José Francisco Barrundia y Cepeda (May 12, 1787,

Guatemala City Guatemala City (, also known colloquially by the nickname Guate), is the Capital city, national capital and largest city of the Guatemala, Republic of Guatemala. It is also the Municipalities of Guatemala, municipal capital of the Guatemala Depa ...

– August 4, 1854,

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

) was a liberal

Central America Central America is a subregion of North America. Its political boundaries are defined as bordering Mexico to the north, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the southwest. Central America is usually ...

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 ...

. From June 26, 1829 to September 16, 1830 he was interim president of the

Federal Republic of Central America The Federal Republic of Central America (), initially known as the United Provinces of Central America (), was a sovereign state in Central America that existed between 1823 and 1839/1841. The republic was composed of five states (Costa Rica ...

Background

Barrundia was born in

Guatemala Guatemala, officially the Republic of Guatemala, is a country in Central America. It is bordered to the north and west by Mexico, to the northeast by Belize, to the east by Honduras, and to the southeast by El Salvador. It is hydrologically b ...

. He studied at the Colegio Tridentino, where he became a bachelor of philosophy on March 19, 1803. His brother Juan Barrundia was head of the province of Guatemala in 1829. José Barrundia was considered an outstanding intellectual and man of letters, fluent in several languages. He translated into Spanish the Livingston Code (penal code of

Louisiana Louisiana ( ; ; ) is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It borders Texas to the west, Arkansas to the north, and Mississippi to the east. Of the 50 U.S. states, it ranks 31st in area and 25 ...

) in order to adapt it to the country. He was a populist member of the Central American Congress and in his later career he served as minister plenipotentiary of Honduras in New York City.

Political career and presidency

In 1825 he was elected the first vice president of the United Provinces of Central America, under Manuel José Arce, but he declined the office. He did serve as senator. From Congress he criticized the increasing conservatism of Arce. In 1826 Arce unconstitutionally dissolved the Congress, and this led to civil war. He was a strong supporter of Honduran liberal Francisco Morazán. With the fall of Arce and the triumph of Morazán, Barrundia became interim president of the United Provinces (July 1829), with a mandate to organize elections. Elections were held in July 1830, and in September Morazán succeeded him as president.

After serving as president

From 1831 to 1835 he was secretary of education of the state government of Guatemala, under Mariano Gálvez. It was during this time that he translated the Livingston Code. However, he became estranged from Gálvez, and in 1838 contributed to his fall from power. This led to the ascent of Conservative

Rafael Carrera José Rafael Carrera y Turcios (24 October 1814 – 14 April 1865) was the president of Guatemala from 1844 to 1848 and from 1851 until his death in 1865, after being appointed President for life in 1854. He ruled during the establishment of ne ...

. In 1839 he proposed to the Guatemalan Congress the withdrawal of the state from the Central American Federation. This was approved by Congress. In 1848 he founded the newspaper ''Album Republicano''. A strong supporter of human rights, in 1850 he opposed Carrera, because of his bloody regime and his ignorance. He also challenged the influence of the Church. Before his death he became minister of

Honduras Honduras, officially the Republic of Honduras, is a country in Central America. It is bordered to the west by Guatemala, to the southwest by El Salvador, to the southeast by Nicaragua, to the south by the Pacific Ocean at the Gulf of Fonseca, ...

, negotiating in

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

for annexation to the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. Though not a rich man, Barrundia refused his salary for the public positions he held. He died in New York in 1854 while serving as Honduran minister plenipotentiary. Guatemalan President

Manuel Estrada Cabrera Manuel José Estrada Cabrera (21 November 1857 – 24 September 1924) was the President of Guatemala from 1898 to 1920. A lawyer with no military background, he modernised the country's industry and transportation infrastructure, via granting c ...

had his remains repatriated in 1913.

External links

Short biography

{{DEFAULTSORT:Barrundia, Jose Francisco 1787 births 1854 deaths Politicians from Guatemala City Honduran politicians English–Spanish translators Heads of state of the Federal Republic of Central America 19th-century translators Members of the Federal Congress of the Federal Republic of Central America People from New Spain