Marco Aurelio Soto was President of Honduras

President of Honduras

This page lists the Presidents of Honduras.Colonial Honduras declared its independence from Spain on 15 September 1821. From 5 January 1822 to 1 July 1823, Honduras was part of the First Mexican Empire of Agustín de Iturbide....

 from 27 August 1876 until 19 October 1883. he was known as a liberal

Liberalism in Honduras

Liberalism in Honduras, as a form of Latin American liberalism, has old historical roots. Influenced by the French revolutionaries in the 1790s, the door was opened for ideas of positivism...

. He was a reforming President and had a great impact on the 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...

 of his time, including the establishment of the Biblioteca Nacional de Honduras in 1880.

Biography

Dr. Marco Aurelio Soto was born on November 13, 1846 in Tegucigalpa

Tegucigalpa

Tegucigalpa , and commonly referred as Tegus , is the capital of Honduras and seat of government of the Republic, along with its twin sister Comayagüela. Founded on September 29, 1578 by the Spanish, it became the country's capital on October 30, 1880 under President Marco Aurelio Soto...

, Honduras. His parents were Dr. and Mrs. Maximo Soto Francisca Martínez. When he was nine years old he moved with his father, Dr. Don Maximo Soto to Guatemala, where he studied with brilliant success, and crowned his career as a lawyer.

As a very young man began to draw attention to their well-written literary and political articles, the latter inspired by the principles proclaimed by the revolution of 1871. General Justo Rufino Barrios Soto

Justo Rufino Barrios

Justo Rufino Barrios was a President of Guatemala known for his liberal reforms and his attempts to reunite Central America....

 called Soto to the duties of a Sub-secretary of state, where he revealed remarkable talent. Shortly after the minister himself was relieved of office, Soto stayed in charge of the Ministry of the Interior, Justice and Ecclesiastical Affairs, to which he was soon permanently appointed.

Later he took on the duties of the Ministries of Foreign Affairs and Public Instruction. In this last position he organized the first public primary, secondary and vocational instruction to be founded on modern principles. In 1876, Soto was appointed Minister Plenipotentiary to Guatemala, To secure peace between Guatemala and El Salvador, a mission which he completed successfully, and signed the Soto-Ulloa Treaty in Santa Ana on 8 May.

Marco Aurelio Soto ruled Honduras in different periods. In 1876 he served as interim president. In 1877 he was constitutional president, a period that lasted until 1883 after his re-election. During his administration and with the assistance of Ramon Rosa, Soto launched liberal reforms. These reforms included administrative, political, economic and social attempts to alleviate the disastrous situation of Honduras.

President Soto sought to improve lines of communication and mail service, including building some railroads, a telegraph system and launched an unprecedented education program in the country. In addition, he moved the capital to Tegucigalpa. Despite the progress made during the administration Soto, Honduras remained quite underdeveloped as it lacked export products like coffee to pay for the investment necessary to improve infrastructure.

Soto's presidency was threatened by the Guatemalan government of Justo Rufino Barrios, and for this reason he fled the country, leaving it in the hands of a council of ministers.