Brigadier General Brigadier general or Brigade general is a military rank used in many countries. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries. The rank is usually above a colonel, and below a major general or divisional general. When appointe ...

Andrés Ignacio Menéndez (1 February 1879–7 June 1962) was born in

Santa Ana, El Salvador Santa Ana () is the second largest city in El Salvador, after the capital of San Salvador. It is located 64 kilometers northwest of San Salvador, the capital city. Santa Ana has approximately 374,830 (2017)) inhabitants and serves both as the c ...

. He served as President of El Salvador from 29 August 1934 to 1 March 1935 and again from 9 May to 20 October 1944. He was overthrown in October 1944 by a military coup led by Col.

Osmín Aguirre y Salinas Osmín Aguirre y Salinas (25 December 1889 – 17 July 1977) was a Salvadoran military officer and politician who served as the provisional president of El Salvador from 21 October 1944 until 1 March 1945. A Colonel in the Salvadoran Army, Ag ...

and exiled to

Guatemala Guatemala ( ; ), officially the Republic of Guatemala ( es, República de Guatemala, links=no), is a country in Central America. It is bordered to the north and west by Mexico; to the northeast by Belize and the Caribbean; to the east by Hon ...

Career

Ignacio gradually rose through the ranks in the Salvadoran military, becoming second lieutenant on 18 October 1898, lieutenant on 24 March 1904, captain on 1 August 1906, captain mayor on 24 May, 1907, lieutenant colonel on 20 May 1911, colonel on 21 May 1915, and brigadier general on 10 August 1920. Civil unrest broke out following the overthrow of President Hernandez. In response, Melendez declared amnesty for everyone who was part of the unrest, and thus began a national transition to democracy.

References

1879 births 1962 deaths People from Santa Ana, El Salvador People of Asturian descent Presidents of El Salvador Defence ministers of El Salvador Salvadoran military personnel World War II political leaders Leaders ousted by a coup Salvadoran exiles Salvadoran expatriates in Guatemala {{ElSalvador-politician-stub