Isaías Medina Angarita (6 July 1897 – 15 September 1953) was a Venezuelan military and politician who served as

President of Venezuela The president of Venezuela (), officially known as the president of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela (), is the executive head of state and head of government of Venezuela. The president leads the National Executive of the Venezuelan go ...

from 1941 until 1945, during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. He followed the path of his predecessor Eleazar López Contreras, and contributed to gradual democratization and liberalization in Venezuela. He was overthrown in the 1945 Venezuelan coup d'état.

Early life and education

Medina was born in San Cristóbal, Venezuela, and graduated from the Military academy of Venezuela in 1914.

Early political career

He was a loyalist to Juan Vicente Gómez and Eleazar López Contreras. He served as War Minister from 1936 to 1941 under Eleazar López Contreras.

Presidency (1941-1945)

As a result of the indirect 1941 Venezuelan presidential election, he was appointed president by lawmakers of the Congress of Venezuela. He assumed the on 5 May 1941. In 1943, he founded the Venezuelan Democratic Party. He allowed other political parties to operate in Venezuela, including the Communist Party. He took a firmer stance against oil companies, implementing higher exploitation taxes and higher royalties. Oil companies were no longer exempt from customs duties. He also promoted domestic oil refining. He expanded the role of state, using increase oil revenues to enact large public works and agricultural programs. Medina Angarita was the first Venezuelan president who traveled abroad (in active office). First, in 1943 to the Bolivarian countries,

Colombia Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country primarily located in South America with Insular region of Colombia, insular regions in North America. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Caribbean Sea to the north, Venezuel ...

, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia and Panama, and in January 1944, the United States invited by

Franklin Delano Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt (January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), also known as FDR, was the 32nd president of the United States, serving from 1933 until his death in 1945. He is the longest-serving U.S. president, and the only one to have served ...

. The visit marked a milestone in the Venezuelan-US relations. Besides being the first time a Venezuelan president (in office) visited the United States, the time the journey was made was understood as an expression of the alliance of Venezuela with the Allies that fought the Axis. The US-Venezuela relationship was considered collaborative during Medina's presidency. During the administration of Medina, Venezuela established relations with

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

in 1943 and the

Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

in 1945. Venezuela declared war on the Axis in 1945 in order to be part of the founding of the United Nations. Some in the Army considered his too liberal while other political enemies accused him of being too conservative, and both sides were involved in a coup to remove him from power on 18 October 1945. The Medina government discovered the conspiracy by the military to overthrow Medina and arrested Marcos Pérez Jiménez. The arrest triggered a popular revolt, leading Medina to give up power.

Medina's cabinet (1941–1945)

Post-presidency (1945-1953)

Medina died, aged 56, in

Caracas Caracas ( , ), officially Santiago de León de Caracas (CCS), is the capital and largest city of Venezuela, and the center of the Metropolitan Region of Caracas (or Greater Caracas). Caracas is located along the Guaire River in the northern p ...

Personal life

Isaías Medina Angarita was married to Irma Felizola, who served as First Lady of Venezuela from 1941 to 1945. File:Irma Felizola.jpg, Irma Felizola

References

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Isaías Medina Angarita
– Venezuelatuya.com *

{{DEFAULTSORT:Medina Angarita, Isaias Presidents of Venezuela World War II political leaders Venezuelan generals Venezuelan soldiers People from San Cristóbal, Táchira 1897 births 1953 deaths Venezuelan Democratic Party politicians Venezuelan people of Spanish descent Leaders ousted by a coup