Manuel Pavía y Rodríguez de Alburquerque



Manuel Pavia y Rodriguez de Alburquerque (August 2, 1828-January 4, 1895) was a Spanish general, born in Cadiz. He was the son of Admiral Pavia, a naval officer of some note in the early part of the 19th century.

Pavia entered the Royal Artillery College at Segovia in 1841. He became a lieutenant in 1846, a captain in 1855 and major in 1862. Three years later he joined the staff of General Prim, and took part in the two unsuccessful revolutionary movements concerted by Prim in 1866, and, after two years of exile, in the successful revolution of 1868. Pavia showed much vigour against the republican risings in the southern provinces. The governments of King Amadeus of Savoy, from 1871 to 1873, also showed him much favour. After the abdication of that prince, General Pavia put down the Carlists and the cantonal insurrections of the chief towns of the south.

On three occasions during the eventful year 1873, as captain-general of Madrid, he offered his services to put an end to the anarchy that was raging in the provinces and to the disorganization prevalent in the Cortes. To all he used the same arguments, namely, that they had to choose between an Alphonsist restoration or a dictatorial, military and political republic, which would rally round its standard all the most conservative groups that had made the revolution of 1868. This he hoped to realize with Emilio Castelar, but the plan was interrupted by the military pronunciamiento for the purpose of dissolving the Cortes of 1873. As soon as the federal Cortes had defeated Castelar, Pavia made his coup d'état of the January 3, 1874, and after the pronunciamiento was absolute master of the situation, but having no personal ambition, he sent for General Serrano to form a government with Sagasta, Martos, Ulloa and other Conservatives and Radicals of the revolution.

Pavia sat in the Cortes of the Restoration several times, and once defended himself skillfully against Emilio Castelar, who upbraided him for the part he had played on the 3 January 1874. He died suddenly on January 4, 1895.