Mercedes Fontecilla Explained

María Mercedes Fontecilla y Fernández de Valdivieso (June 18, 1799 – May 5, 1853) was a First Lady of Chile for less than two months in 1814 through her marriage to José Miguel Carrera.

Biography

Fontecilla was born to Diego Antonio Fontecilla Palacios and Rosa Valdivieso Protusagasti^[1] in Santiago. On 20 August 1814, at 15, Fontecilla married 29 year old José Miguel Carrera, a political leader in Chile, at the Santiago Metropolitan Cathedral.^{[1] [2]} Less than two months later, Carrera's forces were defeated in the Battle of Rancagua and the family, including Carrera's two brothers, fled to Mendoza, Argentina.^[3] While there, Fontecilla passed secret information between military personnel and sewed clothing for soldiers.^[4] Fontecilla supported and was affectionate towards her husband despite his long absences to Anapolis, Montevideo, and Buenos Aires as he sought allies to fight for Chilean independence.^{[2] [5]}

In 1821, Carrera was handed over to Colonel José Albino Gutiérrez as prisoner by his own men.^[6] Within days, he was tried, sentenced, and executed.^[6] The morning of his death, he wrote Mercedes a letter, in which he told her of his imminent execution and expressed regret for leaving her to care for their five children.^[6] Following Carrera's death, Fontecilla and her children lived in extreme poverty in Rosario.^[7] Eventually, Bernardo O'Higgins, Chile's Supreme Director and one of Carrera's main enemies, allowed them to return to Chile, largely due to "good public relations... [so the public would think] '[O'Higgins] was as generous as he was courageous.'"^{[4] [7]} She later married politician Diego José Benavente, with whom she had four children.^[8]

Family

• Marriage: José Miguel Carrera (1814-1821, his death)^{[6] [9]}
  • Francisca Javiera Carrera Fontecilla (1817-1850; wife of Francisco Javier Valdés Aldunate and mother of José Miguel Valdés)^{[1] [7] [6] [10] [11]}
  • Roberta Carrera Fontecilla^[6]
  • Rosa Carrera Fontecilla (1819-1862; wife of Ambrosio Aldunate Carvajal, mother of Luis Aldunate)^{[1] [6] [12]}
  • Josefa Carrera Fontecilla (1820-1898; wife of José Ramón Lira Calvo)^{[1] [6]}
  • José Miguel Carrera Fontecilla (es) (1820-1860); husband of Emilia Pinto Benavente, father of Ignacio Carrera Pinto)^{[6] [1]}
• Marriage: Diego José Benavente^{[13] [14]}
  • José Benjamín Benavente Fontecilla (husband of Rosa Vargas González)^[14]
  • Mercedes Quiteria Benavente Fontecilla (wife of Miguel Calvo Valenzuela)^{[14] [15]}
  • Mariana Benavente Fontecilla^[14]
  • Carolina Benavente Fontecilla^[14]

Legacy

There is a school in the Quilicura area of Santiago, Chile named Escuela Mercedes Fontecilla de Carrera.^[16] Javiera Díaz de Valdés, a descendent of Fontecilla's sister-in-law Javiera Carrera, portrayed her in the Chilean miniseries Héroes.^{[17] [18]}

See also

• Carrera family
• First Lady of Chile

Notes and References

1. Web site: Carrera Verdugo José Miguel. n.d.. Anales de la Republica. 2022-02-25. es.
2. Web site: Jose Miguel Carrera Verdugo. n.d.. Aurora de Chile. 2022-02-26. es.
3. Web site: Muerte del General José Miguel Carrera. 2020-09-05. La Discusion. 2022-02-25. es.
4. Web site: Las libertadoras de San Martín. 2019-08-16. CONICET. 2022-02-25. es.
5. Web site: EL AMOR PRESENTE, EN LA HISTORIA DE UNO DE LOS PRÓCERES DE NUESTRA PATRIA. n.d.. Archivo Nacional. 2022-02-25. es.
6. Web site: EL AMOR, PRESENTE EN LA HISTORIA DE UNO DE LOS PRÓCERES DE NUESTRA PATRIA. n.d.. Archivo Nacional. 2022-02-25. es.
7. Book: Chambers, Sarah C.. [{{Google books|VsHFCQAAQBAJ|plainurl=yes}} Families in War and Peace: Chile from Colony to Nation].
8. Book: Reyes del Villar, Soledad. [{{Google books|6TQPEAAAQBAJ|plainurl=yes}} Javiera Carrera. Y la formación del Chile republicano]. es.
9. Web site: GENEALOGIA DE LA FAMILIA CARRERA (DE LA CARRERA). 2020-05-06. La familia Carrera. 2022-02-26. es.
10. Book: Vidal, Virginia. [{{Google books|v8FJwGJ7l5IC|page=128|plainurl=yes}} Javiera Carrera, madre de la patria]. 128. es.
11. Book: Mettele. G.. Rendall. J.. Hagemann. K.. [{{Google books|CJwqDAAAQBAJ|page=347|plainurl=yes}} Gender, War and Politics: Transatlantic Perspectives, 1775–1830]. 347.
12. Book: Valdés, Ambrosio. [{{Google books|4XsCAAAAYAAJ|plainurl=yes}} Carrera: revolución chilena y campañas de la independencia, con un apéndice sobre la jenealojía de la familia del Jeneral]. es.
13. Web site: Donan valiosas cartas inéditas de la familia de José Miguel Carrera. 2018-09-19. Swinburn. Daniel. Economia y negocios. 2022-02-25. es.
14. Web site: Diego Jose Benavente Bustamante. n.d.. Anales de la Republica. 2022-02-26. es.
15. Web site: Benavente, Diego Jose. n.d.. icarito. 2022-02-26. es.
16. Web site: Escuela Mercedes Fontecilla de Carrera. n.d.. Escuela Mercedes Fontecilla de Carrera. 2022-02-26. es.
17. Web site: Descendientes de... Los famosos con sangre histórica. 2006-10-08. El Mercurio. 2022-02-26. es. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20160304084925/http://diario.elmercurio.cl/detalle/index.asp?id=%7B5a53e343-6291-41b7-8640-0011a2b878fc%7D. 2016-03-04.
18. Web site: José Miguel Carrera, Príncipe de los Caminos. 2010. 13th Festival Cultural de Mayo. 2022-02-26. es.