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Jose Maria Benavente

Jose Maria Benavente (10 September 1785 – 14 October 1833) was a Chilean general who served in the Chilean War of Independence.

Biography[]

Jose Maria Benavente y Bustamante was born in Concepcion, Chile in 1785, the brother of Diego Jose Benavente. He joined the Spanish Army dragoons at the age of ten and served in the ranks for six years, and he served in the Chilean patriotic army during the Chilean War of Independence. In 1814, following the Disaster of Rancagua, he went into exile in Argentina, fighting in the Argentine Civil Wars. He was captured at Punta del Medano in 1821 and sentenced to death by firing squad, but it was commuted at the last moment; Jose Miguel Carrera was still executed. Benavente was then exiled to Brazil, but he returned to Chile along with Ramon Freire after Bernardo O'Higgins' death. He was promoted to Brigadier-General in 1827, served as Mayor of Valparaiso, and served as War and Navy Minister. He died in La Serena in 1833.

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