Emilio Prud'Homme y Maduro (August 20, 1856 - July 21, 1932) was a Dominican lawyer, writer, and educator. Prud'Homme is known for having authored the lyrics of the Dominican national anthem. He is also attributed with helping establish a national identity, for what was at the time a nascent

republic A republic, based on the Latin phrase ''res publica'' ('public affair' or 'people's affair'), is a State (polity), state in which Power (social and political), political power rests with the public (people), typically through their Representat ...

Biography

Emilio Prud'Homme was born in Puerto Plata,

Dominican Republic The Dominican Republic is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles of the Caribbean Sea in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean. It shares a Maritime boundary, maritime border with Puerto Rico to the east and ...

on August 20, 1856, to Ana Maduro and Gen. Pedro Prud'Homme. He had a brother, Lorenzo Fenelón Prud'Homme. Prud'Homme excelled in teaching, an activity to which he devoted most of his life. He was a great collaborator and disciple of

Eugenio María de Hostos Eugenio María de Hostos y de Bonilla (January 11, 1839 – August 11, 1903), known as ("The Great Citizen of the Americas"), was a Puerto Rico, Puerto Rican educator, philosopher, intellectual, lawyer, sociologist, novelist, and Puerto Rican ...

and taught at "Perserevancia of Azua" and also in the "Liceo Dominicano" in 1892 and was director of the " Normal School", a teaching college founded by Hostos in 1880. He married Manuela Batista on August 19, 1880, and had one daughter: Ana Emilia Prud'Homme.

Politics

Prud'Homme was a

legislator A legislator, or lawmaker, is a person who writes and passes laws, especially someone who is a member of a legislature. Legislators are often elected by the people, but they can be appointed, or hereditary. Legislatures may be supra-nat ...

in the

Congress of the Dominican Republic The Congress of the Dominican Republic () is the bicameral legislature of the government of the Dominican Republic, consisting of two houses, the Senate and the Chamber of Deputies. Both senators and deputies are chosen through direct election. T ...

. He served as the

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: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...

Chamber of Deputies of the Dominican Republic The Chamber of Deputies () is the lower house of the Congress of the Dominican Republic. Together, it and the Senate of the Dominican Republic, Senate comprise the legislature of the Dominican Republic. The composition and powers of the House a ...

in 1900 and 1901. He also served as the Secretary of Justice and Social Instruction in the administration of Francisco Henríquez y Carvajal. Prud’Homme was publicly critical of the United States occupation and as a result was forced to resign his teaching post. As a result, he pursued a career as a lawyer.

Writing career

Most of his literary works were directed to the exaltation of patriotic values, respect and love for the defense of sovereignty and national independence. His

magnum opus A masterpiece, , or ; ; ) is a creation that has been given much critical praise, especially one that is considered the greatest work of a person's career or a work of outstanding creativity, skill, profundity, or workmanship. Historically, ...

being the Dominican National Anthem, which was written in 1883, with music by

José Rufino Reyes y Siancas José Rufino Reyes y Siancas, also known as Jose Reyes (November 15, 1836 – January 31, 1905) was a Dominican composer, best known for composing the current Dominican national anthem. Among his other works are compositions of waltzes and ma ...

. He later modified his work in 1897, when it began to be used at official state functions. Yet, it was not officially the National Anthem until 1934, when then dictator

Rafael Leónidas Trujillo Rafael Leónidas Trujillo Molina ( ; ; 24 October 1891 – 30 May 1961), nicknamed ''El Jefe'' (; "the boss"), was a Dominican military officer and dictator who ruled the Dominican Republic from August 1930 until his assassination in May 1961 ...

consecrated it as a national symbol and made mandatory its use at state and public functions.

Bibliography

* "El 16 de agosto" ("The 16th of August") * "A la juventud dominicana" ("To the Dominican youth") * "A mi Patria" ("To my homeland") * "Déjame soñar" ("Let me dream") * "Mi tierra mía" ("My land mine") * " Himno Nacional Dominicano" * "Gloria a la idea" ("Glory be to the idea") * "Contra hibridismo" ("Against hybridism") * "A Bolívar" ("To Bolívar") * "Canto a América" ("Song of America")

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Prudhomme, Emilio 1856 births 1932 deaths 19th-century Dominican Republic writers 20th-century Dominican Republic writers 20th-century Dominican Republic lawyers 19th-century Dominican Republic politicians 20th-century Dominican Republic politicians Dominican Republic male writers Dominican Republic people of French descent National anthem writers People from Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic Presidents of the Chamber of Deputies of the Dominican Republic Justice ministers of the Dominican Republic White Dominicans