The demise of Martín Miguel de Güemes: a betrayal, the lengthy agony and what have been his final phrases

He was governor of Salta, he assembled a military that adopted him blindly and alone, he prevented a number of Spanish invasions within the north

On Thursday, June 7, 1821, Martín Miguel de Güemes, 36 years outdated, was within the metropolis of Salta, alone with an escort of fifty males. He went to the home of his sister Macacha, who lived in Balcarce and Spain. His brother-in-law Dionisio Puch, Colonel Jorge Enrique Vidt, a veteran of the Napoleonic Wars, and Martín Otero have been there.

It was midnight when he dispatched a messenger with the order to strategy the sq. to substantiate the presence of the enemy. However the man was shocked by a bullet at point-blank vary.

Güemes was confronted with a troublesome scenario. Days earlier than, being in El Chamical, a league from Salta, Colonel Ángel Mariano Zerda, a 29-year-old man from Salta, head of his vanguard, had gone with the information that within the mountain ranges of Lesser and Los Yacones they’d seen reflections of weapons . He didn’t give it significance, since he believed it was unlikely that Spanish troops may transit by means of these locations.

His sister Macacha Güemes was his proper arm. He did every part: espionage, peace mediator and even a matchmaker, since he launched him to what can be his spouse.

I used to be flawed. There have been 400 infantry led by Colonel José María Valdés who had been commissioned by Basic Pedro Antonio Olañeta to face a brand new invasion of Salta. On the identical time, Olañeta with 1,000 males would undergo the Humahuaca ravine in the direction of Jujuy, ready for the excellent news from Valdés when he turned proprietor of Salta.

Valdés was a Valencian who had settled in Salta as a younger man, and attributable to his considerably impulsive nature he had given himself the nickname El Babarucho. He earned his residing as a smuggler and smuggler. Due to this fact, he knew inaccessible paths and hidden paths. Though he managed to get nearer to town, hiding throughout the day in order that the shine of the weapons wouldn’t give him away, this lastly occurred.

That night time Valdés, who was ready for the suitable second within the thickets of the Yacones mountain vary, silently entered town and stayed in the principle sq.. By the service provider Mariano Benítez, he discovered that Güemes was in his sister’s home, and he arrange a entice for him.

The gaucho chief was born in Salta on February 8, 1785, right into a household with an excellent financial place. His father Gabriel de Güemes Montero was Spanish and his mom María Magdalena Goyechea y la Corte, a girl from Jujuy who had married on the age of 15.

He shaped a military of about 5 thousand males. His requests to Buenos Aires to assist him keep him have been unsuccessful.

Throughout the first English invasion, the Justina, a 26-gun ship, was in control of bombarding Buenos Aires. On the morning of August 12, 1806, Santiago de Liniers ordered it to be neutralized. Commanding a platoon of Hussars, a 21-year-old younger man compelled him to give up, profiting from the truth that a drop in waters saved him immobilized. That is how an English ship was taken by a gaggle of horsemen. That younger man was Güemes.

When the Could revolution broke out, he had been given the mission of patrolling the Humahuaca ravine. As a type of encouragement, he was promoted to captain. They thought-about him “a tireless officer.” He had a decisive function within the patriot victory at Suipacha on November 7, 1810, though curiously he was not talked about within the battle report, presumably as a result of he insisted on pursuing the Spanish and ending them off, which was not executed, which It generated friction that the bosses didn’t let go.

He lived with a married girl and, apparently, they lived together with her husband who mentioned that the person from Salta had threatened to kill him if he reported the scenario. He was accused by Manuel Belgrano of main a licentious life and despatched to Buenos Aires. Within the metropolis he met José de San Martín, and the 2 would make an ideal duo; Over time with Belgrano – who would acknowledge the harshness of the sanction imposed – they might additionally find yourself as nice buddies.

When San Martín took cost of the Northern Military, he acknowledged him as Basic in Chief and put him in control of the outposts of the Pasaje River. On March 29, 1814, the long run Liberator known as him “worthy” when he defeated the royalists within the metropolis of Salta.

He needed to mistreat the Spanish commanded by Joaquín de la Pezuela, whom he attacked at completely different factors within the provinces of Salta and Jujuy. The Board of Administrators promoted him to graduate colonel of the Military and army chief in Tucumán and Tarija.

His spouse Carmen Puch. She could not bear the demise of her husband.

Commanding his gauchos, “the infernals” as they have been recognized, on April 14, 1815 he defeated the vanguard of the enemy military in Sitio del Marqués. He had severe confrontations with José Rondeau, head of the Northern Military, because of which Güemes left along with his gauchos. He handed by means of Jujuy, the place he seized useful weapons. Rondeau declared him a “traitor,” however occasions accelerated quickly. The director Carlos María de Alvear had fallen because of the Fontezuelas rebellion and Güemes had different plans: to overthrow the conservative authorities of Salta. To do that, he had the collaboration of his brother Juan Manuel, an official of the native council, who pulled the strings in order that on Could 6, 1815, mentioned establishment named him “Governor of the Municipality of Salta.” It was an intensive territory that lined the present provinces of Salta and Jujuy, and Tarija.

His sister María Magdalena Dámasa, familiarly nicknamed Macacha, launched him to María del Carmen Puch y Velarde, an 18-year-old woman, blonde, with blue eyes. They have been married on July 15 within the Cathedral of Salta and would have three kids: Martín (who would develop into governor), Luis and Ignacio.

Machaca lived by means of the battle alongside her husband; She assisted him and accompanied him till the arrival of her kids allowed it. She modified her residence often, as a result of there have been rumors of a Spanish plan to kidnap her and thus subdue her companion.

From Buenos Aires, they checked out him with nice mistrust, as a result of they suspected that he may develop into a second Artigas, who had given a number of complications to the individuals of Buenos Aires. On account of his revolt, Rondeau had declared him a “state prisoner” and the Jujuy council ignored his authority. An settlement would find yourself being reached with the Buenos Aires chief, which might be often known as the “Pact of the Cerrillos.”

He decisively supported the Congress that met in Tucumán in 1816. “When will the day come after we will see our Congress assembled, composed of sensible and virtuous individuals who will type a free structure, dictate sensible legal guidelines and put an finish to the variations of the provinces?” he wrote. Güemes.

What he was searching for was monetary assist. He waited fruitlessly for his pal Director Pueyrredón, who had promised him to keep up a military that already numbered greater than 5,000 males. The Salta chief continued to face the continual Spanish makes an attempt to enter the territory alone. He had already earned the nickname “intrepid Güemes.”

Güemes died till June 17 within the Horqueta canyon

In the course of the anarchic 12 months 20, San Martín appointed him Basic in Chief of the Remark Military over Peru. The person from Salta, involved about acquiring funds, had requested the Jujeña girls to collaborate in making garments for his troopers. Macacha additionally helped on this process, who transformed her home right into a workshop, the place she lived together with her husband Román Tejada Sánchez. For her, stitching was the best factor she did, as she participated in dangerous spy missions on behalf of her brother.

He didn’t lose sight of the nationwide panorama, however the inside disintegration distracted him from the duty during which he was in full concord with San Martín. On the identical time, he proposed to Bustos to carry a Basic Congress to arrange the nation and coordinate army actions, and finish the clashes between the provinces. On Could 24, 1821, members of the Cabildo tried to evict him from the governorship, however, to fashionable acclaim, the coup plotters fled; Some had no drawback taking refuge within the Spanish headquarters.

The photographs within the sq. have been heard by Güemes, who believed {that a} revolution was breaking out. Together with his males he went to see what was occurring. After they reached a facet road they requested him “who lives” and Güemes, understanding the scenario, shouted “the Homeland”, galloped away, miraculously saving himself from the photographs fired at him.

Possibly he needed to go to his mom’s home, that is why he took Bitterness Road. Upon reaching the outdated stone bridge that crossed the Tagarete de Tineo (tagaretes have been the canals that handed by means of town) on the nook of Balcarce and Belgrano, he bumped into a gaggle of the king’s riflemen and confronted them with the few males who accompanied him. , since some had fallen and others had been taken prisoners.

At one other nook they requested him the password once more and, sword in hand, he jumped along with his horse over two rows of troopers, armed with rifles and stuck bayonets.

Within the discharge they fired at him, a projectile entered his proper hip and lodged in his left groin.

Clinging to the horse’s neck to maintain from falling off the saddle, he galloped into the darkness. When crossing the Arias River, he met considered one of his social gathering: “I come wounded,” he advised them.

They took him off the horse, assembled a stretcher with branches and ponchos and alongside the street to El Chamical, about 4 leagues southeast of town, they went to their farm in La Cruz. However since his males thought-about that it was not a secure place, they determined to enter the mountains and keep within the Quebrada de la Horqueta.

Countrymen from completely different elements of the province arrived there as they discovered about what had occurred. He knew that he was dying, so he mentioned goodbye to everybody, making them promise that they need to proceed the struggle towards the Spanish.

When Olañeta, who was in Jujuy, discovered that he was wounded, he despatched emissaries to him. If he surrendered, they might open the best way to Buenos Aires in order that he could possibly be handled by the perfect medical doctors.

The person from Salta, mendacity on a cot that Mateo Ríos had made for him, known as Colonel Vidt, chief of his basic employees. Within the presence of the Spanish emissaries, he ordered her to march along with his forces to put siege to the capital, making her swear that she would proceed the struggle till not a single Argentine or a single Spaniard was left on earth.

Then he addressed the emissaries. “Inform your boss that I recognize his provides with out accepting them: you might be dismissed.”

José Redhead, the physician who had handled Manuel Belgrano and who was a pal of Güemes, obtained permission from the Spanish to go and deal with him, to whom he had already knowledgeable that any wound he obtained can be deadly, because it was assumed that he was affected by hemophilia.

However the makes an attempt of each Redhead and his colleague Castellanos have been ineffective. In response to the oral custom of the Güemes household, his final phrases have been to his spouse Carmen Puch. “My Carmen is not going to take lengthy to comply with me; she is going to die from my demise simply as she lived from my life.”

Father Francisco Fernández was the one who comforted him spiritually in his final moments.

He died on June 17, 1821 and was buried the subsequent day within the El Chamical chapel. In 1822 his stays have been transferred to the outdated Cathedral, in 1877 to the household pantheon within the Santa Cruz Cemetery and at last in 1918 to the Cathedral of Salta, within the Panteón de las Glorias del Norte.

Within the Pantheon of the Glories of the North are the stays of Güemes, his spouse Carmen Puch, and people of Juan Antonio Alvarez de Arenales, Rudecindo Alvado, Martín Silva de Gurruchaga, José Antonio Fernández Cornejo and Facundo de Zuviría. There are additionally the urns with stays of the unknown soldier from the battles of Salta, Florida, Suipacha and Sipe-Sipe ({Photograph} by the writer)

He hadn’t been flawed. Standard custom says that her spouse Carmen, upon studying of the demise of her husband, who can be adopted by the demise of her sickly little son Luis de ella, locked herself in her room, lower her hair. her and stopped consuming. She was 25 years outdated when she died on April 3, 1822.

Historical past was sluggish to acknowledge his work within the north. When he died, in Buenos Aires a newspaper introduced that “there was one much less cacique.” It might be initially of the 20 th century when the determine and profession of the one basic killed in battle throughout the wars of independence started to be revalued in its correct dimension.