Luis Antonio Robles Suárez (24 October 1849 – 22 September 1899) also known as "El Negro Robles", was a Colombian lawyer and politician. He was the first

Afro-Colombian Afro-Colombians or African-Colombians ( es, afrocolombianos, links=no) are Colombians of full or partial sub-Saharan African descent ( Blacks, Mulattoes, Pardos, and Zambos). History Africans were enslaved in the early 16th Century in Colomb ...

to hold a cabinet-level

ministry Ministry may refer to: Government * Ministry (collective executive), the complete body of government ministers under the leadership of a prime minister * Ministry (government department), a department of a government Religion * Christian ...

in Colombia serving as Secretary of the Treasury and Public Credit during the administration of

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university * President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...

Aquileo Parra Gómez, as well as being the first Afro-Colombian

Congressperson A Member of Congress (MOC) is a person who has been appointed or elected and inducted into an official body called a congress, typically to represent a particular constituency in a legislature. The term member of parliament (MP) is an equivalen ...

as Member of the Chamber of Representatives for Magdalena, and the first Afro-Colombian Governor of a Department, as the 16th President of the

Sovereign State of Magdalena The Magdalena State ( es, Estado del Magdalena) was one of the states of Colombia. Today the area of the former state makes up most of modern-day areas of the departments of Magdalena, Cesar and La Guajira, northern Colombia. Provinces * E ...

. He graduated a lawyer from

Our Lady of the Rosary University Universidad del Rosario (officially in es, Colegio Mayor de Nuestra Señora del Rosario) is a Colombian university founded on Roman Catholic principles, in 1653 by Fray Cristobal de Torres. Located in Bogotá, due to its important place in Co ...

in 1872, thus also becoming the first Afro-Colombian to ever serve as a lawyer in Colombia.

Career

left, Oil on canvas painting of Luis Antonio Robles by Epifanio Julián Garay y Caicedo.

Personal life

Born on 24 October 1849 in the

hamlet ''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play, with 29,551 words. Set in Denmark, the play depicts ...

of Camarones in the Municipality of

Riohacha Riohacha (; Wayuu: ) is a city in the Riohacha Municipality in the northern Caribbean Region of Colombia by the mouth of the Ranchería River and the Caribbean Sea. It is the capital city of the La Guajira Department. It has a sandy beach waterfr ...

, then part of the

Riohacha Province Riohacha Province was a province of Gran Colombia. With the 1824 changes in the subdivisions of Gran Colombia, it became part of Magdalena Department. Riohacha (Spanish pronunciation: joˈa.tʃa Wayuu: Süchiimma , is a city in the Riohacha Mun ...

, in the Department of Magdalena, New Granada; his parents were Luis Antonio Robles and Manuela Súarez, both

black Black is a color which results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without hue, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness. Black and white ...

freedpersons of moderate means. He died on 22 September 1899 of

cystitis A urinary tract infection (UTI) is an infection that affects part of the urinary tract. When it affects the lower urinary tract it is known as a bladder infection (cystitis) and when it affects the upper urinary tract it is known as a kidney ...

infection in his longtime residence ''le Maison Doré'' in Bogotá at the age of 49, not having married and with no descendants still recovering from the death of his mother earlier that year. His childhood home in Camarones was designated a national monument, and his remains, which had been interred at the

Central Cemetery of Bogotá Central Cemetery of Bogotá (Spanish: ) is one of the main and most famous cemeteries in Colombia located in Bogotá. Houses several national heroes, poets and former Colombian presidents. It was opened in 1836 and was declared National Monument i ...

, were transported to be interred at his childhood home which operates as a Cultural House, Library and Training Center. *

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Robles, Luis Antonio 1849 births 1899 deaths People from La Guajira Department Del Rosario University alumni Academic staff of the Free University of Colombia 19th-century Colombian lawyers Colombian Liberal Party politicians Members of the Chamber of Representatives of Colombia Members of the Senate of Colombia Colombian Secretaries of Treasury and Public Credit Colombian people of African descent

Career

Personal life

See also

References

Further reading

External links