Pedro Santana
Pedro Santana Familias (born June 29, 1801 in Hincha ; † June 14, 1864 in Santo Domingo ) was a Dominican politician and several times President of the Dominican Republic .
Life
family
Santana was the son of the landowners Pedro Santana and Petronila Familias from Hincha on the border with Haiti . This enabled him to get a simple school education and moved with him in 1805, first to Cibao and soon afterwards to Seybo in the east of the country. His father later joined the army, took part in the battle of Palo Hincado as a captain, and had great influence as the owner of large cattle ranches.
After weddings with the influential widows Micaela Antonio Rivera and later Ana Zorilla, his economic, but also political influence grew.
Through his brother Ramon Santana he came into contact with Juan Pablo Duarte and his movement for the independence of the Dominican Republic.
War of Independence 1844
On January 16, 1844, he was one of the signatories of a manifesto for independence. This was also an important document for the development of armed forces, which initially only consisted of farmers and hunters from the regions of El Seybo, Hato Mayor del Rey and Higüey on horses armed only with machetes and lances .
On February 27, 1844, Santana left his home region and went to the capital Santo Domingo , on the same day the independence of the Dominican Republic from Haiti was declared.
On March 7, 1844, the President of the Central Government Junta Tomás Bobadilla y Briones appointed him commander of the expeditionary forces on the southern border, which also enabled him to recruit soldiers for his militia. At the end of May 1844, Juan Pablo Duarte and José Joaquin Puello planned a coup against Bobadilla y Briones.
After Francisco del Rosario Sánchez came to power on June 9, 1844 as the new president of the central government junta, he was to be dismissed from his post as commander of the southern army.
Instead, however, he went with his troops to Santo Domingo, where on July 16, 1844 he finally appointed himself President of the Central Government Junta and Supreme Chief of the Republic. In August 1844 he had the fathers of independence around Juan Pablo Duarte, Rámon Matías Mella and Francisco Sánchez deported into exile , so that the representatives of the independence movement "La Trinitaria" founded in 1838 had no further political influence.
Presidencies
President from 1844 to 1848 and 1849
On November 13, 1844 he took over the office of President of the Dominican Republic for the first time .
At this point, the organization of state administration began with the appointment of a prime minister and governors, the establishment of an army with compulsory military service. However, the first presidency was largely dictatorial .
However, Santana exerted some pressure on the authors of the constitution , so that Article 210 was incorporated into it, which said: During a war period and as long as a peace treaty is not signed, the President of the Republic can be free from influence and without responsibility to others organize the army and navy and mobilize the national guard and take the necessary orders, provisions and decrees.
On February 27, 1845, the first anniversary of independence, he gave the order for the execution of María Trinidad Sánchez and Andrés Sánchez, aunt and brother of the former chairman of the government junta, Francisco Sánchez, and José del Carmen Figueroa, who he plotted against the conspiracy Dominican government accused.
In the period that followed, there were repeated battles on the Dominican-Haitian border, such as the Battle of El Numéro and the Battle of Las Carreras on the Rio Ocoa in the east of the Dominican Republic from April 19 to 22, 1845.
Santana was called for two consecutive terms of four years so that he would have ruled until 1852. Towards the end of his first term, however, political and economic crises led to a loss of popularity of his government, so that he resigned on August 4, 1848 for health reasons.
His successor was Manuel Jiménez González , who feared the threat of an invasion by Haitian troops from the beginning of his presidency .
After these fears were not materialized, the National Congress demanded his return to power. This led Santana to lead a coup d'état on May 29, 1849, which led to the disempowerment of Jiménez. This time, however, Santana was only in office as President until September 23, 1849.
The main task of his presidency was the organization of presidential elections, which won his favored candidate Buenaventura Báez Méndez .
President 1853 to 1856
In the presidential election of February 15, 1853, he was re-elected president.
However, his term of office did not differ significantly from the previous ones and was again characterized by his despotism and arbitrariness. On the other hand, he issued an amnesty that allowed the return of many exiled politicians, although this amnesty did not include Juan Pablo Duarte, who was still in exile in Venezuela .
Like Báez Méndez before, Santana tried to negotiate with the USA regarding a US protectorate over his country. Spain, which up to this point did not show any great interest in the Dominican Republic, was now even considering possible influence on the country, which led to the signing of several recognitions by both countries. Separately, the Spanish consul in Santo Domingo, Antonio Maria Segovia, was charged with monitoring the negotiations between the Dominican Republic and the USA. In 1856 Segovia offered all Dominican nationals who applied for naturalization Spanish citizenship and thus protection for opposition members under the Spanish crown.
The diplomatic difficulties with Spain, the financial crisis and a renewed loss of popularity led to his resignation on March 26, 1856. His successor was his previous vice-president Manuel de Regla Motta , who subsequently called for presidential elections.
President 1858 to 1861 and annexation by Spain
On July 28, 1858, there was a coup d'etat in which Santana deposed President José Desiderio Valverde, who had been sworn in only six weeks earlier .
During this tenure, the country faced a serious economic crisis because of the revolution of 1857. The export of timber , the main export product, was drastically restricted. This was at the same time the main source of income for the cities, while the central government had no resources of its own. Santana tried to calm the situation by calling for presidential elections, which in January 1859 led to the election of him as president and Antonio Abad Alfau as vice-president.
During this time, there were always fears that Haitian troops would invade the Emperor of Haiti, Faustin I. These fears only diminished when Faustin I was overthrown by General Fabre Geffrard on January 15, 1859. Geffrard offered the neighboring state guarantees for good international relations.
The economic crisis worsened as Santana continued the expansive monetary policy of his predecessor Báez Méndez. This money issue was used by Báez in 1857 to defraud the tobacco growers of Cibao. Santana also contributed to a burden on public finances through his money creation. The reason given for this paper money issue was the need for a preparedness to defend against a Haitian invasion.
Despite the guarantees given by Geffrard, Santana sought protection for Spain from a Haitian attack. In the course of 1859 General Felipe Alfau traveled to Spain to negotiate a protectorate with the government of Queen Isabella II . In a letter to the queen, Santana asked her not only to exercise a protectorate, but also to annex the country by Spain.
Santana and his government hoped to benefit from this in various ways, in particular through guarantees of social status and privileges. Spain demanded, however, that annexation should be given up as the will of the entire Dominican people. To this end, the President met with the military and political leaders to convince them of the necessity of annexation. Each of the responsible persons had to give consent from the region they represented. Santana fought opposition to these plans by exiling these politicians and military personnel .
When the annexation was proclaimed on March 18, 1861, the country-wide unrest that had been going on for months continued. Immediately afterwards, the cities began to end support for the annexation manifesto, especially since Pedro Santana was appointed governor general and captain general in Santo Domingo by Spain . However, it soon became apparent to him that every decision was made by Spain.
His dissatisfaction, the loss of his influence and his authority, as well as his poor health finally led to his resignation as governor general on July 20, 1862. His successor was Felipe Rivero y Lemoine .
A few months earlier, on March 28, 1862, the Queen raised him to the Spanish nobility as Marqués de las Carreras .
Individual evidence
- ↑ "Dominican Republic .; CLOSING OF THE PORTS - RESTRICTIONS UPON FOREIGN CORRESPONDENCE" , New York Times February 15, 1859
- ^ "DOMINICAN REPUBLIC .; Popular Aversion to Haytian Annexation - Message of General Santana - His Election Proclaimed - His Official Announcement of the Haytian Revolution" , New York Times February 22, 1859
- ^ "Will Spain be able to retain Dominica?" , New York Times June 3, 1861
Web links
- Biographical notes in rulers.org
- Biography in Historia Patria Dominicana
- Biography in Famous Americans
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Santana, Pedro |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Santana Familias, Pedro (full name) |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | Dominican politician and several times President of the Dominican Republic |
| DATE OF BIRTH | June 29, 1801 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Hincha |
| DATE OF DEATH | June 14, 1864 |
| Place of death | Santo Domingo |