Ramón Power y Giralt
| Ramón Power y Giralt | |
|---|---|
Captain Ramón Power y Giralt
|
|
| Born |
October 7, 1775 San Juan, Puerto Rico, Viceroyalty of New Spain |
| Died | June 10, 1813 (aged 37) Cadiz, Spain |
| Buried at | Cathedral of San Juan Bautista, Old San Juan, Puerto Rico (2013) |
| Allegiance | Spanish Navy |
| Years of service | 1795-1809 |
| Rank | Naval Captain |
| Battles/wars | Santo Domingo against an invasion from French forces |
Captain Ramón Power y Giralt (October 7, 1775 – June 10, 1813), commonly known as Ramón Power, was, according to Puerto Rican historian Lidio Cruz Monclova, among the first native-born Puerto Ricans to refer to himself as a "Puerto Rican" and to fight for the equal representation of Puerto Rico in front of the parliamentary government of Spain.
Power was born in San Juan, Puerto Rico, to Joaquín Power y Morgan, a Spaniard from the Basque Country (of Spanish, Irish and French descent) who came to Puerto Rico in connection with the Compañía de Asiento de Negros which regulated the slave trade in the island, and María Josefa Giralt y Santaella a Catalan from Barcelona, Spain. His great-grandfather Peter Power moved from Waterford, Ireland to Bordeaux, France, the grandfather Jean Baptiste Power Dubernet from Bordeaux to Bilbao, and the father Joaquín Power y Morgan from Bilbao to Puerto Rico. In San Juan he received his primary education at a private school. In 1788, when he was 13 years old, he was sent to Bilbao, Spain, to continue his educational studies.
At the age of 16, Power began his studies of Naval sciences in Spain. Upon graduation he was commissioned a lieutenant in the Spanish Navy and eventually rose to the rank of Captain.
In 1808, following Napoleon's invasion of Spain, the criollos of Santo Domingo revolted against French rule. Colonel Rafael Conti, a fellow Puerto Rican, organized an expedition to return Hispaniola back to Spain. Col Conti together with naval Captain Power y Giralt distinguished themselves with the defense of the Spanish colony of Santo Domingo against an invasion from the French forces by enforcing a blockade with the aid of Great Britain (Spain's ally at the time) and Haiti, returning Santo Domingo back to Spanish control.
...
Wikipedia