Felix María del Monte (November 19, 1819 – April 23, 1899) was a Dominican poet, playwright, journalist, orator, politician and teacher. He participated in the independence struggles that culminated with the proclamation of the

Dominican Republic The Dominican Republic is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles of the Caribbean Sea in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean. It shares a Maritime boundary, maritime border with Puerto Rico to the east and ...

. He served as deputy and Minister of Foreign Affairs and Justice. He composed the first National Anthem, with music by Juan Bautista Alfonseca, which was in force until 1884.

Early life

He was born in 1819 in the city of

Santo Domingo Santo Domingo, formerly known as Santo Domingo de Guzmán, is the capital and largest city of the Dominican Republic and the List of metropolitan areas in the Caribbean, largest metropolitan area in the Caribbean by population. the Distrito Na ...

during the

España Boba In the history of the Dominican Republic, the period of ''España Boba'' (Spanish for "Meek Spain") lasted from 9 July 1809 to 1 December 1821, during which the Captaincy General of Santo Domingo was under Spanish rule, but the Spanish gover ...

era. His father, José Joaquín del Monte, like many Dominicans, had fled the island to evade the Haitian incursions of 1801 and 1805. This was the case as his older brother, Manuel, was born in

Puerto Rico ; abbreviated PR), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, is a Government of Puerto Rico, self-governing Caribbean Geography of Puerto Rico, archipelago and island organized as an Territories of the United States, unincorporated territo ...

, a nearby Spanish colony, in 1804. The family returned to the island when

Juan Sánchez Ramírez Juan Sánchez Ramírez (1762 – February 11, 1811) was a Dominican general who was the primary leader of the Spanish reconquest of Santo Domingo, War of Reconquista. He is known for leading the troops in the Battle of Palo Hincado. The decisive ...

reincorporated the colony to Spain after victory in the war of reconquest in 1809.

Political career

He later served as part of the secret independence society La Trinitaria. He participated in the events of

Puerta del Conde La Puerta del Conde (The Count's Gate) was the main entrance to the fortified city of Santo Domingo (in present-day Dominican Republic), named to honor Governor Captain-General Bernardino de Meneses Bracamonte y Zapata, 1st Count of Peñalva, wh ...

during the feat of February 27, 1844. He wrote the lyrics of the first Dominican National Anthem in 1844, whose music was composed by Colonel Juan Bautista Alfonseca. He turned out to be the first Dominican to obtain the title of lawyer in the First Republic period, which was issued to him by the Supreme Court of Justice on August 11, 1845. That same year, he, along with Nicolás Ureña de Mendoza, founded ''El Dominicano'', the first newspaper of the Dominican Republic. Years later, he served as Dean of Lawyers in his capacity as the oldest lawyer. His oratory was one of the most vibrant during the first two republics, perhaps due to his work ''El Porvenir'' (1854). He later lived in exile on the island of

in 1855 and wrote ''El arp del proscrito'' and the ''Sonnet A mi patria'', after the annexation to Spain in 1861 by the Dominican dictator

Pedro Santana Pedro Santana y Familias, 1st Marquess of Las Carreras (June 29, 1801June 14, 1864) was a Dominican soldier and politician who served three times as the president of the First Dominican Republic (1844–1861) and was the first governor-genera ...

. After the Dominican Republic regained its independence from Spain in 1865, he would align himself with

Buenaventura Báez Ramón Buenaventura Báez Méndez (July 14, 1812March 14, 1884), was a Dominican conservative politician and military figure. He was president of the Dominican Republic for five nonconsecutive terms. His rule was characterized by corruption and ...

, another caudillo whom Del Monte came to see as a more fitting leader of the country. He would collaborated with the Báez administration, even joining the Red Party. This regime, which sought to annex the newly restored Dominican Republic to the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

, became known as the Six Years' regime. He died in Santo Domingo, on April 23, 1899, at the age of 79.

Literary work

Del Monte has been called the "Father of Dominican Theater." A highly successful author, his plays were presented at the Teatro La República. His style of poetry, characterized by musicality fused with

romanticism Romanticism (also known as the Romantic movement or Romantic era) was an artistic and intellectual movement that originated in Europe towards the end of the 18th century. The purpose of the movement was to advocate for the importance of subjec ...

, earned him a level of popularity that by 1853, he was recognized in an anthology of Spanish and American poets published in Paris. His first play was Duvergé, in which he condemned the murder of the patriot Antonio Duvergé by Pedro Santana. He also wrote works in verse such as El Mendigo de la Catedral de León and El Premio de los Pichones. His last work was the zarzuela entitled Ozema o La Virgen Indiana. Some of his work include the following: *''The Virgin of Galindo or the invasion of Haitians from the Spanish part of the Island of Santo Domingo, February 9, 1822'', 1885 *''Antonio Duvergé on the victims of the 14th of April'', 1894 *El mendigo de la cathedral de Lyon, 1894 *Ozama, o la virgen indígena, 1894 *El artista Antonio Brito, 1894 *The Last Abencerraje, 1894 *El premio de los pichones *Un vals de Strauss

Sources

CarineInsider – Félix María del MonteEnCaribe – Enciclopedia de Historia y Cultura del Caribe – Félix María del Monte

References

Early life

Political career

Literary work

See also

Sources

References