Importance of María Parado de Bellido for the Independence of Peru

She is one of those women who, although she did not enjoy the popularity of other heroes of the independence American and therefore his name does not abound or stand out in the books of history like those of General San Martín or Simón Bolívar, clearly due to their gender, she was one of the women who actively worked for the emancipation of the homeland from her during the 19th century.

She did not fight on the battlefield, a task reserved exclusively for men, but she did perform very intelligence work. effective that she allowed the patriotic forces to know the movements and the quality of the weapons that the army had realistic

In this confrontation it turned out to be crucial to know in advance the movements of the enemies and the tools with which she could harm, to anticipate them, and she managed to obtain all that information and immediately bring it to the attention of the patriots…

She was a native of Huamanga (Viceroyalty of Peru), where she was born between 1760 and 1777, within a family made up of a Creole father and an indigenous mother.

She did not receive instruction as was customary at that time, since women were only prepared for domestic chores, she was illiterate, however, this did not prevent her from managing to get her husband, a participant in the independence camp, her information about the enemy

A friend of hers did her the favor of writing the letters that she addressed to her husband and she signed them with her second name.

Her husband was Mariano Bellido, a businessman, with whom she had seven children, two of whom were also participated in the fight to liberate the country under the orders of General San Martín and Juan Álvarez de sandbanks

When she is discovered by the Spanish authorities she was immediately arrested and subjected to cruel interrogation including torture.

She was sentenced to death for high treason

With the mission of bringing down her accomplices, the Spanish offered her forgiveness of death if she confessed and betrayed her companions.

However, she displayed impeccable valor and courage, steadfastly refusing to rat them out and she agreed to die with the greatest dignity anyone can have.

He assumed that her decision was the correct one because the triumph of the revolution and Peruvian emancipation depended on it, which was finally achieved thanks to such valuable figures as her.

She was executed in the town square in front of everyone, on May 1, 1822.

Today she is recognized as a martyr and heroine of Peruvian independence.