His only novel, Enriquillo (1879, 1882; translated as The Cross and the Sword, 1954), which tells the story of a native rebellion in the early days of the Spanish occupation of Hispaniola, holds a high place in 19th-century Latin American literature.

[3] In 1854 he founded an organization named Amantes de las Letras (or "Friends of Literature") together with a related periodical, El Oasis,[2] in which he wrote articles of a conservative tendency praising the culture of Spain and attacking Haiti.

Galván moved to Puerto Rico, then still a Spanish possession, where he became Comptroller of Finances[4] and wrote for the journals Boletín Mercantil, El Buscapié and La Democracia.

Finding no satisfaction in the law courts, he raises a rebellion and establishes a separate Taíno principality which successfully repels all Spanish attacks for several years.

Eventually, through the advocacy of Bartolomé de las Casas at the Spanish court, Charles V recognises the independence of Enriquillo's state, and he is allowed to live his last years in peace.

[8] It also reflects Galván's sympathy with the plight of the Taíno, but his respect for historical authenticity prevented him from picturing them in an overly idealised, Rousseauesque manner, as was fashionable at the time.