JOSÉ MARIANO DE MICHELENA: BIOGRAPHY - HISTORY - 2025

José Mariano de Michelena (1772 - 1852) was a Mexican military and politician. Originally from Valladolid, in the Michoacán Intendancy of the Viceroyalty of New Spain, he graduated in Law from the University of Mexico shortly before enlisting in the Crown Infantry Regiment.

He participated in the conspiracy of Valladolid, for which he was captured and exiled. When Mexico achieved its independence, it returned and faced the newly formed Mexican Empire.

E. Gimeno, Tomas SV, via Wikimedia Commons

He was part of the Supreme Executive Power, a political body that was constituted to carry out functions while the 1824 elections were being prepared.

In 1831 he was appointed as the first Plenipotentiary Minister of Mexico to Great Britain. He was also Minister of War and Governor of Michoacán. Upon retiring from politics, he took refuge on his farm in Michoacán, where he created the first coffee crop in Mexico. He died in his native Valladolid, in 1852.

Biography

Early years

José Mariano de Michelena y Gil de Miranda was born on July 14, 1772, in the city that is now known as Morelia, in the state of Michoacán, Mexico. At that time it was known as Valladolid, in the Municipality of Michoacán of the Viceroyalty of New Spain.

His parents were María Josefa Gil de Miranda González de Castañeda and José Manuel de Michelena Ibarra, a Spanish landowner and merchant, who was alderman and royal ensign of the Valladolid City Council.

As Michelena Ibarra was one of the most powerful men in Michoacán, he promoted the crops with irrigation systems in the region.

José Mariano de Michelena was the sixth of 10 siblings, three women and 7 men. The most relevant among them were José María Ignacio and José Nicolás, as they were also part of the Valladolid Conspiracy in 1809.

In Valladolid he attended his youth schooling. Later Michelena received his Bachelor of Laws degree from the Royal and Pontifical University of Mexico.

Conspiracy of Valladolid

In 1806, following in his father's footsteps, José Mariano de Michelena enlisted in the Crown Infantry Regiment at the service of Spain.

When he was awarded the rank of lieutenant, he was assigned to the Canton of Jalapa. There he met other soldiers such as Mariano Quevedo, Ignacio Allende and Juan Aldama.

At that time news came from Spain, in which he became aware of the Napoleonic invasion, which led to the fall of Viceroy José de Iturrigaray in Mexico, who was replaced by Pedro de Garibay.

So Michelena was sent to Valladolid to recruit new officers. There he found out about the conspiracy that was forming in the city and joined it.

They decided that the uprising would be in the name of the legitimate Spanish king, Fernando VII, to defend the freedom of New Spain from the French yoke.

However, this conspiracy failed, since the information was leaked and the governor arrested all those who were related to it, including José Mariano de Michelena, who was imprisoned until 1810 in the Carmen Convent.

Then he was locked up in the Castillo de San Juan de Ulúa, in Veracruz, where he remained for a couple of years. He then joined the Veracruz Conspiracy, but was acquitted of all charges and transferred to Spain.

Exile

During his stay in Spain he joined the militia and achieved the rank of captain in the Burgos Regiment, together with which he participated in important battles for Spanish freedom, such as that of Bayonne in 1814, which was fought against the Napoleonic armies.

In 1819 José Mariano de Michelena was serving in La Coruña. By that date he was appointed deputy for Michoacán in the Courts of the Liberal Triennium held in Spain. From them he advocated for the freedom and autonomy of the American provinces.

He was in this position until in 1821, when Agustín de Iturbide declared Mexican Independence, Michelena left the Motherland and headed for Mexico.

I return to Mexico

When José Mariano de Michelena arrived in his homeland in 1822, the country had already become independent. That's when he started his adventures in politics.

He was granted the rank of brigadier general in the army and at that time he was sympathetic to the republican federal system.

After the fall of Iturbide in 1823, Michelena began to form part of the executive power, since General Nicolás Bravo was not available to participate in the triumvirate along with Miguel Domínguez and Pedro Celestino Negrete.

He was in that position from April 1, 1823 to October 10, 1824. From there they promoted the Plan of Iguala and the Treaty of Córdoba.

Diplomacy

On June 24, 1824, José Mariano de Michelena was appointed plenipotentiary minister of Mexico in the United Kingdom. Then he tried to obtain in the British capital the recognition of this government to be able to carry out commercial pacts of goods, arms and ships.

In addition, he wanted to have intelligence information about the actions of Iturbide, who was on the British island. When Iturbide tried to return to Mexico, he was quickly captured and sentenced to death upon landing in that nation.

At that time Mexico, Great Colombia and Argentina had to carry out risky diplomatic maneuvers to get Great Britain to finally recognize them. It was then that Michelena returned to Mexico.

In his land, public opinion was not favorable to him and the dispute between Scots and Yorkers began to develop. The Mexican political landscape would remain unstable for a long time, but in 1826 Michelena attended the Congress of Panama as a delegate from Mexico.

Last years

In 1833, during one of the many revolts that occurred in the Mexican political sphere in the 19th century, he was expelled from the country. Upon his return, he settled on his farm in Uruapan, in Michoacán.

Between April and October 1837, José Mariano de Michelena served as Minister of War in the National Cabinet and also during those years served as Governor of Michoacán.

It is said that before this, Michelena had traveled to Arabia and was one of the first to bring coffee plants to implement the consumption of this drink in the American continent.

Death

José Mariano de Michelena passed away on May 10, 1852, Valladolid, which is currently known as Morelia, at the age of 79. At that time he was already retired from national political activity.

References

1. En.wikipedia.org. (2019). José Mariano Michelena. Available at: en.wikipedia.org.
2. Ortuño Martínez, M. (2019). José Mariano Michelena - Royal Academy of History. Dbe.rah.es. Available at: dbe.rah.es.
3. BERBERA Editores (2004). One hundred short biographies of famous Mexicans. Berbera editors.
4. Thebiography.us. (2019). Biography of José Mariano Michelena Available at: thebiography.us.
5. Unknown Mexico. (2010). José Mariano Michelena - Unknown Mexico. Available at: mexicodesconocido.com.mx.
6. Historical Archive of the Secretariat of National Defense. (2010). Jose Mariano de Michelena. Available at: Archivohistorico2010.sedena.gob.mx.