Francisco Primo de Verdad y Ramos

Francisco Primo de Verdad y Ramos (June 9, 1760, hacienda Ciénega del RincónJalisco – October 4, 1808, Mexico City) was a New Spain lawyer and politician and a proponent of independence from Spain. He was imprisoned by the Spanish authorities for his advocacy, and died in prison. He is considered one of the protomartyrs of Mexican independence.

Born at the hacienda of Ciénega del Rincón in what is now the Municipality of Ojuelos de Jalisco in the State of Jalisco but was then under the jurisdiction the village of Santa María de los Lagos (nowadays Lagos de Moreno); from the religious point of view, the hacienda of Ciénega del Rincón, belonged to the Parish Church of the actual city of Aguascalientes, Aguascalientes. Francisco Primo de Verdad y Ramos studied in the College of San Ildefonso in Mexico City, graduating as a lawyer. He was a student of the American and French Revolutions, and of Jean-Jacques Rousseau. His friend and comrade Licenciado Juan Francisco Azcárate y Ledesma later described him as a "true scholar" (sabio).

In 1808, he was a member of the Cabildo (city council) of the ayuntamiento (city government) in the capital of the viceroyalty. He was a Criollo by virtual of his birth in America, and a prominent member of the Criollo party in government. Criollos were prominent in the agitation for autonomy or independence from Spain, and this agitation was increasing. The Cabildo of Mexico City was composed of professional men, Criollos. It is possible that Primo de Verdad was also a member of one of the secret societies working for the independence of the colony, but that is not known with certainty.

On March 19, 1808, King Charles IV of Spain was forced to abdicate by Napoleon. News of the abdication was received in Mexico on July 11, 1808. The way now seemed open for the Criollo, party to achieve autonomy for New Spain. An old Spanish law was invoked that in the absence of the head of state, sovereignty reverts to the people, expressed through their representatives in the Cortes. The application of this law would allow a legal route for New Spain to weaken its ties with Spain. This was arguably an attempt to preserve the monarchical constitution in the face of foreign aggression, rather than a subversion of it.

...
Wikipedia