Joaquín del Pino

Joaquín del Pino Sánchez de Rojas Romero y Negrete (January 20, 1729 – April 11, 1804), was a Spanish military engineer and politician, who held various positions in the South American colonial administration.

Early life At the age of 18, he became a cadet in the regiment fixed Oran. Being already a sub-official, he studied mathematics and in February 1752 he moved to the Corps of Engineers. That same year he collaborated with Ampurdán mapping to perform fortifications and roads. In 1753, he was commissioned to supervision of the fortifications of the castle of Montjuic in Barcelona.

Even when working there in 1760 was promoted to captain in 1762, before the suspension of work was aimed at repairing the shore batteries of Castile in the war with Portugal. The following year he married Maria Ignacia Rameri, from San Sebastian. In 1769, he returned to be used for cartographic work, collaborating with the French in the lifting of military maps of Aldudes, between Navarre and France. Promoted to lieutenant colonel the following year was sent to Montevideo at the request of viceroy Juan José de Vértiz y Salcedo in 1771 to repair the ramparts of the citadel. He remained in South America until his death.

As governor of Montevideo He was governor of Montevideo from 1773 to 1790, president of the Audiencia of Chile from 1790 and 1795 and the Audiencia of Charcas between 1795 and 1799.

As governor of Chile He was entrusted with the government of Chile, serving from 1799 to 1801. In the latter year, by a certificate issued on 14 July 1800 in Madrid, was appointed viceroy of Río de la Plata, assuming the post on 20 May.

As viceroy of Río de la Plata Enlightened ruler, but true to the metropolis, carried out numerous public works, including the port expansion, construction of the Buenos Aires Recova entrusted to Juan Bautista Sigismund, who later became also the author of the Church of the Convent San Lorenzo and efficient administration promoted the construction of brick kilns and the building of shipyards in Corrientes and Assumption, to replace the foreign ships, which prohibited land, temporarily ending the export of raw hides common to that time. Also limited the movement of foreigners, fearing the establishment of republican ideas of the French Revolution, and closed the first newspaper published in Buenos Aires, The Telegraph Commercial (1801).

In 1801 gave the first tasks of responsibility to Santiago de Liniers, appointing him governor of Misiones. He tried to take advantage of the situation to regain the Seven Peoples Missions East overrun by the Portuguese in Brazil since the beginning of the year, taking the Luso-Hispanic war as an excuse; del Pino, however, failed to provide the necessary supplies, and loss of missions and would Guayrá unpardonable. On July 6, 1802 he would be removed from office for it, naming as his replacement for Antonio Amar, but the relay was suspended in view of his age.

Already seventy, he fell ill in April 1804, and died ten days later, leaving Rafael de Sobremonte as his appointed successor. A few years later her daughter, Juana del Pino be married with the future president Bernardino Rivadavia.

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