Juan Manuel de la Peña Bonifaz (died 1669) was a

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Can ...

politician who served as the ad interim 26th governor and captain-general of the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

from September 28, 1668 to September 24, 1669. Prior to his term being the governor-general, he served as the junior auditor of the Real Audiencia of Manila before he held the highest position by trickery. He succeeded Diego de Salcedo as the governor. __TOC__

Governorship

Before the start of Juan Manuel de la Peña Bonifaz's term, he was a junior auditor of the Real Audiencia of Manila. Before the end of his term, governor-general Diego de Salcedo had bitter quarrels with the Inquisition commissioner José de Paternina Samaniego which escalated into a

coup d'état A coup d'état (; French for 'stroke of state'), also known as a coup or overthrow, is a seizure and removal of a government and its powers. Typically, it is an illegal seizure of power by a political faction, politician, cult, rebel group, m ...

overthrowing his government on October 10, 1668. Paternina installed Peña Bonifaz as the new governor through trickery with the help of two other members of the Audiencia. In return, he swore allegiance to Paternina, increased salary pay of the revolting Spanish soldiers and granted high position to those who helped him gain office. He used all Salcedo's treasury as well as the royal treasury in Manila to reward those who are in favor with him. He didn't know that a new governor, Manuel de León, has already been appointed by Charles II to replace Salcedo even before the latter was arrested during the coup. On December 25, 1668, Peña Bonifaz ordered the weakening Salcedo to be deported back to

Mexico Mexico (Spanish language, Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a List of sovereign states, country in the southern portion of North America. It is borders of Mexico, bordered to the north by the United States; to the so ...

. Salcedo, however, died in the

Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the conti ...

. De León reached

Leyte Leyte ( ) is an island in the Visayas group of islands in the Philippines. It is eighth-largest and sixth-most populous island in the Philippines, with a total population of 2,626,970 as of 2020 census. Since the accessibility of land has be ...

in July 1669. When he entered Manila on September 14, he ordered all people involved in the imprisonment of Salcedo to undergo court trials and punishment. Paternina, being the commissioner of the Inquisition, was immune to criminal charges. Peña Bonifaz sought refuge in an Augustinian convent in Manila when he heard the news. When he was about to be arrested, friars denied the order because of the principle that whoever sought refuge in the Church is already under divine protection.

Death

Few months after the

Council of the Indies The Council of the Indies ( es, Consejo de las Indias), officially the Royal and Supreme Council of the Indies ( es, Real y Supremo Consejo de las Indias, link=no, ), was the most important administrative organ of the Spanish Empire for the Amer ...

lift all charges against Salcedo and issued a proclamation nullifying all orders and decrees executed by Peña Bonifaz. The Council cited his disqualification as a person who knew nothing to political policies and administration of the colonies which led to the gross spending of public treasury. Because of this, the Council sentenced Peña Bonifaz to be executed, but, before even hearing the sentence, he died of sickness at the convent in 1669.

References

World Statesmen
* *

* Lea, Henry Charles
The Inquisition in the Spanish Dependencies. Sicily - Naples - Sardinia - Milan - The Canaries - Mexico - Peru - New Granada
, {{DEFAULTSORT:Pena-Bonfiaz, Juan Manuel 1669 deaths Spanish politicians Year of birth unknown