Middle American governors

205 Pages·1972·57.175 MB·English

by  Glen W. Taplin

Middle American Governors
/T
-T3
compiled by
GLEN W. TAPLIN
The Scarecrow Press, Inc.
Metuchen, N.J. 1972

Contents
Preface vii
Spanish Monarchs 1
Panamá. 4
Mexico 41
Guatemala 66
El Salvador 92
British Honduras 105
Honduras 114
Nicaragua 130
Costa Rica 150
Selected References 170
Index 172
v

Preface
This volume is a modest attempt to supply a concise,
factual, objective recital of the leaders and their times and
places in the history of the countries of Middle America. It
is not intended to be a complete discussion of all phases of
the history of these countries, but rather a skeleton outline
on which the reader can fasten the details of whatever as­
pect of development he desires.
The work is by no means as complete as I would like
to have it be, but it is as complete as I was able to make
it, considering the amount and quality of data available to
me. I will be interested in receiving constructive, authori­
tative comments directed toward completing the chronology
or correcting any misconceptions or any errors that I have
unintentionally committed.
The thing that strikes most readers is the extreme
cruelty of the Spaniards toward the natives. While conceding
that they were guilty of the most atrocious offenses, and
without attempting to mitigate their actions, one must re­
member that it was a harsh, cruel age, and that the Spanish
captains were as treacherous, cruel and unsympathetic to­
ward their own kind as they were toward the Indians. It
is true that many of these Spanish conquistadores came with
an obsession for gold, glory and God, in that order; never­
theless there were many viceroys, captains-general, gover­
nors, bishops, friars and settlers who came with the idea
of improving conditions, or at least with the objective of a
better life than they had in Spain.
The earliest settlements were made a hundred years
before the English settled at Jamestown and Plymouth. With
the Roman colonization of their own country, some 1500
years before, as the chief guideline, and considering the
circumstances of the times, they improvised and proceeded
as the exigencies of the age and the personnel available
seemed to direct. The methods they developed, the philos­
ophies they instituted--indeed, many of the buildings they
erected--still bear witness that the three centuries of colo­
nialism were something more than a stagnating blight that
settled over the vast reaches of Spanish America.
It has been my goal to produce a completely factual
resumé that provides the most information in easily acces­
sible form. After much experimenting with different ar­
rangements, I have adopted a form and style in which the
material is arranged in chronological order according to the
chief executives of each of the various countries. With this
goal in mind, I have purposely avoided involved explanations
and interpretations, and have included minute details only
when they pertained to changes in the government, or when
incidents were so well known that details help to clarify the
events concerned. I found I was best able to achieve this
purpose by adopting a modified outline form rather than
striving for a conventional narrative history which often
leaves doubts in the reader's mind as to exactly what hap­
pened. The book is intended primarily as a reference work
that will provide a launching pad for further study by inter­
ested persons who desire more complete information; at the
same time, it may be complete enough in itself to satisfy
the casual reader.
I have labored on this volume, off and on, for nearly
ten years and had nearly despaired of completing it at all,
for failure to discover the data necessary to make a fairly
complete chronological record. That I did complete it is
due to the recommendations and suggestions which I received
from several kind and helpful people: Miss Marjorie Le-
Doux of the Tulane University Library; Miss Nettie Lee Ben­
son of the Latin-American Collection, University of Texas;
Dr. Franklin D. Parker of the University of North Carolina
at Greensboro; Mr. Frank P. Hebblethwaite, Division of
Philosophy and Letters, Pan-American Union, Washington,
D.C.; Mr. A. L. Dakers, Private Secretary to His Excel­
lency the Governor of British Honduras. I must express my
thanks and appreciation to my friends at the Oregon State
Library for their cheerful and courteous attention to my nu­
merous requests for more material. Special thanks are due
to my sister Marjorie in Dallas, Texas; in addition to typing
the manuscript, she turned out to be a rather good critic.
G.W.T.
Salem, Oregon
viii
Spanish Monarchs Concerned in Latin-American History
Ferdinand V of Aragon
Isabella of Castile. Died November 26, 1504.
Juana. Daughter. Insane
Philip I, husband of Juana. Died September 25, 1506.
Ferdinand V (again). Regent for Juana. Died January 23, 1516.
Charles I. Grandson. Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor.
House of Hapsburg. Resigned his Spanish throne
January 15, 1556.
Philip H. Son. Died September 13, 1598.
Philip III. Son. Died March 31, 1621.
Philip IV. Son. Died September 17, 1665.
Charles H. Son. Died November 1, 1700.
Philip V. Grand-nephew. House of Bourbon. Resigned
January 10, 1724.
Louis L Son. Died August 13, 1724.
Philip V. (again). Died July 9, 1746.
Ferdinand VI. Son. Died August 10, 1759.
Charles IH. Brother. Died December 14, 1788.
Charles IV. Son. Abdicated March 19, 1808.
Ferdinand VH. Son. Abdicated May 6, 1808.
Joseph Bonaparte. Abdicated after the Battle of Vitoria,
June 21, 1813.
Ferdinand Vn (again). Died September 29, 1833.
1
2 Middle American Governors
Spain 1808-1814
March 19, 1808. Charles IV abdicated in favor of
his son Ferdinand VII.
March 23, 1808. Joachim Murat, general of Napoleon,
entered Madrid, sent Charles, his wife Maria Luisa, and
Manuel de Godoy to Bayonne where Napoleon was.
May 2, 1808, The Spanish rose against the French
invaders.
May 5, 1808. Ferdinand was summoned by Napoleon
to Bayonne, was obliged to restore the crown to Charles IV,
who then presented it to Napoleon.
May 10, 1808. Ferdinand renounced his rights as
heir, was sent to Valenfay where he remained until 1814.
May 13, 1808. General Murat announced to an im­
provised junta of regency in Madrid that Napoleon wished
them to accept Joseph Bonaparte as king.
September 25, 1808, A Supreme Junta Central was
organized] installed at Aranjuez, presided over by Count
Floridablanca, prime minister. Withdrew from Arajuez to
Seville, end of 1808.
January 22, 1809. The Junta Central declared the
American colonies to be an integral part of the monarchy,
invited them to send delegates to a general córtes.
August 9, 1809. The Spanish, under Francisco
Xavier de Venegas, were defeated at Almonacid; and at
Ocaña. The Junta Central moved to the island of León.
January 29, 1810. The Junta Central authorized the
establishment of a Council of Regency; dissolved itself
January 31, 1810.
February 2, 1810, The Regency was installed on
León. Composed of Pedro de Quevedo y Quintano, Bishop
of Orense; Francisco de Saavedra, president of the Junta;
Francisco Xavier Castaño, victor at Baylen; Antonio de
Escaño, navy officer; Fernández de León, member of the
Council of the Indies.