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José Balta y Montero (25 April 1814 – 26 July 1872) was a Peruvian soldier and politician who served as the 19th
President of Peru The president of Peru (), officially the constitutional president of the Republic of Peru (), is the head of state and head of government of Peru. The president is the head of the executive branch and is the supreme head of the Peruvian Armed ...
from 1868 to 1872. He was the son of John Balta Bru and Agustina Montero Casafranca. In 1865, he aided
Mariano Ignacio Prado Mariano Ignacio Prado Ochoa (18 December 1825 – 5 May 1901) was a Peruvian army general who served as the 17th (1865 - 1868) and 21st (1876 - 1879) President of Peru. Biography Born in Huánuco on 18 December 1825, he studied in Huánuco and ...
in the seizure of the presidency and served in his administration. In 1867, he in turn overthrew Prado. As president, he re-established constitutional rule and undertook vast projects for national improvement. He granted a monopoly of
guano Guano (Spanish from ) is the accumulated excrement of seabirds or bats. Guano is a highly effective fertiliser due to the high content of nitrogen, phosphate, and potassium, all key nutrients essential for plant growth. Guano was also, to a le ...
export to a French company and obtained large loans in Europe, yet the lavish expenditures of his administration plunged Peru deep in debt. Balta was deposed and shot by a disgruntled member of his own cabinet, Defense Minister Tomás Gutiérrez during his subsequent coup d'état attempt.


Early career

José Balta y Montero embraced a military career from an early age. At only 16 years of age he entered the Military College in 1830, from which he graduated three years later with the rank of sergeant. By the age of 38, he already had the rank of colonel. In 1855, he joined the cause of Luis José de Orbegoso (1834), that of Felipe Santiago Salaverry (1835) and the Restoration (1838 to 1839). In 1865, he joined the rebellion of Pedro Diez Canseco and
Mariano Ignacio Prado Mariano Ignacio Prado Ochoa (18 December 1825 – 5 May 1901) was a Peruvian army general who served as the 17th (1865 - 1868) and 21st (1876 - 1879) President of Peru. Biography Born in Huánuco on 18 December 1825, he studied in Huánuco and ...
against President
Juan Antonio Pezet Juan Antonio Pezet y Rodríguez de la Piedra (11 June 1809 – 24 March 1879) was a Peruvian military officer and politician who served in the positions of Secretary of War, First Vice President and the 16th President of Peru. As President ...
. He participated in the Battle of May 2, but the following year he distinguished himself among the opponents of president Prado, who exiled him to Chile. José Balta returned to Peru in 1867 and led a movement against the Prado in Chiclayo, which was echoed in Arequipa, where he rose with General Pedro Diez Canseco. Both refused to swear under the new Constitution of 1860, which was proclaimed in force. Mariano Ignacio Prado, then traveled south to quell the rebellion, but under pressure from both Balta and Diez-Canseco, and exercised by the Congress from Lima, he was forced to resign. The interim presidency fell for the third time and in the general veteran Pedro Diez Canseco became president. Before the first month of his term, on February 6, Diez Canseco called for presidential elections, in which Balta actively campaigned. In that contest, he got 3168 votes, against 384 for Manuel Costas and 153 for his main rival, Manuel Toribio Ureta, who represented the Liberals. Balta wore the presidential sash on 2 August 1868.


Presidency of the Republic

Under his administration, Balta began opening the country to foreign capital.
Nicolás de Piérola José Nicolás Baltasar Fernández de Piérola y Villena (known as "''El Califa''" ("The Caliph"); January 5, 1839 – June 23, 1913) was a Peruvian politician and Minister of Finance of Peru, Minister of Finance who served as the 23rd (1879 ...
, the appointed
Minister of Finance A ministry of finance is a ministry or other government agency in charge of government finance, fiscal policy, and financial regulation. It is headed by a finance minister, an executive or cabinet position . A ministry of finance's portfolio ...
, tried to resolve the financial crisis that choked Peru by surrendering what would become the exploitation of Guano to the French-Jewish company Dreyfus. This put him at odds with the local oligarchy. The money from the agreement was used for the construction of railways and other projects. This was one of the main legacies of the Balta government. By the year 1861, Peru only had a 90-mile railroad system, but by 1874, it became a 947 miles system. At the same time, besides the railroads, several major projects were also realized: new piers on the coasts, major avenues in Lima and new bridges in the coast. One such example is the bridge now named after him, built between 1869 and 1919. However, not having enough money to pay contractors for railway construction, the government began to ask Dreyfus for advances in guano revenues, which led to a large increase in the already huge debt. President José Balta, facing the economic crisis, appointed Nicolás de Piérola, a political conservative and a democrat, as finance minister in 1868. Piérola requested authorization to Congress to negotiate directly (no consignment) the sale of guano abroad in a volume that bordered the two million metric tons. The French Jewish house "Dreyfus Hnos" accepted the proposal. The contract between the Peruvian government and the house Dreyfus was signed on 17 August 1869 and was approved by Congress on 11 November 1870. The contract went ahead despite protests from the Peruvian capitalists or consignees. By 1879, the rail system had 1,963 miles of track.


Elections and murder

In 1871, with very close elections, rumors circulated that Juan Francisco Balta, brother of head of state, and prime minister at the time, would run for president. However, on the advice of
Nicolás de Piérola José Nicolás Baltasar Fernández de Piérola y Villena (known as "''El Califa''" ("The Caliph"); January 5, 1839 – June 23, 1913) was a Peruvian politician and Minister of Finance of Peru, Minister of Finance who served as the 23rd (1879 ...
, this did not happen. Balta, therefore, decided to support the candidacy of former President José Rufino Echenique, but he too declined nomination. Finally, the third candidate, Antonio Arenas was the one who received the full support of Balta. The contenders were Manuel Toribio Ureta Arenas, who was a repeat candidate, and Manuel Pardo y Lavalle, then Supreme Prosecutor. The latter's campaign was overwhelming, and in 1872 was established as the first civilian president in the history of the Republic of Peru. Although José Balta had been tempted to remain in power by the Gutiérrez brothers (Tomás, who was Minister of War, and his brothers Silvestre, Marceliano and Marcelino, all with the rank of Colonel and commanding several battalions), he ultimately declined to do so, a situation rare in the history of Peru. That year, 1872, July 22, Tomas Gutiérrez, the then minister, led a
rebellion Rebellion is an uprising that resists and is organized against one's government. A rebel is a person who engages in a rebellion. A rebel group is a consciously coordinated group that seeks to gain political control over an entire state or a ...
to proclaim himself Supreme Head of the Republic. That same day, President Balta was taken prisoner when he went to meet with Miguel Grau Seminario and Aurelio García y García, the two highest ranking naval officers at the time. Through the mediation of these two great military men, the Navy did not provide support for the rebellion of Tomas Gutiérrez, and did not recognize his government, sending out the entire squadron out to sea in order to prevent ships from falling into the plotters' hands. Likewise, Lima's population disagreed, and one of the conspirator brothers, Silvestre Gutiérrez, died on 22 July 1872 in one of the many skirmishes in the capital. In retaliation for his brother's death, Marceliano Gutiérrez gave order to kill José Balta y Montero; he was shot in his bed by three lower-ranked officers. This led some days later to the overthrow and brutal
lynching Lynching is an extrajudicial killing by a group. It is most often used to characterize informal public executions by a mob in order to punish an alleged or convicted transgressor or to intimidate others. It can also be an extreme form of i ...
of Tomás Gutiérrez, whose body was hanged from a high tower and then dropped hard on the street, and then set on fire along with the corpses of Silvestre and Marceliano. (Marcelino, who had only half-heartedly supported his brothers, was jailed and stripped of his military honours, and only redeemed himself by fighting in the
War of the Pacific The War of the Pacific (), also known by War of the Pacific#Etymology, multiple other names, was a war between Chile and a Treaty of Defensive Alliance (Bolivia–Peru), Bolivian–Peruvian alliance from 1879 to 1884. Fought over Atacama Desert ...
against
Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in western South America. It is the southernmost country in the world and the closest to Antarctica, stretching along a narrow strip of land between the Andes, Andes Mountains and the Paci ...
). In the 1990 presidential election, Colonel Balta's great-grandsonNicolás de Piérola Balta
/ref> Nicolás de Piérola Balta (also a great-grand nephew of President
Nicolás de Piérola José Nicolás Baltasar Fernández de Piérola y Villena (known as "''El Califa''" ("The Caliph"); January 5, 1839 – June 23, 1913) was a Peruvian politician and Minister of Finance of Peru, Minister of Finance who served as the 23rd (1879 ...
) was a candidate.


Work and legacy

# In 1869 he founded the School of Agriculture. # Founded Ancón and constitutional province of Tarapacá. # Construction of pier dock in Callao. # Construction of the Lima-Callao and Lima-Huacho. # Salaverry Port Trust. # Construction of the " Palace of the Exhibition", currently the Museum of Art. # Founded the neighborhood of La Victoria. # He built the Cathedral of San Marcos de Arica, and the office of the same city (now Chile).


External links


Genealogy and family tree of the Balta family from Peru (Spanish)


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Balta, Jose 1814 births 1872 deaths Balta family Peruvian people of Catalan descent Peruvian people of Spanish descent Presidents of Peru Executed presidents Assassinated Peruvian politicians Deaths by firearm in Peru People murdered in Peru Politicians assassinated in the 1870s Assassinated presidents in South America National presidents assassinated in the 19th century