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{{Short description|19th-century Spanish brigadier and colonial administrator}}
⚫
{{Infobox President
{{family name hatnote|Blanco Erenas Riera|Polo|lang=Spanish}}
⚫
|name = Ramón Blanco y Erenas
{{Use Philippine English|date=April 2023}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=April 2023}}
⚫
{{Infobox officeholder
|name = The Marquess of Peña Plata
|image = Ramón Blanco.png
|image = Ramón Blanco.png
⚫
|birth_name = Ramón Blanco Erenas Riera y Polo
|term_start = 1893
⚫
|birth_date = {{birth date|1833|09|15}}
|term_end = December 13, 1896
|birth_place = [[San Sebastián]], [[Gipuzkoa]], Spain
|order = 109th [[Spanish Governor - Captain General of the Philippines|Governor-General of the Philippines]]
|death_date = {{death date and age|1906|04|04|1833|09|15}}
|predecessor = [[Federico Ochando]]
|death_place = [[Madrid]], [[Community of Madrid]], Spain
|successor = [[Camilo de Polavieja]]
|occupation = [[Governor General of the Philippines]] (1893–1896)<br>[[List of colonial governors of Cuba|Captain-General of Cuba]] (1897–1898)
|term_start2 = 1879
|allegiance = {{flagdeco|Spain|1785}} [[Restoration (Spain)|Spain]]
|term_end2 = April 1881
|order2 = [[List of colonial heads of Cuba|Governor of Cuba]]
|branch = {{army|Spain|1785}}
|branch_label = Branch
|predecessor2 = [[Caetano Figueroa]]
|serviceyears = 1858–1906
|successor2 = [[Luis Prendergast y Gordon, marqués de Victoria de las Tunas|Luis Prendergast y Gordon]]
|rank = [[File:Spain-Army-OF-6.svg|17px]] ''General de brigada''
⚫
|birth_date = 1833
|birth_place =
|death_date = 1906
|death_place =
|battles = [[Third Carlist War]]<br>[[Little War (Cuba)|Little War]]<br>[[Philippine Revolution]]<br>[[Spanish–American War]]
|battles = [[Third Carlist War]]<br>[[Little War (Cuba)|Little War]]<br>[[Philippine Revolution]]<br>[[Spanish–American War]]
|honorific_prefix=[[The Most Excellent]]|honorific_suffix= }}
}}
⚫
[[File:Governor Ramon Blanco by Juan Luna.jpg|thumb|right|120px|Portrait of Governor-General of the Philippines Ramón Blanco y Erenas by Filipino painter [[Juan Luna]].]]


'''Ramón Blanco Erenas Riera y Polo, 1st Marquis of Peña Plata''' (1833–1906) was a [[Spain|Spanish]] [[brigadier]] and [[Spanish Empire|colonial]] administrator. Born in [[San Sebastián]], he was sent to the [[Caribbean]] in 1858 and governed [[Cuba]] and [[Dominican Republic|Santo Domingo]]. In 1861, he returned to Spain but was then sent to the [[Philippines]] (1866–1871).<ref name="xtec.es">[http://www.xtec.es/~jrovira6/bio/blanco.htm (1833–1906):BIOGRAFIA DEL GENERAL RAMON BLANCO Y ERENAS]. Xtec.es. Retrieved on 2011-08-02.</ref>
'''Ramón Blanco Erenas Riera y Polo, 1st Marquess of Peña Plata''' (September 15, 1833 – April 4, 1906) was a Spanish [[brigadier]] and [[Spanish Empire|colonial]] administrator. Born in [[San Sebastián]], he was sent to the [[Caribbean]] in 1858 and governed [[Cuba]] and [[Dominican Republic|Santo Domingo]]. In 1861, he returned to Spain but was then sent to the [[Philippines]] (1866–1871).<ref name="xtec.es">[http://www.xtec.es/~jrovira6/bio/blanco.htm (1833–1906):BIOGRAFIA DEL GENERAL RAMON BLANCO Y ERENAS]. Xtec.es. Retrieved on August 2, 2011.</ref>


Afterwards, he returned to Spain and served in the [[Third Carlist War]], where he attained the rank of brigadier. He served as captain-general of [[Navarre]] after taking part in the 1876 offensive in the valley of [[Baztan (valley)|Baztan]]; he acquired his [[marquisate]] during this time.<ref>''[[Gaceta de Madrid]]'': [http://boe.es/datos/pdfs/BOE//1876/088/A00735-00735.pdf no. 88, p. 735]. 28 March 1876.</ref><ref name="xtec.es"/> He was sent to Cuba as captain-general in April 1879, and was involved in the [[Little War (Cuba)|Little War]]. He returned to Spain in November 1881 and served as captain-general of [[Catalonia]] and [[Extremadura]].<ref name="xtec.es"/>
Afterwards, he returned to Spain and served in the [[Third Carlist War]], where he attained the rank of brigadier. He served as captain-general of [[Navarre]] after taking part in the 1876 offensive in the valley of [[Baztan (valley)|Baztan]]; he acquired his [[marquessate]] during this time.<ref>''[[Gaceta de Madrid]]'': [http://boe.es/datos/pdfs/BOE//1876/088/A00735-00735.pdf no. 88, p. 735]. March 28, 1876.</ref><ref name="xtec.es"/> He was sent to Cuba as captain-general in April 1879, and was involved in the [[Little War (Cuba)|Little War]]. He returned to Spain in November 1881 and served as [[Captain General of Catalonia]] and [[Extremadura]].<ref name="xtec.es"/>


==Governor-General of the Philippines (1893 – December 13, 1896)==
==Governor-General of the Philippines (1893–1896)==
{{further|Philippine Revolution}}
{{further|Philippine Revolution}}
In 1893, [[Antonio Cánovas del Castillo]] sent him to the Philippines, where Blanco remained until December 13, 1896. Electricity had come to [[Manila]] in 1893. In 1895, Blanco announced in the 1895 Philippine Exposition that a great future is predestined for the archipelago.<ref>{{cite book|author=Joaquin, Nick|title=Manila, My Manila|publisher=Vera Reyes, Inc.|year=1990|isbn= |pages= |url= }}</ref> Blanco was forced to deal with the independence movement led by [[Katipunan]]. On the whole, Blanco adopted a conciliatory stance, seeking to improve Spain’s image in the face of world opinion.<ref name="ucm.es">[http://www.ucm.es/info/especulo/numero37/maeztu.html Cristobal Cerrato: El joven Maeztu y la canalla periodística- nº 37 Espéculo (UCM)]. Ucm.es. Retrieved on 2011-08-02.</ref> Nevertheless, he placed eight provinces under martial law. These were [[Manila]], [[Bulacan]], [[Cavite]], [[Pampanga]], [[Tarlac]], [[Laguna (province)|Laguna]], [[Batangas]], and [[Nueva Ecija]]. They would later be represented in the eight rays of the sun in the [[Flag of the Philippines|Philippine flag]]. Arrests and interrogations were intensified and many Filipinos died from torture.
In 1893, [[Antonio Cánovas del Castillo]] sent him to the Philippines, where Blanco remained until December 13, 1896. Electricity had come to [[Manila]] in 1893. In 1895, Blanco announced in the 1895 Philippine Exposition that a great future is predestined for the archipelago.<ref>{{cite book|author=Joaquin, Nick|title=Manila, My Manila|publisher=Vera Reyes, Inc.|year=1990}}</ref> Blanco was forced to deal with the independence movement led by the [[Katipunan]]. On the whole, Blanco adopted a conciliatory stance, seeking to improve Spain's image in the face of world opinion.<ref name="ucm.es">[http://www.ucm.es/info/especulo/numero37/maeztu.html Cristobal Cerrato: El joven Maeztu y la canalla periodística- nº 37 Espéculo (UCM)]. Ucm.es. Retrieved on August 2, 2011.</ref> Nevertheless, he placed eight provinces under [[martial law]]. These were [[Manila]], [[Bulacan]], [[Cavite]], [[Pampanga]], [[Tarlac]], [[Laguna (province)|Laguna]], [[Batangas]], and [[Nueva Ecija]]. They would later be represented in the eight rays of the sun in the [[Flag of the Philippines|Philippine flag]]. Arrests and interrogations were intensified and many Filipinos died from torture.


When the revolution broke out, [[José Rizal]] was living as a political exile in Dapitan and had just volunteered to serve as a doctor in Cuba, where a [[Cuban War of Independence|similar revolution]] was taking place. Blanco permitted Rizal, who wished to dissociate himself from the Philippine Revolution, to serve in Cuba to minister to victims of [[yellow fever]]. Rizal nevertheless was arrested en route. Blanco could do nothing about it, for he had been forced out of office on December 13. The governor had been attacked by conservative forces (which included the so-called ''frailocracia''—the [[Dominican Order|Dominican]] friars exercising more power than the civilian government) for being too conciliatory towards the [[Filipino people|Filipinos]] who sought independence; these parties had sent a complaint to [[Madrid]].<ref name="xtec.es"/> Blanco was replaced by [[Camilo Polavieja]] (r. 1896–1897) as governor.
When the [[Philippine Revolution|revolution]] broke out, a prominent figure [[José Rizal]] was living as a political exile in Dapitan and had just volunteered to serve as a doctor in Cuba, where a [[Cuban War of Independence|similar revolution]] was taking place. Blanco permitted Rizal, who wished to dissociate himself from the Philippine Revolution, to serve in Cuba to minister to victims of [[yellow fever]]. Rizal nevertheless was arrested en route. Blanco could do nothing about it, for he had been forced out of office on December 13. The governor had been attacked by conservative forces (which included the so-called ''frailocracia''—the [[Dominican Order|Dominican]] friars exercising more power than the civilian government) for being too conciliatory towards the [[Filipino people|Filipinos]] who sought independence; these parties had sent a complaint to [[Madrid]].<ref name="xtec.es"/>
The [[Battle of Binakayan-Dalahican]] Blanco suffered his biggest defeat against the revolutionaries led by [[Santiago Álvarez (general)|Santiago Alvarez]] and [[Emilio Aguinaldo]].<ref name="TYAkawit">{{cite book| last = Quirino| first = Carlos| author-link = | title = The Young Aguinaldo, from Kawit to Biyak-na-Bato| publisher = Manila : Aguinaldo Centennial Year| year = 2004| page= 89| isbn = }}</ref> Blanco was replaced by [[Camilo Polavieja]] (r. 1896–1897) as Governor-General.


Rizal was executed on December 30, an act to which Blanco objected.<ref name="ucm.es"/> Blanco later was to present his sash and sword to the Rizal family as an apology.
Rizal was executed on December 30, an act to which Blanco objected.<ref name="ucm.es"/> Blanco later was to present his sash and sword to the Rizal family as an apology.


Blanco had been defended by liberals such as [[Ramiro de Maeztu]], who in an article dated July 24, 1898, declared: "But...Blanco, who in the Philippines, in the face of the opinion of the Junta of Authorities and the most illustrious and noble journalists, kept his troops in the capital for a long time, judging it more preferable to prudently remain in this position rather than die a glorious but pointless death...”<ref name="ucm.es"/>
Blanco had been defended by liberals such as [[Ramiro de Maeztu]], who in an article dated July 24, 1898, declared: "But...Blanco, who in the Philippines, in the face of the opinion of the Junta of Authorities and the most illustrious and noble journalists, kept his troops in the capital for a long time, judging it more preferable to prudently remain in this position rather than die a glorious but pointless death...”<ref name="ucm.es"/>


==Captain-General of Cuba (1897–1898)==
==Captain-General of Cuba (1897–1898)==
However, Blanco’s reputation as a conciliatory figure led the government of [[Práxedes Mateo Sagasta]] to send him to Cuba, where he replaced the decidedly inflammatory [[Valeriano Weyler]] as Captain General of Cuba.<ref name="xtec.es"/> By the end of 1897, Weyler had relocated more than 300,000 Cubans into "reconcentration camps," where he failed to provide for them adequately. Consequently, these areas became cesspools of hunger and disease, where many hundreds of thousands died.
However, Blanco's reputation as a conciliatory figure led the government of [[Práxedes Mateo Sagasta]] to send him to Cuba, where he replaced the decidedly inflammatory [[Valeriano Weyler]] as Captain General of Cuba.<ref name="xtec.es"/> By the end of 1897, Weyler had relocated more than 300,000 Cubans into "reconcentration camps," where he failed to provide for them adequately. Consequently, these areas became cesspools of hunger and disease, where many hundreds of thousands died.


⚫
[[File:Governor Ramon Blanco by Juan Luna.jpg|thumb|right|120px|Portrait of Governor-General of the Philippines Ramón Blanco y Erenas by Filipino painter [[Juan Luna]].]]
⚫
Blanco was forced to reverse the harsh policy of Weyler towards the Cubans while at the same time defending the island after the outbreak of the [[Spanish–American War]].<ref name="Ramón Blanco y Erenas">[http://www.loc.gov/rr/hispanic/1898/blanco.html Ramón Blanco y Erenas]. Loc.gov (2011-06-22). Retrieved on 2011-08-02.</ref> After the sinking of the ''[[USS Maine (ACR-1)|Maine]]'' on February 15, 1898, [[Charles Dwight Sigsbee]] had written that "many Spanish officers, including representatives of General Blanco, now with us to express sympathy."<ref>G.J.A. O’Toole, ''The Spanish War: An American Epic 1898'' (New York: W.W. Norton, 1984), 11.</ref> In a cable, the Spanish Minister of Colonies, [[Segismundo Moret]], had advised Blanco "to gather every fact you can to prove the Maine catastrophe cannot be attributed to us."<ref>O’Toole, ''The Spanish War'', 125.</ref> Blanco proposed a joint Spanish-American investigation of the sinking.<ref>O’Toole, ''The Spanish War'', 128.</ref>


⚫
Blanco was forced to reverse the harsh policy of Weyler towards the Cubans while at the same time defending the island after the outbreak of the [[Spanish–American War]].<ref name="Ramón Blanco y Erenas">[https://www.loc.gov/rr/hispanic/1898/blanco.html Ramón Blanco y Erenas]. Loc.gov (June 22, 2011). Retrieved on 2011-08-02.</ref> After the sinking of the ''[[USS Maine (ACR-1)|Maine]]'' on February 15, 1898, [[Charles Dwight Sigsbee]] had written that "many Spanish officers, including representatives of General Blanco, now with us to express sympathy."<ref>G.J.A. O’Toole, ''The Spanish War: An American Epic 1898'' (New York: W.W. Norton, 1984), 11.</ref> In a cable, the Spanish Minister of Colonies, [[Segismundo Moret]], had advised Blanco "to gather every fact you can to prove the Maine catastrophe cannot be attributed to us."<ref>O’Toole, ''The Spanish War'', 125.</ref> Blanco proposed a joint Spanish-American investigation of the sinking.<ref>O’Toole, ''The Spanish War'', 128.</ref>
⚫
On March 5, 1898, Blanco proposed to [[Máximo Gómez]] that the Cuban generalissimo and troops join him and the Spanish army in repelling the [[United States]] in the face of the Spanish–American War. Blanco appealed to the shared heritage of the Cubans and Spanish, and promised the island autonomy if the Cubans would help fight the Americans. Blanco had declared: "As Spaniards and Cubans we find ourselves opposed to foreigners of a different race, who are of a grasping nature. ... The supreme moment has come in which we should forget past differences and, with Spaniards and Cubans united for the sake of their own defense, repel the invader. Spain will not forget the noble help of its Cuban sons, and once the foreign enemy is expelled from the island, she will, like an affectionate mother, embrace in her arms a new daughter amongst the nations of the New World, who speaks the same language, practices the same faith, and feels the same noble Spanish blood run through her veins."<ref>[http://www.autentico.org/oa09126.php Proposicion del Capitan General Ramon Blanco Erenas]. Autentico.org. Retrieved on 2011-08-02.</ref> Gómez refused to adhere to Blanco's plan.<ref name="Ramón Blanco y Erenas"/>


⚫
On March 5, 1898, Blanco proposed to [[Máximo Gómez]] that the Cuban generalissimo and troops join him and the Spanish army in repelling the [[United States]] in the face of the Spanish–American War. Blanco appealed to the shared heritage of the Cubans and Spanish, and promised the island autonomy if the Cubans would help fight the Americans. Blanco had declared: "As Spaniards and Cubans we find ourselves opposed to foreigners of a different race, who are of a grasping nature. ... The supreme moment has come in which we should forget past differences and, with Spaniards and Cubans united for the sake of their own defense, repel the invader. Spain will not forget the noble help of its Cuban sons, and once the foreign enemy is expelled from the island, she will, like an affectionate mother, embrace in her arms a new daughter amongst the nations of the New World, who speaks the same language, practices the same faith, and feels the same noble Spanish blood run through her veins."<ref>[http://www.autentico.org/oa09126.php Proposicion del Capitan General Ramon Blanco Erenas]. Autentico.org. Retrieved on August 2, 2011.</ref> Gómez refused to adhere to Blanco's plan.<ref name="Ramón Blanco y Erenas"/>
⚫
Blanco believed it better to fight than surrender to the [[United States|Americans]]. He ordered [[Pascual Cervera y Topete]] to break the American blockade, leading to the [[Battle of Santiago de Cuba]].<ref name="Ramón Blanco y Erenas"/><ref>[http://www.smplanet.com/imperialism/splendid.html A Splendid Little War]. Smplanet.com. Retrieved on 2011-08-02.</ref>


⚫
Blanco believed it better to fight than surrender to the [[United States|Americans]]. He ordered [[Pascual Cervera y Topete]] to break the American blockade, leading to the [[Battle of Santiago de Cuba]].<ref name="Ramón Blanco y Erenas"/><ref>[http://www.smplanet.com/imperialism/splendid.html A Splendid Little War]. Smplanet.com. Retrieved on August 2, 2011.</ref>
⚫
During Blanco's governorship, the remains of [[Christoper Columbus]] were moved back to the [[Cathedral of Seville]] in Spain,<ref>[http://www.cervantesvirtual.com/servlet/SirveObras/12368307610158273876213/p0000001.htm Cristóbal Colón : traslación de sus restos mortales a la ciudad de Sevilla – Biblioteca Virtual Miguel de Cervantes]. Cervantesvirtual.com. Retrieved on 2011-08-02.</ref> where they were placed on an elaborate [[catafalque]].

⚫
During Blanco's governorship, the remains of [[Christoper Columbus]] were moved back to the [[Cathedral of Seville]] in Spain,<ref>[http://www.cervantesvirtual.com/servlet/SirveObras/12368307610158273876213/p0000001.htm Cristóbal Colón : traslación de sus restos mortales a la ciudad de Sevilla – Biblioteca Virtual Miguel de Cervantes]. Cervantesvirtual.com. Retrieved on August 2, 2011.</ref> where they were placed on an elaborate [[catafalque]].


Blanco returned to Spain after the end of the Spanish–American War.
Blanco returned to Spain after the end of the Spanish–American War.

==Honours==
* Grand Cross of the [[Crosses of Military Merit|Military Merit Order]], ''1874'' ([[Spain]])<ref>{{cite book|title=Guía Oficial de España|date=1905|publisher=Sucesores de Rivadeneyra|location=Madrid|page=419|language=Spanish|chapter=Orden del Merito Militar|chapter-url=https://hemerotecadigital.bne.es/hd/es/viewer?id=1919296a-45b3-43c9-a98c-bda84f7f30f4&page=341|via=bne.es}}</ref>
* Grand Cross of the [[Order of the Red Eagle]], ''January 4, 1886'' ([[Kingdom of Prussia]])<ref name="prus">{{citation|title=Königlich Preussische Ordensliste|journal=Preussische Ordens-Liste|volume=1|url=https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=mdp.39015049878831&view=1up&seq=5&skin=2021|page=[https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=mdp.39015049878831&view=1up&seq=36&skin=2021 28]|language=German|location=Berlin|year=1886}}</ref>

==In popular culture==
* Portrayed by Allan Perez in the 2012 Filipino film, ''[[El Presidente (film)|El Presidente]]''.
* Portrayed by Bon Vibar in the 1998 Filipino film, ''[[José Rizal (film)|José Rizal]]'', and the 2014 Filipino film, ''[[Bonifacio: Ang Unang Pangulo]]''.


==References==
==References==
Line 52: Line 63:
==External links==
==External links==
{{commons category|Ramón Blanco y Erenas}}
{{commons category|Ramón Blanco y Erenas}}
* [http://www.loc.gov/rr/hispanic/1898/blanco.html Ramón Blanco y Erenas]
* [https://www.loc.gov/rr/hispanic/1898/blanco.html Ramón Blanco y Erenas]
* {{es icon}} [http://www.xtec.es/~jrovira6/bio/blanco.htm BIOGRAFIA DEL GENERAL RAMON BLANCO Y ERENAS (1833–1906)]
* {{in lang|es}} [http://www.xtec.es/~jrovira6/bio/blanco.htm BIOGRAFIA DEL GENERAL RAMON BLANCO Y ERENAS (1833–1906)]
* {{es icon}} [http://www.autentico.org/oa09126.php PROPOSICIÓN DEL CAPITÁN GENERAL RAMÓN BLANCO ERENAS AL GENERALÍSIMO MÁXIMO GÓMEZ, 5 de Marzo 1898]
* {{in lang|es}} [http://www.autentico.org/oa09126.php PROPOSICIÓN DEL CAPITÁN GENERAL RAMÓN BLANCO ERENAS AL GENERALÍSIMO MÁXIMO GÓMEZ, 5 de Marzo 1898]


{{Clear}}
{{Clear}}

{{Governor-General of the Philippines}}
{{Governor-General of the Philippines}}


{{Authority control}}
{{Authority control}}


{{Persondata <!-- Metadata: see [[Wikipedia:Persondata]]. -->
|NAME = Blanco y Erenas, Ramon
|ALTERNATIVE NAMES =
|SHORT DESCRIPTION = Spanish colonial governor, General of Spain
|DATE OF BIRTH = 1833
|PLACE OF BIRTH =
|DATE OF DEATH = 1906
|PLACE OF DEATH =
}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Blanco y Erenas, Ramon}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Blanco y Erenas, Ramon}}
[[Category:Spanish military personnel of the Spanish–American War]]
[[Category:Spanish military personnel of the Spanish–American War]]
[[Category:Spanish captain generals]]
[[Category:Spanish generals]]
[[Category:Spanish generals]]
[[Category:Governors of Cuba]]
[[Category:Governors of Cuba]]
[[Category:Philippine Revolution people]]
[[Category:People of the Philippine Revolution]]
[[Category:Governors-General of the Philippines]]
[[Category:Captains General of the Philippines]]
[[Category:Captains General of Catalonia]]
[[Category:Captains General of Catalonia]]
[[Category:People of Spanish colonial Philippines]]
[[Category:People from San Sebastián]]
[[Category:1833 births]]
[[Category:1833 births]]
[[Category:1906 deaths]]
[[Category:1906 deaths]]
[[Category:Spanish military personnel of the Third Carlist War (Governmental faction)]]
[[Category:Grand Crosses of Military Merit]]

Latest revision as of 16:05, 10 April 2024

In this Spanish name, the first or paternal surname is Blanco Erenas Riera and the second or maternal family name is Polo.

The Most Excellent
The Marquess of Peña Plata
Personal details
Born
Ramón Blanco Erenas Riera y Polo

(1833-09-15)September 15, 1833
San Sebastián, Gipuzkoa, Spain
DiedApril 4, 1906(1906-04-04) (aged 72)
Madrid, Community of Madrid, Spain
OccupationGovernor General of the Philippines (1893–1896)
Captain-General of Cuba (1897–1898)
Military service
Allegiance Spain
Branch Spanish Army
Years of service1858–1906
Rank General de brigada
Battles/warsThird Carlist War
Little War
Philippine Revolution
Spanish–American War

Ramón Blanco Erenas Riera y Polo, 1st Marquess of Peña Plata (September 15, 1833 – April 4, 1906) was a Spanish brigadier and colonial administrator. Born in San Sebastián, he was sent to the Caribbean in 1858 and governed Cuba and Santo Domingo. In 1861, he returned to Spain but was then sent to the Philippines (1866–1871).[1]

Afterwards, he returned to Spain and served in the Third Carlist War, where he attained the rank of brigadier. He served as captain-general of Navarre after taking part in the 1876 offensive in the valley of Baztan; he acquired his marquessate during this time.[2][1] He was sent to Cuba as captain-general in April 1879, and was involved in the Little War. He returned to Spain in November 1881 and served as Captain General of Catalonia and Extremadura.[1]

Governor-General of the Philippines (1893–1896)[edit]

Further information: Philippine Revolution

In 1893, Antonio Cánovas del Castillo sent him to the Philippines, where Blanco remained until December 13, 1896. Electricity had come to Manila in 1893. In 1895, Blanco announced in the 1895 Philippine Exposition that a great future is predestined for the archipelago.[3] Blanco was forced to deal with the independence movement led by the Katipunan. On the whole, Blanco adopted a conciliatory stance, seeking to improve Spain's image in the face of world opinion.[4] Nevertheless, he placed eight provinces under martial law. These were Manila, Bulacan, Cavite, Pampanga, Tarlac, Laguna, Batangas, and Nueva Ecija. They would later be represented in the eight rays of the sun in the Philippine flag. Arrests and interrogations were intensified and many Filipinos died from torture.

When the revolution broke out, a prominent figure José Rizal was living as a political exile in Dapitan and had just volunteered to serve as a doctor in Cuba, where a similar revolution was taking place. Blanco permitted Rizal, who wished to dissociate himself from the Philippine Revolution, to serve in Cuba to minister to victims of yellow fever. Rizal nevertheless was arrested en route. Blanco could do nothing about it, for he had been forced out of office on December 13. The governor had been attacked by conservative forces (which included the so-called frailocracia—the Dominican friars exercising more power than the civilian government) for being too conciliatory towards the Filipinos who sought independence; these parties had sent a complaint to Madrid.[1] The Battle of Binakayan-Dalahican Blanco suffered his biggest defeat against the revolutionaries led by Santiago Alvarez and Emilio Aguinaldo.[5] Blanco was replaced by Camilo Polavieja (r. 1896–1897) as Governor-General.

Rizal was executed on December 30, an act to which Blanco objected.[4] Blanco later was to present his sash and sword to the Rizal family as an apology.

Blanco had been defended by liberals such as Ramiro de Maeztu, who in an article dated July 24, 1898, declared: "But...Blanco, who in the Philippines, in the face of the opinion of the Junta of Authorities and the most illustrious and noble journalists, kept his troops in the capital for a long time, judging it more preferable to prudently remain in this position rather than die a glorious but pointless death...”[4]

Captain-General of Cuba (1897–1898)[edit]

However, Blanco's reputation as a conciliatory figure led the government of Práxedes Mateo Sagasta to send him to Cuba, where he replaced the decidedly inflammatory Valeriano Weyler as Captain General of Cuba.[1] By the end of 1897, Weyler had relocated more than 300,000 Cubans into "reconcentration camps," where he failed to provide for them adequately. Consequently, these areas became cesspools of hunger and disease, where many hundreds of thousands died.

Portrait of Governor-General of the Philippines Ramón Blanco y Erenas by Filipino painter Juan Luna.

Blanco was forced to reverse the harsh policy of Weyler towards the Cubans while at the same time defending the island after the outbreak of the Spanish–American War.[6] After the sinking of the Maine on February 15, 1898, Charles Dwight Sigsbee had written that "many Spanish officers, including representatives of General Blanco, now with us to express sympathy."[7] In a cable, the Spanish Minister of Colonies, Segismundo Moret, had advised Blanco "to gather every fact you can to prove the Maine catastrophe cannot be attributed to us."[8] Blanco proposed a joint Spanish-American investigation of the sinking.[9]

On March 5, 1898, Blanco proposed to Máximo Gómez that the Cuban generalissimo and troops join him and the Spanish army in repelling the United States in the face of the Spanish–American War. Blanco appealed to the shared heritage of the Cubans and Spanish, and promised the island autonomy if the Cubans would help fight the Americans. Blanco had declared: "As Spaniards and Cubans we find ourselves opposed to foreigners of a different race, who are of a grasping nature. ... The supreme moment has come in which we should forget past differences and, with Spaniards and Cubans united for the sake of their own defense, repel the invader. Spain will not forget the noble help of its Cuban sons, and once the foreign enemy is expelled from the island, she will, like an affectionate mother, embrace in her arms a new daughter amongst the nations of the New World, who speaks the same language, practices the same faith, and feels the same noble Spanish blood run through her veins."[10] Gómez refused to adhere to Blanco's plan.[6]

Blanco believed it better to fight than surrender to the Americans. He ordered Pascual Cervera y Topete to break the American blockade, leading to the Battle of Santiago de Cuba.[6][11]

During Blanco's governorship, the remains of Christoper Columbus were moved back to the Cathedral of Seville in Spain,[12] where they were placed on an elaborate catafalque.

Blanco returned to Spain after the end of the Spanish–American War.

Honours[edit]

In popular culture[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c d e (1833–1906):BIOGRAFIA DEL GENERAL RAMON BLANCO Y ERENAS. Xtec.es. Retrieved on August 2, 2011.
  2. ^ Gaceta de Madrid: no. 88, p. 735. March 28, 1876.
  3. ^ Joaquin, Nick (1990). Manila, My Manila. Vera Reyes, Inc.
  4. ^ a b c Cristobal Cerrato: El joven Maeztu y la canalla periodística- nº 37 Espéculo (UCM). Ucm.es. Retrieved on August 2, 2011.
  5. ^ Quirino, Carlos (2004). The Young Aguinaldo, from Kawit to Biyak-na-Bato. Manila : Aguinaldo Centennial Year. p. 89.
  6. ^ a b c Ramón Blanco y Erenas. Loc.gov (June 22, 2011). Retrieved on 2011-08-02.
  7. ^ G.J.A. O’Toole, The Spanish War: An American Epic 1898 (New York: W.W. Norton, 1984), 11.
  8. ^ O’Toole, The Spanish War, 125.
  9. ^ O’Toole, The Spanish War, 128.
  10. ^ Proposicion del Capitan General Ramon Blanco Erenas. Autentico.org. Retrieved on August 2, 2011.
  11. ^ A Splendid Little War. Smplanet.com. Retrieved on August 2, 2011.
  12. ^ Cristóbal Colón : traslación de sus restos mortales a la ciudad de Sevilla – Biblioteca Virtual Miguel de Cervantes. Cervantesvirtual.com. Retrieved on August 2, 2011.
  13. ^ "Orden del Merito Militar". Guía Oficial de España (in Spanish). Madrid: Sucesores de Rivadeneyra. 1905. p. 419 – via bne.es.
  14. ^ "Königlich Preussische Ordensliste", Preussische Ordens-Liste (in German), 1, Berlin: 28, 1886

External links[edit]

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