Miguel Lino de Ezpeleta

Miguel Lino de Ezpeleta (sometimes spelled as de Espeleta) (Manila, June 1701 Cebu, July 1771) was a Spanish Criollo born in Manila who served as the Bishop of Cebu from 1757 until his death in 1771. Consequently, he assumed the position as the governor-general from 1759 to 1761 during Spanish intervention to the Seven Years' War and prelude to the occupations of Manila and Cavite.

Miguel Lino de Ezpeleta
Bishop of Cebu
ChurchRoman Catholic
SeeCebu
AppointedJuly 18, 1757
Term ended1771
PredecessorProtacio Cabezas
SuccessorMateo Joaquin Rubio de Arevalo
Orders
Ordination1758
ConsecrationJanuary 29, 1748
by Manuel de Matos
Personal details
Born1701
Manila, Captaincy General of the Philippines
Died1771 (aged 6970)
Cebu, Captaincy General of the Philippines
45th Governor and Captain-General of the Philippines
In office
June 1759  July 1761
MonarchFerdinand VI of Spain
Charles III of Spain
Preceded byPedro Manuel de Arandía Santisteban
Succeeded byManuel Rojo del Rio y Vieyra

Life and succession

Miguel Lino de Ezpeleta was born in Manila in 1701. Though he was born to Spanish parents, he was often considered a Filipino rather than a Criollo.[1] During Spanish colonial days, a criollo is a natural Spanish that was born in the colonies.

On July 18, 1757, he was appointed as the bishop of the Diocese of Cebu (now an archdiocese) and about a year later, he was ordained by the Archbishop of Nueva Cáceres Manuel de Matos to the bishopric.

Upon the death of Governor-General Pedro Manuel de Arandía Santisteban in 1759, the See of Manila and the See of Nueva Segovia were vacant, and de Ezpeleta as the Bishop of Cebu was the senior prelate of the islands. He assumed the post of governor against the will of the Real Audiencia of Manila.

On July 22, 1759, the new Archbishop of Manila Manuel Rojo del Rio y Vieyra arrived in the country which made the occupation of de Ezpeleta to the gubernatorial seat void. De Ezpeleta refused to step down as governor after Rojo's orders. De Ezpeleta sought the support from the oidores of the Audiencia: two of the four oidores went to the side of de Ezpeleta while the other to Rojo. De Ezpeleta also raised the precedent of Juan Arrechedera, who previously had the same instance as him. They brought the question to the Council of the Indies through its prosecutor Francisco Léandro de Viana.[2]

Administration

One of his initial actions against the previous administration of Arandía and the Real Audiencia was to revoke the reforms and decrees written by the ex-governor.

Later in 1759, he suppressed the armada of Fr. José Ducós, which was commissioned by Arandía to protect the Jesuit missionaries converting Muslims in Iligan Bay. One of the reasons of this suppression is that the Augustinian missionaries in Caraga and Butuan filed a complaint to de Ezpeleta that they are not well protected. Spanish historian and biographer José Montero y Vidal pointed out that this suppression greatly accelerated the depredations caused by Muslim pirates in Luzon and Visayas.[2][3]

Much of de Ezpeleta's administration was occupied by the prosecution of don Santiago Orendaín, former adviser of governor Arandía who was held responsible for the repression of the church. Orendaín sought refuge in an Augustinian convent but was later seized and imprisoned in Fort Santiago.[4]

In July 1761, a royal decree from Charles III of Spain coming from Madrid ordered the stepping down of de Ezpeleta. He then gave the administration of the colony to Archbishop Rojo.

References

  1. López Manchado, p. 1
  2. Cunningham 1919, p. 341
  3. Bernad 2004, p. 98
  4. Cunningham 1919, p. 342
Political offices
Preceded by
Pedro Manuel de Arandía Santisteban
Governor and Captain-General of the Philippines
17591761
Succeeded by
Manuel Rojo del Rio y Vieyra
Catholic Church titles
Preceded by
Protacio Cabezas
Bishop of Cebu
17571771
Succeeded by
Mateo Joaquin Rubio de Arevalo
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