Background
Diego Dionisio de Peñalosa Briceño was born circa 1622 in Lima, Perú, South America. He was the son of Alonso de Peñalosa, was a native of Lima, Peru.
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Diego Dioniso de Peñalosa Briceno
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Diego Dionisio de Peñalosa Briceño went to New Spain about 1654, where, according to his later sworn statements, he was employed "in the higher positions, political and military. " In 1661, by appointment of the viceroy of New Spain, he assumed the office of governor and captain-general of New Mexico. Obligated to conduct the residencia, or official investigation of the administration of his deposed predecessor, Mendizabal, he sacked the latter's home and threw him into prison, thus patronizingly defying the Tribunal of the Inquisition in Mexico, which had issued a writ for the arrest of Mendizabal and the attachment of his property. The breach thus made between Peñalosa and Father Posadas, comisario of the Inquisition in New Mexico, soon widened, and during the spirited contest that ensued, Peñalosa in 1663 imprisoned and threatened to kill Posadas.
This rash act brought forth a threat to place the province under an interdict. Peñalosa made frantic efforts to effect a reconciliation, but the entire power of the Inquisition was directed against him, and in June 1665, after he had left New Mexico, a formal complaint was made by the Inquisition against him "as a usurper of the jurisdiction" of that Tribunal. Furthermore, he was charged with rape, incest, robbery, and the enslavement of Indian girls, and with having attempted first to bribe and then to blackmail Mendizabal. In his defense Peñalosa admitted rashness, complained of having been governor "of the off-scourings of the earth, " cited alleged services in behalf of his king and his religion, and threw himself on the mercy of the court. His pleas were vain, however; and on February 3, 1668, he was reprimanded, fined 500 pesos, deprived of the right to hold political and military office, and exiled forever from New Spain and the West Indies.
Embittered, Diego Dionisio de Peñalosa Briceño went to England where he maintained himself by selling to British officials information concerning the defenses of the Indies. He enjoyed the favor of the king, who prevented his arrest when it was requested by the Spanish ambassador. After some time he went to France, where he assumed various fictitious titles of nobility. Between the years 1678 and 1684, he presented three proposals to Louis XIV to attack New Spain in the name of France, capitalizing, in this connection, his personal knowledge of the regions mentioned.
On presenting in 1684 Penalosa's proposal to attack P nuco, he also submitted a manuscript "Relación" purporting to be an account of an alleged expedition from Santa Fé to Quivira in 1662. This "Relación, " published in 1882 by J. G. Shea, has recently been proved fictitious. Peñalosa submitted his third proposal just as La Salle arrived from Canada with news of his exploration of the Mississippi River and plans for a settlement near its mouth. The plan of the renowned French explorer superseded that of the exiled Spanish renegade, and the expedition which left France that same year was led by La Salle. After this time nothing more is known of Peñalosa, though, according to Margry, Diego Dionisio de Peñalosa Briceño died in 1687, in Paris.
Achievements
Personality
Diego Dionisio de Peñalosa Briceño was an adventurer worthy of the name. Alert, daring, resolute, and brave. He was a skillful soldier, a wise, self‑assured and it must be admitted, sometimes shifty administrator, but he had a kindly, tolerant sympathy and rare understanding for those beneath him in family or position and a sort of fixed vanity and fierce pride in dealing with those of his own rank.
Connections
Before leaving Peru, Diego Dionisio de Peñalosa Briceño was twice married. His first wife was María Ramírez de Vargas, who bore him two sons. After death of his first wife, Penalosa married to Jacoba de los Ríos y Cabrera, whom he apparently deserted. He is said to have married a third time in France.
References
- The Expedition of Don Diego Dionisio De Penalosa, Governor of New Mexico: From Santa Fe to the River Mischipi and Quivira in 1662 1882
- The Expedition of Don Diego Dionisio De Penalosa
- New Light on Don Diego de Penalosa: Proof That He Never Made an Expedition from Santa Fe to Quivira and the Mississippi River in 1662 (Classic Reprint)
