Sebastián Kindelán y O'Regan | |
|---|---|
| 6th governor of Spanish East Florida | |
| In office 11 June 1812 – 3 June 1815 | |
| Preceded by | Juan José de Estrada |
| Succeeded by | Juan José de Estrada |
| 4th colonial governor of Second Spanish Colony of Santo Domingo (1809–1821) | |
| In office 1818–1821 | |
| Preceded by | Carlos de Urrutia y Matos |
| Succeeded by | Pascual Real |
| 71st Governor (Provisional) of Cuba | |
| In office 19 July 1822 – 2 May 1823 | |
| Preceded by | Nicolás de Mahy y Romo |
| Succeeded by | Francisco Dionisio Vives |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 30 December 1757 (1757-12-30) |
| Died | 4 May 1826(1826-05-04) (aged 68) |
| Profession | Military governor,political administrator |
| Signature |  |
Sebastian Kindelán y O'Regan, also calledSebastián de Kindelán y Oregón,[1] (30 December 1757 – 4 May 1826) was a colonel in theSpanish Army who served as governor ofEast Florida (11 June 1812 – 3 June 1815) and ofSanto Domingo during the Second Spanish period (1818–1821), as well as provisional governor ofCuba (1822–1823).
Sebastián Kindelán was born on 30 December 1757[2] inCeuta,Spain.[3] He was the son of Vicente Kindelán Luttrell ofLuttrellstown and María Francisca O’Regan.[4] His father was an Irishman who settled in Spain[5][6] and joined the infantry of theRoyal Spanish Army,[7] attaining the positions ofBrigadier and military governor ofZamora. His mother came fromBarcelona but she probably was of Irish descent.[6]He had a brother,Juan de Kindelán y O'Regan, and a sister, María de la Concepcion Kindelán y O’Regan.[2] Kindelán joined the Spanish Army as acadet on 18 November 1768. During this time he was a soldier of the infantry regiment ofSantiago de Cuba.[8]
Kindelán assumed the governorship ofSantiago de Cuba and all the eastern territory of Cuba[8] on 28 March 1799 during a politically sensitive[9][10] period of the island's history.[11] In a missive dated 19 February 1804, some of its influential citizens reported to the Spanish Crown the dangerous situation of the island, asserting that Governor Kindelán had encouraged white refugees from the uprisings inSaint-Domingue to settle in Cuba after the French withdrew from the western portion ofHispaniola. They complained that some twenty thousand[12] or more French immigrants had already acquired land in Cuba,[13] and were importing black slaves to work their plantations.[14] The letter accused the governor of irreligion and dishonesty, and condemned him for having licentious habits and setting a bad example for the people. Kindelán rebutted the denunciations vigorously, and defended the French settlers, saying they were peaceful, and had no intention of inciting a revolution such as had occurred in Santo Domingo (Saint-Domingue).[15]
In a letter to the authorities in Spain dated 17 May 1804, Kindelán made note of recent attacks on the British colonies byprivateers based in Cuba. He later requested a reassignment, and was transferred toEast Florida on 22 September 1811. He was promoted toBrigadier ofInfantry in December of that year. On 11 June 1812, Kindelán was officially namedRoyal Governor of SpanishEast Florida, being named by the Cádiz Regency.[16][17] In 1812 a group of filibusters from the United States tried to seize Florida, in what would become known as thePatriot War. TheSeminoles and their black tribal members, some of them enslaved, came to the aid of Spain.[18] Kindelán was so upset over the actions of the filibusters that he prepared to challenge President James Madison to a duel but was stopped by the Captain-General of Cuba.[19]
Governor Kindelán sent certain leaders of his black militiamen to meet with the Seminole chiefsKing Payne and his successorBowlegs, who allowed some of their warriors to fight alongside the Spanish as a gesture of goodwill.[20] Kindelán expressed his satisfaction when Bowlegs took two hundred of his men to join the Spanish at theSt. Johns River, but complained that every time the Seminoles captured a slave, a horse or anything else of value, they left the field to try to secure the catch in their villages, so their utility as fighters was only temporary. Like his predecessors, Gov. Kindelán used black translators, including the free mulatto militiaman, Benjamin Wiggins, and the slave Tony Doctor[21] (Antonio Proctor), whom he described as "known to be the best interpreter of Indian languages in the province",[20][22] to promote a Spanish, Black, and Indian alliance.[23] In July 1812, Proctor traveled to the Seminole town of Alachua to meet with the chief King Payne, who called upon several hundred of his warriors to assist the Spanish.[24]
Kindelán left the position of Governor of East Florida on 3 June 1815,[25] when he was appointedAttaché to theGeneral Staff of Cuba, but on 12 August that same year he was given the rank of Lieutenant inHavana. Three years later, in 1818, he was elected acting governor of the Second Spanish Colony of Santo Domingo. As governor, he was faced with the problem of the Haitians who wanted to take over that part of the island of Hispaniola.[26] On 12 September 1819, Kindelán was awarded theGrand Cross of San Fernando, third class, for his efforts in Florida in 1813 to stop the American attacks in the colony; he was also aKnight of theOrder of Santiago.
Kindelán was replaced by Brigadier Pascual Real as colonial governor ofSanto Domingo in 1821, prior to the short-lived independence of that colony won byJosé Núñez de Cáceres and his group.[17][27] In 1822, asCabo Subalterno,[28] he was appointed Provisional Captain-General (or Governor) of Cuba[29] to replace former Gov. Nicolás Mahy y Romo.[30][31] Like his predecessor, Kindelán strove to unite the military and civil power in the office of the Captain-General; this effort aroused antagonism between the Spanish troops and the local militia.[32] Between 1824 and 1826 he served asField marshal(Mariscal de Campo)[4] of the royal army, and died inSantiago de Cuba on 4 May 1826,[33] with that rank.
Kindelán married Ana Manuela Mozo de la Torre Garvey in the Cathedral of Santiago de Cuba on 11 December 1801.[3][34] The couple had six children:[35] Juan (born in Santiago de Cuba on 8 September 1806),[4][6] Bárbara,[36] Vicente (1808–1877),[4] Fernando (1808–1889), María (1810–1879) and Mariana (1810–1880).[34]
1818. GOBIERNO DE KINDELÁN. Sucedió a Urrutia don Sebastián de Kindelán y Oregón, quien no sólo era más inteligente que su antecesor, sino que era hombre de vasta ilustración y de tendencias justicieras.
Testimonio de los autos obrados sobre la arribada que han hecho a este Pro. de Santiago de Cuba 5 Goletas y una balandra francesas...con varias familias de la misma nación pidiendo hospitalidad
{{cite book}}:ISBN / Date incompatibility (help)En la colección Boloña los Ocios de Guantánamo se suponen escritos en 1829, a juzgar por esta mención que aparece debajo de ese título general: «Silvas dirigidas al señor brigadier don Sebastián Kindelán el día 24 de junio del año 1829.» Esto resulta a todas luces extraño, porque Kindelán había muerto antes de esa fecha: su fallecimiento acaeció en Santiago de Cuba el 4 de mayo de 1826, y ya no era brigadier, sino mariscal de campo.
{{cite book}}:ISBN / Date incompatibility (help)