The First Political Statute of the Province of

Costa Rica Costa Rica (, ; ; literally "Rich Coast"), officially the Republic of Costa Rica ( es, República de Costa Rica), is a country in the Central American region of North America, bordered by Nicaragua to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the no ...

was issued on March 19, 1823 by the newly independent provisional government and replaced the

Pact of Concord The Pact of Concord was the provisional Constitution of Costa Rica between 1821 and 1823, officially named the Interim Fundamental Social Pact of the Province of Costa Rica.Aguilar B., Aguilar Óscar (1974). ''La Constitución de 1949. Antecedentes ...

as its

Political Constitution A political constitution is a constitution where the legislature is the main check upon executive Executive ( exe., exec., execu.) may refer to: Role or title * Executive, a senior management role in an organization ** Chief executive officer (C ...

.Aguilar B., Aguilar Óscar (1974). ''La Constitución de 1949. Antecedentes y proyecciones.''

San José, Costa Rica San José (; meaning "Saint Joseph") is the capital and largest city of Costa Rica, and the capital of the province of the same name. It is in the center of the country, in the mid-west of the Central Valley, within San José Canton. San ...

Editorial Costa Rica The Editorial Costa Rica is a National Law Publishing House in Costa Rica, established on June 10, 1959. It focuses on the publication of works by Costa Ricans and the enrichment of the country's culture in literature. The ''Editorial's'' first p ...

. On January 31, 1821, the Superior Governing Junta that ruled the country provisionally held elections to elect the deputies who would represent it before the

First Mexican Empire The Mexican Empire ( es, Imperio Mexicano, ) was a constitutional monarchy, the first independent government of Mexico and the only former colony of the Spanish Empire to establish a monarchy after independence. It is one of the few modern-era, ...

's Constituent Congress of 1822 of that would draft the Constitution of the Mexican Empire of which it was a part, at least in theory. But the Congress was dissolved by Emperor Agustín de Iturbide before the Costa Rican delegation could leave and the rebuff increased the differences between the imperialists loyal to Iturbide and the Republicans who wanted full independence. The second Superior Governing Junta was elected, which governed from January 1 to March 14, 1823 and was chaired by José Santos Lombardo y Alvarado and the Provincial Constituent Congress of Costa Rica was convened, which dictates the First Political Statute of the Province of Costa Rica on March 17 and replacing the Pact of Concord. The Statute established a triple government confirmed by a triumvirate with a Republican representative, a monarchical representative and an independent or neutral representative. The Rev.

Rafael Francisco Osejo Rafael Francisco Osejo was a Nicaragua Nicaragua (; ), officially the Republic of Nicaragua (), is the largest country in Central America, bordered by Honduras to the north, the Caribbean to the east, Costa Rica to the south, and the Pacifi ...

presided over the Triumvirate. The Statute also created the figure of a Congress of Representatives without specifying the nature, conformation or mode of election, granting it the right to choose the independence of the Province or its annexation to any of the American powers.Obregón Loría, Rafael (1966). ''El Poder Legislativo en Costa Rica.''

: Asamblea Legislativa. The Statute would work until the rebellion of the monarchist Joaquín de Oreamuno y Muñoz de la Trinidad on March 29, 1823, when it was abolished by the first Civil War in Costa Rica, which would be rendered useless as by its end the Iturbide Empire had fallen.

References

{{Constitutions of Costa Rica Constitutions of Costa Rica