Diego de Gardoqui

Born in Bilbao in 1735, Diego de Gardoqui learned English and commerce during an apprenticeship in London. His family’s trading house imported North American cod in exchange for Spanish iron and wool. During the American Revolution he used those connections to supply the Continental Army, obtaining Spanish authorization and coordinating requests from American representatives. ¹

Gardoqui became Spain’s first officially received envoy in 1785. He attended Washington’s inauguration in 1789 and returned to Europe later that year. He subsequently served in the royal treasury and as ambassador in Turin, where he died in 1798. ¹