The Mind Behind Ecuadorian Independence
- Juan Franciso Carrasco
- Aug 15, 2022
- 4 min read
Updated: Jun 26
By Juan Francisco Carrasco
This year Ecuador will celebrate the 213th anniversary of the “First Cry for Independence,” which took place on August 10th, 1809, in the city of Quito.This was the first of many revolutionary events that allowed for the liberation of Ecuador from the Kingdom of Spain. This historical event made Ecuador the first independent country in South America and inspired many other countries such as Chile, Colombia, and Peru to do the same.
In general, history states that a group of patriots took over the Real Palace to inform Count Ruiz de Castilla, who was the President of the Real Audience of Quito, that he was no longer a governing authority and would be removed from office. Nevertheless, history often forgets the group of people that first birthed these ideas of independence, freedom, and equality. One of these was Francisco Javier Eugenio de Santa Cruz y Espejo, better known as Eugenio Espejo.
Eugenio Espejo was born on February 21, 1747. Originally with the surname “Chuzig,” that in Quechua means “owl”, he was baptized as “de Santa Cruz y Espejo” because like many other indigenous descendants that lived in the colonies he was evangelized and given a christian name. His father was a Cajamarca Indigenous Quechua named Luis Chuzig and his mother was María Catalina Aldás, a mulatto from Quito. Eugenio was raised in a humble family with his younger brothers Juan Pablo and Maria Manuela.
