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Josefa Camejo Venancia de la Encarnación

Other names/titles:
Gender: F
Ethnic origin: White

Biographical details

She was born in Pueblo Nuevo, Dist. Falcón, Aquaque, Paraguaná, Coro province, Venezuela, in 1781, the daughter of Miguel Camejo and Ignacia Talavera y Garcés. She was educated by nuns. She married Coronel Juan Nepomuceno Briceño Méndez. Knaster states that "she is known for her celebrated manifesto declaring incorporation of the province of Coro into the Republican movement." (Knaster, 479.)

She was among a group of women from Barinas province who in 1811 wrote to the governor offering to enlist in the republican army. Their offer was rejected, but their letter was printed in the Gaceta de Caracas. (Tosta, 72.)

She was part of the Patriotic Army in Barinas in 1813. She fled to Nuevo Granada persecuted by the Spaniards. She secretly returned to Venezuela and drummed up recruits for the independence cause. An attack on Coro province was led by 300 slaves. On 3 May 1821, she herself read out the manifesto declaring the Province of Falcón to be free. (N.A., Heroínas, 40-41.)

(There could be 2 people here, Knaster gives her year of birth as 1791 and N.A., Heroínas does not mention a marriage.)

Life Events

Born 1781She was born on 18 May 1781.
Other 1811She offered to enlist in the republican army.
Other 1821On 3 May 1821 she read out a proclamation declaring the Province of Falcón to be independent.

References

Knaster, Meri, (1977), Women in Spanish America: An Annotated Bibliography from Pre-Conquest to Contemporary Times

Tosta, Virgilio, (1987), Historia de Barinas

N.A., (1964), Heroínas venezolanas

Pérez Vila, Manuel, (1983), Gaceta de Caracas

Davies, Catherine, Brewster, Claire and Owen, Hilary, (2006), South American Independence. Gender, Politics, Text


Publications

Letter: Carta


Links

Resource id #33 (13)

Resource id #37 (21)

Resource id #41 (29)

Resource id #45 (9)

Resource id #49 (22)

Resource id #53 (2)




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