José Zepeda (1784 – 24 January 1837) was a liberal Nicaraguan colonel and politician who served as Head of State of Nicaragua from 23 April 1835 until he was assassinated on 25 January 1837.
Military career
He reached the rank of Colonel in the unionist army of General
Francisco Morazán
José Francisco Morazán Quesada (; born October 3, 1792 – September 15, 1842) was a Central American politician who served as president of the Federal Republic of Central America from 1830 to 1839. Before he was president of Central America h ...
and participated in military actions such as the
Battle of La Trinidad (1827),
Battle of El Gualcho (1828),
Battle of Las Charcas (1829), the
Battle of Olancho and
Las Vueltas del Ocote (1830).
As Head of State
On 21 February 1835, the Legislative Assembly declared him elected as Head of State. He took office on 23 April of that year, along with Vice Chief
José Núñez.
Under his administration, one of the most positive in the history of his country, reforms were carried out such as the establishment of the jury; The Court of Accounts was created, criminal proceedings were regulated and a good Penal Code was legislated. In addition, he organized the Supreme Court of Justice and prohibited the use of firearms.
He was also interested in instruction and education, regarding the clergy, he indicated that its members, in order to be ordained, had to have completed university studies; he reestablished the
universities of León and
Granada, regulated teaching in all branches and opened new schools. Along with these legislative actions, he founded an official newspaper, ''El Telégrafo Nicaragüense'' and the
town
A town is a human settlement. Towns are generally larger than villages and smaller than cities, though the criteria to distinguish between them vary considerably in different parts of the world.
Origin and use
The word "town" shares an ori ...
of
Rivas received the title of
city
A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be def ...
.
Due to an
anti-constitutionalist rebellion in 1834, a great reform of the federal Constitution was planned to take place in 1835, which was only agreed upon by
Costa Rica and
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 Pacific Ocean to the west. Managua is the countr ...
and consequently did not take effect.
Assassination
On 25 January 1837
Casto Fonseca, a graduate in medicine, and Colonel
Bernardo Méndez de Figueroa
Bernardo Méndez de Figueroa (1782 – May 1839) nicknamed ''"El Pavo"'' was a Nicaraguan military figure most notable for reestablishing military absolutism in Nicaragua in 1837 during the presidency of José Núñez.
He fell from power in Ap ...
"''El Pavo''", a man only notable for his fondness for gambling, stormed the León barracks and took a man named Braulio Mendiola out of jail, who was given a large escort by the assailants with orders to arrest Zepeda, Colonel Román Valladares, Deputy Pascual Rivas and Captain Evaristo Berríos.
[Vanegas; J. D. El asesinato del jefe coronel José Zepeda y compañeros: 25 de enero de 1837. Revista de la Academia de Geografía e Historia de Nicaragua. Ene./Mar. 1952, No. 2, p. 166-172.]
Zepeda and Colonel Valladares, were killed and later buried in the Cemetery of Guadalupe. Vice Chief Núñez assumed the leadership of the State to finish his term, which had two years left to finish. Núñez did not arrest the rebels, but rather appeased Méndez and appointed him General Commander of Arms, but Mendiola was captured and executed for the killings.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Zepeda, José
Presidents of Nicaragua
19th-century Nicaraguan people
1784 births
1837 deaths