José Prudencio Padilla
José Prudencio Padilla | |
|---|---|
| Born | 19 March 1784 Riohacha, Viceroyalty of New Granada |
| Died | 2 October 1828 (aged 44) Bogotá, Gran Colombia |
| Allegiance |
|
| Branch | Spanish Navy Colombian National Navy Bolivarian Navy of Venezuela |
| Years of service | 1798-1828 |
| Rank | Boatswain (Spanish Navy) Admiral (Colombian Navy) |
| Battles / wars | |
Admiral José Prudencio Padilla López (Riohacha, 19 March 1784, – Bogotá, Colombia, 2 October 1828) was a Neogranadine military leader who fought in the Spanish American wars of independence and a hero in the battles of independence for Gran Colombia (present-day Colombia, Venezuela, Ecuador and Panama).
He was the foremost naval hero of the campaign for independence led by Simón Bolívar, and the creator of the first Navy and Admiral of Great Colombia. He is best known for his victory in the Battle of Lake Maracaibo on 24 July 1823, in which a royalist Spanish fleet was defeated.