Román Baldorioty de Castro

Puerto Rican-born educator, politician, journalist, and abolitionist

• Born: February 28, 1822
• Birthplace: Guaynabo, Puerto Rico
• Died: September 30, 1889
• Place of death: Ponce, Puerto Rico

One of the most important political figures of his day, Baldorioty de Castro fought for Puerto Rican self-rule throughout his life and labored to abolish slavery and obtain civil rights for all. He was a founder of the Autonomist Party, which was dedicated to Puerto Rican political self-determination, and wrote extensively on political and historical topics. Baldorioty de Castro also was a professor of the natural sciences and maritime studies.

Early Life

The illegitimate son of Juan de Castro (who later recognized him) and a woman whose family name was Baldorioty, but whose given name is unknown, Román Baldorioty de Castro (roh-MAHN BAHL-doh-ree-OH-tee deh KAHS-troh) was born and raised in Guaynabo, Puerto Rico. He chose to use his mother’s family name first and his father’s family name second, a reversal of Spanish custom, making a clear public statement that it was his mother, rather than his father, who was the great inspiration of his life.

Although his family was poor, Baldorioty de Castro obtained an outstanding primary education at the school of the celebrated black teacher Rafael Cordero. He next enrolled at the Jesuit minor seminary in San Juan, where he performed outstandingly. Baldorioty de Castro gained the admiration of Father Rufo Manuel Fernández, who obtained a scholarship from the Royal Under-Secretariat for Pharmacy for the boy to continue his studies at the University of Madrid, with the understanding that he would return to Puerto Rico to teach for at least six years after his graduation. In Madrid, Baldorioty de Castro joined the Society for the Gathering of Historical Documents of the Island of Saint John the Baptist. He was awarded his bachelor’s degree in physical sciences and mathematics in 1851.

Life’s Work

True to his promise, Baldorioty de Castro returned to San Juan, Puerto Rico, in 1853 to teach botany and nautical sciences at the School of Commerce, Agriculture, and Nautical Sciences and physics and chemistry at his alma mater, the Jesuit Seminario Conciliar. Seeking to instill both scientific knowledge and enlightened political concepts in the minds of his students, Baldorioty de Castro soon found himself being watched by government officials. After the Grito de Lares (the Shout of Lares), the failed attempt to overthrow the Spanish government on the island, Baldorioty de Castro felt that he had to leave his post. In 1860 and 1865, he was named to the Secretariat for Fairs and Expositions, a position that required him to write programs and pamphlets for cultural events, among them the Universal Exposition held in Paris in 1867.

Baldorioty de Castro began his political career in 1870, when he was elected as a Puerto Rican delegate to the Spanish Cortes, the empire’s highest governing body. He distinguished himself as an impassioned orator and defender of civil rights, as well as a tireless opponent of slavery. As a means of propounding his ideas, Baldorioty de Castro founded two publications, Puerto Rican Affairs and Spanish Mail. Upon his return to Puerto Rico in 1873, he learned that his teaching appointments had been rescinded because of his opposition to the monarchy and to slavery. He lived in poverty in Río Piedras but then moved to Ponce, where he became the editor of an autonomist newspaper, The Right. Thanks to his efforts, slavery was outlawed in Puerto Rico on March 22, 1873. Soon after, Baldorioty de Castro was forced to seek political asylum in the Dominican Republic but founded the Antillean High School while he was there.

Returning to Puerto Rico in 1878, Baldorioty de Castro advocated for political rights, such as direct taxation, decentralization of government functions, freedom of commerce, and the right to prepare local government budgets. In order to spread his doctrine of political autonomy, he joined the staff of the newpaper The Chronicle in 1878, galvanizing those who longed for self-determination. In 1887, Baldorioty de Castro and José de Diego cofounded the Autonomist Party of Puerto Rico, with Baldorioty de Castro assuming the presidency. Because of the perceived threat to his rule, the governor briefly imprisoned Baldorioty de Castro and several other prominent autonomists in El Morro Castle for sedition. Unfortunately, this brief time in the harsh conditions of El Morro destroyed Baldorioty de Castro’s health, and he died shortly thereafter on September 30, 1889, in Ponce.

Significance

Baldorioty de Castro was one of the towering figures of late nineteenth-century Puerto Rican society. Not only did he bring vast and profound scientific knowledge to the island from Spain, he also dedicated his life to spreading enlightened ideas of self-government and proclaiming the equality of all men and women. His years of teaching gave him a forum in which to influence some of the greatest young minds of the next generation of Puerto Rican thinkers. Perhaps more important was the role that Baldorioty de Castro played in winning the good will and support of many Spaniards and Puerto Ricans in his quest for Puerto Rican autonomy. Baldorioty de Castro’s greatest achievement was the abolition of slavery, which he achieved through his tireless opposition in his speeches and writings. Baldorioty de Castro’s organization of the Autonomist Party and his work with other Puerto Rican intellectuals and political figures prepared the way for the transition from Spanish to American rule.

Bibliography

Ayala, César J., and Rafael Bernabé. Puerto Rico in the American Century: A History Since 1898. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 2009. A brief but good description of the important role that Baldorioty de Castro played in the quest for Puerto Rican autonomy under Spanish rule.

Schmidt-Nowara, Christopher. Empire and Antislavery: Spain, Cuba, and Puerto Rico, 1833-1874. Pittsburgh, Pa.: University of Pittsburgh Press, 1999.

Wagenheim, Kal, and Olga Jiménez de Wagenheim. The Puerto Ricans: A Documentary History. Princeton, N.J.: Marcus Wiener, 2008. Baldorioty de Castro’s influence in the political process appears here in primary documents from the period.