Pedro Pablo Abarca de Bolea y Jiménez de Urrea, 10th Count of Aranda (1718 in Siétamo,

Huesca Huesca (; ) is a city in north-eastern Spain, within the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Aragon. It was the capital of the Kingdom of Aragon between 1096 and 1118. It is also the capital of the Spanish Huesca (province), ...

– 1798 in

Épila Épila is a municipality in the province of Zaragoza (province), Zaragoza, Aragon, Spain. Its population in 2005 was approximately 4,100. The Santuario de la Virgen de Rodanas is located in the Sierra de Nava Alta, west of Épila town. The road ...

Saragossa Zaragoza (), traditionally known in English as Saragossa ( ), is the capital city of the province of Zaragoza and of the autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Aragon, Spain. It lies by the Ebro river and its tributaries, the ...

), was a Spanish

statesman A statesman or stateswoman is a politician or a leader in an organization who has had a long and respected career at the national or international level, or in a given field. Statesman or statesmen may also refer to: Newspapers United States ...

and

diplomat A diplomat (from ; romanization, romanized ''diploma'') is a person appointed by a state (polity), state, International organization, intergovernmental, or Non-governmental organization, nongovernmental institution to conduct diplomacy with one ...

who signed for the

Spanish Empire The Spanish Empire, sometimes referred to as the Hispanic Monarchy (political entity), Hispanic Monarchy or the Catholic Monarchy, was a colonial empire that existed between 1492 and 1976. In conjunction with the Portuguese Empire, it ushered ...

the Peace of Paris of 1783.

Early life

Aranda came from an old and rich Aragonese family. He began ecclesiastical studies in the

seminary A seminary, school of theology, theological college, or divinity school is an educational institution for educating students (sometimes called seminarians) in scripture and theology, generally to prepare them for ordination to serve as cle ...

Bologna Bologna ( , , ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the Emilia-Romagna region in northern Italy. It is the List of cities in Italy, seventh most populous city in Italy, with about 400,000 inhabitants and 150 different nationalities. Its M ...

but when he was 18 he changed to the Military School of

Parma Parma (; ) is a city in the northern Italian region of Emilia-Romagna known for its architecture, Giuseppe Verdi, music, art, prosciutto (ham), Parmesan, cheese and surrounding countryside. With a population of 198,986 inhabitants as of 2025, ...

. In 1740, he was captain of the Spanish Army and fought in the

War of the Austrian Succession The War of the Austrian Succession was a European conflict fought between 1740 and 1748, primarily in Central Europe, the Austrian Netherlands, Italian Peninsula, Italy, the Atlantic Ocean and Mediterranean Sea. Related conflicts include King Ge ...

. As he had been severely wounded in combat in 1743 (he was left for dead on the battlefield), he temporarily left the military and traveled through Europe. He studied the Prussian Army, later introducing its system of drill into the Spanish army, and lived in Paris, where he met

Diderot Denis Diderot (; ; 5 October 171331 July 1784) was a French philosopher, art critic, and writer, best known for serving as co-founder, chief editor, and contributor to the along with Jean le Rond d'Alembert. He was a prominent figure during t ...

Voltaire François-Marie Arouet (; 21 November 169430 May 1778), known by his ''Pen name, nom de plume'' Voltaire (, ; ), was a French Age of Enlightenment, Enlightenment writer, philosopher (''philosophe''), satirist, and historian. Famous for his wit ...

and

D'Alembert Jean-Baptiste le Rond d'Alembert ( ; ; 16 November 1717 – 29 October 1783) was a French mathematician, mechanics, mechanician, physicist, philosopher, and music theorist. Until 1759 he was, together with Denis Diderot, a co-editor of the ''E ...

and studied the ''

Encyclopédie , better known as ''Encyclopédie'' (), was a general encyclopedia published in France between 1751 and 1772, with later supplements, revised editions, and translations. It had many writers, known as the Encyclopédistes. It was edited by Denis ...

'' and Enlightenment movements. He also at one point visited Voltaire at Ferney. He briefly visited London in September 1754. Due to Prime Minister Ricardo Wall's sponsorship,

Ferdinand VI Ferdinand VI (; 23 September 1713 – 10 August 1759), called the Learned (''el Prudente'') and the Just (''el Justo''), was King of Spain from 9 July 1746 until his death in 1759. He was the third ruler of the Spanish Bourbon dynasty. He was the ...

appointed him in 1755

ambassador An ambassador is an official envoy, especially a high-ranking diplomat who represents a state and is usually accredited to another sovereign state or to an international organization as the resident representative of their own government or so ...

to Portugal and in 1757 director general of

Artillery Artillery consists of ranged weapons that launch Ammunition, munitions far beyond the range and power of infantry firearms. Early artillery development focused on the ability to breach defensive walls and fortifications during sieges, and l ...

, a post that he soon resigned, along with his military rank, because he was forbidden to pursue corrupt contractors. In 1760,

Charles III Charles III (Charles Philip Arthur George; born 14 November 1948) is King of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth realms. Charles was born at Buckingham Palace during the reign of his maternal grandfather, King George VI, and ...

appointed him ambassador to Poland, Upon his return he was sent to Portugal to supersede Nicolás de Carvajal, Marquis of Sarria in the command of the Spanish army invading Portugal. His forces managed to capture the key border town of Almeida but were then forced to retreat following the intervention of British troops led by

John Burgoyne General (United Kingdom), General John "Gentleman Johnny" Burgoyne (24 February 1722 – 4 August 1792) was a British Army officer, playwright and politician who sat in the House of Commons of Great Britain from 1761 to 1792. He first saw acti ...

at the Battle of Valencia de Alcántara and the war was brought to an end shortly afterwards by the Treaty of Paris. In 1763 he was appointed captain general of the

Province of Valencia Valencia ( , ), officially València (), is a provinces of Spain, province of Spain, in the central part of the autonomous Valencian Community. Of the province's 2.7 million people (2024), almost one-third live in the capital, Valencia, whic ...

. He was then appointed captain general of New Castile and president of the

Council of Castile The Council of Castile (), known earlier as the Royal Council (), was a ruling body and key part of the domestic government of the Crown of Castile, second only to the monarch himself. It was established under Isabella I in 1480 as the chi ...

. The government had recently attempted to ban the long cape and wide sombrero which made concealing weapons easier, there had been a

riot A riot or mob violence is a form of civil disorder commonly characterized by a group lashing out in a violent public disturbance against authority, property, or people. Riots typically involve destruction of property, public or private. The p ...

against Minister Esquilache. Aranda however succeeded in getting rid of the fashion by simply making it the official costume of the executioner. As he enjoyed the personal confidence of the king, his power was similar to a prime minister's. He promoted many enlightened reforms and he supported the expulsion of the

Jesuits The Society of Jesus (; abbreviation: S.J. or SJ), also known as the Jesuit Order or the Jesuits ( ; ), is a religious order (Catholic), religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rom ...

in 1767. His political and

courtier A courtier () is a person who attends the royal court of a monarch or other royalty. The earliest historical examples of courtiers were part of the retinues of rulers. Historically the court was the centre of government as well as the officia ...

enemies, especially Floridablanca, managed to achieve his dismissal. He was appointed ambassador to France in 1773, where he stayed until 1787. In Paris, analyzing the situation created after the United States won its independence, he drafted a projected

Commonwealth A commonwealth is a traditional English term for a political community founded for the common good. The noun "commonwealth", meaning "public welfare, general good or advantage", dates from the 15th century. Originally a phrase (the common-wealth ...

for the

: three independent kingdoms (

Peru Peru, officially the Republic of Peru, is a country in western South America. It is bordered in the north by Ecuador and Colombia, in the east by Brazil, in the southeast by Bolivia, in the south by Chile, and in the south and west by the Pac ...

, '' Tierra Firme'' ( New Granada and

Venezuela Venezuela, officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many Federal Dependencies of Venezuela, islands and islets in the Caribbean Sea. It com ...

) and

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 ...

) with three Spanish ''

infante Infante (, ; f. ''infanta''), also anglicised as "infant" or translated as "prince", is the title and rank given in the Iberian kingdoms of Spain (including the predecessor kingdoms of Aragon, Castile, Navarre, and León) and Portugal to the ...

s'' in their thrones. The Spanish king would remain as the Spanish

Emperor The word ''emperor'' (from , via ) can mean the male ruler of an empire. ''Empress'', the female equivalent, may indicate an emperor's wife (empress consort), mother/grandmother (empress dowager/grand empress dowager), or a woman who rules ...

.Cf. Lucena, Manuel: ''Premoniciones de la independencia de Iberoamérica : las reflexiones de José de Ábalos y el Conde de Aranda sobre la situación de la América española a finales del siglo XVIII'', Madrid: Fundación Histórica Tavera; Ministerio de Asuntos Exteriores, 2003

Chief Minister

In 1792, he returned to Spain to replace José Moñino, 1st Count of Floridablanca as secretary of State (

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 ...

). After the imprisonment of

Louis XVI Louis XVI (Louis-Auguste; ; 23 August 1754 – 21 January 1793) was the last king of France before the fall of the monarchy during the French Revolution. The son of Louis, Dauphin of France (1729–1765), Louis, Dauphin of France (son and heir- ...

(August, 1792) and the proclamation of the Republic in France (September), Aranda's Enlightenment leanings seemed incompatible with the total war that several European monarchies were about to declare against revolutionary France. Aranda was therefore replaced by

Manuel Godoy Manuel de Godoy y Álvarez de Faria Ríos (12 May 1767 – 4 October 1851), 1st ''Prince of the Peace'', 1st ''Duke of Alcudia'', 1st ''Duke of Sueca'', 1st ''Baron of Mascalbó'', was the First Secretary of State of the Kingdom of Spain from ...

in November. After the defeat of Spanish Army in

Roussillon Roussillon ( , , ; , ; ) was a historical province of France that largely corresponded to the County of Roussillon and French Cerdagne, part of the County of Cerdagne of the former Principality of Catalonia. It is part of the region of ' ...

, Godoy and Aranda publicly quarreled in the

Council of State A council of state is a governmental body in a country, or a subdivision of a country, with a function that varies by jurisdiction. It may be the formal name for the cabinet or it may refer to a non-executive advisory body associated with a head ...

. That same night Aranda was arrested and confined to Jaén. A year later he was indulted and retired to his estates in

Aragon Aragon ( , ; Spanish and ; ) is an autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community in Spain, coextensive with the medieval Kingdom of Aragon. In northeastern Spain, the Aragonese autonomous community comprises three provinces of Spain, ...

. He was buried in the monastery of San Juan de la Peña

Family

In 1749 he married Doña Ana, daughter of the Duke of Híjar, 9th duke of Híjar, by whom he had one son, who died young, and a daughter.

References

Bibliography

*Albiac, María Dolores: ''El conde de Aranda. Los laberintos del poder'', Saragossa: Caja de Ahorros de la Inmaculada, 1998 * *Olaechea, Rafael; Ferrer, José A.: ''El Conde de Aranda (mitos y realidad de un político aragonés)'', Saragossa: Librería General, 1978 *Téllez Alarcia, Diego: ''Absolutismo e Ilustración en la España del s. XVIII. El Despotismo Ilustrado de D. Ricardo Wall'', Madrid: Fundación Española de Historia Moderna, 2008.

External links