MONTEVERDE, Juan Domingo, Spanish soldier, b. in Spain about 1773; d. there in 1820. He served in tlie Spanish navy and had become captain in 1811, when he was sent by the junta of Cadiz to suppress the revolt in Venezuela. Landing at Coro, he rapidly took several large towns, compelled Gen. Francisco Miranda to capitulate, 12 July, 1812, and sent that patriot to Spain, as a prisoner, in violation of the terms of agreement. He also treated the native chieftains and their families with much perfidy. His severities were a principal cause of the second insurrection, headed by Simon Bolivar {q. v.), by whom Monteverde was subsequently driven from Venezuela.
MONTEZ, Lola, adventuress, b. probably in
Limerick, Ireland, in 1824; d. in Astoria, L. I., 30
June, 1861. Her mother was a Creole, and there
are conflicting statements as to her birth and
parentage. Her maiden name was Maria Dolores
Porris Gilbert. She was brought up in England,
educated in Bath, and at the age of fifteen married a
Capt. James, of the British army. Later she went
with her husband to Hindostan, but soon parted
from him to return to England. In 1840 Lola
Montez suddenly appeared as a Spanish dancer in
Paris, and attracted attention by her beauty and
eccentricities. After numerous adventures in the
French capital, she found her way to Munich as a
Spanish performer in ballet and pantomime. King
Louis soon became fascinated by her person and
manners, and bestowed on her many distinctions.
In 1846 Lola was made Countess of Landsfeldt.
Her influence with the monarch at last became so
aggravating to the ministry and offensive to the
people as to cause several popular outbreaks, which
in 1848 brought on a governmental crisis that
resulted in the king's abdication and Lola's expulsion
from Bavaria. The countess then retired to
England and married a British officer named Heald,
whereupon she was prosecuted for bigamy by her
first husband, and fled to Spain. In 1851 she sailed
in the same ship with Louis Kossuth, and landed
in New York city. Here she performed in several
dramas that set forth her European experiences,
appearing first at the Broadway theatre on 29 Dec.,
1851. She repeated these entertainments in Boston,
Philadelphia, New Orleans, and San Francisco.
In 1855 she sailed for Australia, and after an
absence of about a year returned to the United States,
delivered lectures on “Woman, Love, and
Spiritualism,” and went to England to repeat the series.
But her literary novelties were not appreciated,
and she returned to this country, discouraged and
without occupation. Not long afterward she
suffered from partial paralysis, and closed her eventful
career in a sanitary asylum. She was a brunette
of the Spanish type, with dark-blue eyes and long
lashes. To her personal charms she added an arch
and vivacious manner, and fluent conversation in
four languages. Her publications include “Anecdotes
of Love” (New York); “Lectures,”
autobiographical (1858); and “The Arts of Beauty.” See
“The Story of a Penitent” (New York, 1867).
MONTEZUMA I., MOCTEZUMA, or
MOTHEUZOMA (mon-teh-su'-ma), surnamed Ilhuicamina,
or the “archer of heaven,” seventh king of
Mexico, b. in Tenochtitlan, Mexico, in 1390; d.
there in 1464. He was the son of Huitzilihuitl
(q. v.), became the best general of his uncle Chimalpopoca,
and annexed to the empire the cities of
Chalco and Tequizquiac. At the death of Chimalpopoca,
Montezuma became a stanch supporter of
his successor Izcohuatl (q. v.), and served under the
latter in the army of the allies against Moxtla
(q. v.), who was defeated in 1430, and killed by
Netzahualcoyotl. On the death of Izcohuatl in
1436, Montezuma was elected king by acclamation,
and, after a successful campaign against the
city of Chalco, his coronation was celebrated with
great festivities and the accustomed human
sacrifices, the victims for which had been secured in the
expeditions against the Chalcos. Immediately
afterward he subdued in a southward expedition the
valleys of Matlazingo and Tlahuican, advancing
into the territory of Oaxaca as far as the shore of
the Pacific ocean. In a second expedition eastward
he conquered the Totopanecans on the shore of the
Gulf of Mexico. In 1446 the lake of Tezcoco
overflowed and inundated the city of Tenochtitlan,
destroying many buildings, and, on account of the
ruin of the corn crop, famine and plague followed.
Montezuma conferred with Netzahualcoyotl as to
the best means of preventing the return of such a
calamity, and they agreed to build immense dams,
the construction of which was superintended by
the king of Tezcoco, and the remains of which in
the San Lorenzo valley are still a wonder to
engineers. Montezuma also rebuilt Tenochtitlan,
replacing its frail houses by solid structures of stone
and lime, which brought about an enormous
increase of the population. Montezuma's court was
numerous and brilliant, he promoted the influence
of the priests, and instituted new ceremonies, and
during his reign the great temple was finished.
He deprived the nobility of its former privileges,
and issued a Draconian code of laws, in which
death was the common penalty for robbery and
drunkenness. His cousin, Axayacatl, became his
successor in 1464. —
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II., eleventh king of Mexico, b. in Mexico in 1466; d. there in June, 1520. He was a son of Axayacatl, eighth king, and Xochicueitl, princess of Texcoco, and was surnamed Xocoyotzin to distinguish him from the first Montezuma. At the death of his uncle, Ahuitzotl, 15 Sept., 1502, he was elected king, and, after the regular sacrifices at the obsequies of his predecessor, set out according to custom on an expedition against the tribes of Atlixco, which had rebelled. On his return to Tenochtitlan, with numerous prisoners for the human sacrifices, his coronation was celebrated with great pomp. In 1504, to aid his allies of Huexotzingo, he began a protracted war against the small but warlike republic of Tlaxcala. He embellished his capital, and in 1507 opened war against Guatemala and later against the rebellious province of Tehuantepec, and, conducting expeditions as far as Honduras and Nicaragua, enlarged his em- pire. In 1518, on the occasion of the expedition of Juan de Grijalva (q. v.), he received notice that unknown men, white, and with long beards, had landed on his coast, and this filled his mind with superstitious terror, as he remembered the
