Luis Jose de Orbegoso
Luis José de Orbegoso y Moncada (Usquil, August 25, 1795 - Trujillo, February 5, 1847) was an important Peruvian landowner, soldier, and politician. Provisional president elected by the National Convention (1833-1835), he developed his political career during a period of deep social division and a continuous civil war. For all these reasons, at various times his government coexisted with those of the military coup leaders Pedro Bermúdez and Felipe Salaverry. Under the Peru-Bolivian Confederation he was president of the North-Peruvian State (1837-1838).
He was from an important and wealthy Creole noble family and the son of Dr. Justo Pastor de Orbegoso and Doña Francisca de Moncada, fourth Countess of Olmos. He was born on the Chuquisongo farm, in the municipality of Trujillo, today the department of La Libertad. He inherited the vast family estates from him and took up farming. At first he served as an officer in the colonial militias, to later enlist in the Liberation Army of José de San Martín. He collaborated with the independence of his country not only as a soldier, but also by offering his enormous personal fortune-he was one of the richest men in northern Peru, like many other criollo patriots. During Simón Bolívar's dictatorship he was appointed prefect of La Libertad. During the government of José de La Mar, he participated in the war against Gran Colombia as a cavalry commander. After the overthrow of President La Mar he retired to his hacienda (1829). But he returned to public life as a deputy for Huamachuco, in the National Convention convened in 1833.
At the end of the first government of Agustín Gamarra, the National Convention elected him provisional president of the Republic, beating Pedro Bermúdez, Gamarra's preferred candidate (1833). Under his government, the liberal Constitution of 1834 was promulgated and the Sociedad de Beneficencia Pública de Lima was created. His mandate was disturbed by his enmity with the gamarristas. These, headed by Pedro Bermúdez and Francisca Zubiaga (Gamarra's wife) staged a coup at the beginning of 1834, which triggered a civil war. Orbegoso managed to subdue the rebels, who laid down their arms in the so-called Embrace of Maquinhuayo. He then had to face the young General Felipe Salaverry, who proclaimed himself Supreme Head of the Republic in Callao, to later take control of Lima and a large part of the country (1835). Orbegoso, who was in Arequipa, seeing himself harassed by so many uprisings, allied himself with the president of Bolivia, Andrés de Santa Cruz, promoting the Bolivian invasion of Peru. Consummated the Bolivian victory, he returned to Lima and regained power, although only nominally, since he supported the establishment of the Peru-Bolivian Confederation (1836). Santa Cruz assumed as Supreme Protector of said political entity and Orbegoso only maintained the presidency of the North Peruvian State as a confederate state, a position he held from 1837 to 1838.
When the Peruvian-Chilean Restoration Expedition invaded, Orbegoso wanted to lead the pure Peruvian sentiment and expel both Bolivians and Chileans. However, he was defeated by the restorers in the combat of Portada de Guías (1838). After a failed attempt to reach an understanding with Santa Cruz, he ordered him to leave the country, for which he had to go into exile towards Ecuador. This marked the end of his political career. Years later he returned to Peru, although he chose to stay away from politics. He died in Trujillo in 1847.
Biography
Early Years
Luis José de Orbegoso y Moncada belonged to an ancient Creole noble family. His father was Dr. Justo Pastor de Orbegoso Isasi y Burutarán Gamarra y Cortés (born in Lima and baptized in 1742), who was judge of the Royal Court of Quito and ordinary mayor of Trujillo in Peru. His mother was Francisca Josefa Moncada Galindo y Morales (born in Trujillo, Peru, in 1755), fourth Countess of Olmos (a title her great-grandfather obtained from King Carlos II in the XVII), and VIII holder of the Mayorazgo de Moncada Galindo.
His parents lived in Trujillo, in the house that still stands today at 553 Orbegoso Street, but before his birth they retired to one of their properties in the mountains: the Chuquizongo hacienda, in the district of of Huamachuco, today in the district of Usquil of the province of Otuzco of the department of La Libertad. Luis José was born there on August 25, 1795. After learning his first letters, he returned with his family to Trujillo, where he studied Latin at the Seminary of San Carlos and San Marcelo. In order for him to acquire some chaplaincy, he received the first tonsure in 1806. The following year his father transferred him to Lima to study logic, philosophy, mathematics and physics at the Real Convictorio de San Carlos.
In 1812, after completing his Bachelor of Arts, he had to return to his hometown due to a serious illness of his father, already elderly. Since he had no inclination for an ecclesiastical career, nor for letters, he chose to follow the agricultural activity of his parents. When his father died in 1814, he took over the administration of the family estate, when he was barely 18 years old.
In 1815 he joined the regiment of disciplined cavalry militias of Trujillo as a cadet, with the position of standard bearer of the first squadron. Successively he was promoted to lieutenant of the police company (1815), lieutenant of the seventh company of the Trujillo regiment of disciplined provincial cavalry militias (1817) and, later, in the same regiment, major adjutant (1819) and captain (1820)..
In 1816, he married María Josefa Martínez de Pinillos Cacho, his fifth-grade niece and daughter of the Spanish nobleman Juan José Martínez de Pinillos y Larios - royal lieutenant of Trujillo, lord of Tejada and Las Calderas de Pinillos, and of Josefa de Cacho y Lavalle, niece of the first Count of Royal Prize. Four months later, the spouses moved to their Chuquizongo farm where their firstborn was born, returning to Trujillo two years later. A total of thirteen children would be born from the union.
On the patriot side
He supported the proclamation of the independence of Trujillo made by the Marquis of Torre Tagle on December 29, 1820. He was promoted successively to sergeant major (1821) and lieutenant colonel (1822).
He was entrusted with the formation of a squad, which he provided with weapons and victuals paid for with his personal fortune. He supported President José de la Riva Agüero, when he took refuge in Trujillo after being dismissed by Congress, on the eve of the arrival of the Liberator Simón Bolívar. Already with the rank of colonel, he was sent to Arica with the purpose of ensuring the support for Riva Agüero from the army and the Peruvian squad that at that time was carrying out the Second Intermediate Campaign against the Spanish who were still strong in the south. But he found said army already defeated and scattered.
Back in Trujillo, he was surprised by the news that Riva Agüero had been imprisoned by his own subordinates, in order to centralize the command of the country in the hands of Bolívar. Dissatisfied with this fact, he requested his retirement from the militia, but he was only granted a year's leave. He met with Bolívar privately, at the request of the Liberator himself, and visited him throughout the time he was in Trujillo. During a meeting of the Trujillo authorities, he offered his farms (rich above all in cattle) and his fortune to meet the needs of the patriot army, and he only asked that at the end of the war what was left of them be returned to him, in order to to try to rehabilitate. And at the request of General José de La Mar, head of the Peruvian army, he returned to the militia.
The great economic contribution of Orbegoso, like that of other landowners and landowners in northern Peru, was essential for the triumph of the patriotic cause, but it is usually made invisible by classical historiography, which places more emphasis on the aspect military of the fight.
Prefect of La Libertad. Constituent Congressman
Bolívar appointed him sub-prefect of Lambayeque and later prefect of the department of La Libertad (September 2, 1824). In this role, he was in charge of collecting resources that contributed to the triumph of the liberation campaign. This made him worthy of the civic medal with the bust of Bolívar, awarded by the Constituent Congress on February 12, 1825, as thanks to those who had collaborated in the fight for independence. That same year he toured the territory of La Libertad, which at that time included as far as Cajamarca, Chachapoyas and Mainas, as he was interested in knowing personally the reality of the entire region.
He was elected deputy for Trujillo before the frustrated Congress of 1826. In that capacity, he presided over the commission sent to Bolívar to ask him to stay in the country. And he was one of the deputies who signed the suspension of Congress until the following year.
On April 28, 1826, he was promoted to brigadier general and returned to Trujillo to resume the position of prefect. In September of that year, Bolívar returned to his homeland and in January of the following year there was a nationalist reaction that put an end to Bolivarian influence in Peru.
He was elected deputy for Huamachuco to the Constituent Congress of 1827. Together with his colleague Antonio Arteaga he traveled to Guayaquil to inform Marshal José de la Mar of his election as President of the Republic.
In the war against Gran Colombia
When the war against Gran Colombia broke out in 1828, he was reinstated into the army and was appointed second in command of the cavalry division, under the immediate orders of General Mariano Necochea. He fought in the battle of Portete de Tarqui, fought on February 27, 1829, where his cavalry charges prevented the Peruvian setback from being more accentuated. Later he was one of the Peruvian representatives in the negotiations of the Girón Agreement that agreed to the suspension of hostilities.Because of his actions in Tarqui, Congress promoted him to division general in 1832.
When in 1829 President La Mar was deposed by General Agustín Gamarra, Orbegoso was dissatisfied with such attack and retired to his Chuquizongo farm. He was also influenced in this decision by his poor state of health. However, he soon returned to public life.
Election as Provisional President (1833)
Elected deputy for Huamachuco, he joined the National Convention installed in Lima on September 12, 1833. The mission of said Assembly was to reform the Constitution of 1828, as stipulated by it. Simultaneously the Electoral Colleges were summoned for the elections of the Congress and of the successor president of Gamarra. These Colleges met only partially, so the elections were frustrated. As Gamarra's term was coming to an end, the National Convention assumed the power to elect a provisional president, who would exercise command until the incumbent was elected in accordance with the constitutional norm. The conservatives or governmentists supported the candidacy of General Pedro Bermúdez and the liberals that of Orbegoso, who was appreciated for his chivalrous spirit, but whose weak character made him susceptible to the influences of more experienced politicians. The winner was Orbegoso, with 47 votes, thus surpassing the 37 votes obtained by Bermúdez (December 20, 1833).
The following day, Orbegoso appeared before the National Convention, took the oath prescribed by law, and assumed command. But he felt like a prisoner in the Government Palace, because the personal influence that Gamarra exercised over the armed forces in his capacity as general in chief of the army was notorious.
Civil War of 1834
Harassed by Gamarra's supporters and fearing a coup, Orbegoso decided to take refuge in the Real Felipe Fortress, in Callao, on January 3, 1834. There he installed the headquarters of his government and began to relieve the gamarristas of the high command of the army.
In response to this action, the Lima garrison rose up the next day and proclaimed General Pedro Bermúdez Supreme Commander. Bermudista troops besieged the Callao fortress. It was alleged that Orbegoso's presidency was illegal since it was not up to the National Convention to elect the President. At the national level, the authority of Bermúdez was complied with by some garrisons. But in Lima the civil society was against the coup and rose up in arms; the sides clashed in the streets of the city, being the first time in Peruvian history that the people of Lima successfully confronted the army (January 28). Faced with such a situation, Bermúdez and his supporters had to withdraw to the mountains.
On the morning of January 29, Orbegoso entered Lima triumphantly, being cheered by the crowd. The women of the town stopped him in the streets to hug him and the women's fashion of the "saya orbegosina" prevailed. The National Convention resumed its work and approved a law that authorized the government to request the cooperation of the Bolivian government "with the sole and exclusive purpose of ending the civil war" (April 18). Said cooperation would not be requested since the war would end in a short time, but the law would be invoked years later in another context of civil war, as we will see later.
The war was fought on three fronts: north, center and south. The most important and decisive was the central front, which Orbegoso himself was in charge of, who went up to the mountains at the head of his troops, in search of Bermúdez and his followers. He left Supreme Delegate Manuel Salazar y Baquíjano in Lima as commander (March 20). Although he had competent officers such as Riva Agüero, Necochea, Miller, La Fuente, Sardeña, Otero and Salaverry under his command, his collective forces they were very weak and heterogeneous. This motivated him to be defeated in the battle of Huaylacucho, near Huancavelica (April 17).
The definitive encounter was going to take place near Jauja, but happily the war ended when both sides became friends in the so-called Abrazo de Maquinhuayo (April 24). The bermudistas or gamarristas ended up, therefore, by recognizing the authority of Orbegoso, although its leaders, Gamarra and his wife, fled the country.
Orbegoso returned to Lima on May 3 of that same year, 1834, and the people of Lima received him triumphantly for the second time. Artisans and day laborers took him out of the car and carried him in their arms inside the Government Palace.
Triumphant in the civil war, Orbegoso resigned from the provisional presidency, citing the political crisis, as well as for health reasons, on May 7, 1834. But that same day, the National Convention did not accept his resignation and more well, it granted him extraordinary powers to combat the insurgency. Shortly after, General Antonio Gutiérrez de la Fuente was exiled, accused of being related to the gamarristas.
Thus began a period of liberal government in Peru with Orbegoso at the head and with a National Convention as the legislative power dominated by Francisco Xavier de Luna Pizarro and Francisco de Paula González Vigil, priests of the same tendency. But the apparent calm only lasted a few months.
Works and various events of his government
- On January 7, 1834 he decreed that the offices of the three ministries should be concentrated in a general secretariat by José Villa, Minister of Finance. It considered it necessary to simplify business and “give them faster and more unity”.
- By decree of 13 July 1834, the territory of the Republic was demarcated in judicial districts.
- The National Convention gave, on 10 June 1834, a new Constitution, the fourth in Peru in eleven years and the third in the liberal type. He removed the departmental boards, increased the number of representatives to Congress, removed the figure of the vice president of the Republic, established habeas corpus, allowed any citizen to denounce a constitutional violation and proclaimed the independence of the Peruvian State, but without prohibiting him from joining another or other states. This Constitution was thus a transitional formula for the expected federation with Bolivia and an attempt to put barriers to authoritarianism, even if it were only on paper.
- Orbegoso encountered serious economic difficulties, which were aggravated by the civil war. The tax arks were empty, public sector salaries in defaults and customs revenues pawned in advance. Among others, it provided the following measures to alleviate the situation:
- He appealed to recharge international trade with a percentage on the value of the goods.
- In March 1834 it repealed the law of prohibitions, dating from 1828, which prohibited the importation of certain items similar to nationals, such as tocuyo and wool fabrics, with the idea of favouring national production. The government of Orbegoso should therefore be regarded as the first free-cambist government in Peru. This measure sought to avoid smuggling and to benefit the treasure with the collection of the corresponding customs duties.
- To encourage the mining industry, it favored the export of gold and silver with a temporary franchise.
- By decree of June 12, 1834, the Society of Public Beneficence of Lima was established, composed of 40 prestigious neighbors, an institution that continued the colonial tradition of charity towards the sick and the helpless. The hospitals that were delivered were those of Santa Ana, San Andrés, La Caridad, San Bartolomé, Incurables, Amparadas and Hospicio de Orérfanos.
- Other social measures were the preference for State pensioners to fill vacancies; and the granting of pensions to employees who are disabled in the service.
- On August 13, 1834, the Organic Law on Municipalities was enacted.
- It issued an order for the water courts to distribute, equitably, this element and to inspect the seizures and to settle any differences that might arise.
- He caused the slaves to be returned to their owners to whom he had enrobed in the army.
- He revoked a decree given by Bolivar, who had ordered the expulsion of the friars of the Convent of Santa Rosa de Ocopa. According to Archbishop Jorge de Benavente, he tried to take over the same missionaries of the jungle to continue the evangelizing and civilizing work.
- By decree of May 6, 1835, the foundation of the University of the Great Father Saint Augustine of Arequipa was approved (which had already been opened in 1828), with the same privileges of the University of San Marcos.
- An outstanding fact of his government was his trip to the southern provinces, which he made in order to promote his election for a constitutional period, as well as to contain the activities that Gamarra supporters were deploying in that area. We know with details this trip because his chaplain, the priest José María Blanco, set him in a magnificent Journal. By this document you can know the customs of the people, the algarabía pueblerina through the passage of the president, the will of stability, illustration and progress that encouraged all, and the bonhomía of the character, its afability and adaptation to customs and trends very different from those of the rest of the country.
Salaverry's uprising
Orbegoso made the mistake of exalting Felipe Salaverry, a young, impulsive and ambitious soldier, whom he promoted to colonel and later to brigadier general. When other officers warned him that Salaverry was conspiring against him, Orbegoso limited himself to asking to the aforementioned if what they said was true. Salaverry denied it with a lot of sarcasm, saying: "If it were so, Mr. General President, I would start by shooting Your Excellency first."
When undertaking the tour of the southern departments, Orbegoso left the President of the Council of State Manuel Salazar y Baquíjano in Lima as commander (November 7, 1834). He also left Salaverry in the capital with the important position of General Inspector of the Republic militias, despite the danger that this implied.
Salaverry then took advantage of the occasion. After putting down a riot in the Callao fortress, he proclaimed himself Supreme Head of the Republic on February 22, 1835, under the pretext that the country was headless, that is, without a head of command.
The north and south of the country supported Salaverry, but not the center, where Orbegoso was, installed in Arequipa. From there Orbegoso sent a division under the command of General Francisco Valle Riestra to put down the insurrection. Valle Riestra disembarked in Pisco, but could not continue because his own men captured him and handed him over to Salaverry, who ordered his execution by firing squad. Another expedition organized in the north by General Domingo Nieto in support of Orbegoso was also defeated. Salaverry unified in his hands the command of the country; Only Arequipa abided by Orbegoso's authority.
The Bolivian invasion
While these events were taking place in Peru, in Bolivia President Andrés de Santa Cruz and General Agustín Gamarra outlined plans to unite both countries in a single Federal Republic, which was to be made up of three states: North, Center and South (east The latter would be constituted by uniting southern Peru with Bolivia). Gamarra promised to advance to Cuzco, where he had numerous supporters, while Santa Cruz promised to win the support of Arequipa and eliminate Orbegoso. The pact had yet to be formalized, but Gamarra, perhaps distrusting Santa Cruz, hurried to carry out the plan: he crossed the Desaguadero border and entered Peru, occupying the cities of Puno and Cuzco. Given this, Santa Cruz publicly denied having anything to do with Gamarra's actions.
Orbegoso, who was in Arequipa without major troops, faced with the danger that Gamarra's presence meant, made use of a previous attribution from Congress that allowed him to request the help of Bolivian forces. We must emphasize that Orbegoso was not aware of the concerts between Gamarra and Santa Cruz. The agreement with Bolivia was signed on June 15, 1835, and it was agreed that Santa Cruz would go to Peru with his forces, as a preparatory act for the establishment of the Peru-Bolivian Confederation. That same day, without waiting for the ratification of the treaty, 5,000 Bolivian soldiers invaded Peruvian soil.
By means of a letter sent from Vilque, dated July 8, 1835, Orbegoso handed over power to Santa Cruz, transferring to him the extraordinary powers that he was vested with, powers that had been granted to him as a result of the Salaverry rebellion in Callao. In practice, Orbegoso lacked real power and only made this transfer to comply with the formalities of the case.
War for the Establishment of the Confederacy
Gamarra was furious at Santa Cruz's sudden decision to ally himself with Orbegoso. Although he had been suspicious of the Bolivian caudillo, he was surprised that he so radically failed to comply with the commitments he had assumed with him. He then decided to ally with Salaverry to face the Bolivian invasion and he was the first to go out on the campaign. But Santa Cruz defeated him in the battle of Yanacocha (August 13, 1835). Gamarra was taken prisoner and deported. Santa Cruz and Salaverry were then left face to face.
Santa Cruz and Orbegoso agreed on the strategy to follow: the former, in command of the Bolivian army, would march against Salaverry, who was advancing towards Arequipa; and the second would march to Lima with the Peruvian forces, preceded by the outposts of the Santa Cruz army.
In Lima, the bandits, taking advantage of the situation, dedicated themselves to looting and murder; General Francisco de Vidal, in command of the National Guard, occupied Lima and shot the bandit León Escobar (December 30, 1835); he then returned power to Orbegoso, who triumphantly entered Lima for the third time and without having fought (January 8, 1836).
Despite the fact that the two-year mandate that Congress had conferred on him in 1833 had already expired, Orbegoso returned to exercise power for some more time. In that period he undertook relatively easy pacification campaigns in the north and center of the country.
Meanwhile, in the south, Santa Cruz defeated Salaverry in the bloody battle of Socabaya (February 7, 1836). Salaverry was arrested and shot in Arequipa, and Santa Cruz was finally able to build the Peru-Bolivian Confederation, establishing himself as its undisputed head.
President of the North Peruvian State
Orbegoso still held command as provisional president until the meeting of the Huaura Assembly (August 3 to 24, 1836). created the South Peruvian State and Bolivia) the Confederation, under the command of Santa Cruz as Supreme Protector (August 11).
Orbegoso was promoted to Grand Marshal. They thanked him for his services and decorated him with a brilliant sun that on the obverse carried this inscription: "The North-Peruvian State to General D. Luis José Orbegoso"; and on the back: "he Served the country with loyalty." In addition, he was awarded 100,000 pesos and ordered that a shield with the arms of the State and its inscription: "The grateful homeland" be posted in his house in Lima. And it was agreed to give his wife a considerable gift, which she refused.
The Assembly of Huaura also appointed Orbegoso as provisional president of the North Peruvian State (August 22, 1837). This state included the departments of Lima, Huaylas, Junín, Amazonas and La Libertad.
Invasion of the Peruvian-Chilean army
When the War against the Peru-Bolivian Confederation broke out and the imminent arrival in Peru of the second Restoring United Army (made up of Peruvian and Chilean troops), desertions began within the North-Peruvian State to the detriment of the Confederation. Discontent against Santa Cruz became general and one of his champions was the prefect of Trujillo, General Domingo Nieto. Orbegoso did not decide to speak out openly and it was his generals who did so, in Lima, on July 30, 1838, declaring the separation of the North Peruvian State and the dissolution of the Confederation. Orbegoso resigned himself to the fait accompli, assuming the leadership of the rebellion.
Shortly after, the Restoration Army landed in Ancón, under the command of Chilean General Manuel Bulnes. He entered into deals with Orbegoso to achieve his adhesion, but no agreement was reached. Orbegoso recounts in his memoirs that, despite the fact that Bulnes offered to recognize him as president and grant him command of the fleet and the restoring army, he rejected them., since the conditions were very onerous for the country, including the payment of all the expenses of the restoration expedition. After denouncing the vandalism that the Chileans had committed in their advance into Peruvian territory, he declared the negotiations broken and, although His forces were inferior to that of the restorers, he decided to defend Lima, with the support of Generals Domingo Nieto and Francisco Vidal.
Guide Cover Combat
The restorative forces continued their advance towards Lima and met the Peruvian forces commanded by Orbegoso, Nieto and Vidal on the outskirts of Lima. The numerical difference was overwhelming: about 4,800 "restaurateurs" compared to about 1,300 "orbegosistas" Peruvians. Despite this, the encounter took place, called Combate de Portada de Guías (so called because it was held in front of a city portal, located at the current intersection of Túpac Amaru and Caquetá avenues), in which the restorers were victorious (August 21, 1838). These killed the wounded and even victimized women and children; then they occupied Lima, where they dedicated themselves to looting and looting.
Orbegoso remained hidden in Lima for a few days, until, evading the surveillance of the Chileans, he went disguised to Callao. In Maranga he got on a boat, with the intention of reaching the Real Felipe fortress. But since his arrival had not been announced, he was greeted with bullets and had to retreat. A wave engulfed his boat and he nearly drowned, until the next day, soaked and cold, he was picked up and taken to the fortress.
New understanding with Santa Cruz
Getting asylum in Real Felipe, Orbegoso described the Chilean army as an invader and declared that he intended to make war on it with the same determination as on the army of Santa Cruz and that he only wanted to favor the meeting of a congress that would freely decide the fate of the country. However, he refused to deal with Gamarra, when he offered to formalize a commitment to beat Santa Cruz together.
Santa Cruz, displaying his well-known skill for intrigue, convinced Orbegoso to support him, under the promise that he would convene Congress as soon as he drove off the Chilean invaders. Orbegoso believed him and announced on October 20, 1838 his new understanding with Santa Cruz.
Banishment
The restorers declared war on Orbegoso and besieged the Real Felipe fortress. Orbegoso continued to trust Santa Cruz, and in response to his request, he sent him artillery pieces and troops under the command of Colonel Guarda. But Santa Cruz had already decided to remove him from the political scene and sent Colonel Guarda back to the fortress of Callao as governor. Orbegoso received notification that he was free to remain in the country or go abroad. In the latter case he would be provided with a ship and his salary would be paid.
Outraged, Orbegoso took refuge on the French frigate Andromède and from there threatened to publish compromising documents from Santa Cruz. Both leaders met for four hours on the ship, but to no avail. Orbegoso embarked on a merchant schooner, bound for Guayaquil, where he had the friendship of Vicente Rocafuerte (December 4, 1838). Shortly after, Santa Cruz was defeated by the restorers in the battle of Yungay, thus ending the war, sealed with the dissolution of the Confederacy.
The Congress of Huancayo declared Orbegoso a "traitor to the country" and deprived him of his political rights, as well as his honors and jobs. He was also outlawed and he offered to award the category of "benemérito to the homeland" to whoever he delivered.
Return and death
Orbegoso remained in Guayaquil until 1844, when the government of Manuel Ignacio de Vivanco allowed him to return to Peru. He was rehabilitated and his military ranks restored. He returned to his ancestral home in Trujillo, where he spent his last years withdrawn from all public activity. He died on February 5, 1847. His mortal remains were taken to the church of the convent of La Merced and from there to the General Cemetery of Miraflores (Trujillo). He left a large fortune.
To commemorate the 150th anniversary of his death, his remains were transferred, in a solemn ceremony, to one of the rooms of his house in Trujillo, where they currently remain.
Controversial figure
A controversial personality like all those from the beginnings of the Republic of Peru, his enemies reproached him for a supposed lack of character and inability to correctly solve the great challenges he faced. They assumed that he allowed himself to be manipulated by the liberals led by Luna Pizarro and they blamed him for having promoted the entry into Peru of Santa Cruz. Other authors, on the other hand, highlight the strength with which he faced the Salaverry coup, his virtues as an army officer and that, within his personality, his goodness and honesty stood out; In this line, the historian Rubén Vargas Ugarte says verbatim:
... “It was a fine, high, orbeast of noble factions, naive and kind, with that kindness of those who are aware of its superiority. He lacked administrative preparation for the post he was going to perform and only brought to the government his honesty and sound intention. He did not have the energy of Nieto, which had been his emulus; this defect caused him to stumble in his career. He had no political experience either, because he had lived away from it and in terms of military skills, although as a subordinate he would have done a good role, instead he did not have the skills that are required in which he has to handle an army.”
Offspring
Luis José de Orbegoso y Moncada married María Josefa Pinillos y Cacho, daughter of Spanish nobleman Juan José Martínez de Pinillos y Larios. The couple had 13 children:
- Pedro José de Orbegoso and Martínez de Pinillos (Lima, 1816-1866), married to Rosa Mercedes de Riglos and Díaz de Rábago.
- Trinidad de Orbegoso and Martínez de Pinillos (Trujillo, 1818-), married to the British Henry Wyman.
- Manuela de Orbegoso and Martínez de Pinillos (Trujillo, 1819-1858).
- Gregoria de Orbegoso y Martínez de Pinillos (Trujillo, 1820).
- Manuel de Orbegoso and Martínez de Pinillos (Trujillo, 1821), married to his cousin, Carlota Cabrera Ganoza.
- José Cleto de Orbegoso and Martínez de Pinillos (Trujillo, 1823-1823).
- Emilia de Orbegoso and Martínez de Pinillos (Trujillo, 1824-), married to his cousin Vicente González and Martínez de Pinillos, was the mother of Carlos Alfonso González de Orbegoso. Their descendants are the current Counts of Olmos.
- Serapio de Orbegoso y Martínez de Pinillos (Trujillo, 1825-), married to his cousin Zoila Eléspuru and Martínez de Pinillos.
- Matilde de Orbegoso and Martínez de Pinillos (born in Trujillo [near] 1827), married to Dr. Julián Sandoval and Bravo.
- Nemecio Domingo de las Mercedes de Orbegoso y Martínez de Pinillos (born in Trujillo, in 1828), married to María del Tránsito de la Puente and Quiñones.
- Juan Guillermo Eloy de Orbegoso and Martínez de Pinillos (born in Trujillo, in 1830), married to Rosa González and Madalengoitia.
- Isabel de Orbegoso and Martínez de Pinillos (born in Trujillo, in?) and
- Josefina de Orbegoso and Martínez de Pinillos.
Apart from those mentioned, one should not forget
14. Esteban de Orbegoso, natural son that Luis José had before his marriage, but finally publicly recognized in his will dated February 3, 1847, which is held by the city of Trujillo.
The Orbegoso house in Trujillo
The house that belonged to the Grand Marshal Luis José de Orbegoso y Moncada is located in the city of Trujillo, Peru, in the current street Orbegoso No. 553, occupying the back of one of the founding lots of the square elderly. Orbegoso inherited it in 1815, after the death of his father. It shows, on the portico, the coat of arms of the counts of Olmos. It preserves its cobbled floors, a set of rooms arranged on a high embankment and a museum from the Republican period. In 1967 it was sold to a bank, which ordered its restoration, under the responsibility of the Trujillo architect Manuel Ángel Ganoza Plaza.
In July 2021, the Bicentennial Commission of La Libertad announced that the Casona will be converted into a Museum of Independence.