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Felix Maria Calleja del Rey

Felix Maria Calleja del Rey (1 November 1753 – 24 July 1828) was the Viceroy of New Spain from 4 March 1813 to 20 September 1816, succeeding Franciscio Javier Venegas and preceding Juan Ruiz de Apodaca.

Biography[]

Felix Maria Calleja del Rey was born on 1 November 1753 in Medina del Campo, Spain, and in 1789 he accompanied Juan Vicente de Guemes to New Spain when Guemes was appointed Viceroy. Del Rey became a general and cruelly subdued an uprising by Native Mexicans near San Luis Potosi under Miguel Jose de Azanza, and he fought against American filibusterers who attempted to invade the underpopulated Mexican region of Tejas. Del Rey finished the 1811 and 1813 rebellions during the Mexican War of Independence, killing Miguel Hidalgo, Ignacio Allende, and Jose Maria Morelos, and his barbaric methods led to him being the toughest Spanish general in the war. From 1813 to 1816, he served as Viceroy of New Spain, but his unscrupulous and cruel methods led to him being recalled to Spain in 1816, and he died in Valencia in 1828 while serving as its commander.

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