Manuel Matamoros
Manuel Matamoros García | |
---|---|
Born | 1834 |
Died | 1866 |
Nationality | Spanish |
Manuel Matamoros García (1834–1866) was a leading Spanish Protestant.
Biography[]
Matamoros was born in Lepe in Huelva as the son of a lieutenant colonel in the Spanish Artillery and he was brought up at Málaga in Andulusia. He studied from 1850 to 1853 at the .[1]
He became enthusiastic about Protestantism following figures such as and and he is said to have been converted in Gibraltar.[1] In a strict Catholic country he was sentenced in Granada to eight years and banned from being a teacher. The sentence was not for being a Protestant but for spreading propaganda that encouraged others (proselitism). Eleven others were acquitted whilst his co-defendant was given nine years.[2] Matamoros and Teva's sentences were eventually commuted to exile.[1] In May 1863 they were attending the Gibraltar Methodist Church.[3]
Matamoros went to France and finally died in Switzerland. He has been described as the founder of Spanish Protestantism and a symbol of religious freedom.[1] Matamoros died in Lausanne.
Legacy[]
Matamoros left behind an extensive collection of for Protestants he had met in Lausanne, Gibraltar and elsewhere. These provide an insight into who he knew. For instance there is a card for Rev. William Harris Rule, a Methodist minister who had tried unsuccessfully to introduce Protestantism into Spain twenty years before Matamoros.[4]
References[]
- ^ Jump up to: a b c d Manual Matamoros, Filosofia.org, English translation, accessed December 2012
- ^ "Religious Freedom in Spain". Launceton Examiner. 11 April 1863. Retrieved 17 December 2012.
- ^ History Archived 2013-08-13 at the Wayback Machine, Gibraltar Methodist Church, accessed December 2012
- ^ "Collection Manuel García Matamoros (1): Champion and Martyr of Religious Freedom in Spain". Past to Present. Retrieved 1 July 2013.
- 1834 births
- 1866 deaths
- People from Huelva
- Spanish Protestants
- Converts to Protestantism