Gregorio de Salinas Varona
| Gregorio de Salinas Varona | |
|---|---|
| 2nd Governor of the Spanish Colony of Texas | |
|
In office 1692–1697 |
|
| Preceded by | Domingo de Terán de los Ríos |
| Succeeded by | Francisco Cuervo y Valdés |
| 4th Governor of Coahuila | |
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In office 1692–1698 |
|
| Preceded by | Domingo de Terán de los Ríos |
| Succeeded by | Francisco Cuervo y Valdés |
| 23rd Governor of Nuevo León | |
|
In office 1705–1707 |
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| Preceded by | Francisco Báez Treviño |
| Succeeded by | Cipriano García de Pruneda |
| 40th Governor of Spanish Honduras | |
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In office 1705–1709 |
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| Preceded by | Antonio de Monfort |
| Succeeded by | Enrique Longman |
| Governor of Pensacola | |
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In office 1709–1718 |
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| Preceded by | ? |
| Succeeded by | ? |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 1647 or 1650 Tormé, Burgos, Spain |
| Died | 1720 Mexico City, New Spain) |
| Profession | Governor |
Gregorio de Salinas Varona (b. 1647 or 1650, Tormé, Burgos, Spain - d. 1720, Mexico City, New Spain) was a noble and Spanish administrator that served as Governor in Texas, Coahuila, Nuevo Leon (the latter two localized in Mexico), Honduras and Pensacola. He was from Burgos and was descended from a family with roots in the town of Torme.
Gregorio de Salinas Varona is the founder of the Mexican branch of his house. His great grandnephew, Anselmo Manuel de Salinas Varona, father of Antonio Salinas y Castañeda, founded another New World branch in the Viceroyalty of Peru, where his descendants became influential.
He was the son of Francisco de Salinas Varona, an Escribano Real residing in Torme. Francisco died on 18 October 1683. His mother was Magdalena Ruiz, who was originally from the town of Bisnela.
Gregorio was born in 1647 or 1650 in Burgos. He entered the army at a very young age and managed to attain rapid promotion. He served for a period of 19 or 24 years in Spanish controlled Flanders. In 1687, he was made a Capitán de Infantería (Infantry Captain) and sent to New Spain in the service of Viceroy , Count of Monclova. His son, Alonso de Salinas Varona accompanied Gregorio to New Spain.
Soon after his arrival in New Spain, he was sent to the Gulf of Tehuantepec to lead Spanish forces against pirates and smugglers in the region. At the time, pirates had taken control of much of New Spain's Pacific coast.
In 1690, the new Viceroy, Gaspar de la Cerda, Count of Galve, sent Gregorio on a mission to explore the region of Tejas (Texas) together with the explorer Alonso de León who would go on to also become governor of Nuevo León. The expedition also constituted the escorting of four Franciscan Monks to found their first mission in Texas called San Francisco de los Tejas.
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Wikipedia