place of his death are unknown. His father em- barked for America in 1540 in the suite of Cabeza de Vaca. The son served at an early age against the Indians, under the command of his father ; and, although in his writings he deplores the ex- termination of the natives and denounces the san- guinary policy of the conquerors, he showed little mercy toward them in the numerous conflicts in which he was engaged. The greater part of his life was passed in the province of Guayra, of which he became commander: but in this office he refused to acknowledge the supremacy of the governor of Paraguay, and was obliged to justify himself before the audience of Charcas. Aided by his notes and information gained from the conquerors, he undertook to relate the discovery and colonization of the Argentine provinces, un- der the title " Historia Argentina del descubri- miento poblacion y conquista de las provincias del Rio de la Plata." The dedication to the Duke of Medina bears date 25 July, 1612. In spite of its great merit, Guzman's work was not issued until De Angelis undertook the publication of the " Co- leccion de obras y documentos relativos a la histo- ria antigua y moderna de las provincias del Rio de la Plata, etc." (6 vols., Buenos Ayres, 1836). It appears in the beginning of the first volume, ac- companied by biographical researches of great in- terest. The work of Guzman has been copied by most historians that have written on the Argentine provinces.^ The narrative closes with 1575.
GUZMAN-BLANCO, Antonio, president of
Venezuela, b. in Caracas in 1830. His father. An-
tonio, was a Venezuelan journalist and politician.
The son was banished by the government of Gen.
Castro, and accompanied Gen. Juan C. Falcon in
his invasion of Venezuela, becoming his general
secretary. After the final defeat of Falcon at Co-
ple in September, 1860, Guzman accompanied his
chief in his flight, and was sent to the West Indies
to solicit assistance. Toward the end of 1861 he
landed again with Falcon on the coast of Coro, and
after numerous engagements signed on 22 May,
1863, the treaty of Coche, by which arms were laid
down, and a general assembly called at Victoria.
which elected Falcon president and Guzraan-Blanco
vice-president. The latter was at the same time
secretary of the treasury, and went to London to
negotiate a loan.
On his return he
was for a short
time in charge
of the executive,
and afterward
was elected presi-
dent of congress.
After the over-
throw of Falcon
in 1868, Guzman
left the country,
but headed a rev-
olution in 1869,
and in 1870 be-
came provisional
president with ex-
traordinary pow-
ers, ruling the
country for years
as a dictator. His
An image should appear at this position in the text. A high-res raw scan of the page is available. To use it as-is, as a placeholder, edit this page and replace "{{missing image}}" with "{{raw image|Appletons' Cyclopædia of American Biography (1892, volume 3).djvu/39}}". If it needs to be edited first (e.g. cropped or rotated), you can do so by clicking on the image and following the guidance provided. [Show image] |
successor, Gen. Alcantara, died in December, 1878, and there were several revolutionary uprisings, till Guzman assumed the government again. In the elections of 1883 Gen. Joaquin Crespo, one of his friends, was declared president, and Guzman- Bianco became ambassador to France, living with great ostentation in Paris. In 1886 he again as- sumed the presidency.
GWIN, William, naval officer, b. in Columbus,
Bartholomew co., Ind., 5 Dec, 1832; i. on the
Yazoo river. Miss., 3 Jan., 1863. He entered the
navy as a midshipman, 7 April, 1847, and was pro-
moted until he was commissioned lieutenant, 16
Sept., 1855, and lieutenant-commander, 16 July,
1862. At the beginning of the civil war he was
assigned to the "Cambridge," doing blockading
duty on the Atlantic coast. He was ordered in
October, 1861, to the brig "Commodore Perry."
and in January, 1862, to the command of the gun-
boat " Tyler," of the western flotilla, in which he
participated in the attacks on Fort Henry and
Fort Donelson. He also took part in the battle of
Shiloh, and distinguished himself in the expedi-
tion up the Yazoo river in company with the
" Carondelet," to meet the Confederate ram " Ar-
kansas." After the accidental explosion on the
" Mound City " at St. Charles, on White river, by
which her commander, Capt. Kelly, was badly
scalded, Lieut.-Com. Gwin took charge of the
vessel, which he retained until he was transferred
to the " Benton," the largest and most powerful of
the river fleet. While in command of the latter
vessel, and during the attack on Haines's Bluff, on
the Yazoo river, he was mortally wounded.
GWIN, William McKendree, senator, b. in
Sumner countv, Tenn., 9 Oct., 1805; d. in New
York city, 3 Sept., 1885. His father, the Rev.
James Gwin, was a pioneer Methodist minister,
and also served
as a soldier
on the frontier
under Gen. An-
drew Jackson.
After receiving
a classical edu-
cation, the son
studied law in
Gallatin, Tenn.,
but abandoned it
for medicine.and
took his medical
degree in 1828
at Transylvania
university. He
then removed to
Clinton, Miss.,
and obtained an
An image should appear at this position in the text. A high-res raw scan of the page is available. To use it as-is, as a placeholder, edit this page and replace "{{missing image}}" with "{{raw image|Appletons' Cyclopædia of American Biography (1892, volume 3).djvu/39}}". If it needs to be edited first (e.g. cropped or rotated), you can do so by clicking on the image and following the guidance provided. [Show image] |
extensive practice, but in 1833 left the profession, and was appointed by President Jackson U. S. marshal for the district of Mississippi. In 1840 he was elected to congress as a Democrat, and became an adherent of John C. Calhoun. Declining a renomination for congress on account of financial embarrassment, he was appointed, on the accession of James K. Polk to the presidency, to superintend the building of the new custom-house at New Orleans. On the election of Gen. Taylor he resigned and set out for California, where he arrived 4 June, 1849. His attention had first been called to that country by Mr. Calhoun, who, when secretary of state, had laid his finger on the map where San Francisco now stands, saying, " There, when this bay comes into our possession, will spring up the great rival of New York." Dr. Gwin took an active part in favor of the formation of a state government, and was elected to the convention that was held in Monterey in September to frame a constitution. In the ensuing December he was elected U. S. senator for the long term, with Gen. Fremont as his colleague. His