Eugenio Espejo - Legacy

Legacy

Espejo is considered the precursor of the independence movement in Quito. He died in 1795, but his ideas had a powerful influence on three of his close friends: Juan Pío Montúfar, Juan de Dios Morales and Juan de Salinas. They, along with Manuel Rodriguez Quiroga, founded the revolutionary movement of August 10, 1809, in Quito, when the city declared independence from Spain.

Espejo published Quito's first newspaper, and therefore he is regarded as the founder of Ecuadorian journalism. He is also considered Ecuador's first literary critic; according to Spanish scholar Marcelino Menéndez y Pelayo, Espejo's Nuevo Luciano is the oldest critical work written in South America.

His influence can also be seen in Ecuadorian thought in general, as his work has been one of its principal influences; Ecuadorian education, as he promoted new pedagogical ideas, such as the creation of good citizens instead of merely imparting knowledge, and finally Ecuadorian science, as he was, along with Pedro Vicente Maldonado, one of the two most important scientists of colonial Ecuador. Espejo analyzed the reality of colonial Quito, the poverty of its people and their lack of good education, and he denounced the corruption of the colonial authorities.

Since 2000, Espejo has been depicted on the obverse of Ecuador's 10 centavo coin.