Pedro José Antonio Molina Mazariegos
Pedro José Antonio Molina Mazariegos (born April 29, 1777 in Guatemala City , † September 21, 1854 in Guatemala City) was president of the government junta of the Central American Confederation and head of state of Guatemala .
Life
Pedro Molina studied medicine at the Universidad San Carlos de Guatemala with Narciso Esparagosa y Gallardo , the founder of surgery in Guatemala, and was a lecturer at the medical faculty from 1802. From 1810 to 1813 he served as a military doctor in Granada , Nicaragua . In 1820 he distinguished himself as the author of a plan to reform medical education, which was also implemented.
On February 9, 1804, Molina married María Dolores Bedoya, with whom he had several children. His son Felipe Francisco Molina y Bedoya made a name for himself as a Costa Rican diplomat.
Political career
Pedro Molina was a staunch supporter of liberal ideas and a vehement fighter for Central America's independence. In 1820 he founded the newspaper El Editor Constitucional , which later became famous under the name El Genio de la Libertad .
In the spring of 1821, Molina, as one of the doctors treating the then Captain General of Guatemala Carlos Urrutia y Montoya, made a significant contribution to the fact that after a stroke he transferred the power of government to Sub-Inspector General Gabino Gaínza , who he knew was benevolent towards the independence movement . On September 15, 1821 he was one of the participants in the assembly convened by Gaínza, which declared Central America's independence from Spain .
After independence from Spain, however, Molina opposed the annexation of Central America to the young Empire of Mexico, operated by Gaínza . He was a member of the Constituent Assembly that resolved the renewed independence of Central America, this time from Mexico, on July 1, 1823, and was appointed president of the government junta, which the Mexican Captain General Vicente Filisola transferred to power on July 10, 1823. However, he left the government junta on October 4, 1823.
When the liberal head of state of Honduras Francisco Morazán marched into Guatemala in the summer of 1829 to overthrow the president of the federation Manuel José Arce and in this context also the conservative head of state Mariano de Aycinena fled, Molina took over from August 23, 1829 to October 27, 1830 temporarily the office of Head of State of the Province of Guatemala. In the following years he held various diplomatic posts under the government of his party friend Morazán.
In March 1848, Molina founded El Album Republicano , which sharply criticized the conservative government of President Rafael Carrera . As a result, he was arrested in May of the same year and was held in prison for several months.
Molina is revered in Guatemala as a hero of independence. Numerous public places, buildings and institutions bear his name.
literature
- Hector Gaitán A., Los Presidentes de Guatemala . Artemis & Edinter, Guatemala 1992, ISBN 84-89452-25-3
Web links
| predecessor | Office | successor |
|---|---|---|
| Juan Nepomuceno Barrundia Cepeda |
Head of State of the Province of Guatemala August 23, 1829 - October 27, 1830 |
Antonio Rivera Cabezas |
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Molina Mazariegos, Pedro José Antonio |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Molina, Pedro |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | Guatemalan head of state |
| DATE OF BIRTH | April 29, 1777 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Guatemala City |
| DATE OF DEATH | September 21, 1854 |
| Place of death | Guatemala City |