manuela was born in quito, the illegitimate child of maria joaquina aizpuru from ecuador and the married spanish nobleman simón sáenz vergara (or sáenz y verega). her mother was abandoned by her modest family as a result of the pregnancy and young "manuelita" went to school at the convent of santa catalina where she learned to read and write. she was forced to leave the convent at the age of seventeen, when she was discovered to have been seduced by army officer fausto d'elhuyar, the son of fausto elhuyar and nephew of juan josé elhuyar, who were the co-discoverers of tungsten.