Francisco Antonio Paúl Terreros, better known as Coto Paúl, (2 August 1773 – 1821) was a lawyer, orator, and officer who fought in the

Venezuelan War of Independence The Venezuelan War of Independence (, 1810–1823) was one of the Spanish American wars of independence of the early nineteenth century, when independence movements in South America fought a civil war for secession and against unity of the S ...

. A member of the Patriotic Society, he served in administrative roles in the

First Republic of Venezuela The First Republic of Venezuela () was the first independent government of Venezuela, lasting from 5 July 1811, to 25 July 1812. The period of the First Republic began with the overthrow of the Spanish colonial authorities and the establishment ...

Second Republic of Venezuela The Second Republic of Venezuela () is the name used to refer to the reestablished Venezuelan Republic declared by Simón Bolívar on 7 August 1813. This declaration followed the defeat of Domingo Monteverde by Bolívar during the Admirable Cam ...

, and

United Provinces of New Granada The United Provinces of New Granada was a country in South America from 1810 to 1816, a period known in Colombian history as '' la Patria Boba'' ("the Foolish Fatherland"). It was formed from areas of the New Kingdom of Granada, roughly corres ...

. He served the lattermost until his death from

malaria Malaria is a Mosquito-borne disease, mosquito-borne infectious disease that affects vertebrates and ''Anopheles'' mosquitoes. Human malaria causes Signs and symptoms, symptoms that typically include fever, Fatigue (medical), fatigue, vomitin ...

in 1821. He was nicknamed Coto Paúl because of his

goiter A goitre (British English), or goiter (American English), is a swelling in the neck resulting from an enlarged thyroid gland. A goitre can be associated with a thyroid that is not functioning properly. Worldwide, over 90% of goitre cases are ca ...

, which is sometimes called a ''coto'' in Spanish.

Personal life

Francisco Antonio Paúl Terreros was born on 2 August 1773 in

Caracas Caracas ( , ), officially Santiago de León de Caracas (CCS), is the capital and largest city of Venezuela, and the center of the Metropolitan Region of Caracas (or Greater Caracas). Caracas is located along the Guaire River in the northern p ...

in what was then the

Viceroyalty of New Granada The Viceroyalty of the New Kingdom of Granada ( ), also called Viceroyalty of New Granada or Viceroyalty of Santa Fe, was the name given on 27 May 1717 to the jurisdiction of the Spanish Empire in northern South America, corresponding to modern ...

. He had six siblings, but only he and his brother and fellow revolutionary Felipe Fermín Paúl Terreros received higher education. He studied law at the

University of Caracas A university () is an institution of tertiary education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase , which roughly means "community of teachers and scholars". Univ ...

and became a lawyer in 1807. He had two legitimate daughters, Emilia and Magdalena de Paúl y Almeida.

Career

He joined the Patriotic Society in 1810. When the First Republic of Venezuela was established, he was made the prosecutor of the High Court of Justice and of the Royal Treasury. This state would eventually capitulate, and the Second Republic was formed not long after. Here, Coto Paúl was the Governor of Caracas. He fought at the ,

Battle of Araure The Battle of Araure was fought during the short-lived Second Republic of Venezuela on 5 December 1813, in the city of Araure in Portuguesa State, Venezuela. Simon Bolivar's force defeated General José Ceballos. Prelude After the Admirable ...

, and . After the fall of the Second Republic, he fled to Curacao with other rebels. Returning from exile, he became the War Auditor for the United Provinces of New Granada in the Magdalena Campaign, with his commander

Mariano Montilla Mariano Montilla (8 September 1782 in Caracas – 22 September 1851 in Caracas) was a major general of the Army of Venezuela in the Venezuelan War of Independence. Biography Youth As a young man he went to Spain where he joined the Americ ...

unable to find a suitable military role for him. He did, however, fight in the siege of Cartagena de Indias. He was shortly thereafter infected with malaria and died. At a celebration of the anniversary of the start of the Venezuelan War of Independence hosted by the Patriotic Society, Coto Paúl delivered a now-famous speech where he extolled

anarchism Anarchism is a political philosophy and Political movement, movement that seeks to abolish all institutions that perpetuate authority, coercion, or Social hierarchy, hierarchy, primarily targeting the state (polity), state and capitalism. A ...

. He said: ''El anarquismo en América Latina'' records that Coto Paúl's anarchism may have been influenced by

Sylvain Maréchal Sylvain Maréchal (; 15 August 1750 – 18 January 1803) was a French essayist, poet, philosopher and political theorist, whose views presaged utopian socialism and communism. His views on a future golden age are occasionally described as ''uto ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Paul, Coto Deaths from malaria Venezuelan anarchists 18th-century Venezuelan lawyers 1773 births 1821 deaths Viceroyalty of New Granada people