Federico Chaves Careaga (February 15, 1882 – April 24, 1978) was a

Paraguay Paraguay, officially the Republic of Paraguay, is a landlocked country in South America. It is bordered by Argentina to the Argentina–Paraguay border, south and southwest, Brazil to the Brazil–Paraguay border, east and northeast, and Boli ...

politician A politician is a person who participates in Public policy, policy-making processes, usually holding an elective position in government. Politicians represent the people, make decisions, and influence the formulation of public policy. The roles ...

and

soldier A soldier is a person who is a member of an army. A soldier can be a Conscription, conscripted or volunteer Enlisted rank, enlisted person, a non-commissioned officer, a warrant officer, or an Officer (armed forces), officer. Etymology The wo ...

who served as

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 ...

from September 10, 1949, to May 4, 1954. He was a member of the Colorado Party.

Early life

Chaves was born on February 15, 1882, in Paraguarí. His parents were the Portuguese Federico Chaves and his wife Felicia Careaga, from Guaira, Paraguay.

Political history

Chaves, who received his

law degree A law degree is an academic degree conferred for studies in law. Some law degrees are professional degrees that are prerequisites or serve as preparation for legal careers. These generally include the Bachelor of Civil Law, Bachelor of Laws, an ...

in 1905, was a longtime leader of the right-of-centre National Republican Association, better known as the Colorado Party. When his party served in a coalition

government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a State (polity), state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive (government), execu ...

in 1946, Chaves was appointed to the

Supreme Court In most legal jurisdictions, a supreme court, also known as a court of last resort, apex court, high (or final) court of appeal, and court of final appeal, is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...

. He served as Paraguay's

foreign minister In many countries, the ministry of foreign affairs (abbreviated as MFA or MOFA) is the highest government department exclusively or primarily responsible for the state's foreign policy and relations, diplomacy, bilateral, and multilateral r ...

from 1947. He was elected in April 1949 as President of the Chamber of Representatives,Archived copy
and kept that post until he became president in September 1949. He was elected for a three-year term in 1950 and later reelected in 1953. When Chaves tried to strengthen his regime by arming the national police in 1954, a

coup d'état A coup d'état (; ; ), or simply a coup , is typically an illegal and overt attempt by a military organization or other government elites to unseat an incumbent leadership. A self-coup is said to take place when a leader, having come to powe ...

led by General

Alfredo Stroessner Alfredo Stroessner Matiauda (; 3 November 1912 – 16 August 2006) was a Paraguayan politician, army general and Military dictatorship, military dictator who ruled as the 42nd president of Paraguay from 15 August 1954 until his overthrow in 19 ...

on May 4 ended his administration.

Death

Chaves died on 24 April 1978 at the age of 96 in the city of

Asunción Asunción (, ) is the capital and the largest city of Paraguay. The city stands on the eastern bank of the Paraguay River, almost at the confluence of this river with the Pilcomayo River. The Paraguay River and the Bay of Asunción in the north ...

, from natural causes. He was buried with full state honours; Stroessner attended the services. From the death of Ecuadorian President Isidro Ayora on 22 March 1978 until his own death, he was the oldest living state leader.

References

1882 births 1978 deaths Paraguayan people of Portuguese descent People from Paraguarí Colorado Party (Paraguay) politicians 20th-century presidents of Paraguay Paraguayan soldiers Leaders ousted by a coup Presidents of the Chamber of Deputies of Paraguay Government ministers of Paraguay Justices of the Supreme Court of Paraguay Ministers of foreign affairs of Paraguay {{Paraguay-mil-bio-stub