Bernardo López de Mendizábal (abt. 1620 - 1664)

Born about 1620 in Chietla, Puebla, Mexico

Died 16 Sep 1664 at about age 44 in Mexico City, New Spain

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Bernardo López de Mendizábal was born in Mexico.

Biography

Early Life

Bernardo López de Mendizábal was born about 1620 in the town of Chietla, in Puebla (present day Mexico). His father, Cristóbal López de Mendizábal, was a Basque captain and legal representative, while his mother, Leonor Pastrana, was a granddaughter of Juan Nuñez de Leon, a Jew who was prosecuted by the Inquisition, having been accused of secretly practicing Judaism. His family had a hacienda in Chietla. His father was a legal representative. López also had a brother - Gregorio López de Mendizábal. López studied arts and canon law in Jesuit college at Puebla, but finished his studies at the university in Mexico City. Mendizábal also joined the Spanish Army, where he served in the Galleon de la Armada and was stationed for a period of time in the Presidio of Cartagena de Indias (in modern Colombia). López occupied many government positions in Nueva Granada, Cuba, and New Spain. López was also alcalde mayor, or royal administrator, in Guayacocotla, on the Sierra Madre Oriental, northeast of Mexico City. ^[1]

Marriage

In Cartagena, before his appointment as governor of New Mexico, he met and married Teresa de Aguilera y Roche, a native of Alexsandria, Italy. López opened a store in the Casa Real of Santa Fe, trading products such as sugar, chocolate, hats and shoes, among others, to the colonists. Amerindians (especially Pueblos) worked for López manufacturing different products for his business including leather goods, whole stockings, and other products as well as wagons for caravans, etc. ^[1]

Sources

1. ↑ ^{1.0 1.1} "Bernardo López de Mendizábal" information page found on Wikipedia [1] - accessed 15 Jan 2019.