José Luis Gabriel Terra Leivas ( Montevideo, 1 August 1873 - Montevideo, 15 September 1942) was a lawyer and

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking ...

of batllista origin in

Uruguay Uruguay (; ), officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay ( es, República Oriental del Uruguay), is a country in South America. It shares borders with Argentina to its west and southwest and Brazil to its north and northeast; while bordering ...

, and advisor to all Uruguayan governments on diplomatic,

Economic An economy is an area of the production, distribution and trade, as well as consumption of goods and services. In general, it is defined as a social domain that emphasize the practices, discourses, and material expressions associated with the ...

and financial issues between 1900 and 1938. He spent part of his childhood and adolescence in his father's ( José Ladislao Terra) farm and studied

Law Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior,Robertson, ''Crimes against humanity'', 90. with its precise definition a matter of longstanding debate. It has been vario ...

UDELAR The University of the Republic ( es, Universidad de la República, sometimes ''UdelaR'') is Uruguay's oldest public university. It is by far the country's largest university, as well as the second largest public university in South America and t ...

while also specializing in economic and financial science, graduating in 1895. He practiced as lawyer and Justice of the Peace at the end of the 1890's and he was

professor Professor (commonly abbreviated as Prof.) is an academic rank at universities and other post-secondary education and research institutions in most countries. Literally, ''professor'' derives from Latin as a "person who professes". Professors ...

at the Higher School of Commerce (known since 1935 as the Faculty of Economic Sciences and Administration) from 1901. He was a national deputy from 1903 to 1907, minister of Industry, Labor and Public Instruction from 1907 to 1911. He founded the industrial oxygen production company CINOCA in 1908 and was a member of the National Constituent Assembly of 1917, Minister of the Interior from 1919 to 1921, member of the National Administration Council from 1926 to 1929. He was Constitutional President between 1931 and 1933, but became a

de facto ''De facto'' ( ; , "in fact") describes practices that exist in reality, whether or not they are officially recognized by laws or other formal norms. It is commonly used to refer to what happens in practice, in contrast with ''de jure'' ("by la ...

president from March 1933 to May 1934 after launching a self-coup. However, he once again became a de jure Constitutional President until June 1938. Terra was president of the

Banco de la República Oriental del Uruguay Banco de la República Oriental del Uruguay (also known as Banco República or BROU) is a state-owned bank in Uruguay, founded in 1896 under the presidency of Juan Idiarte Borda. It is the most important Uruguayan bank with the largest number o ...

in 1938. However, he suffered a stroke that same year, causing him to remain paralytic for four years until his death in 1942. Terra died in poverty, passing away in an armchair on the early morning of 1September 15, 1942. At his funeral he received the corresponding state honors, and the country entered a mourning period. His remains were accompanied by hundreds of thousands of people along the procession. However, due to his presidency beng very controversial, his coffin was spat on by editors of the newspaper El Día, causing a fight to break out. The location of his

grave A grave is a location where a dead body (typically that of a human, although sometimes that of an animal) is buried or interred after a funeral. Graves are usually located in special areas set aside for the purpose of burial, such as grav ...

is unknown. Terra left no economic inheritance or

political party A political party is an organization that coordinates candidates to compete in a particular country's elections. It is common for the members of a party to hold similar ideas about politics, and parties may promote specific ideological or p ...

. He remains a controversial president and his name spurs disgust in Uruguay.

Background

Terra graduated as a lawyer in 1895 from UDELAR and had a lengthy political career, being a national deputy, he was deputy, minister of Industry, Work, and Public Instruction, a member of the 1917 Uruguayan

Constituent Assembly A constituent assembly (also known as a constitutional convention, constitutional congress, or constitutional assembly) is a body assembled for the purpose of drafting or revising a constitution. Members of a constituent assembly may be elected b ...

, and member of the National Board of Directors. He was affiliated to the Colorado Party, although he was often independent of the dominant positions of its leader,

José Batlle y Ordóñez José Pablo Torcuato Batlle y Ordóñez ( or ; 23 May 1856 in Montevideo, Uruguay – 20 October 1929), nicknamed ''Don Pepe'', was a prominent Uruguayan politician, who served two terms as President of Uruguay for the Colorado Party. He w ...

. Terra was an expert in economic and diplomatic issues, areas in which he advised all Uruguayan governments between 1904 and 1938.

Political career

Graduated as a lawyer in 1895, he was deputy minister to the President Claudio Williman, member of the

in 1917, Minister to the President Baltasar Brum and member of the National Board of Directors. He was an expert in economic and diplomatic issues, areas in which he advised all the Uruguayan governments between 1900 and 1938, he was a member of the Colorado Party, although many times independent of the dominant positions of its leader ,

. He was a defender of

cooperativism A cooperative (also known as co-operative, co-op, or coop) is "an autonomous association of persons united voluntarily to meet their common economic, social and cultural needs and aspirations through a jointly owned and democratically-control ...

, he wanted this model to be imposed in all areas of society, in 1907 as "Minister of Industry, Labor and Public Instruction" he founded more than 200 rural schools, promoted a bill to create an inheritance tax, it created the "National Labor Office

where for the first time he named the regulation of the 8 working hours that in 1915 was approved, among other social security laws, through the same body by Pedro Cosio. He was a pioneer in promoting the development of

hydroelectric energy Hydroelectricity, or hydroelectric power, is electricity generated from hydropower (water power). Hydropower supplies one sixth of the world's electricity, almost 4500 TWh in 2020, which is more than all other renewable sources combined an ...

and the use of

hydrogen Hydrogen is the chemical element with the symbol H and atomic number 1. Hydrogen is the lightest element. At standard conditions hydrogen is a gas of diatomic molecules having the formula . It is colorless, odorless, tasteless, non-toxic ...

as fuel. His candidacy for the presidency in 1930 was opposed to the

Luis Alberto de Herrera Luis Alberto de Herrera (Montevideo, 22 July 1873 – 8 April 1959) was a Uruguayan lawyer, diplomat, journalist and politician. Political and diplomatic roles A national leader of great importance during the first half of the 20th century, he l ...

, leader of the National Party who obtained 47.26% of the votes cast, compared to 52.02% in favor of Earth. On February 13, 1938, during a spontaneous congregation of workers to honor him in front of his house, in his last public speech to a popular crowd, he said: He was the Uruguayan

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 ...

who held office for the longest uninterrupted time, the only one to have 3 terms and the first to be re-elected, he presided over a Government

Constitutional A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organisation or other type of entity and commonly determine how that entity is to be governed. When these prin ...

between 1931 and 1933, from 1933 to 1934 one

dictatorial A dictator is a political leader who possesses absolute power. A dictatorship is a state ruled by one dictator or by a small clique. The word originated as the title of a Roman dictator elected by the Roman Senate to rule the republic in times ...

and was re-elected by more than 60% of the electorate in 1934 for the period 1934-1938. On June 19, 1938, his government ends, he is appointed President of the Bank of the Oriental Republic of Uruguay, in the last months of 1938 his physical condition deteriorates, he suffers a

cerebrovascular accident A stroke is a medical condition in which poor blood flow to the brain causes cell death. There are two main types of stroke: ischemic, due to lack of blood flow, and hemorrhagic, due to bleeding. Both cause parts of the brain to stop funct ...

and is left paralytic until his death on September 15, 1942. He died in poverty, he left no economic inheritance, nor political-partisan inheritance, his name is synonymous with repudiation in

National Government (1931-1938)

March 1, 1931 assumed the Presidency of the Republic for the period 1931-1935. He opposed the Constitution of 1918 from the beginning, claiming that it was an unviable system that generated ungovernability. In 1932 the economic and political crisis worsened, in November of that year he finally separated from the leading figures of Batllismo and began an unconstitutional tour of the interior of the country in favor of a Constitutional reform, instigating the mobilization of thousands of farmers through the center of Montevideo, on April 1 a "March on Montevideo" is organized, inspired by the

March on Rome The March on Rome ( it, Marcia su Roma) was an organized mass demonstration and a coup d'état in October 1922 which resulted in Benito Mussolini's National Fascist Party (PNF) ascending to power in the Kingdom of Italy. In late October 1922, ...

of Benito Mussolini, they parade on Larrañaga Avenue to the "Centro Eúskaro" thousands of people, manages to unite the support of the rural sectors and

reactionaries In political science, a reactionary or a reactionist is a person who holds political views that favor a return to the ''status quo ante'', the previous political state of society, which that person believes possessed positive characteristics abse ...

. On the night of March 31, 1933, with the support of the

National Police National Police may refer to the national police forces of several countries: *Afghanistan: Afghan National Police *Haiti: Haitian National Police *Colombia: National Police of Colombia *Cuba: Cuban National Police *East Timor: National Police of ...

, led by Baldomir Ferrari, the Armed Forces, more than 70% of the Batllismo with the former presidents Claudio Williman,

José Serrato José Serrato (September 30, 1868 – September 7, 1960) was a politician who was elected President of Uruguay. Background Serrato was a prominent member of the Uruguayan Colorado Party which had long dominated the politics of the country. H ...

, Juan Campisteguy, the Vierismo, the Riverismo and the majority sector of the National Party, led by

, carried out a

coup d'état A coup d'état (; French for 'stroke of state'), also known as a coup or overthrow, is a seizure and removal of a government and its powers. Typically, it is an illegal seizure of power by a political faction, politician, cult, rebel group, m ...

by which the National Council of Administration, the

Parliament In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: representing the electorate, making laws, and overseeing the government via hearings and inquiries. Th ...

and the Chamber of Senators. The period inaugurated by said coup is known as " Terra's dictatorship", named by the putschists as "Third Republic" or "March Government", who give the Coup d'etat the name of "

Revolution In political science, a revolution (Latin: ''revolutio'', "a turn around") is a fundamental and relatively sudden change in political power and political organization which occurs when the population revolts against the government, typically due ...

of March". He established a traditionalist and

anti-liberal Liberalism is a political and moral philosophy based on the rights of the individual, liberty, consent of the governed, political equality and equality before the law."political rationalism, hostility to autocracy, cultural distaste for c ...

government that was opposed by Batllismo, the Independent Whites ( liberals), the Socialist Party of Uruguay and the Communist Party of Uruguay ( Left). In 1934 he promulgated a new Political Constitution of a presidential character, which was in full force until 1942, it restricted the immigration of "alcoholics, mentally ill and disabled", decriminalized the homosexuality, recognized new

Rights Rights are legal, social, or ethical principles of freedom or entitlement; that is, rights are the fundamental normative rules about what is allowed of people or owed to people according to some legal system, social convention, or ethical theory ...

that the State should guarantee, such as the

Right to strike Strike action, also called labor strike, labour strike, or simply strike, is a work stoppage caused by the mass refusal of employees to work. A strike usually takes place in response to employee grievances. Strikes became common during the In ...

Right to housing The right to housing (occasionally right to shelter) is the economic, social and cultural right to adequate housing and shelter. It is recognized in some national constitutions and in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and International ...

Right to work The right to work is the concept that people have a human right to work, or engage in productive employment, and should not be prevented from doing so. The right to work is enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and recognized ...

Right to health The right to health is the economic, social, and cultural right to a universal minimum standard of health to which all individuals are entitled. The concept of a right to health has been enumerated in international agreements which include the U ...

Right to food The right to food, and its variations, is a human right protecting the right of people to feed themselves in dignity, implying that sufficient food is available, that people have the means to access it, and that it adequately meets the individual ...

, Protection of Children and the family, Equality between both sexes, women's vote, increased State control in the economy, with new sections and articles for the Autonomous Entities and Decentralized Services, the State Comptroller on Trusted Capitals and Oligopolies and the Prohibition of Usury. He was elected Constitutional President again for the period 1934-1938, and held office until June 19, 1938.

Economic and financial policy and international relations

During his mandate an aggressive import substitution industrialization policy was developed, between 1933 and 1938 the industry grew by 60%, more than 11,000 new factories were founded, important public works were carried out, such as a massive program of roads and workers' housing to Through the

Ministry of Public Works This list indicates government departments in various countries dedicated to public works or infrastructure. See also * Public works * Ministry or Board of Public Works, the imperial Chinese ministry overseeing public projects from the Tang ...

, the "National Institute of Affordable Housing" was creat

by 1938 a powerful middle class was created, the agro-export model was completely replaced by that of

Import Substitution Industrialization Import substitution industrialization (ISI) is a trade and economic policy that advocates replacing foreign imports with domestic production.''A Comprehensive Dictionary of Economics'' p.88, ed. Nelson Brian 2009. It is based on the premise that ...

, poverty and unemployment were eliminate
fascism-uruguay-testimony-luigi-federzoni.html,
It carried out programs for the modernization of agricultural production, the elimination of hunger and the subdivision of the land, with the creation of the Ministry of Livestock, Agriculture and Fisheries, the "Institute National Scientific Food of the People", the "Compulsory Cultivation Law", the "Field Distribution Law", granted more than 2,000 poor families, fields and elements for production, among more than 2,300 nationally manufactured tractors and plows For 1937, agricultural production increased the cultivated area by 351,000 hectares and gave work to 31,000 more people than at the beginning of the dictatorship. In 1933, it created the free school canteens of the

Ministry of Education and Culture The Ministry of Education and Culture is a Cabinet position in the governments of several nations. In some nations the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Culture are separate departments; in others, the Ministry of Education and Culture als ...

in all public primary schools in the country. His sayings about the Jewish people and international finance, in one of his long radio-conferences, are recorded on page 310 of the book "Gabriel Terra: The Man, The Politician, The Ruler" by General Dr. José Luciano Martínez. The

financial system A financial system is a system that allows the exchange of funds between financial market participants such as lenders, investors, and borrowers. Financial systems operate at national and global levels. Financial institutions consist of complex, ...

was reformed through the approval of the "Revaluation Law", the issuance of credit and the commercial activity of the

banking A bank is a financial institution that accepts deposits from the public and creates a demand deposit while simultaneously making loans. Lending activities can be directly performed by the bank or indirectly through capital markets. Becau ...

was 100% monopolized by the "Issuance Department" created in 1935, based on article 51 of the 1934 Constitution ("All types of usury are prohibited"). On April 14, 1933, debt collection was eliminated, benefiting especially small and medium-sized rural producers, amortized debts, canceled the payment of 55,000,000 of external credits and fixed all interests at 4% per year through Law 9,071. It did not ask for external credits, in 1935 it paid the debt with

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

, in 1936 with

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

and by 1938 it paid all the

external debt A country's gross external debt (or foreign debt) is the liabilities that are owed to nonresidents by residents. The debtors can be governments, corporations or citizens. External debt may be denominated in domestic or foreign currency. It inclu ...

of Uruguay, which constituted 61,000.00 of

pesos The peso is the monetary unit of several countries in the Americas, and the Philippines. Originating in the Spanish Empire, the word translates to "weight". In most countries the peso uses the same sign, "$", as many currencies named "dollar" ...

incurred since the

Great War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

in the century XIX, until 1933.

taxes A tax is a compulsory financial charge or some other type of levy imposed on a taxpayer (an individual or legal entity) by a governmental organization in order to fund government spending and various public expenditures (regional, local, o ...

were reduced, all taxes on those who earned less than 100

per month, between 1934 and 1938 the administration had significant surpluses, such as 9.65% in 1935.

Sources

Geneall

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Terra, Gabriel People from Montevideo Presidents of the Chamber of Representatives of Uruguay Presidents of Uruguay 20th-century Uruguayan lawyers Education and Culture Ministers of Uruguay 1873 births 1942 deaths Colorado Party (Uruguay) politicians Uruguayan anti-communists Uruguayan bankers Collars of the Order of the White Lion