Manuel Piar
| Manuel Carlos Piar | |
|---|---|
 |
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| Born |
April 28, 1774 Willemstad, Curaçao |
| Died | October 16, 1817 (aged 43) Angostura, Venezuela |
| Rank | General-in-Chief |
Manuel Carlos Piar (April 28, 1774 – October 16, 1817) was General-in-Chief of the army fighting Spain during the Venezuelan War of Independence.
The son of Fernando Piar, a Spanish merchant seaman of Canarian origin and a Dutch mulatta born in Willemstad, Curaçao, Piar grew up as a humble mestizo subject to the discriminating limits imposed by the social norms of colonial times.
He arrived in Venezuela with his mother when he was ten years old and set up residence in La Guaira. Without formal schooling he acquired by himself a good level of general knowledge and taught himself several languages.
At the age of 23, he decided to join the independence effort and participated in the unsuccessful 1797 Gual and España Conspiracy.
In 1804 he joined the militia fighting the English in Curaçao. The Curaçao militia successfully expelled the English, restoring Dutch rule. 1807 found him in Haiti helping the revolution on the island and commanding a warship.
By 1810 his military experience and his desire for independence from the colonial governments put him at the service of the incipient Venezuelan independence conflict against Spain. He started in the navy and was deployed to Puerto Cabello. As Commander of a ship he saw action in several engagements against the Spanish navy, participating in the Battle of Sorondo in the Orinoco river in 1812.
A deteriorating and losing situation for his side forced Piar to take refuge in Trinidad for some time. Back in Venezuela in 1813 as an army Colonel he successfully defended Maturín and helped liberate the eastern part of the country from Spanish forces.
The following year, 1814, now a Brigadier General, Piar led troops fighting in the provinces of Barcelona, Caracas and Cumaná. He lost an engagement with the forces of José Tomás Boves near El Salado.
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Wikipedia