Manuel Ascencio Padilla

Manuel Ascencio Padilla
Manuel Ascencio Padilla
Born	(1774-09-26)September 26, 1774 Chipirina, Upper Peru (now Chipirina, Chayanta Province, Bolivia)
Died	September 14, 1816(1816-09-14) (aged 41) El Villar, Upper Peru, (now El Villar, Bolivia)
Allegiance	Revolutionaries for the Bolivian War of Independence
Rank	Commandante
Relations	Wife, Juana Azurduy de Padilla

Commandante Manuel Ascencio Padilla (or Manuel Ascensio Padilla) (September 26, 1774 – September 14, 1816) was an Upper Peruvian guerrilla chief who fought in the Bolivian War of Independence with his wife, Juana Azurduy de Padilla who shared his commitment towards Bolivian indigenous populations. The town of Padilla, Bolivia is named in his honor.

A Criollo, Padilla was born in Chipirina, Upper Peru (now Chipirina, Chayanta Province, Bolivia) in 1774, the son of a local landowner. He spent the early years of his life near his hometown, joining the army at an early age. He participated in the enforcement and execution of Damaso Katari, Tupac Amaru's successor in La Paz.

Though studying to be a lawyer at the University of Saint Francis Xavier, Padilla left school to marry Juana Azurduy (born 1781) in 1805. Her father was Spanish and her mother was Mestizo.

Padilla joined revolutionaries in the War of Independence on May 25, 1809, the day of the Chuquisaca Revolution and briefly fled to hide in the Amerindian villages of the highlands. In 1810, when the city of Cochabamba refrained from recognizing the May Revolution, Padilla was named civil and military commander of a wide area between Chuquisaca (today Sucre), Cochabamba and Santa Cruz de la Sierra, It was referred to as the Republiqueta de La Laguna ("Republic of La Laguna"). From the town of Padilla (then La Laguna), he was supported by 2,000 Indian guerrillas from Esteban Arce Province. Padilla was highly esteemed by General Manuel Belgrano and by Esteban Arze who conferred the title of Commandante upon Padilla. His wife was later honored by Belgrano for her bravery in 1816.