Elías Beauchamp (June 8, 1908 – February 23, 1936) was a member of the
Cadets of the Republic, the
paramilitary
A paramilitary is an organization whose structure, tactics, training, subculture, and (often) function are similar to those of a professional military, but is not part of a country's official or legitimate armed forces. Paramilitary units carr ...
wing of the
Puerto Rican Nationalist Party. Beauchamp is best known for having assassinated Col. Elisha Francis Riggs, the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
appointed chief of the
Puerto Rico Police
The Puerto Rico Police Department ( es, Policía de Puerto Rico), officially the Puerto Rico Police Bureau, is a law enforcement agency with jurisdiction over the entire Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. It is a division of the Puerto Rico Department ...
, along with fellow Cadet
Hiram Rosado. Both men were arrested and shot without trial, officially while attempting to escape, at Police Headquarters in San Juan. News of the assassinations spread throughout the United States and led to legislative proposal by U.S. Senator Millard Tydings, to grant independence to Puerto Rico.
Early years
Beauchamp (birth name: Elías Beauchamp Beauchamp
) was born in the town of
Utuado, Puerto Rico
Utuado () is a town and municipality of Puerto Rico located in the central mountainous region of the island known as the '' Cordillera Central''. It is located north of Adjuntas and Ponce; south of Hatillo and Arecibo; east of Lares; and west ...
to Juan Francisco Beauchamp Brugman and Julia Beauchamp Bello. There he received his primary and secondary education. After he graduated from high school, he went to work for Leopoldo Santiago Carmona, who was the fiscal of the district of
Guayama
Guayama (, ), officially the Autonomous Municipality of Guayama ( es, Municipio Autónomo de Guayama) is a city and municipality on the Caribbean coast of Puerto Rico. As of the 2020 U.S. Census, the city had a population of 36,614. It is the c ...
. In 1913, Santiago Carmona was appointed the fiscal of the district of
Humacao.
[''Latino History and Culture: An Encyclopedia'' by David J. Leonard, Carmen R. Lugo-Lugo. Publisher: Sharpe Reference, 1st edition (2010) • .]
Beauchamp moved to the
City of Bayamon and worked for a tobacco company owned and operated by the
American Tobacco Company
The American Tobacco Company was a tobacco company founded in 1890 by J. B. Duke through a merger between a number of U.S. tobacco manufacturers including Allen and Ginter and Goodwin & Company. The company was one of the original 12 members of ...
. The American Tobacco Company had gained control of most of the island's tobacco fields after the
Spanish–American War
, partof = the Philippine Revolution, the decolonization of the Americas, and the Cuban War of Independence
, image = Collage infobox for Spanish-American War.jpg
, image_size = 300px
, caption = (clock ...
. He met and married Ana Luisa Perez and moved to San Juan where he was employed by J. Ramirez & Sons, an import and export company. He lived with his wife and two children in the Calle Luna.
Puerto Rican Nationalist Party
The
Puerto Rican Nationalist Party was founded by
José Coll y Cuchí
José Coll y Cuchí (January 12, 1877 – July 2, 1960) was a lawyer, writer and the founder of the Puerto Rican Nationalist Party. He was a member of a Puerto Rican family of politicians, educators and writers.See: "Notable family members" sect ...
as a direct response to the American colonial government in 1919, By the 1920s, there were two other pro-independence organizations in the Island, they were the "Nationalist Youth" and the "
Independence Association of Puerto Rico
The Independence Association of Puerto Rico (Asociación Independentista) was a political organization whose members favored Puerto Rican independence and which played an important role in the formation of the Puerto Rican Nationalist Party.
Hist ...
". On September 17, 1922, the two political organizations merged into the Puerto Rican Nationalist Party. In 1924, Dr.
Pedro Albizu Campos joined the party and on May 11, 1930, Dr. Pedro Albizu Campos was elected president of the Puerto Rican Nationalist Party.
[Luis Muñoz Marín, By A. W. Maldonado, Pg. 86, Publisher: La Editorial, Universidad de Puerto Rico, (December 1, 2006), , ]
Beauchamp became interested in the cause for Puerto Rican independence and joined the Nationalist Party. He was a member of the
Cadets of the Republic (Cadetes de la Republica). The cadets was a quasi-military youth organization of the Nationalist Party also known as the "Liberation Army of Puerto Rico".
There he met and befriended fellow cadet Hiram Rosado.
Events leading to a massacre
In 1931, the U.S.-appointed Governor of Puerto Rico,
Theodore Roosevelt, Jr.
Theodore Roosevelt III ( ), often known as Theodore Jr.Morris, Edmund (1979). ''The Rise of Theodore Roosevelt''. index.While it was President Theodore Roosevelt who was legally named Theodore Roosevelt Jr., the President's fame made it simple ...
named Dr.
Carlos E. Chardón as Chancellor of the
University of Puerto Rico
The University of Puerto Rico ( es, Universidad de Puerto Rico, UPR) is the main public university system in the U.S. Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. It is a government-owned corporation with 11 campuses and approximately 58,000 students and 5,3 ...
. In 1935, Chardón initiated a project based on the ideas of
Luis Muñoz Marín, who at the time was a Senator in the Puerto Rican legislature and member of the
Liberal Party of Puerto Rico. It was known as the Reconstruction of Puerto Rico Project. The plan, which was within the
New Deal
The New Deal was a series of programs, public work projects, financial reforms, and regulations enacted by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in the United States between 1933 and 1939. Major federal programs agencies included the Civilian Cons ...
criteria established by U.S. President
Franklin Delano Roosevelt
Franklin Delano Roosevelt (; ; January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), often referred to by his initials FDR, was an American politician and attorney who served as the 32nd president of the United States from 1933 until his death in 1945. As the ...
during the
Great Depression
The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...
, was well received and became known as ''Plan Chardón.''
[Dr. ]Delma S. Arrigoitia
Delma S. Arrigoitia (born February 10, 1945) is a historian, author, educator and lawyer whose written works cover the life and works of some of Puerto Rico's most prominent politicians of the early 20th century. After earning her doctorate in his ...
, ''Puerto Rico Por Encima de Todo: Vida y Obra de Antonio R. Barcelo, 1868-1938''; p. 292; Publisher: Ediciones Puerto (January 2008);
On October 20, 1935, in a political meeting which the Nationalist Party held in the town of
Maunabo and which was transmitted by radio, Albizu Campos denounced Chardón, the university deans and the Liberal Party as traitors, saying they wanted to convert the university into an "American" propaganda institution.
On October 23, 1935, a group of students at the university who supported Chardón began to collect signatures for a petition to declare Albizu Campos "Student Enemy Number One." In turn, a protest against the group by the pro-Nationalist faction of students denounced Chardón and the Liberal Party as agents of the United States.
The Río Piedras massacre
![Pedro Albizu Campos raising his hat to a crowd, 1936](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/51/Pedro_Albizu_Campos_raising_his_hat_to_a_crowd%2C_1936.jpg)
On October 24, 1935, a student assembly held at the university declared Albizu Campos as ''persona non grata.'' Chardón requested that the governor provide armed police officers on the university grounds, in case the situation turned violent. Two police officers spotted a "suspicious-looking vehicle" and asked the driver, Ramón S. Pagán, and his friend Pedro Quiñones, for identification. A struggle ensued, and the police killed Pagán and Quiñones. According to the local newspaper "El Mundo" of Oct. 25th, an explosion, followed by gunfire, was heard resulting in the additional deaths of Eduardo Rodríguez Vega and José Santiago Barea. At the time Elisha Francis Riggs was the United States appointed police chief of Puerto Rico.
[Arrigoitia (2008), ''Puerto Rico Por Encima de Todo'', p. 306]
An eyewitness,
Isolina Rondón, testified that she saw the police officers shooting at the victims and heard one police officer screaming "not to let them escape alive." Her testimony was ignored, and no charges were filed against the police officers. The Río Piedras massacre left four men dead.
["Isolina Rondón"](_blank)
testimony, Peace Host
The assassination of Elisha F. Riggs
Colonel Elisha Francis Riggs was born in
Georgetown, a historic neighborhood located in northwest
Washington, D.C.
)
, image_skyline =
, image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...
Riggs was a former officer in the United States Army who was appointed Chief of Police of Puerto Rico in 1933, by
Blanton Winship, the U.S. appointed governor of Puerto Rico. He was an unpopular police chief, stemming from his decisions to repress the growing sugar cane labor movement and the Nationalist Pro-Independence Movement.
The Río Piedras Massacre enraged the nationalists. Beauchamp and the nationalists believed that Elisha Francis Riggs was responsible since Riggs was the police chief of Puerto Rico and the entire Insular Police took their orders from Riggs. He decided to retaliate and avenge the deaths of the four men killed in the massacre with the help of Rosado.
On Sunday, February 23, 1936, Elisha F. Riggs had attended mass in the Church of Santa Ana in San Juan. When the mass was over, Riggs stepped out of the church and got into his car, a Packard, driven by Angel Alvarez, a police officer. Rosado knew the route which Riggs would normally take and waited. When Riggs' car reached the corner of Allen and Gambaro streets, Rosado came out of his hideout and began shooting towards Riggs. Rosado then made a run for it, but was soon captured by Alvarez. All the while, Riggs got out of his car and began asking for the declarations of those who witnessed the attempt on his life. He was suddenly approached by Beauchamp who said:
Believing that he had a witness to the events Riggs told Beauchamp that he was headed to the police station and to accompany him. Beauchamp boarded Riggs chauffeured car and shot Riggs in the head killing him instantly.
Beauchamp tried to escape by hiding inside the nearby Rodriguez y Palacios warehouse in Tetuan Street.
Beauchamp and Rosado were arrested and Beauchamp was photographed by the local news media giving a cadet military salute before he and Rosado were taken to the San Juan police headquarters. The police station was located in 305 San Francisco Street.
Instead of receiving a fair trial, Beauchamp and Rosado were both gunned down by the police in the police station. Beauchamp died immediately and Rosado was transferred to a local hospital where he later died of the gun wounds which he received. In the aftermath of the killings, the police claimed that the nationalists were shot because they attempted to escape. None of the police officers involved were demoted or suspended.
The news of the assassination of Elisha F. Riggs spread throughout the United States. At that time Puerto Rican Senator,
Luis Muñoz Marín, was in Washington, D.C. and
Ernest Gruening
Ernest Henry Gruening ( ; February 6, 1887 – June 26, 1974) was an American journalist and politician. A member of the Democratic Party, Gruening was the governor of the Alaska Territory from 1939 until 1953, and a United States Senator from A ...
, the administrator of the
Puerto Rico Reconstruction Administration
The Puerto Rico Reconstruction Administration (PRRA) was one of the alphabet agencies of the New Deal established by the administration of President Franklin Delano Roosevelt. Created on May 28, 1935, the PRRA's first directors included America ...
(1935–1937), asked him to condemn Riggs' assassination. Muñoz Marín told Gruening that he would do so only if he was also allowed to condemn the police for murdering the Nationalists in the city police station without a trial.
Gruening then joined US Senator
Millard Tydings a Democrat from Maryland, in a legislative proposal to grant independence to Puerto Rico. However, the bill did not progress in Congress.
Post assassination
After Riggs' assassination, many Nationalist Party leaders were imprisoned. Members of the Puerto Rican independence movement came under greater scrutiny and persecution. Among the leaders arrested was
Pedro Albizu Campos,
These leaders were charged with having "conspired to overthrow" the U.S. government on the island. They were tried in
Boston
Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...
, Massachusetts, as that federal district court had jurisdiction for Puerto Rico. The first trial jury ended in a hung jury. A second jury was picked, consisting solely of "Anglo-Americans." This jury found every Nationalist charged to be "guilty".
The bodies of both nationalists were returned to their respective families. They were both buried in graves located side by side in the Cementerio Municipal (municipal Cemetery) San Jose de Villa Palmeras located in Avenida Eduardo Conde, Villa Palmeras,
Santurce, Puerto Rico.
Find a Grave
/ref>
Further reading
*"Puerto Rico: Independence Is a Necessity"; by: Rafael Cancel Miranda (Author); Publisher: Pathfinder Press (NY); Booklet edition (February 1, 2001);
*"Sembrando Patria...Y Verdades"; by: Rafael Cancel Miranda (Author); Publisher: Cuarto Idearo (January 1, 1998); ASIN: B001CK17D6
*"War Against All Puerto Ricans: Revolution and Terror in America’s Colony"; Author: Nelson Antonio Denis
Nelson Antonio Denis is an American attorney, author, film director, and former representative to the New York State Assembly. From 1997 through 2000, Denis represented New York (state), New York's 68th Assembly district, which includes the East ...
; Publisher: Nation Books (April 7, 2015); .
See also
* List of Puerto Ricans
* Boricua Popular Army
*Fuerzas Armadas de Liberación Nacional (Puerto Rico) FALN is an acronym for ''Fuerzas Armadas de Liberación Nacional'' (English: "Armed Forces of National Liberation").
It can refer to:
*''Fuerzas Armadas de Liberación Nacional Puertorriqueña
The Fuerzas Armadas de Liberación Nacional (English ...
* French immigration to Puerto Rico
Notes
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Beauchamp, Elias
1908 births
1936 deaths
People from Utuado, Puerto Rico
Puerto Rican rebels
Puerto Rican Nationalist Party politicians
Members of the Puerto Rican Nationalist Party
Puerto Rican Roman Catholics
Puerto Rican prisoners and detainees
Police misconduct in Puerto Rico