Francisco de Miranda in the prison of La Carraca, Cadiz, Spain, early 19th century, 1896...

Francisco de Miranda (1750-1816) Venezuelan revolutionary and idealist; participated in American Revolutionary war in 1781, then in the French Revolution, serving briefly as a general in the French Revolutionary army of Dumouriez in 1792; best known for his involvement in South America with the struggle of the Spanish colonies for independence he is considered the precursor of Simon Bolivar and in 1811 was responsible for the declaration of the independence of Venezuela from Spain; later reverses led to his surrender to the Spanish and imprisonment in Cadiz, where he died on July 14, 1816; the model who posed for this painting was the Venezuelan writer, Eduardo Blanco; surrendered to Spain while president of Venezuela;