Jun
During the visit of the training vessel "Juan Sebastian de Elcano"
Seizing the opportunity of the presence of the Training Ship “Juan Sebastian de Elcano”, the city of Pensacola, Florida was bedecked to honor the figure of General Bernardo de Galvez, who has been recently conferred honorary citizenship by President Obama. General Galvez is one of seven people that to date have received such a high and distinguished honor in the history of the United States.
To commemorate this occasion, the Embassy of Spain and various other institutions and associations of Pensacola organized a number of events that included the unveiling of a portrait of General Galvez at the city museum; a reenactment of the capture of the city by the General; and a tribute at the monument that honors his memory by troops made up of “Elcano” and Pensacola Naval Base crews.
Especially touching was the wreath laying ceremony in Pensacola Bay, where General Galvez defeated the British troops on May 9, 1781. This deed was decisive to help the thirteen colonies that were seeking their independence to become a new born nation.
The training ship Elcano, which was greeted with military honors and sent-off by the US Navy's “Blue Angels”, hosted a gala reception attended by a number of authorities and representatives of the city and the state of Florida.
The Spanish Ambassador was accompanied by the Defense Attaché, the Naval Attaché, the Commander of Elcano, and the Honorary Consul of Spain in Pensacola.
Read here about The Order of the Granaderos y Damas De Galvez, an organization was founded during the Bicentennial of the United States in 1976 to research and understand the pivotal, yet unpublicized role of Spain -- and the contributions of her King and her people -- to the colonists’ victory in the American Revolution
