Don Juan Ortega y Montañés (''also Juan de Ortega Cano Montañez y Patiño'') (July 3, 1627 in Siles,

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 ...

– December 16, 1708 in

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 ...

) was a Roman Catholic bishop and colonial administrator in

Guatemala Guatemala, officially the Republic of Guatemala, is a country in Central America. It is bordered to the north and west by Mexico, to the northeast by Belize, to the east by Honduras, and to the southeast by El Salvador. It is hydrologically b ...

and

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 ...

. He was successively bishop of

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(1670 to 1681), of

(1681 to 1684) and of

Michoacán Michoacán, formally Michoacán de Ocampo, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Michoacán de Ocampo, is one of the 31 states which, together with Mexico City, compose the Political divisions of Mexico, Federal Entities of Mexico. The stat ...

(1684 to March 24, 1700), and then

archbishop of Mexico The Archdiocese of Mexico () is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or archdiocese of the Catholic Church that is situated in Mexico City, Mexico. It was erected as a diocese on 2 September 1530 and elevated to an archdiocese on 12 February 15 ...

(June 21, 1700 to December 16, 1708). He also served as interim

viceroy of New Spain This article lists the viceroys who ruled the Viceroyalty of New Spain from 1535 to 1821 in the name of the monarch of Spain. In addition to viceroys, this article lists the highest Spanish governors of the viceroyalty, before the appointment o ...

from February 27, 1696, to December 18, 1696, and again from November 4, 1701, to November 27, 1702.

Education and ecclesiastical career

Ortega y Montañés was a native of Cartagena. Some sources give a different birth date: June 23, 1627. He studied at Cartagena, at Málaga, and at Alcalá de Henares, where he graduated with a doctorate in jurisprudence. He was named inquisitor for New Spain, and it was there that he entered the service of the Church. He was bishop of

, then

(

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). He was known for his opposition to clerical abuse and arbitrariness, and also for his support of simple happiness and poverty among the clergy. He had also a reputation for charity, concern for the parishioners, and energy in his work.

First term as viceroy

In February 1696 he was named interim viceroy of New Spain, to succeed

Gaspar de la Cerda, 8th Count of Galve Gaspar de la Cerda Silva Sandoval y Mendoza, 8th Count of Galve, Lord of Salcedón and Tortola (in full, ) (11 January 1653 – 12 March 1697) was viceroy of New Spain from November 20, 1688, to February 26, 1696. As viceroy of New Spain Cerd ...

. One of the first challenges of his administration was the suppression of an uprising of university students. On March 27, 1696, they tried to burn the scaffold in the Plaza de Armas, which they saw as "an annoying manifestation of the power of the monarchy." This caused great alarm in Mexico City. The constables broke up the demonstration, arresting a youth named Francisco González de Castro. The students tried to rescue him as he was being escorted to jail, pelting the constables with rocks. The other important event of this viceroy's first term was the sending of a Jesuit expedition to evangelize and colonize the Californias. This expedition included the famous missionary fathers

Eusebio Kino Eusebio Francisco Kino, Jesuits, SJ (, ; 10 August 1645 – 15 March 1711), often referred to as Father Kino, was an Italian Jesuit, missionary, geographer, explorer, cartographer, mathematician and astronomer born in the Prince-Bishopric of Tre ...

and Juan María Salvatierra. The two fathers had founded the Fondo Piadoso de California on August 15, 1696, to continue the work of colonization. A new viceroy, José Sarmiento y Valladares, conde de Moctezuma y de Tula, took up the government on December 13, 1696, and Bishop Ortega y Montañés returned to his see in Michoacán. He remained there until March, 1700, when he was made archbishop of Mexico.

Second term as viceroy

A ship arrived in Veracruz on March 6, 1701, carrying the news of the death of King

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on November 1 of the previous year. Charles II left no heir. The

War of the Spanish Succession The War of the Spanish Succession was a European great power conflict fought between 1701 and 1714. The immediate cause was the death of the childless Charles II of Spain in November 1700, which led to a struggle for control of the Spanish E ...

, between Spain and France on the one hand and Austria, England and Holland on the other, began to determine his successor. The viceroy at the time, Sarmiento y Valladares, was a supporter of the Habsburg claims to the Spanish throne. (The Bourbons were in control in Spain.) He was removed from office and Ortega was once again named interim viceroy. Ortega y Montañés's formal consecration as archbishop of Mexico occurred January 6, 1702, while he was again serving as viceroy. The archbishop was distinguished for his devotion to the

Virgin of Guadalupe Our Lady of Guadalupe (), also known as the Virgin of Guadalupe (), is a Catholic Church, Catholic Titles of Mary, mother of Jesus, title of the Blessed Virgin Mary associated with four Marian apparitions to Juan Diego and one to his uncle, J ...

, patron of Mexico, whose church was finished under this administration (1702). The archbishop personally toured, asking for alms to support the construction. He suspended the transportation of prisoners from New Spain to

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, which his predecessor Sarmiento y Valladares had begun. The viceroy received word that the conde de Chateau-Renaud had arrived in

Havana Havana (; ) is the capital and largest city of Cuba. The heart of La Habana Province, Havana is the country's main port and commercial center.Audiencia, and the decision was reached not to turn over the tribute to the French without express orders from the Spanish Crown. On November 18, 1702, Archbishop Ortega left Mexico City for Otumba to welcome the new viceroy, Francisco Fernández de la Cueva, 10th Duke of Alburquerque, and turn over temporal power to him. Ortega died in 1708, still occupying the see of Mexico. He left behind various writings. These included ''Informe del Estado de la Nueva España'', written for his first successor, José Sarmiento y Valladares. It was a report on the state of the colony at the end of the seventeenth century.

References

* García Puron, this needs more information, ''México y sus gobernantes'', v. 1. Mexico City: Joaquín Porrua, 1984. * Orozco L., Fernando, ''Fechas Históricas de México''. Mexico City: Panorama Editorial, 1988, . * Orozco Linares, Fernando, ''Gobernantes de México''. Mexico City: Panorama Editorial, 1985, .

External links and additional sources

* (for Chronology of Bishops) * (for Chronology of Bishops) * (for Chronology of Bishops) * (for Chronology of Bishops) * (for Chronology of Bishops) * (for Chronology of Bishops) {{DEFAULTSORT:Ortega, Juan 1627 births 1708 deaths Viceroys of New Spain 17th-century Roman Catholic bishops in New Spain 18th-century Roman Catholic archbishops in Mexico Roman Catholic archbishops of Mexico (city) Roman Catholic bishops of Guatemala (pre-1743) Mexican Roman Catholic archbishops