Nicolás Antonio de Arredondo, Pelegrin, Ahedo Zorilla de San Martin y Venero (17 April 1726 – 4 April 1802) was a Spanish soldier and politician born in the village of

Bárcena de Cicero Bárcena de Cicero is a municipality located in the autonomous community of Cantabria, Spain. According to the 2007 census, the city has a population of 2.546 inhabitants. Its capital is Gama. Towns *Adal * Ambrosero *Bárcena de Cicero *Cicero ...

on Spain's Atlantic Coast. He was the fourth

viceroy A viceroy () is an official who reigns over a polity in the name of and as the representative of the monarch of the territory. The term derives from the Latin prefix ''vice-'', meaning "in the place of" and the Anglo-Norman ''roy'' (Old Frenc ...

of the Río de la Plata between 4 December 1789 and 16 March 1795.

Biography

Before entering politics Arredondo fought in wars on Italy, where he earned military prestige. He was sent to the Americas and took political roles in

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 ...

. Afterwards, he was designed as governor in La Plata, modern

Bolivia Bolivia, officially the Plurinational State of Bolivia, is a landlocked country located in central South America. The country features diverse geography, including vast Amazonian plains, tropical lowlands, mountains, the Gran Chaco Province, w ...

. In 1789 he was designated as viceroy of the

Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata The Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata or Viceroyalty of Buenos Aires ( or Virreinato de Buenos Aires or ) meaning "River of the Silver", also called the "Viceroyalty of River Plate" in some scholarly writings, in southern South America, was ...

, after the departure of

Nicolás del Campo Nicolás Francisco Cristóbal del Campo, Marquis of Loreto (March 12, 1725 – February 17, 1803) was a Spanish politician and soldier who occupied several posts in the Spanish American colonies, mainly in the River Plate area. Biography He wa ...

. As viceroy, he improved the layout of the streets of

Buenos Aires Buenos Aires, controlled by the government of the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Argentina. It is located on the southwest of the Río de la Plata. Buenos Aires is classified as an Alpha− glob ...

and fortified the city of

Montevideo Montevideo (, ; ) is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Uruguay, largest city of Uruguay. According to the 2023 census, the city proper has a population of 1,302,954 (about 37.2% of the country's total population) in an area of . M ...

. He created local councils and police corps, gave a boost to

animal husbandry Animal husbandry is the branch of agriculture concerned with animals that are raised for meat, animal fiber, fibre, milk, or other products. It includes day-to-day care, management, production, nutrition, selective breeding, and the raising ...

, mediated between the conflicts of business people and ranchers, and fought against

contraband Contraband (from Medieval French ''contrebande'' "smuggling") is any item that, relating to its nature, is illegal to be possessed or sold. It comprises goods that by their nature are considered too dangerous or offensive in the eyes of the leg ...

. He resigned in 1795 and returned to Spain, remaining involved in politics until his death. His son,

José Joaquín de Arredondo José is a predominantly Spanish and Portuguese form of the given name Joseph. While spelled alike, this name is pronounced very differently in each of the two languages: Spanish ; Portuguese (or ). In French, the name ''José'', pronounced , ...

, was a Spanish soldier in

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 the two decades before Mexican independence.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Arreondo, Nicolas Antonio Viceroys of the Río de la Plata 1726 births 1802 deaths