José Francisco Barrundia

José Francisco Barrundia y Cepeda (* 1787 in Guatemala City, † September 4, 1854 in New York ) was a Central American president.

Life

Francisco Barrundia was born as the son of Martín Barrundia and Teresa Cepeda in Guatemala City. He was a brother of Juan Barrundia, who was in 1829 head of state of the province of Guatemala. Francisco Barrundia visited the Colegio Tridentino, where he earned a degree in philosophy on 19 March 1803. He was well educated and spoke several languages.

Political rise

Barrundia belonged early to the supporters of the Central American independence movement. So the former Dragoon Ensign and council took ( Regidor ) of Guatemala City in December 1813 leading to the initiated by the Nicaraguan priest Dr. Tomás Ruíz so-called "conspiracy of Belén " ( Conjuración de Belen ) part. After the failure of which he was arrested and sentenced to death by the garrote. Thanks to the intervention of influential friends from the council but the decision was not enforced. But he remained a long time in prison.

As of July 1820, he worked on the issued by the physician Dr. Pedro Molina liberal newspapers " El Editor Constitucional " and "El Genio de la Libertad ".

Barrundia was one of the signatories of the Central American Declaration of Independence on 15 September 1821. The then operated by Gabino Gaínza and other conservatives connecting Central America to the Empire of Mexico, he refused and argued instead for the establishment of an independent state after the model of the United States.

After the fall of the Mexican Emperor Agustín I and the subsequent independence of Central America from 1823 Mexico Barrundia was together with Pedro Molina one of the leaders of the Liberal Party and for this member of the Federation Parliament. There he championed the adoption of the constitution of a " United Republics of Central America " from 1824.

President of Central America

1825 Barrundia was deputy to the first President of the Central American Confederation, the Liberal Manuel José Arce, elected, the election but did not accept. Together with Pedro Molina and other leading members of the Liberal party in the Federation Parliament, he criticized the increasingly conservative policies Arce sharp. This led in October 1826 to - unconstitutional - Dissolution of Parliament by Arce and the subsequent outbreak of civil war.

After the fall Arce by the liberal head of state of Honduras Francisco Morazán and its two-month interregnum Barrundia was appointed on June 29, 1829 interim president of the Federation with the constitutional mandate to convene new elections. These took place in mid-July 1830 and ended with a victory of Morazan. On September 16, 1830 Barrundia gave this the presidency.

Other political activity

During the first term of the Guatemalan head of state Dr. Mariano Gálvez 1831-1835 Barrundia belonged to the education ministers of the state government. During this time he devoted himself among other things, the translation of the Livingston Code (one from 1821 to 1824 by Edward Livingston developed for the U.S. state of Louisiana Criminal Code) into Spanish, with the goal of bringing this in Central America apply.

However, in subsequent years, there was a rift between Barrundia and Gálvez. This meant that Barrundia - as Pedro Molina - increasingly annäherten of the Conservative Party and ' government distanced from Gálvez. Finally Barrundia and Molina contributed in 1838 to the fall of Gálvez ' at, thereby - unwittingly - the later conservative President Rafael Carrera helped to ascend.

As a Member of the State Parliament of Guatemala Barrundia brought in 1839 to request one, Guatemala to explain to a free, independent and sovereign state (and thus to decide the exit of Guatemala from the Central American Confederation ), which was then also adopted by majority.

1848 Barrundia founded the newspaper " album Republicano ".

Last time was Barrundia Ambassador of Honduras in Washington. He died in 1854 in New York. His remains were transferred in 1913 on the initiative of then President Manuel Estrada to Guatemala.