Francisco de Miranda was a Venezuelan revolutionary and a military commander. Although he spent his early years serving in the Spanish army, he later fled and created a plan to liberate all the countries of the Hispanic America from Spain and form an independent empire. His military actions were not successful but his contribution is great. He is known as El Precursor of Independence (The Forerunner) and the designer of the Venezuelan flag.
Background
Francisco de Miranda was born in Caracas, which is now part of modern Venezuela but was at the time a Spanish colony. His father was Sebastian de Miranda Ravelo, who emigrated from the Canary Islands to Venezuela and became a reputable merchant with considerable wealth. Francisca Antonia Rodriguez de Espinoza, his mother, was also wealthy.
Education
Miranda attended private schools. Miranda was first tutored by Jesuits, Jorge Lindo and Juan Santaella, before entering the Academy of Santa Rosa.
On January 10, 1762, Miranda began his studies at the Royal and Pontifical University of Caracas, where he studied Latin, the early grammar of Nebrija, and the Catechism of Ripalda for two years. Miranda completed this preliminary course in September 1764 and became an upperclassman. Between 1764 and 1766, Miranda continued his studies, studying the writings of Cicero and Virgil, grammar, history, religion, geography and arithmetic.
In June 1767, Miranda received his baccalaureate degree in the Humanities.
Career
Then Miranda purchased a captaincy in the Spanish army at the age of 22. He was imprisoned for disobedience but was released in 1780 and sent to Cuba to fight against Great Britain. There he was accused of misuse of funds. Protesting his innocence, he fled to the United States in 1783.
There he met many of the leaders of the American Revolution and formed his plans for the liberation of South and Central America from Spanish domination. Hounded by Spanish agents, he fled to London, where he tried to enlist the aid of Prime Minister William Pitt in his plan of revolution. Pitt, realizing that Spain would eventually lose its grip on its American colonies, thought that Miranda was useful for Britain’s purposes and provided him with limited support and protection. Miranda envisioned an independent empire, stretching from the Mississippi to Cape Horn, under the leadership of a hereditary emperor from the Incan royal family and with a legislature of two houses.
The French Revolution delayed Miranda’s plans for a few years. He served as a French Revolutionary general and was jailed for suspected treason and then acquitted. Returning once again to London, he became the leader of all the exiled plotters against Spain. With volunteers gathered from the United States, he embarked on an invasion of Venezuela in 1806, but he was forced to turn back when Venezuelans failed to rally to his side. In 1810 he met Simón Bolívar, who was in London attempting to get British support for the revolution that had finally begun in South America. Bolívar persuaded Miranda to return to Venezuela, where he was made a general in the revolutionary army. When the country formally declared independence on July 5, 1811, he assumed dictatorial powers.
The Spanish forces counterattacked, and Miranda, fearing a brutal and hopeless defeat, signed an armistice with them in July 1812 at San Mateo. The other revolutionary leaders, including Bolívar, believed his surrender was treasonable and thwarted Miranda’s attempt to escape; they allowed him to be handed over to the Spanish. Transported in chains to Cádiz, he eventually died on July 14, 1816, in his prison cell.
Achievements
Religion
Miranda was baptized shortly after his birth. As for his religious beliefs, a letter that one of his sailors wrote to a friend states that Mhe had a custom during the voyages that prayers are read on ships each Sunday. However, the same letter states that Miranda would never be present during the service, concluding that he probably used his method only to keep his sailors' faith and unity, while Miranda himself was not too religious.
Politics
Miranda has long been associated with the struggle of the Spanish colonies in Latin America for independence. He envisioned an independent empire consisting of all the territories that had been under Spanish and Portuguese rule, stretching from the Mississippi River to Cape Horn. This empire was to be under the leadership of a hereditary emperor called the "Inca", in honor of the great Inca Empire, and would have a bicameral legislature. He conceived the name Colombia for this empire, after the explorer Christopher Columbus.
Views
During his childhood, Miranda wasn’t accepted by the children who had Spanish heritage due to his Canarian roots. Even when he joined the Spanish army in 1773, it didn’t feel he was very welcome. Despite his good actions during the war in Morocco, he wasn’t awarded, and he was twice accused of disobedience and spent time in prison. All this probably inspired Miranda to begin making his plans for the liberation of Hispanic America.
Miranda dreamt big. His idea was to constitute an independent empire after liberating the Hispanic America from Spain and Portugal. The territory would be from the Mississippi River to Cape Horn, and the empire’s name would be Colombia, in the honor of the explorer Christopher Columbus. The emperor would be named the “Inca”, after the great Empire of Inca, and Miranda even designed the constitution and the flag, which was a tricolor flag with yellow, blue and red colors. The flag, with minor changes, was used as the official Venezuelan flag from 1811, the year when the country declared independence.
Membership
Miranda was a member of the Spanish army, where he was ranked captain, from 1773 to 1783, when he fled to the United States. After Venezuela declared de facto independence, he was invited and places as the General of the Venezuelan army.
Personality
Miranda was attracted by the adventure, which is why he travelled around the world and participated in various events of the time. He had a strong feeling for justice and a soft spot for women, even issuing a plea that females should be granted education.
Physical Characteristics:
Miranda is usually portrayed with long and grey hair, dressed in a military uniform or in accordance with the fact that he was a scholar.
Quotes from others about the person
Miranda was a man of the eighteenth century whose genius lay in raising the consciousness and confidence of his fellow Americans. Although he prided himself on being a soldier, his greatest battles were fought with his pen. When the nineteenth century arrived and demanded action, Miranda had been away from home for too long to be as effective as an American commander. He fought as a European would, according to European rules of battle and for European brands of universal truth" - Daniel Florencio O'Leary, Simon Bolivar's trusted associate
Interests
Reading
Philosophers & Thinkers
Thomas Paine
Politicians
Catherine the Great, William Pitt the Younger, George Washington
Writers
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
Connections
During Miranda’s stay in London, his housekeeper was Sarah Andrews, with whom he had two sons – Leandro and Francisco. Later on, Miranda married her.