Hermenegildo Galeana

For other uses, see Hermenegildo Galeana (disambiguation).
Hermenegildo Galeana
Portrait of Hermenegildo Galeana
Galeana
Born(1762-04-13)13 April 1762
Tecpan (in modern-day Guerrero)[1]
Died27 June 1814(1814-06-27) (aged 52)
Coyuca (in modern-day Guerrero)[2]
OccupationMilitary commander in the mexican War of Independence
Years active1811–1814

Hermenegildo Galeana (13 April 1762 – 27 June 1814)[1] was a hero of the Mexican War of Independence, one of six brothers who fought in the insurgency. Galeana was considered the right-hand man of secular priest and leader of independence, José María Morelos and was the immediate superior of insurgent fighter Vicente Guerrero. Galeana's family were landholders and "family name is said to be hispanicized from English", with the founder in Mexico being an English pirate who jumped ship, marrying a local woman. His portrait shows him as light-complected in a region with many dark morenos.[3] Galeana died in battle, which followed the earlier death of Morelos's lieutenant, Father Mariano Matamoros, Morelos reportedly exclaimed, "I have lost both my arms, now I am nothing."[4]

There are several places in Mexico named Galeana after the general.

  1. ^ a b "13 de abril de 1762, Natalicio de Hermenegildo Galeana". Secretaría de la Defensa Nacional. 1 April 2019. Retrieved 31 October 2023.
  2. ^ Del Arenal Fenochio, Jaime. "Cronología de la Independencia (1808-1821)" (PDF). Instituto Nacional de Estudios Históricos de las Revoluciones de México. p. 80.
  3. ^ Vicent, The Legacy of Vicente Guerrero, pp. 84-85; 87-88
  4. ^ quoted in Vincent, The Legacy of Vicente Guerrero, p. 100.