- Ambrosio O'Higgins, Marquis of Osorno
Infobox Governor General
honorific-prefix= Don
name=Ambrosio O'Higgins
honorific-suffix=Marquis of Osorno
order=Viceroy of Peru
term_start=May 1796
term_end=March 1801
monarch=Charles IV
primeminister=Manuel de Godoy
predecessor=Francisco Gil de Taboada
successor=Manuel Arredondo y Pelegrín
order2=Royal Governor of Chile
term_start2=May 1788
term_end2=May 1796
monarch2=Charles IV
primeminister2=José Moñino y Redondo
predecessor2=Ambrosio de Benavides
successor2=José de Rezabal y Ugarte
birth_date=c. 1720
birth_place=Ballynary ,County Sligo ,Ireland
death_date=March 19 ,1801
death_place=Lima ,Peru
spouse=
children=Bernardo O'Higgins
profession=
religion=Catholic |Ambrosio O'Higgins, 1st Marquis of Osorno, 1st Baron of
Ballynary (c. 1720,Ballynary ,County Sligo ,Ireland -March 19 ,1801 [http://www.irishargentine.org/dilab_ohigginsa.htm] ,Lima ,Peru ) born Ambrose O'Higgins ("Ambróis Ó hUigínn", in Irish), was an Irish-born Spanish colonial administrator. He served theSpanish Empire as captain general (i.e., military governor) ofChile (1788–1796) andviceroy of Peru (1796–1801). Chilean independence leaderBernardo O'Higgins was his illegitimate son.Genealogy and Early life
Ambrose O'Higgins was the son of Charles O'Higgins, of
Ballynary ,County Sligo (son of Roger O'Higgins, of Ballynary, County Sligo, and wife Margaret Brehan), and wife and cousin Margaret O'Higgins (daughter of William O'Higgins and wife Winnifred O'Fallon).Charles O'Higgins' grandfather, Sean Duff O'Higgins, held the Gaelic territorial title of
Tiarna or Lord of Ballinary, and he was married to Margaret O'Conor, who was of the Royal House ofO'Conor ofBallintuber Castle , which ruledIreland until the year 1000.The O'Higgins family had owned great expanses of land in the Irish counties of
Sligo ,Westmeath and Mayo, but with the expropriations of Catholics byOliver Cromwell , and the deportation of tenants to County Sligo after theCromwellian conquest of Ireland , the O'Higgins' lands became smaller and smaller.Due to this encroachment into their land, the O'Higgins family emigrated to
County Meath , where they became lowly tenant farmers and worked in the service of theRowley-Langford family. In fact Ambrose is said to have been employed by LadyJane Rawley .In 1751, Ambrose arrived at
Cádiz , where he dedicated himself to commerce as an employee of theButler Trading House . As an Irishman and a Catholic, he was able to emigrate legally to Spanish America in 1756.Governor of Chile
After enrolling in the Spanish Imperial Service, he moved to La Plata Colony, in present day
Argentina , where he tried some commercial ventures. Later he enrolled as draughtsman and thenengineer for the Spanish Imperial Service.It was there that
John Garland , another Irish engineer at the service of Spain, convinced him to move to the neighbouring, and less established, colony ofChile . He rose quickly through the Service and became military governor ("Capitán General ") of Chile.During this time he had a relationship with
Isabel Riquelme , a "criolla" whose family was a member of the Spanish ruling class. From this unofficial union a son was born,Bernardo O'Higgins , who would later lead Chile to its independence from the Spanish Empire.Though Ambrose never officially recognised this son as his legal heir, he paid for his education in
England and left him his possessions inPeru and Chile.As governor of Chile, one of the most problematic, poor and remote Spanish outposts, O'Higgins was extremely active, promoting the construction of a definitive road between the capital Santiago and the port of
Valparaiso (part of the layout of which is still in use today), the building of thePalacio de la Moneda in Santiago, and the establishment of a reliable postal service between La Plata colony and the General Captaincy of Chile.Viceroy of Peru
In 1796, O'Higgins was appointed
Viceroy of Peru , comprising present-dayPeru , Chile,Bolivia , northwestArgentina and parts of westernBrazil .Peru was the richest colony of the whole Empire and thus the Viceroyship the most prominent post in all of Spanish America. He occupied it until his death in 1801.
Legacy
There are various towns, bays, and other Spanish discoveries in the Americas were named after his birthplace during his time as Viceroy, such as
Vallenar (originally named "San Ambrosio de Ballenary", later Hispanizised to Vallenar) in Chile orVallenar Bay inAlaska [ [http://www.explorenorth.com/articles/rey/spanish-irish.html Place Names in Revillagigedo and Gravina Islands: Spanish and Irish heritage of Southeast Alaska] ] .References
External links
* [http://www.irlandeses.org/dilab_ohigginsa.htm Murray, Edmundo - "O'Higgins, Ambrose (Ambrosio) (c. 1721-1801), governor and captain-general of Chile, later viceroy of Peru"]
* [http://www.ohigginsclan.com The O'Higgins Clan Association]
*CathEncy|wstitle=Ambrose Bernard O'Higgins
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