáñez out of apparent jealousy for his courage but, after his administration ended, Yáñez was declared "Benefactor (Benemérito) of Sonora and Jalisco". He was later designated

governor of Sinaloa List of governors of the Mexico, Mexican States of Mexico, state of Sinaloa: References External links List of governors
of Sinaloa. {{DEFAULTSORT:Governor Of Sinaloa Lists of governors of States of Mexico, Sinaloa Governors of Sinalo ...

and, as such, he accepted the Tacubaya Plan. Few days later he resigned, leaving Pedro Espejo as governor of Sinaloa, and traveled to Mexico City. He died, as a Minister of War and the Navy, in Mexico City. Guaymas Airport is named after him.

External links

Biography
at Mexico-Tenoch.
Report
about the filibuster invasion of 1854 at the

Mexican Army The Mexican Army () is the combined Army, land and Air Force, air branch and is the largest part of the Mexican Armed Forces; it is also known as the National Defense Army. The Army is under the authority of the Secretariat of National Defense o ...

website.
Historic dates
of

.
Historic dates
of

Sinaloa Sinaloa (), officially the (), is one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, compose the Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided into 18 municipalities, and its capital city is Culiacán Rosales. It is located in northwest Mexic ...

.
William Walker in Baja California
{{DEFAULTSORT:Yanez, Jose Maria 1803 births 1880 deaths People of the Second French intervention in Mexico Governors of Sinaloa Governors of Sonora Governors of Jalisco Mexican generals Mexican military personnel of the Mexican–American War People of the Mexican War of Independence People from Guanajuato