Julián Castro Contreras (c. 1810 – 12 June 1875) was a Venezuelan military officer and the
president of Venezuela between 1858 and 1859.
Biography
He was presumably born in
Petare
Dulce Nombre de Jesus de Petare is a neighborhood in Miranda, Venezuela, and is part of the Metropolitan District of Caracas. It is located in the Sucre Municipality, one of the five divisions of Caracas. The city was founded in 1621 under ...
, although this date is not certain. His parents were Juan Manuel Castro and Margarita Contreras. He had a brother, Castro. He joined the
Army
An army (from Old French ''armee'', itself derived from the Latin verb ''armāre'', meaning "to arm", and related to the Latin noun ''arma'', meaning "arms" or "weapons"), ground force or land force is a fighting force that fights primarily on ...
and in 1830 held the rank of Alférez (
Second Lieutenant
Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces, comparable to NATO OF-1 rank.
Australia
The rank of second lieutenant existed in the military forces of the Australian colonies and Australian Army until 1 ...
in modern military hierarchy). In 1835, as
Captain
Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...
, he took part in the
Revolution of Reforms
In political science, a revolution ( Latin: ''revolutio'', "a turn around") is a fundamental and relatively sudden change in political power and political organization which occurs when the population revolts against the government, typically d ...
which withdrew President
José María Vargas
José María Vargas Ponce (10 March 1786, in La Guaira – 13 April 1854, in New York City) was the president of Venezuela
The president of Venezuela ( es, Presidente de Venezuela), officially known as the President of the Bolivarian Rep ...
from power. Defeated in the coup, he was imprisoned, but released some years later. Then he and his brother moved to Bejuma (
Carabobo
, anthem = ''Carabobo State Anthem, Himno del Estado Carabobo''
, image_map = Carabobo in Venezuela.svg
, map_alt =
, map_caption = Location within Venezuela
, pushpin_map ...
State). He married María Nieves Briceño, natural daughter of
José Laurencio Silva, a hero of the
Venezuelan War of Independence
The Venezuelan War of Independence ( es, Guerra de Independencia de Venezuela, links=no, 1810–1823) was one of the Spanish American wars of independence of the early nineteenth century, when independence movements in Latin America fought aga ...
, and had four sons: Julián, , Ramón and Francisco de Paula.
From the rise of
José Tadeo Monagas
José Tadeo Monagas Burgos (28 October 1784 – 18 November 1868) was the president of Venezuela 1847–1851 and 1855–1858, and a hero of the Venezuelan War of Independence.
Career
Presidency
In 1846, to head off the challenge from the Libe ...
to the Presidency in 1847, Castro began to be promoted in the military system. In 1849 he was promoted to Commander (now Major). In 1849 he was commissioned to fight against
José Antonio Páez
José Antonio Páez Herrera (; 13 June 1790 – 6 May 1873) was a Venezuelan leader who fought against the Spanish Crown for Simón Bolívar during the Venezuelan War of Independence. He later led Venezuela's independence from Gran Colombia.
H ...
, who led an insurrection against Monagas, and gained some reputation for courage. After several promotions, he rose to the rank of General de Brigada (
Brigadier General
Brigadier general or Brigade general is a military rank used in many countries. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries. The rank is usually above a colonel, and below a major general or divisional general. When appointed t ...
) in 1853; the next year, he was appointed Military Commander (Comandante de Armas) of
Valencia
Valencia ( va, València) is the capital of the autonomous community of Valencia and the third-most populated municipality in Spain, with 791,413 inhabitants. It is also the capital of the province of the same name. The wider urban area al ...
.
In April 1856 Monagas appointed Castro as Governor of
Carabobo
, anthem = ''Carabobo State Anthem, Himno del Estado Carabobo''
, image_map = Carabobo in Venezuela.svg
, map_alt =
, map_caption = Location within Venezuela
, pushpin_map ...
and promoted him to General de División (
Major General
Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of a ...
). In March 1858 he led a movement against Monagas, who quit as president on 15 March. Castro became president on 18 March. His presidency was troubled, with scandals (the
Urrutia Protocol affair, among others), coup attempts, and the beginning of the
Federal War
The Federal War ( es, Guerra Federal) — also known as the Great War or the Five Year War — was a civil war (1859–1863) in Venezuela between the Conservative party and the Liberal party over the monopoly the Conservatives held over govern ...
(February 1859), led by
Ezequiel Zamora
Ezequiel Zamora (; 1 February 1817 – 10 January 1860) was a Venezuelan soldier, and leader of the Federalists in the Federal War ''(Guerra Federal)'' of 1859–1863.
Biography
Zamora was born in Cúa, Miranda State. His parents were Aleja ...
and
Juan Crisóstomo Falcón
Juan Crisóstomo Falcón Zavarce (27 January 1820 – 29 April 1870) was the president of Venezuela from 1863 to 1868.[Caracas
Caracas (, ), officially Santiago de León de Caracas, abbreviated as 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 ...](_blank)
, Manuel de las Casas, and forced to resign. He remained in prison and was tried by the Venezuelan Congress in July 1860, who found him guilty of treason, but did not punish him. After the trial, Castro left Venezuela.
Castro returned to Venezuela in 1870, just before the
Revolution of April led by
Antonio Guzmán He joined it and remained in the Venezuelan Army until his death. He died in
Valencia
Valencia ( va, València) is the capital of the autonomous community of Valencia and the third-most populated municipality in Spain, with 791,413 inhabitants. It is also the capital of the province of the same name. The wider urban area al ...
, on 12 June 1875.
Personal life
Julián Castro was married to María Nieves Briceño who served as
First Lady of Venezuela from 1858 to 1859.
File:María Nieves de Castro.jpg, María Nieves Briceño
See also
*
Presidents of Venezuela
Under the Venezuelan Constitution, the president of Venezuela is the head of state and head of government of Venezuela. As chief of the executive branch and face of the government as a whole, the presidency is the highest political office in ...
References
*
External links
Julián Castro Biography
{{DEFAULTSORT:Castro, Julian
1810 births
1875 deaths
People from Miranda (state)
People of the Federal War
Presidents of Venezuela
Venezuelan soldiers
Venezuelan people of Spanish descent
Great Liberal Party of Venezuela politicians
Conservative Party (Venezuela) politicians