Antonio María Martínez

Antonio María Martínez (* in Andújar , Jaén Province ; † November 1823 in Mexico City ) was a colonel in the infantry regiment of the Spanish province of Zamora and the last governor of Texas as a Spanish colony.

Life

Martínez entered the military on July 7, 1785 and made a brilliant career there. He was awarded the Cross of Northern Europe and the Cross of Germany for his services on the European battlefields . On March 27, 1817, he became governor of what was then the Spanish colony of Texas.

In the summer of 1821 the situation for the Spanish regime became difficult. Agustín de Iturbide ruled Mexico and became its emperor in 1822 . At the request of Baron de Bastrop, Martínez agreed to Moses Austin's request for a permit to bring 300 settlers to Texas. On July 18, 1821 Martínez was forced to give orders to take an oath of allegiance to Iturbide. After learning that José Félix Trespalacios had been appointed as his successor, he resigned on August 17, 1822.

Martínez returned to Mexico City and died there in November 1823.

bibliography

• Vito Alessio Robles : Coahuila y Texas en la época colonial. Editorial Cultura, Mexico City 1938; 2nd edition, Editorial Porrúa, Mexico City 1978
• Donald E. Chipman: Spanish Texas, 1519-1821. University of Texas Press, Austin 1992
• Mattie Austin Hatcher: Letters of Antonio Martínez, the Last Spanish Governor of Texas, 1817-1822. In: Southwestern Historical Quarterly. Volume 39, July, October 1935, January, April 1936