Juan de Ayala y Escobar
Juan de Ayala y Escobar | |
|---|---|
| 33rd Royal Governor of La Florida | |
| In office 30 Oct 1716 – 3 Aug 1718 | |
| Preceded by | Pedro de Olivera y Fullana |
| Succeeded by | Antonio de Benavides |
| Personal details | |
| Born | c. 1635 Havana, Cuba or Córdoba, Spain |
| Died | May 28, 1727 |
| Profession | Politician and soldier |
Juan Francisco Buenaventura de Ayala y Escobar (c. 1635 – May 28, 1727) was a prominent Spanish soldier and administrator who governed Spanish Florida from October 30, 1716, to August 3, 1718. The succeeding governor, Antonio de Benavides, a zealous reformer, accused Ayala of trading in contraband with the English, and had him arrested and briefly jailed in the Castillo de San Marcos of St. Augustine. He was eventually exiled to Cuba, where he died in 1727, before he was exonerated and all charges dropped in 1731.