José Moñino, conde de Floridablanca

José Moñino y Redondo, conde de Floridablanca (October 21, 1728 - December 30, 1808), Spanish statesman. He was the reformist chief minister of King Charles III of Spain, and also served briefly under Charles IV. He was arguably Spain's most effective statesman in the eighteenth century. Download high resolution version (382x647, 219 KB)Half-length portrait of Spanish minister Conde de Floridablanca. ... Download high resolution version (382x647, 219 KB)Half-length portrait of Spanish minister Conde de Floridablanca. ... October 21 is the 294th day of the year (295th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 71 days remaining. ... Events Astronomical aberration discovered by the astronomer James Bradley Swedish academy of sciences founded at Uppsala Births January 9 - Thomas Warton, English poet (d. ... December 30 is the 364th day of the year (365th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 1 day remaining. ... 1808 was a leap year starting on Friday (see link for calendar). ... Reform can refer to: Reform (think tank) Reform, Alabama Reform Judaism Reform movement Reform Party (disambiguation page) See also: Reformation, Reformed This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ... Charles III (January 20, 1716 - December 14, 1788) was king of Spain from 1759 to 1788. ... Charles IV (November 11, 1748 - January 20, 1819) was King of Spain from December 14, 1788 until his abdication on March 19, 1808. ...

He was born at Murcia in 1728 as the son of a retired army officer. He studied law at the University of Salamanca and was an esteemed advocate in the Spanish courts. He became a criminal prosecutor in Castile in 1766. He was given the task of investigating the Esquilache riots that same year and acquired a reputation as a supporter of the king's reformist policies. He defended the expulsion of the Jesuits in 1767. The chief minister at the time, the Marquis of Esquilasche, recognized his ability and made Moñino Spanish ambassador to Pope Clement XIV in 1772. He was rewarded with the title "Count of Floridablanca" in 1773 for succeeding in obtaining the support of the Pope in suppressing the Jesuits. Murcia is a city in southeastern Spain, and is the capital of the Autonomous Community of Murcia, on the Segura river. ... Events Astronomical aberration discovered by the astronomer James Bradley Swedish academy of sciences founded at Uppsala Births January 9 - Thomas Warton, English poet (d. ... The University of Salamanca (Spanish Universidad de Salamanca), located in the town of Salamanca, west-northwest of Madrid, is the oldest university in Spain, and one of the oldest in Europe. ... In countries adopting the common law adversarial system or the civil law inquisitorial system, the prosecutor is the chief legal representative of the prosecution. ... A former kingdom of Spain, Castile comprises the two regions of Old Castile in north-western Spain, and New Castile in the centre of the country. ... 1766 was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ... The Society of Jesus (Latin: Societas Iesu), commonly known as the Jesuits, is a Roman Catholic religious order. ... 1767 was a common year starting on Thursday (see link for calendar). ... Clement XIV, né Giovanni Vincenzo Antonio Ganganelli (Sant Arcangelo di Romagna, October 31, 1705 - Rome, September 22, 1774), was pope from 1769 to 1774. ... 1772 was a leap year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ... 1773 was a common year starting on Friday (see link for calendar). ...

Floridablanca was named chief minister in 1777. He embarked on a thorough reform of the Spanish bureaucracy, establishing a true cabinet in 1787 (the Supreme Council of State). He established commercial freedom in the American colonies in 1778, founded the National Bank of San Carlos in 1782. He involved himself in university reform (Spain's universities had become increasingly lax since the 16th century) and improved press liberties. After the expulsion of the Jesuits, Spain's higher education system was left woefully understaffed; Floridablanca worked to hire new teachers and administrators and to modernize pedagogical methods. He also established new schools throughout Spain. 1777 was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ... 1787 was a common year starting on Monday (see link for calendar). ... Habsburg Spain was a superpower and the center of the first global empire in the 16th century. ... 1785 was a common year starting on Thursday (see link for calendar). ... 1782 was a common year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar). ... Pedagogy is the art or science of teaching. ...

During his tenure, Madrid was rebuilt; a great deal of the city dates from this period. Floridablanca regulated the Madrid police and encouraged public works in the city.

As master of Spain's foreign policy, Floridablanca sought prominently to restore the economic well-being of Spain. He concluded trade agreements with Morocco and the Ottoman Empire and believed that good relations with United Kingdom were key to Spain's growth. In spite of this, he was drawn reluctantly into the American Revolution on the side of the rebels. The war went well for Spain and Floridablanca succeeded in restoring much of Spain's prestige during the conflict and in 1782 Britain returned the island of Minorca, in the Baleares, and Florida to Spain. Long-standing disputes with Portugal over the American colonies were resolved under Floridablanca's ministry and in the process Fernando Póo, Annobón, and Rio Muni (modern Equatorial Guinea) were acquired from Portugal. Floridablanca strove to carve out an independent foreign policy for Spain, distancing the country from France which Spain had been a virtual satellite of since the War of the Spanish Succession. The Ottoman Empire at the height of its power Imperial motto El Muzaffer Daima The Ever Victorious (as written in tugra) Official language Ottoman Turkish Capital İstanbul (Constantinople/Asitane/Konstantiniyye ) Sovereigns Sultans of the Osmanli Dynasty Population ca 40 million Area 6. ... Before the Revolution: The 13 colonies are in red, the pink area was claimed by Great Britain after the French and Indian War, and the orange region was claimed by Spain. ... 1782 was a common year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar). ... Flag of Minorca Minorca (Menorca both in Catalan and Spanish and increasingly in English usage; from Latin insula minor, later Minorica minor island) is one of the Balearic Islands (Illes Balears Catalan official name, Islas Baleares in Spanish), located in the Mediterranean Sea, and belonging to Spain. ... Capital Palma de Mallorca Official languages Catalan and Castilian Area  - total  - % of Spain Ranked 17th 4 992 km² 1,0% Population  - Total (2003)  - % of Spain  - Density Ranked 14th 916 968 2,2% 183,69/km² Demonym  - English  - Catalan  - Spanish Balearic balear balear Statute of Autonomy March 1, 1983 ISO 3166... State nickname: Everglade State, Sunshine State Other U.S. States Capital Tallahassee Largest city Jacksonville Governor Jeb Bush Official languages English Area 170,451 km² (22nd)  - Land 137,374 km²  - Water 30,486 km² (17. ... Bioko is an island off the west coast of Africa in the Gulf of Guinea, formerly called Fernando Po or Fernando Poo. ... Annobón or Annabon is an island south of São Tomé Island ( São Tomé and Príncipe), belonging to Equatorial Guinea. ... Rio Muni (called Mbini in Fang), mainland geographical region of Equatorial Guinea, covering 26,000 km². Rio Muni was ceded by Portugal to Spain in 1778. ... Charles II was the last Habsburg King of Spain. ...

With the outbreak of the French Revolution in 1789 the liberal movement in Spain - which, in his own way, Floridablanca personified - was shocked to a halt. Floridablanca was forced to react to the situation and supported the First Coalition against revolutionary France. The events in France discredited the reformers at court and contributed to their downfall in the following years. The period of the French Revolution in the history of France covers the years between 1789 and 1799, in which democrats and republicans overthrew the absolute monarchy and the Roman Catholic Church was forced to undergo radical restructuring. ... 1789 was a common year starting on Thursday (see link for calendar). ... In politics, the term liberal refers to: an adherent of the ideology of liberalism —an ideology espousing liberty. ... The name First Coalition (1793–1797) designates the first major concerted effort of multiple European powers to contain revolutionary France. ...

His centralist policies brought him into conflict with regional interests and he was often at odds with the Aragonese faction at court which enjoyed many traditional liberties from the central government. The Aragonese faction, supported by the queen's lover Manuel de Godoy and the Count of Aranda, finally succeeded in ousting Floridablanca from power in 1792 on charges of embezzlement. Floridablanca was imprisoned at the castle of Pampeluna for three years and only released after the intervention of his brother. He was acquitted in 1795, although the ordeal weighed heavily upon him and he retired to seclusion on his estates. Capital Zaragoza Area  – Total  – % of Spain Ranked 4th  47 719 km²  9,4% Population  – Total (2003)  – % of Spain  – Density Ranked 11th  1 217 514  2,9%  25,51/km² Demonym  – English  – Spanish  Aragonese  aragonés Statute of Autonomy August 16, 1982 ISO 3166-2 AR Parliamentary representation  – Congress seats  – Senate seats... Manuel de Godoy (1767-1851) was a Spanish statesman. ... 1792 was a leap year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar). ... 1795 was a common year starting on Thursday (see link for calendar). ...

When Napoleon marched against Spain in 1808, there was a public outcry for Floridablanca to lead the country in resistance. He accepted the call and became the "President of the Central Junta" but, at the age of eighty, his strength failed him and he died at Sevile on November 20 that year. For other uses, see Napoleon (disambiguation). ... 1808 was a leap year starting on Friday (see link for calendar). ... November 20 is the 324th day of the year (325th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar. ...

Although an avid statesman, he left few writings, and only a few short treatises by his hand on jurisprudence were published during his lifetime.

External links

• 1911 encyclopedia entry (http://41.1911encyclopedia.org/F/FL/FLORIDABLANCA.htm)
• Colombia encyclopedia entry (http://www.bartleby.com/65/fl/Floridab.html)
• Biography of Floridablanca (http://www.fuenterrebollo.com/Masoneria/monino.html) (in Spanish)