Manuel Rodríguez Erdoiza
| Manuel Rodríguez | |
|---|---|
Wearing his Húsares de la Muerte uniform
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| Born |
February 27, 1785 Santiago, Chile |
| Died | May 26, 1818 (aged 33) Santiago, Chile |
Manuel Xavier Rodríguez Erdoíza (February 27, 1785 – May 26, 1818) was a Chilean lawyer and guerrilla leader, considered one of the founders of independent Chile. Rodríguez was of Basque descent.
He was born on 27 February 1785 and was the son of Don Carlos Rodríguez de Herrera y Zeballos, a customs officer from Spain, and María Loreto de Erdoiza y Aguirre who was a young lady aristocrat from Peru.
Rodríguez entered the esteemed Carolino College where he was a classmate of José Miguel Carrera. He went on to study law at the Royal University of San Felipe, and subsequently became a lawyer in 1807.
On 18 September 1810, in the absence of the Spanish monarch, a national government (Primera Junta Nacional de Gobierno) was formed from which sprung the struggle for Chilean Independence.
In May 1811, he was named attorney for Santiago de Chile. His attitude towards the independence cause was moderate up until the arrival from Spain of his old friend José Miguel Carrera, a passionate revolutionary.
In the latter part of 1811, Rodríguez was subsequently elected as parliamentary representative for Talca on 4 September, named Secretary of War on 15 November and on 2 December was conscripted into the army with the rank of Captain.
In 1813, the friendship between Rodríguez and Carrera (who by this time had seized control of the Chilean government) had begun to cool. Rodríguez and his brothers were detained and charged for conspiracy against Carrera. They were condemned to one year's exile on Juan Fernández island; however, Rodríguez was able to procure a document that impeded the completion of this sentence.
Carrera and Rodríguez renewed their friendship in 1814. The government junta presided by Carrera was replaced by a new one led by Colonel Francisco de la Lastra, which Rodríguez criticized profusely in the newspaper Monitor Araucano. When the Carrera brothers were removed from command, José Miguel was concealed by Rodríguez. After recovering control of the government, Carrera formed a new junta in which Rodríguez was made Secretary. However, Spanish forces led by General Mariano Osorio advanced from the south towards Santiago. After the Disaster of Rancagua, the Spanish took back control of Chile and Rodríguez, along with many other patriots, fled to Mendoza, Argentina.
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