Sergeant Major Ayala Y Escobar and the Threatened St. Augustine Mutiny

On the morning of June 19, 1712, the Spanish presidio of St. Augustine narrowly escaped a mutiny against the crown’s constituted authority in Florida, Governor Francisco de Corcoles y Martinez. The threatened uprising, which involved the governor’s second-in-command, Sergeant Major Juan de Ayala y Escobar, vividly illustrated the principal weakness in the colonial administration of Spanish Florida - the formation of a power structure headed by the sergeant major which continuously threatened to undermine the power and authority of the governor. The development of this extra-legal body, climaxed by the “sordid affair” of June 19, took on added significance when viewed in its broader historical setting