By Roy Ortega
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| Marcos Alonso de la Garza y Arcon |
The story of this man, whom I've identified as my 11th great grandfather, is fascinating to say the least. Most important, it connects me directly to the history of Mexico. More specifically, it connects me directly to the Spanish invasion, conquest and colonization of Mexico during the mid-to-late 1500s.
More about Marcos Alonso later, but first I'd like to describe how I made this intriguing discovery.
A Meticulous Search
Through my Ancestry.com account, I set out to identify all of my ancestors in my family tree as far back as possible through birth, death, marriage and civil records. I was searching not just for the names of my ancestors. I was also yearning to learn their stories. Who were they? What were they like? To my surprise, I was able to locate many branches of my family tree, especially on my mother's side of the family.
My mother was Rebecca Ramos Ortega. Her mother was my abuela Cirila Huerta
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| Cirila Huerta Ramos |
But it didn't stop there. The records I was able to access also identified every single generation of her family dating back into the 1500s. Among them were Sebastian Huerta Lira (my, great grandfather), Jose Antonio Gomez Munoz (my great, great grandfather), and several more.
At this point, I was ecstatic to see in writing the names of some of the people from whom I descend. I was able to identify some of their birth dates, places of birth and their death dates.
Finally, I came to the name of one individual that made me stop for a moment. As I glared at the name, I felt a chill rise up my spine. Capitán Marcos Alonso de la Garza y Arcon. Long ago, perhaps in a school history book, I might have seen this name somewhere. I quickly did an Internet search and indeed made a connection.
About Capitán Marcos Alonso de la Garza y Arcon
According to well-documented records and historical accounts, Marco Alonso de la Garza y Arcon was born in 1561 in Lepe Huelva, Andalucia, Spain. He became a high-ranking military man when he arrived in Mexico sometime in the late 1500s as part of the Spanish conquering force. Their mission was to colonize and Christianize the country, which at the time was inhabited almost entirely by indigenous peoples who were descendant from the great Mayan and Aztec cultures dating back thousands of years.
In 1585, Marcos Alonso de la Garza y Arcon married Juana Ysabel de Trevino Velasco Quintanilla, a Spanish maiden and a member of a prominent military family that had arrived in Mexico from Spain several years earlier.
Among his assignments in the late 1500s was the supervision of gold and silver mining operations in the northern part of Mexico. With his family along, Marcos Alonso traveled to the regions of what are now the Mexican states of Nuevo Leon and Tamaulipas.
It was during this period that Marcos Alonso de la Garza y Arcon became an important figure in the Spanish colonization of the vast area that extended from Mexico into what is now the State of Texas. Along with other Spanish conquistadores, he helped establish settlements that later became the thriving city of Monterrey.
Descendants of Marcos Alonso including his sons and daughters also became prominent figures in the colonization of several other areas of northern Mexico. In later years, many descendants settled north of the Rio Grande into present-day South Texas. In fact, a large statue of a family descendant named General Blas de la Garza Falcon is located in Corpus Christi, Texas.
Descendants of Both the Conquerors and the Conquered
The history of the Spanish conquest is well-known and well-understood by Mexicans. They (we) are descendants of both the the Spanish Conquistadors and the indigenous people they conquered. It is the true identity of the Mexican people.
Today, I have a clearer picture of our family history. It is the history of both the conquerors and the conquered. We are Native. We are European. It is our identity.
Roy Ortega may be reached at rortega54@elp.rr.com. Your comments and insights are always welcome.
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Links:
http://www.kingsvillerecord.com/time-machine/article_b8508b6a-1cc9-5254-ad8d-04083af788ca.html
https://www.geni.com/people/Capit%C3%A1n-Marcos-Alonso-de-la-Garza-Falc%C3%B3n/6000000000307810776
https://ancestors.familysearch.org/en/9NQ8-4NM/capit%C3%A1n-marcos-alonso-de-la-garza-falc%C3%B3n-1566-1634
https://gw.geneanet.org/sanchiz?lang=es&n=garza+arcon&oc=0&p=marcos+alonso
At this point, I was ecstatic to see in writing the names of some of the people from whom I descend. I was able to identify some of their birth dates, places of birth and their death dates.
Finally, I came to the name of one individual that made me stop for a moment. As I glared at the name, I felt a chill rise up my spine. Capitán Marcos Alonso de la Garza y Arcon. Long ago, perhaps in a school history book, I might have seen this name somewhere. I quickly did an Internet search and indeed made a connection.
About Capitán Marcos Alonso de la Garza y Arcon
According to well-documented records and historical accounts, Marco Alonso de la Garza y Arcon was born in 1561 in Lepe Huelva, Andalucia, Spain. He became a high-ranking military man when he arrived in Mexico sometime in the late 1500s as part of the Spanish conquering force. Their mission was to colonize and Christianize the country, which at the time was inhabited almost entirely by indigenous peoples who were descendant from the great Mayan and Aztec cultures dating back thousands of years.
 |
| Juana Ysabel de Trevino Velasco Quintanilla |
Among his assignments in the late 1500s was the supervision of gold and silver mining operations in the northern part of Mexico. With his family along, Marcos Alonso traveled to the regions of what are now the Mexican states of Nuevo Leon and Tamaulipas.
It was during this period that Marcos Alonso de la Garza y Arcon became an important figure in the Spanish colonization of the vast area that extended from Mexico into what is now the State of Texas. Along with other Spanish conquistadores, he helped establish settlements that later became the thriving city of Monterrey.
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| Monterrey, Nuevo Leon, Mex. |
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| Statue of Gen. Blas de la Garza Falcon in Corpus Christi, Texas |
Descendants of Both the Conquerors and the Conquered
The history of the Spanish conquest is well-known and well-understood by Mexicans. They (we) are descendants of both the the Spanish Conquistadors and the indigenous people they conquered. It is the true identity of the Mexican people.
Today, I have a clearer picture of our family history. It is the history of both the conquerors and the conquered. We are Native. We are European. It is our identity.
Roy Ortega may be reached at rortega54@elp.rr.com. Your comments and insights are always welcome.
--
Links:
http://www.kingsvillerecord.com/time-machine/article_b8508b6a-1cc9-5254-ad8d-04083af788ca.html
https://www.geni.com/people/Capit%C3%A1n-Marcos-Alonso-de-la-Garza-Falc%C3%B3n/6000000000307810776
https://ancestors.familysearch.org/en/9NQ8-4NM/capit%C3%A1n-marcos-alonso-de-la-garza-falc%C3%B3n-1566-1634
https://gw.geneanet.org/sanchiz?lang=es&n=garza+arcon&oc=0&p=marcos+alonso
