Leopoldo O'Donnell y Jorris, 1st Duke of Tetuán,
GE (12 January 1809 – 5 November 1867), was a Spanish general and
Grandee
Grandee (; , ) is an official royal and noble ranks, aristocratic title conferred on some Spanish nobility. Holders of this dignity enjoyed similar privileges to those of the peerage of France during the , though in neither country did they ha ...
who was
Prime Minister of Spain
The prime minister of Spain, officially president of the Government (), is the head of government of Spain. The prime minister nominates the Spanish government departments, ministers and chairs the Council of Ministers (Spain), Council of Mini ...
on several occasions.
Early life
He was born at
Santa Cruz de Tenerife in the
Canary Islands
The Canary Islands (; ) or Canaries are an archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean and the southernmost Autonomous communities of Spain, Autonomous Community of Spain. They are located in the northwest of Africa, with the closest point to the cont ...
, a son of
Carlos O'Donnell (born 1768) and Josefa Jorris y Casaviella. He was a paternal grandson of
José O'Donnell and Marie Anne d'Anethan. He was of distant
Irish paternal ancestry, the 11th generation descendant of
Calvagh O'Donnell, ''
Rí'' of
Tír Chonaill, a
Gaelic territory in the west of
Ulster
Ulster (; or ; or ''Ulster'') is one of the four traditional or historic provinces of Ireland, Irish provinces. It is made up of nine Counties of Ireland, counties: six of these constitute Northern Ireland (a part of the United Kingdom); t ...
in the north of
Ireland
Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...
. He had an uncle, Francisco, and an aunt, Beatriz, who married Manuel Pombo y Ante (1769–1829), and had issue.
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Career
O'Donnell was a strong supporter of the liberal
Cristinos and the regency of
Maria Christina of Bourbon-Two Sicilies during the 1830s. When General
Baldomero Espartero seized power in 1840, O'Donnell went into exile with Maria Christina and was involved in an attempted coup against Espartero in 1841. O'Donnell was soon back in power and was sent to Cuba as Captain General in October 1843.
O'Donnell was responsible for the 1844 massacre known as the repression of "La Escalera". Thousands of slaves and free-coloured people in Cuba were confined in dungeons, tortured and executed in what became known as the
Year of the Lash. In 1854, he made a ''
pronunciamiento'' against the government and was named
Prime Minister
A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...
for a time. He served as War Minister of the Espartero government.
The
Crimean War
The Crimean War was fought between the Russian Empire and an alliance of the Ottoman Empire, the Second French Empire, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, and the Kingdom of Sardinia (1720–1861), Kingdom of Sardinia-Piedmont fro ...
caused an increase in grain prices due to the blockade of Russia, causing a famine in
Galicia during 1854. Riots against
power looms spread through Spain, and General O'Donnell intervened, marching on
Madrid
Madrid ( ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in Spain, most populous municipality of Spain. It has almost 3.5 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 7 million. It i ...
. Espartero relinquished power in O'Donnell's favour on 14–15 July 1856, and Queen
Isabella II asked him to form a government as the 44th
Prime Minister of Spain
The prime minister of Spain, officially president of the Government (), is the head of government of Spain. The prime minister nominates the Spanish government departments, ministers and chairs the Council of Ministers (Spain), Council of Mini ...
.
For his new administration, O'Donnell formed the
Unión Liberal Party, which was designed to combine
Progressive, Moderate, and
Carlist
Carlism (; ; ; ) is a Traditionalism (Spain), Traditionalist and Legitimist political movement in Spain aimed at establishing an alternative branch of the Bourbon dynasty, one descended from Infante Carlos María Isidro of Spain, Don Carlos, ...
factions. O'Donnell attempted to define moderate policies for Spain with this new party, advocating a ''
laissez-faire
''Laissez-faire'' ( , from , ) is a type of economic system in which transactions between private groups of people are free from any form of economic interventionism (such as subsidies or regulations). As a system of thought, ''laissez-faire'' ...
'' approach and confiscating church land. He was dismissed after only a few months in power on 12 October, and two years of reaction followed.
In later governments, O'Donnell was more careful. His two later administrations worked laboriously to attract foreign investment to improve Spain's railroad infrastructure. He failed to achieve much economic growth, however, and increased industry only in
Basque country and
Catalonia
Catalonia is an autonomous community of Spain, designated as a ''nationalities and regions of Spain, nationality'' by its Statute of Autonomy of Catalonia of 2006, Statute of Autonomy. Most of its territory (except the Val d'Aran) is situate ...
, both of which already had substantial industrial centres. He was a proponent of a new and aggressive
imperial policy, intended principally to expand Spanish territory in Africa, particularly after French successes in
Algeria
Algeria, officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It is bordered to Algeria–Tunisia border, the northeast by Tunisia; to Algeria–Libya border, the east by Libya; to Alger ...
.
In the first administration, he served twice simultaneously as
Minister of Foreign Affairs
In many countries, the ministry of foreign affairs (abbreviated as MFA or MOFA) is the highest government department exclusively or primarily responsible for the state's foreign policy and foreign relations, relations, diplomacy, bilateralism, ...
and Prime Minister. He was the 136th Minister of Foreign Affairs and the 48th Prime Minister of Spain between 30 June 1858 and 2 July 1858, and the 138th Minister of Foreign Affairs between 21 October 1860 and 18 January 1863, remaining again solely as Prime Minister until 26 February 1863. His second term as the 53rd Prime Minister started on 21 October 1860.
He took a brief respite from his government in 1860 to command the Spanish army at the
Battle of Tétouan
A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and force co ...
and the
Battle of Wad Ras during the
Spanish-Moroccan War, overseeing the capture of
Tétouan
Tétouan (, or ) is a city in northern Morocco. It lies along the Martil Valley and is one of the two major ports of Morocco on the Mediterranean Sea, a few miles south of the Strait of Gibraltar, and about E.S.E. of Tangier. In the 2014 Morocc ...
. He was rewarded for his abilities in the campaign with the title
Duke of Tetuán.
In 1866, he repressed a revolt commanded by General
Juan Prim, and was subsequently dismissed by the queen for the brutality of his regime on 11 July 1866. He was the 103rd
Grand Cross
Grand Cross is the highest class in many orders, and manifested in its insignia. Exceptionally, the highest class may be referred to as Grand Cordon or equivalent. In other cases, there may exist a rank even higher than Grand Cross, e.g. Gran ...
of the
Order of the Tower and Sword.
Family
The Duke of Tetuán was succeeded in his titles by his nephew,
Carlos O'Donnell y Álvarez de Abreu (1834 – 1903), 2nd Duke of Tetuán, 2nd Count of Lucena and 9th Marquess of Altamira, who was the son of his brother Carlos O'Donnell y Jorris and wife María del Mar Álvarez de Abreu y Rodríguez de Albuerne. The 2nd Duke of Tetuán married in Madrid on 1 June 1861 to María Josefa de Vargas y Díez de Bulnes (
Madrid
Madrid ( ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in Spain, most populous municipality of Spain. It has almost 3.5 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 7 million. It i ...
, 25 July 1838 – 5 November 1905).
References
Sources
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External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Odonnell, Leopoldo
1809 births
1867 deaths
Counts of Lucena
Dukes of Tetuan
Governors of Cuba
Grandees of Spain
Leaders of political parties in Spain
Liberal Union (Spain) politicians
Military personnel of the First Carlist War
Leopoldo
People from Santa Cruz de Tenerife
People of the Chincha Islands War
People of the Dominican Restoration War
Prime ministers of Spain
Spanish captain generals
Spanish people of Irish descent
Viscounts of Spain
Spanish military personnel of the Hispano-Moroccan War (1859–60)