Manuel Gutiérrez de la Concha

Manuel de la Concha.

Don Manuel Gutierrez de la Concha , Marquis del Duero (born April 25, 1808 in Cordova del Tucuman , Argentina , †  June 28, 1874 died near Estella ) was a Spanish general .

Don Manuel was the elder brother of the general and statesman José Gutiérrez de la Concha . After the death of his father he came to Spain , where he was accepted as a cadet in the Reales Guardias in 1820 . In the campaign against the Carlist he distinguished himself several times and in 1840 became field marshal and general commander of the provinces of Guadalajara , Cuenca and Albacete and later of the province of Catalonia . After the end of the civil war, he took part in the uprising against Espartero on October 7, 1841 and then fled to Florence . In 1843 he was appointed Chief General of Andalusia by the Provisional Government . Here he forced Espartero to flee and then forced Saragossa to surrender.

In 1845 Don Manuel was appointed Captain General of Catalonia, which had rebelled against the conscription . He suppressed the uprising within 14 days. In March 1847 he was appointed Captain General of Old Castile and Commander of the Observation Army on the border with Portugal . He besieged Porto and succeeded in suppressing the Portuguese uprising without bloodshed. For this he was accepted into the Grandeza first class with the title of Marques del Duero.

Gutiérrez Monument in Madrid ( 1885 ).

In 1849 he commanded the Spanish army department in Italy , which the Pope Pius IX. should resume his worldly rule. Don Manuel occupied Terracina on May 1st and returned to Spain in December. At the end of 1853, together with Gonzalez Brabo and others, he made a request to Queen Isabella to set up a liberal government and convene the Cortes . He was then exiled to the Canary Islands , fled from there to France and returned to Spain the following year after Espartero had become Prime Minister. He was reinstated in all of his offices and dignities and also received the title of marshal.

During the battle in Morocco , Don Manuel was appointed Chief General of the 1st Army and District of Andalusia, a position he held between 1860 and 1864. After his brother José had formed the Queen's last cabinet , he became Chief General of Castile in 1868 . After the Battle of Alcolea on September 28, 1868, his brother gave him supreme command of the troops in Madrid. Don Manuel, who considered the Queen's position untenable, told the Madrid Revolutionary Committee that he only wanted to keep order until the victors arrived. He handed over command to the leader of the revolution, Serrano , on October 3rd .

Don Manuel then lived abroad until he was appointed commander of the Third Northern Army in 1874. He fought victoriously in the skirmishes of Munecaz and Galdames (April 27, 28 and 30), after which the Carlist abandoned the siege of Bilbao . Don Manuel entered this city on May 2nd. He then took Villareal and the Heights of Arlaban (May 24) and now turned against Estella, the pretender's headquarters. On June 25, he captured the Carlist positions on Monte Esquinza by bypassing, but was fatally hit by a bullet on June 28, 1874 during an attack on the entrenchments of Mount Muru near Estella.