Luis de Onís y González-Vara
| Luis de Onís y González-Vara | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Personal details | |
| Born | June 4, 1762 Cantalapiedra, Salamanca, Spain |
| Died |
May 17, 1827 (aged 64) Madrid, Spain |
| Nationality | Spanish |
| Spouse(s) | Federika Christina von Mercklein |
| Profession | Diplomat and ambassador of Spain |
Luis de Onís y Gonzalez-Vara (June 4, 1762 – May 17, 1827) was a career Spanish diplomat who served as Spanish Envoy to the United States from 1809 to 1819, and is remembered for negotiating the cession of Florida to the US in the Adams-Onís Treaty with United States Secretary of State John Quincy Adams, in 1819.
Luis de Onís was born in Cantalapiedra, Salamanca on 30 June 1762. He was the son of Joaquin de Onís, a landowner who was probably of noble Asturian origin. Luis received a classical education at home; he began the study of Greek and Latin when he was 8, and by 16, he had concluded his studies in the humanities and law at the University of Salamanca.
In 1780, Onís joined his uncle, José de Onís, ambassador of Spain to the Electorate of Saxony in Dresden, Germany, who was known as one of the most accomplished men in politics, science, and belles lettres of the time. Luis joined the legation as his personal secretary and assumed duties as a trade commissioner. In the course of his work, he visited the royal courts of Berlin and Vienna as well as the courts of the other capital cities in Central Europe.
In 1786, when he was 24 years old, Onís was sent on an important mission by the Spanish government, which knew that Saxony had the most highly developed mining industry in Europe and desired to acquire experienced miners to send to its American colonies. He went to study at the School of Mines in Freiberg, a town dominated by the mining and smelting industries, and enrolled in a course taught by the Prussian mineralogist, Professor Abraham Gottlob Werner. Becoming acquainted with operations in the mines, Onís learned of the existence of a surplus of miners looking for employment. Subsequently, the Count of Floridablanca decided to entrust the mission to the young man. He met with a diplomatic minister of Saxony, who was prepared to reject his request, but he was so impressed by the young man's knowledge of the pertinent facts and the force of his arguments that he agreed to his request and allowed him to choose thirty-six miners, including six managers, to send to Spain. In recognition of Onis's success, the Count proposed to appoint him as a minister to the United States, a promotion that he could not then accept.
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