Mariano Luis de Urquijo y Muga (1769 in

Bilbao, Spain ) , motto = , image_map = , mapsize = 275 px , map_caption = Interactive map outlining Bilbao , pushpin_map = Spain Basque Country#Spain#Europe , pushpin_map_caption ...

– 1817 in Paris, France) was Secretary of State (Prime Minister) of Spain from 12 February 1799 to 13 December 1800, during the reign of King

Carlos IV of Spain , house = Bourbon-Anjou , father =Charles III of Spain , mother = Maria Amalia of Saxony , birth_date =11 November 1748 , birth_place =Palace of Portici, Portici, Naples , death_date = , death_place ...

, and between 7 July 1808 and 27 June 1813 under the King

Joseph Bonaparte it, Giuseppe-Napoleone Buonaparte es, José Napoleón Bonaparte , house = Bonaparte , father = Carlo Buonaparte , mother = Letizia Ramolino , birth_date = 7 January 1768 , birth_place = Corte, Corsica, Republic of ...

Biography

Born to a noble Basque family, he studied law in

Madrid Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the Largest cities of the Europ ...

and

Salamanca Salamanca () is a city in western Spain and is the capital of the Province of Salamanca in the autonomous community of Castile and León. The city lies on several rolling hills by the Tormes River. Its Old City was declared a UNESCO World Herit ...

. He spent some time living in

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before entering the Spanish foreign service under the protection of the Count of Aranda and the Count of Floridablanca. It was in 1792, under the Aranda ministry, that he was named High Officer of the Secretary of State (Secretary of the Cabinet). Of progressive ideas, he translated the ''Death of Caesar'' of

Voltaire François-Marie Arouet (; 21 November 169430 May 1778) was a French Enlightenment writer, historian, and philosopher. Known by his ''nom de plume'' M. de Voltaire (; also ; ), he was famous for his wit, and his criticism of Christianity—es ...

, then forbidden by the

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. Due to it, he was prosecuted by the

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. Despite his French sympathies, he was appointed First Secretary of State (Prime Minister) 12 February 1799, and remained in office till 13 December 1800. While in office, he did all he could to limit the power and influence of the Inquisition, which brought upon him the enmity of the

Holy See The Holy See ( lat, Sancta Sedes, ; it, Santa Sede ), also called the See of Rome, Petrine See or Apostolic See, is the jurisdiction of the Pope in his role as the bishop of Rome. It includes the apostolic episcopal see of the Diocese of R ...

. Taking advantage of the Napoleonic invasion of the

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, he attempted what came to be known as ''"Urquijo's Schism"'' (1799), in which he tried to recover for the Spanish church powers that had previously been assumed by the Pope, including matrimonial dispensations. Carlos Martínez Shaw, (1996) ''El siglo de las luces. Las bases intelectuales del reformismo'', Madrid: Temas de Hoy, pg. 69 Even though he was supported by some

jansenist Jansenism was an early modern theological movement within Catholicism, primarily active in the Kingdom of France, that emphasized original sin, human depravity, the necessity of divine grace, and predestination. It was declared a heresy by th ...

-leaning clerics such as the bishop of

, Antonio Tavira, his religious policies caused his fall. Godoy, the queen's favourite, had resented Urquijo as a rising star whose influence in court had started to eclipse his own. Palling along with

Eusebio Bardají y Azara Eusebio Bardají y Azara (19 December 1776, in Graus, Spain – 7 March 1842, in Huete, Spain) was a Spanish politician and diplomat who served as the Prime Minister of Spain in 1837 and held other offices such as Minister of State Minis ...

, an influential rising star in his own right, and

Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...

himself, who feared Urquijo's policies opposing a French intervention in

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, they forced Urquijo's dismissal from office. His brief term also saw several scientific enterprises being initiated: he was, for instance,

Alexander von Humboldt Friedrich Wilhelm Heinrich Alexander von Humboldt (14 September 17696 May 1859) was a German polymath, geographer, naturalist, explorer, and proponent of Romantic philosophy and science. He was the younger brother of the Prussian minister, ...

's sponsor for his American expedition. He was instrumental in sending

Valentin de Foronda Valentin de Foronda y González de Echávarri (14 January 1751, in Vitoria – 24 December 1821), was Spanish general consul in Philadelphia from 1801 to 1807 and Spanish plenipotentiary minister in the U.S. from 1807 to 1809—tense times because ...

as General Consul of Spain in

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, (1801–1807), and as Spanish Plenipotentiary Minister in the USA 'til the nomination by the "Junta" of Luis de Onis in 1809. Resenting the conservative and ultra-catholic policies of the Spanish court, he embraced the pro-French government of José I Bonaparte once

invaded Spain and replaced the

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dynasty with his own brother Joseph (José). After publicly acknowledging José I as lawful King of Spain, Urquijo was called back to court and became Prime Minister again. He remained in office during all of the reign of José I, from 7 July 1808 to 27 June 1813. However, the failed Napoleonic invasion resulted in Spain being led into a state of war, and he was unable to carry out any policy apart from helping the French forces of José I, brother of Napoleon, undertake an ineffective war against the Spanish people. Upon the French defeat, Urquijo fled along with Joseph I across the Pyrenees to

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...

into exile, embracing the French nationality. Outlawed in Spain, he died in exile in Paris, in 1817.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Urquijo, Mariano Luis 1769 births 1817 deaths Government of Spain Politics of Spain Afrancesados People from Bilbao Burials at Père Lachaise Cemetery University of Salamanca alumni