Carolina. Miralles met Washington at a Christmas party and presented a letter of introduction from Navarro. Privateer John Macpherson leased his Mount Pleasant mansion to Miralles. Also while in Philadelphia, Miralles became affiliated with the prominent shipping-banking firm of Willing, Morris & Co. During the Seven Years' War, France had ceded Spain its Louisiana territory west of the Mississippi under the Treaty of Fontainebleau (1762). In 1779, the two countries signed the Treaty of Aranjuez by which Charles III of Spain agreed to assist his first cousin, Louis XVI of France in his conflict with the British. In September 1779, the Governor of Spanish Louisiana, Bernardo de Gálvez launched a pre-emptive strike against the British and seized Fort Bute on the Bayou Manchac, thus opening a second front. In February 1780 Miralles notified Washington that the Spanish had taken Baton Rouge and Natchez. Washington assured Miralles that he would notify him of any British movements that might be "of interest to your court". Miralles fell ill with a fever while on a visit to Washington's camp in Morristown, New Jersey, where he died on April 28, 1780. He was initially buried in the Presbyterian cemetery in Morristown. The French Minister Plenipotentiary, Anne-César, Chevalier de la Luzerne arranged for a requiem Mass to be celebrated for Miralles at St. Mary's Church in Philadelphia on 8 May 1780. After the war, the remains were moved, probably to Cuba, where his wife lived. Family Juan de Miralles married María Josefa de la Puente, the sister of Eligio de la Puente, in 1744. The de la Puente family was influential in Cuban political affairs. The couple had eight children, a son and seven daughters. Miralles was the uncle of merchant and politician Pedro Casanave, who served a term as mayor of Georgetown and presided over the ceremonial laying of the cornerstone of the President's House, later to be known as the White House, on October 13, 1792. See also Spain and the American Revolutionary War References External links Spain and the Independence of the United States: An Intrinsic Gift Don Juan de Miralles y la Independencia de Los Estados Unidos The Americas: International Dictionary of Historic Places 1713 births 1780 deaths Spanish diplomats Spanish expatriates in the United States