José Solís Folch de Cardona

José Solís y Folch de Cardona, grande de España and knight of the Order of Santiago (February 4, 1716 in Madrid – April 27, 1770) was a Spanish colonial administrator and viceroy of New Granada from November 24, 1753 to February 25, 1761.

Solís y Folch de Cardona was a son of José Solís y Gante, 3rd Duke of Montellano, one of the original members of the Real Academia Española. His brother Francisco de Solís y Folch de Cardona (1713-1775) was a Roman Catholic cardinal. José was a cavalry colonel from 1736 to 1747, in charge of a regiment. Spanish King Ferdinand VI named him viceroy of New Granada.

He inaugurated an era of ostentatious ceremony previously unknown in this Spanish colony. He fortified the mint, built roads, bridges and aqueducts (including that of Santa Fé de Bogotá) and established missions. He ordered the first census of the colony. He took steps to secure the submission of the Motilon, Chimila and Cunacuna indigenous people of Darién. He also reorganized the postal service and improved tax collection and the performance of the Audiencia. He tried to organize the mineral industry and internal commerce. He reestablished the chair of medicine at the Colegio del Rosario. In addition he formed a commission to establish the boundaries with the Portuguese colony of Brazil.

He founded the Hospital San Juan de Dios and assisted many people during an epidemic of measles.

He was known for his thoroughness, justice and integrity, and was well beloved by his subjects. He fell in love with María Lugarda Ospina, known as la Marichuela. They had several children who bore the last name Celís. Nevertheless, both the cabildo and the archbishop of Bogotá asked the king to extend his mandate when it first expired after three years.

He had some disputes with the Audiencia. His opponents charged him with various offenses in the juicio de residencia (trial of grievances) that followed his administration. This was a nearly routine investigation at the end of a viceregal administration. However, that of Solís was more than routine. Six months of testimony was taken, and the report forwarded to the Council of the Indies contained more than 20,000 sheets. The judge in the case was Miguel de Santisteban, whom the viceroy had considered his best friend, and who had held high positions in the viceregal government. The judgment of the court was that Solís was guilty of 22 of the charges, all relating to fraud or mismanagement of the viceregal treasury. This judgment was delivered on August 25, 1762, but Solís had by then entered the monastery.

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