MIGUEL DOMÍNGUEZ (MEXICAN POLITICIAN): BIOGRAPHY - HISTORY - 2024

Miguel Domínguez (1756-1830) was a great Mexican of Spanish ancestry who fought clandestinely for the independence of his homeland. He practiced as a lawyer, politician and constituent.

He was a co-star of the famous Conspiracy of Querétaro and in the Mexican Independent Movement. He was also in command as Corregidor de Querétaro during the mandate of Félix Berenguer de Marquina.

He served as President of Mexico between 1823 and 1824. Likewise, he was appointed Magistrate and assumed the reins of the Supreme Executive Power of his country.

One of the dreams that this great Mexican jurist had and for which he fought hard, was the liberation of his people from the Spanish yoke. Together with his wife, the great heroine and fighter Josefa Ortiz de Domínguez, he organized clandestine meetings to fight against the oppressive command.

He managed to gather enough ammunition to go against various governments, with the support of some of the representatives of the Catholic Church of that time, friends who were legal experts and experts in military matters.

In 1810, his comrades in struggle agreed to take the decisive steps for the Mexican uprising against the Spanish aristocrats. However, motivated by the opinions between them, they caused their intentions to be discovered.

This culminated in the arrest of a large part of the Querétaro Group, which led to the dismissal of Miguel Domínguez as Corregidor by order of the ruling viceroyalty.

On September 16, 1810, the so-called “Grito de Dolores” occurred, carried out by the priest Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla, who, in the company of Juan Aldama and Ignacio Allende, summoned the inhabitants of the town of Dolores to rise up against the oppressive empire..

Once Mexican Independence was obtained, Miguel Domínguez participated actively in the Provisional Government that governed Mexico after the overthrow of the First Mexican Empire of Agustín de Iturbide.

Since 1824, he was appointed as the First Magistrate and President of the Supreme Court of Justice, a function that he held until the moment of his death.

Biography

Miguel Ramón Sebastián Domínguez Alemán was born into a Spanish family in Mexico City on January 20, 1756.

His parents were Dr. Manuel Domínguez Ginuesio and Doña María Josefa de Alemán y Truxillo. He had four brothers: Manuel Joseph, Ana María, Joaquín and Manuel.

Miguel Ramón obtained an excellent primary education, and later he devoted himself to studying law at the San Ildefonso school, where he obtained a law degree while still very young.

He married twice. First, on September 21, 1779, with María Josefa Alarcón Narváez. She died leaving him sad and grieving. After years of widowhood, he met the famous fighter María Josefa Crescencia Ortiz y Téllez Girón on a visit to the Vizcaína school.

Due to their mutual interests, they fell in love immediately and were married on January 23, 1791. It is known that several children were born from that relationship. The names of some of them were José María Hilarión “El Chico”, María Juana, Mariana Joaquina Pudenciana, María Manuela Josefa, María Guadalupe, María Josefa and Camila.

Since the exercise of his career as a lawyer, he has always been a member of all associations related to the field of law. That is why he decided to join the bar of the time.

For his passage in the public career, Miguel Ramón Sebastián Domínguez Alemán, executed several commitments in the realistic Mexican national treasury. In 1802 the Viceroy proposed him to be the Corregidor of Querétaro. Miguel accepted immediately.

Thanks to this position, his wife was nicknamed "La Corregidora."

Start of the political struggle

This Mexican politician and fighter always agreed with his spouse and close friends that Mexico should be ruled by Mexicans.

Therefore, upon learning of the fall of King Ferdinand VII, he contributed to the organization of movements aimed at displacing the Spanish command reigning in his country and replacing it with native authorities.

In 1808, Miguel Domínguez studied the possibility of forming a kind of colonial junta that would strategically govern the destinies of New Spain. Likewise, he encouraged and helped the towns of Querétaro to join the independence ideas of Ledezma and Azkarate. For this he took advantage of the fact that the king was absent.

Motivated by the public functions he exercised, he had to participate very carefully, but he continued to do so very actively, so much so that he constantly lent his residence for the holding of conspiratorial meetings.

With all this planning that lasted years, the famous "Conspiracy of Querétaro" began. In a clandestine way, intellectual, military and even clergy groups conspired against the Spanish command based in their country.

Among them were his wife, José María Sánchez, Ignacio Allende, Francisco Lanzagorta Inchaurregui, Juan Aldama or Bishop Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla.

Declaration of the plan

At the beginning of October 1810, some member of the conspiratorial group exposed the plan. Then, the Viceroy learned of the planning of an uprising against him.

The Viceroy ordered Corregidor Miguel Ramón Domínguez to arrest and imprison any traitor involved in that armed attempt. Faced with such a mandate, he had to proceed.

Much to his regret with the raid on some homes of alleged conspirators, he found war ammunition in the home of the brothers Emeterio and Epigmenio González, whom he had to arrest and imprison.

In view of the delicate situation that had been generated with the discovery of the conspiracy and the order issued to lock up all the traitors of the viceroyalty, Corregidor Domínguez proceeded to lock up his wife and main activist Josefa Ortiz de Domínguez in his own home.

She was one of the strongest revolutionary fighters. Upon learning of Joaquín Arias' betrayal against the conspirators, she proceeded to give immediate notice.

He did it through one of his closest conspirators named Ignacio Pérez.

Already previously warned of the imminent Spanish threat, on September 16, 1810 the “Grito de Dolores” was produced in full homily. This was led by the priest Miguel Hidalgo and it was the beginning of the war for the Independence of Mexico.

Arrest of the Domínguez couple

After years of fighting secretly, but after the events against the Spanish power, Miguel Domínguez and his wife were arrested.

He was tried and removed from his post, but released shortly after due to pressure from the people. His wife Josefa Ortiz de Domínguez "La Corregidora" was prosecuted and convicted as a traitor.

Despite the defense made by her husband, who was a lawyer, she was ordered in 1814 to be sent to the Santa Clara convent in the Mexican capital. This sentence was paid until the year 1817.

Domínguez Alemán made the decision to reside in that city, so he could be next to his wife who was serving a sentence. He was allowed to visit her constantly.

Despite what happened and his conspiratorial participation, Viceroy Juan Ruiz de Apodaca granted him a pension given his great career and good performance in politics.

Mexico's independence

On September 27, 1821, the Independence of Mexico finally occurred. A short time later, the judiciary came into conflict.

In the middle of the transitional period between the monarchical and republican thoughts, Miguel Domínguez helped in this new emancipatory judicial movement.

He collaborated with the integration of the Court and its new legislation. Also with the territorial distribution of this, the constitutional reforms derived from the disputes between centralists and federalists.

In 1823, Miguel Domínguez, was formally called to take part as an Alternate Member of the Supreme Executive Power of Mexico.

This body was the one that administered the Aztec Nation after the fall of the government of Agustín de Iturbide. He did so until the First Federal Republic was truly formed.

Said Collegiate Body, handled the political and legal situation of the country in a transitory way. However, they were in charge of the great responsibility of drafting the Mexican Federal Constitution of 1824.

The new Magna Carta contained as its most important characteristic that the political order would from then on be republican, representative and federal.

Magistrate of the Supreme Court of Justice

After this Organ was abolished, the first presidency of the nation began, exercised by Guadalupe Victoria. At that time Miguel Domínguez was called to exercise the position of first Magistrate of the Supreme Court of Justice.

In 1825 he was appointed President of the recently created Supreme Court of Justice of the Mexican Nation. This thanks to its excellence. He came to hold this position from 1825 to 1830.

Death

Miguel Domínguez, died at 74 years of age in Mexico City, on April 22, 1830. Currently his remains rest in the Pantheon of Illustrious Queretanos.

References

1. Cortez, Josaphat (2015). Origin of the Supreme Court of Justice of 1824. Virtual Legal Library of the Institute of Legal Research of the UNAM) Recovered in: scielo.org.mx
2. S / D. (2010). Historical figures. Recovered in: archivoshistorico2010.sedena.gob.mx
3. Biography of Miguel de Domínguez. L´Historia. Compendium on the History of Civilization. Recovered at: lhistoria.com
4. Museo del Caracol, Gallery of History. National Institute of Anthropology and History. Recovered at: places.inah.gob.mx
5. The Conspirators of Querétaro. (2018). Recovered at: academia.edu