José Francisco Barrundia
Encyclopedia
Guatemala City
Guatemala City , is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Guatemala and Central America...
—August 4, 1854, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
) was a liberal Central America
Central America
Central America is the central geographic region of the Americas. It is the southernmost, isthmian portion of the North American continent, which connects with South America on the southeast. When considered part of the unified continental model, it is considered a subcontinent...
n politician
Politician
A politician, political leader, or political figure is an individual who is involved in influencing public policy and decision making...
. From June 26, 1829 to September 16, 1830 he was interim president of the United Provinces of Central America.
Background
Barrundia was born in GuatemalaGuatemala
Guatemala is a country in Central America bordered by Mexico to the north and west, the Pacific Ocean to the southwest, Belize to the northeast, the Caribbean to the east, and Honduras and El Salvador to the southeast...
. He studied at the Colegio Tridentino, where he became a bachelor of philosophy on March 19, 1803. His brother Juan Barrundia was head of the province of Guatemala in 1829.
José Barrundia was considered an outstanding intellectual and man of letters, fluent in several languages. He translated into Spanish the Livingston Code
Edward Livingston
Edward Livingston was an American jurist and statesman. He was an influential figure in the drafting of the Louisiana Civil Code of 1825, a civil code based largely on the Napoleonic Code. He represented both New York, and later Louisiana in Congress and he served as the U.S...
(penal code of Louisiana
Louisiana
Louisiana is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans. Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. with political subdivisions termed parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties...
) in order to adapt it to the country. He was a populist member of the Central American Congress and in his later career he served as minister plenipotentiary of Honduras in New York City.
Independence movement
He was prominent in the fight for independence from SpainSpain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
. In December 1813 he was a member of the Conjura de Belén (Conspiracy of Belén) in Antigua, Guatemala, initiated by the Nicaraguan priest Dr. Tomás Ruíz. For that Barrundia was arrested and condemned to death by garrote
Garrote
A garrote or garrote vil is a handheld weapon, most often referring to a ligature of chain, rope, scarf, wire or fishing line used to strangle someone....
. (The death sentence was overturned by members of the city government of Guatemala, although Barrundia was not immediately freed from prison.) He was one of the signers of the declaration of independence on September 15, 1821. He strongly opposed the incorporation of Central America into Mexico, arguing instead for the formation of an independent federal state modeled on the United States. Mexican General Vicente Filisola
Vicente Filisola
Vicente Filisola was a Spanish military figure, Mexican military and political figure in the 19th century.-Life and career:...
, when he was political chief of Central America, labeled Barrundia a terrorist for his opposition.
After Central America declared independence in 1823 (with the fall of Emperor Agustín de Iturbide
Agustín de Iturbide
Agustín Cosme Damián de Iturbide y Aramburu , also known as Augustine I of Mexico, was a Mexican army general who built a successful political and military coalition that was able to march into Mexico City on 27 September 1821, decisively ending the Mexican War of Independence...
), Barrundia was among the signers of the Central American Constitution of 1824. With Pedro Molina he edited the periodicals El Editor Constitucional and El Genio de la Libertad.
Political career and presidency
In 1825 he was elected the first vice president of the United Provinces of Central America, under Manuel José ArceManuel José Arce
General Manuel José Arce y Fagoaga was a decorated General and president of the Federal Republic of Central America from 1825 to 1829.- Background :...
, but he declined the office. He did serve as senator. From Congress he criticized the increasing conservatism of Arce. In 1826 Arce unconstitutionally dissolved the Congress, and this led to civil war.
He was a strong supporter of Honduran liberal Francisco Morazán
Francisco Morazán
General Francisco Morazán was a Honduran general and a politician who ruled several Central American states at different times during the turbulent period from 1827 to 1842. He rose to prominence at the legendary Battle of La Trinidad on November 11, 1827...
. With the fall of Arce and the triumph of Morazán, Barrundia became interim president of the United Provinces (July 1829), with a mandate to organize elections. Elections were held in July 1830, and in September Morazán succeeded him as president.
After serving as president
From 1831 to 1835 he was secretary of education of the state government of Guatemala, under Dr. Mariano GálvezMariano Gálvez
José Felipe Mariano Gálvez was a jurist and Liberal politician in Guatemala. For two consecutive terms from August 28, 1831 to March 3, 1838 he was chief of state of the State of Guatemala, within the Federal Republic of Central America.-Background and early career:Born in the 1790s José Felipe...
. It was during this time that he translated the Livingston Code. However, he became estranged from Gálvez, and in 1838 contributed to his fall from power. This led to the ascent of Conservative Rafael Carrera
Rafael Carrera
José Rafael Carrera Turcios was the ruler of Guatemala from 1844 to 1848 and from 1851 until his death in 1865. During his military career and presidency, the new nations in Central America faced numerous problems...
. In 1839 he proposed to the Guatemalan Congress the withdrawal of the state from the Central American Federation. This was approved by Congress.
In 1848 he founded the newspaper Album Republicano.
A strong supporter of human rights, in 1850 he opposed Carrera, because of his bloody regime and his ignorance. He also challenged the influence of the Church. Before his death he became minister of Honduras
Honduras
Honduras is a republic in Central America. It was previously known as Spanish Honduras to differentiate it from British Honduras, which became the modern-day state of Belize...
, negotiating in Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
for annexation to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
.
Though not a rich man, Barrundia refused his salary for the public positions he held.
He died in New York in 1854 while serving as Honduran minister plenipotentiary. Guatemalan President Manuel Estrada Cabrera
Manuel Estrada Cabrera
Manuel José Estrada Cabrera was President of Guatemala from 8 February 1898 to 15 April 1920.Manuel Estrada forcibly took the presidency after the assassination of José María Reina. The Guatemalan cabinet called an emergency meeting to appoint a new successor, but declined to invite the General...
had his remains repatriated in 1913.