Juan Ponce de León y Loayza (born San Juan, Puerto Rico) was the son of Juan Ponce de León II (born ''Juan Troche-Ponce de León''), the interim Spanish governor of

Puerto Rico ; abbreviated PR), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, is a Government of Puerto Rico, self-governing Caribbean Geography of Puerto Rico, archipelago and island organized as an Territories of the United States, unincorporated territo ...

in 1579. His mother was Isabel de Loayza born in Villa Talavera de la Reina,

Toledo, Spain Toledo ( ; ) is a city and Municipalities of Spain, municipality of Spain, the capital of the province of Toledo and the ''de jure'' seat of the government and parliament of the autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Castilla� ...

, the daughter of Governor Iñigo López de Cervantes y Loayza. The city of

Ponce, Puerto Rico Ponce ( , , ) is a city and a Municipalities of Puerto Rico, municipality on the southern coast of Puerto Rico. The most populated city outside the San Juan, Puerto Rico, San Juan metropolitan area, Ponce was founded on August 12, 1692Some publ ...

, was named after Juan Ponce de León y Loayza.

Noble lineage

Juan Ponce de León y Loayza's father, Juan Ponce de León II, was the son of lady Juana Ponce de León, one of three daughters born of Juan Ponce de León, the Spanish

conquistador Conquistadors (, ) or conquistadores (; ; ) were Spanish Empire, Spanish and Portuguese Empire, Portuguese colonizers who explored, traded with and colonized parts of the Americas, Africa, Oceania and Asia during the Age of Discovery. Sailing ...

, and his wife Leonora Ponce de León (their other three children were Isabel, Maria, and Luis). Thus, Juan Ponce de León y Loayza was the great-grandson of the Spanish

and first governor of Puerto Rico, Juan Ponce de León.

Background

In his trip from Spain to Puerto Rico in August 1577, Bishop Diego de Salamanca, not finding a commercial ship heading to Puerto Rico at the time, boarded a Spanish warship headed to

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

, which dropped him off in the southern coast of Puerto Rico at Guanica. He then rode by horse through the interior of the Island in his way to his post in San Juan. While traveling to San Juan, he took notice that the southern region was not being attended to by the Spanish leaders in San Juan, and while in San Juan, made efforts to have farmers sent to the South to settle there and work the land. Having married Doña Ana de Salamanca, the niece of Bishop Diego de Salamanca, Juan Ponce de León y Loayza learned of Diego's efforts and became interested in colonizing the area, thus becoming one of the first settlers on the southern shores of Puerto Rico. The first Spanish settlement was near Rio Jacaguas, but being too vulnerable to indigenous peoples attacks at that location, the colony moved further west and inland to the banks of Rio Portugues, near the center of the current location of the city that bears his name.

Political leadership

In 1670, a small chapel was built in the area where the actual plaza is now located. Ponce de León y Loaiza was the town's most enthusiastic colonizer; it was his main interest to have this area settled and incorporated into a town. These were the humble beginnings of what would become a very important and aristocratic city. While a resident there, and as son of interim governor of Puerto Rico, Juan Ponce de León y Loayza worked to have the Queen of Spain issue a permit to formalize the founding of a

hamlet ''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a Shakespearean tragedy, tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play. Set in Denmark, the play (the ...

there. The hamlet had developed around the small chapel, raised and dedicated in honor of Our Lady of Guadalupe. On 17 September 1692, the King of Spain Carlos II issued a ''Cédula Real'' (Royal Permit) converting the chapel into a parish, and in so doing officially recognized the small settlement as a hamlet as was Spanish custom. It is believed that Juan Ponce de León y Loayza himself was instrumental in obtaining the royal permit to formalize the founding of the

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Aftermath

In 1848, many years after Juan Ponce de León y Loayza's death, the hamlet was declared a

villa A villa is a type of house that was originally an ancient Roman upper class country house that provided an escape from urban life. Since its origins in the Roman villa, the idea and function of a villa have evolved considerably. After the f ...

(Villa de Ponce) by Royal Decree. In 1877, it obtained its city charter, paving the way to becoming the modern-day city of Ponce.

Ancestors

Notes

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ponce de Leon y Loayza, Juan Royal governors of Puerto Rico 16th-century Spanish people Puerto Rican people of Spanish descent Politicians from Ponce Spanish West Indies