Bernardo de Galvez Cabildo exhibit takes guests through his governorship of Louisiana.

Bernado Galvez, his wife Félicité, and their daughter Mathilda.

Galvez Cabildo exhibit

Bernardo Vicente de Gálvez y Madrid, his wife, and their daughter, greet guests at the Cabildo at the entrance of the exhibit, Gálvez and Louisiana in the American Revolution. The exhibit opened in March, and runs through May 15, 2027. The exhibit is part of the Louisiana State Museum’s efforts to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence, along with the Lafayette exhibit, also at the Cabildo.

Galvez wears the uniform of a Colonel of the Fixed Louisiana Regiment. That was his first appointment in Louisiana. He arrived in New Orleans in December of 1776. The Spanish crown ordered him to Louisiana to succeed Luis de Unzaga y Amézaga.

Transition to wartime

When the Thirteen Colonies declared their independence from the United Kingdom in 1776, Spain adopted a wait-and-see attitude. By the end of the year, they decided to readiness was the best option. Unzaga was a solid administrator and governor, but not a strong military commander. His efforts in support of the Americans paved the way for Galvez to launch the campaign that reclaimed West Florida from the British.

Unzaga relinquished the governorship to Galvez on 1-January-1777. He inherited not only a well-running colonial administration, but also Unzaga’s network of American contacts, most notably Oliver Pollack. Galvez implemented Unzaga’s plans to supply the Americans, sending gunpower up the Mississippi and Ohio Rivers, into Pennsylvania. He also worked with Pollack to ship supplies to Philadelphia. So, even though Spain did not formally enter the American Revolution on the side of the colonists until 1779, the clandestine efforts began almost immediately.

New Orleans society

Galvez understood the need to engage the mostly-French population of New Orleans. He courted Marie-Félicité de Saint-Maxent, a young widow. They married on 2-November-1777. Félicité gave birth to their first child, Mathilda, the following year.

Clothing

While most portraits of Galvez show him in the uniform of a Spanish General, the curators of this exhibit chose to present him in the uniform of his arrival rank. Galvez is depicted by artists wearing both this uniform and the blue and red general’s uniform during the Pensacola campaign.
Félicité wears a dress of a Creole woman of a wealthy Louisiana family. Mathilda appears to be two or three years old here.

Spanish contributions

We will discuss various parts of the exhibit in the coming weeks.

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