Tomás Monje Gutierréz (21 December 1884 – 1 July 1954) was a

Bolivian Bolivian may refer to: * Something of, or related to Bolivia ** Bolivian people ** Demographics of Bolivia ** Culture of Bolivia * SS ''Bolivian'', a British-built standard cargo ship A cargo ship or freighter is a merchant ship that carries ...

judge who served as the 41st

president of Bolivia The president of Bolivia ( es, Presidente de Bolivia), officially known as the president of the Plurinational State of Bolivia ( es, Presidente del Estado Plurinacional de Bolivia), is head of state and head of government of Bolivia and the ca ...

on a ''de facto'' interim basis from 1946 to 1947.

Background and earlier career

Born in

Coroico Coroico is a town in Nor Yungas Province, in the La Paz Department, Bolivia, La Paz Department of western Bolivia. History Coroico Viejo (Old Coroico) was founded above the river Quri Wayq'u (Quechua language, Quechua ''quri'' gold, ''wayq'u'' va ...

, La Paz Department, he was a noted intellectual and judge. He served as deputy minister of agriculture 1926-27, after which he was appointed minister of the government and justice. From 1930 until 1936, he was

Attorney general In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general or attorney-general (sometimes abbreviated AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. The plural is attorneys general. In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have exec ...

President of Bolivia

In his capacity as head of the Bolivian Supreme Court, he was named President by the forces that toppled President

Gualberto Villarroel Gualberto Villarroel López (15 December 1908 – 21 July 1946) was a Bolivian military officer who served as the 39th president of Bolivia from 1943 to 1946. A reformist, sometimes compared with Argentina's Juan Perón, he is nonetheless ...

via coup d'état on 21 July, 1946. Monje happened to be ill at the time, however, which is why his deputy,

Néstor Guillén Néstor Guillén Olmos (28 January 1890 – 12 March 1966) was a Bolivian lawyer and politician who served as the 40th president of Bolivia on a de facto interim basis in 1946. Background and earlier career Born in La Paz, Guillén studied l ...

, filled in for him for 27 days, until Monje was well enough to be sworn in August of the same year. Very much a caretaker president, Monje Gutiérrez was in charge with the simple task of calling elections as soon as possible. This done, he transferred power to the winner of the January 1947 elections, the conservative

Enrique Hertzog José Enrique Hertzog Garaizábal (; 10 November 1897, in La Paz – 31 July 1981, in Buenos Aires) was a Bolivian politician who served as the 42nd president of Bolivia from 1947 to 1949. He resigned in 1949, and died in exile in Argentina. ...

Post-Presidency and death

At that point, Monje returned to relative obscurity, dying in

La Paz La Paz (), officially known as Nuestra Señora de La Paz (Spanish pronunciation: ), is the seat of government of the Bolivia, Plurinational State of Bolivia. With an estimated 816,044 residents as of 2020, La Paz is the List of Bolivian cities ...

on 1 July, 1954.

Sources

*Mesa José de; Gisbert, Teresa; and Carlos D. Mesa, "Historia de Bolivia", 3rd edition. pp. 577–578. 1884 births 1954 deaths Presidents of Bolivia 20th-century Bolivian judges People from Nor Yungas Province 20th-century Bolivian politicians {{Bolivia-politician-stub