Manuel Rojas Luzardo (c. 1831 – October 14, 1903) was a Puerto Rican-Venezuelan commander of the Puerto Rican Liberation Army and one of the main leaders of the

Grito de Lares ''Grito de Lares'' (''Cry of Lares''), also referred to as the Lares revolt, the Lares rebellion, the Lares uprising, or the Lares revolution, was the first of two short-lived revolts against Spanish rule in Puerto Rico, staged by the Revolu ...

uprising against Spanish rule in

Puerto Rico ; abbreviated PR), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, is a Government of Puerto Rico, self-governing Caribbean Geography of Puerto Rico, archipelago and island organized as an Territories of the United States, unincorporated territo ...

Early years

Manuel Rojas Luzardo was born in the city of Obispos in the state of Barinas,

Venezuela Venezuela, officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many Federal Dependencies of Venezuela, islands and islets in the Caribbean Sea. It com ...

, from a Puerto Rican father and a Venezuelan mother. There he received his primary and secondary education. Rojas was a dedicated agricultural worker and when he had saved enough money he moved to

Valencia Valencia ( , ), formally València (), is the capital of the Province of Valencia, province and Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Valencian Community, the same name in Spain. It is located on the banks of the Turia (r ...

, Spain where he became a successful businessmen.UN VENEZOLANO PROMOTOR DE LA INDEPENDENCIA DE PUERTO RICO'
/ref> In the early 19th century Venezuela's economy was in turmoil because of internal wars. Rojas decided to go to Puerto Rico where he met and married Obdulia de los Ríos. The Rojas family moved close to the town of

Lares Lares ( , ; archaic , singular ) were Tutelary deity#Ancient Rome, guardian deities in ancient Roman religion. Their origin is uncertain; they may have been hero-ancestors, guardians of the hearth, fields, boundaries, or fruitfulness, or an ama ...

where they settled down. The region was mountainous and its main income came from the coffee crop. Rojas and his brother, Miguel eventually bought and cultivated a coffee plantation. The successful plantation was called "El Triunfo", and both men became wealthy merchants.Manuel Rojas
/ref> His brother Miguel meet

Mariana Bracetti Mariana Bracetti Cuevas (also spelled Bracety) (July 26, 1825 – February 25, 1903) was a patriot and leader of the Puerto Rico independence movement. In 1868, she sewed the ''Grito de Lares'' flag that was intended to be used as the nationa ...

while on a business trip to Añasco. Miguel and Mariana married and moved to "El Triunfo" where the Rojas lived.In Search of a National Identity: Nineteenth- and Early-Twentieth-Century Puerto Rico
/ref>

Puerto Rico's independence movement

Rojas admired Puerto Rican independence advocate

Ramón Emeterio Betances Ramón Emeterio Betances y Alacán (April 8, 1827 – September 16, 1898) was a Puerto Rican independence leader, abolitionist and medical doctor. He led the nations independence movement and was the primary instigator of the ''Grito de Lares' ...

and together with his brother Miguel, joined Betances in his quest for Puerto Rico's independence. A "Revolution Committee of Puerto Rico" was formed and directed by Betances and

Segundo Ruiz Belvis Segundo Ruiz Belvis (13 May 1829 – 3 November 1867) was a Puerto Rican abolitionist who also fought for Puerto Rico's right to independence. Early years Ruiz Belvis was born in Hormigueros, Puerto Rico (then a barrio of the municipality ...

, who were exiled, from the

Dominican Republic The Dominican Republic is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles of the Caribbean Sea in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean. It shares a Maritime boundary, maritime border with Puerto Rico to the east and ...

. Several revolutionary cells were formed in the towns and cities in the western part of the island. They were to support the armed invasion that Betances had planned to bring from the Dominican Republic. Two of the most important cells were that of Mayagüez, whose leader was

Mathias Brugman Mathias Brugman (birth name: Mathias Brugman Duliebre) (January 3, 1811 – September 30, 1868), a.k.a. Mathias Bruckman, was a leader in Puerto Rico's independence revolution against Spain known as El Grito de Lares (English: ''The Cry of Lares' ...

and code named "Capa Prieto" and that of Lares, code named "Centro Bravo" and headed by Manuel Rojas. "Centro Bravo" was the main center of operations and was located in the Rojas plantation. Manuel Rojas was named "Commander of the Liberation Army" by Betances. Mariana Bracetti (wife of Miguel) was named "Leader of the Lares Revolutionary Council". Upon the request of Betances, Bracetti knitted the revolutionary Flag of Lares known as " La Bandera de Lares". The Revolutionary Committee named twelve of their members generals of the revolution. They were: *Manuel Rojas, Commander in Chief of the Liberation Army *Andres Pol, General of Division *Juan de Mata Terraforte, General of Division *Joaquín Parrilla, General of Division *Nicolás Rocafort, General of Division *Gabino Plumey, General of Division *Dorvid Beauchamp, General of Division *Mathías Brugman, General of Division *Rafael Arroyo, General of Division *Francisco Arroyo, General of Division *Pablo Rivera, Cavalry General *Abdón Pagán, Artillery General The Spanish authorities found out about the plot and were able to confiscate the armed ship which Betances had, before it arrived in Puerto Rico. The Mayor of the town of

Camuy Camuy () is a town and municipality of Puerto Rico, bordering the Atlantic Ocean, north of Lares and San Sebastián; east of Quebradillas; and west of Hatillo. Camuy is spread over 12 barrios and Camuy Pueblo (the downtown area and the admini ...

, Manuel González (who also happened to be the leader of that town's revolutionary cell) was arrested and charged with treason. He was able to hear that the Spanish Army was aware of the independence plot. He then escaped and was able to warn Manuel Rojas.

El Grito de Lares

Because of this event, the revolutionists decided to start the revolution as soon as possible and set the date for September 23, 1868. Mathias Brugman and his men joined up with Manuel Rojas's men and with about 800 men and women, marched and took the town of Lares in what is known as "El Grito de Lares". The revolutionists entered the town's church and placed the revolutionary flag knitted by Bracetti on the High Altar as a sign that the revolution had begun. They declared Puerto Rico to be the "Republic of Puerto Rico" and named Francisco Ramírez Medina President of the Republic of Puerto Rico. Rojas and his poorly armed followers proceeded to march on to the town of

San Sebastián San Sebastián, officially known by the bilingual name Donostia / San Sebastián (, ), is a city and municipality located in the Basque Autonomous Community, Spain. It lies on the coast of the Bay of Biscay, from the France–Spain border ...

, armed only with clubs and machetes. The Spanish Army had been forewarned and were waiting for them with superior firepower. When the revolutionists arrived, they were met with deadly fire. The revolt failed and many of the revolutionists were killed and at least 475 including, Manuel Rojas and Mariana Bracetti were imprisoned in the jail of

Arecibo Arecibo (; ) is a Arecibo barrio-pueblo, city and Municipalities of Puerto Rico, municipality on the northern coast of Puerto Rico, on the shores of the Atlantic Ocean, located north of Utuado, Puerto Rico, Utuado and Ciales, Puerto Rico, Ciale ...

and sentenced to death. Some of them fled and went into hiding. Mathias Brugman was hiding in a local farm when a farm hand by the name of Francisco Quiñones, betrayed him and led the Spanish Authorities to Brugman's hiding place. He was executed on the spot.

Aftermath

He was arrested that October and sentenced to death by a court-martial.

Eugenio María de Hostos Eugenio María de Hostos y de Bonilla (January 11, 1839 – August 11, 1903), known as ("The Great Citizen of the Americas"), was a Puerto Rico, Puerto Rican educator, philosopher, intellectual, lawyer, sociologist, novelist, and Puerto Rican ...

led a group of Puerto Ricans who defended those who were involved in the revolt. They met with Spanish President Francisco Serrano (Serrano had just led a revolution against the monarchy in Spain) in Madrid and requested that Rojas and the others be pardoned and that the government not carry out the death penalties imposed upon them. Serrano told de Hostos that if an amnesty was granted it would be for the natives of Puerto Rico and not for the foreigners who participated in the revolt, referring to Rojas. However, de Hostos argued that Rojas was an adoptive son of Puerto Rico, since he arrived in the island at a young age and made it his home and as such should have the same rights that the others had. The incoming governor of Puerto Rico, Jose Sanz, received orders from the new Republican Spanish Government to grant a general amnesty to all those imprisoned, effective on September 20, 1869. Manuel Rojas along with some of the other men involved in the revolution were sent into exile. Rojas was exiled to Venezuela and went to live in

Boconó Boconó is a city in the Venezuelan Andes, Andean state of Trujillo (state), Trujillo. Founded in 1560, this city is the County seat, shire town of the Boconó Municipality and, according to the 2001 Venezuelan census, the municipality has a popu ...

a city in the Venezuelan Andean state of Trujillo. Little is known about what he did after he went into exile except that he died on October 14, 1903, in Boconó. On December 25, 2002, the

Government of Puerto Rico The government of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, organized under the Constitution of Puerto Rico since 1952, is a republican democracy modeled after the Federal Government of the United States. Under a system of separation of powers, the ...

approved Public Law #291, which instructed the

Institute of Puerto Rican Culture An institute is an organizational body created for a certain purpose. They are often research organisations (research institutes) created to do research on specific topics, or can also be a professional body. In some countries, institutes ca ...

to study the possibility of transferring the remains of Manuel Rojas, considered by many to be among Puerto Rico's greatest independence leaders.Ley Núm. 291 del año 2002
(Spanish)

Legacy

A school in Bartolo, Lares, Puerto Rico is named after Rojas.

References