Born in Madrid, Spain, Ortega y Diez attended the Colegio de Infantería and became a sub-lieutenant at the age of 17.

In 1892, he reached the rank of division general and returned to Africa the following year to work with the tribes of Melilla.

On 19 February 1896, he was named second corporal of the Capitanía General of Puerto Rico and Military Governor of San Juan.

According to tradition, in 1898, just before the United States took possession of Puerto Rico after the Spanish-American War, the last governor, Ricardo de Ortega, struck a colonial clock with his sword.

This act symbolized the exact moment Spain lost control of the island and its final possession in the Americas.The clock is still kept in La Fortaleza.