José María Rojas Garrido (June 7, 1824 – July 18, 1883) was a Colombian

Senator A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

, and statesmen, who as the first

Presidential Designate The Presidential Designate ( es, Designado Presidencial) was a Colombian elected official, chosen by the Senate to ensure the presidential line of succession. The title of Presidential Designate did not bring any official office or duties, its sole ...

became Acting President of the United States of Colombia (now the Republic of

Colombia Colombia (, ; ), officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country in South America with insular regions in North America—near Nicaragua's Caribbean coast—as well as in the Pacific Ocean. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Car ...

) in 1866 during the absence of

President elect An ''officer-elect'' is a person who has been elected to a position but has not yet been installed. Notably, a president who has been elected but not yet installed would be referred to as a ''president-elect'' (e.g. president-elect of the Unit ...

Tomás Cipriano de Mosquera Tomás Cipriano Ignacio María de Mosquera-Figueroa y Arboleda-Salazar (September 26, 1798 – October 7, 1878) was a Colombian general, political figure. He was president of Colombia four times. The first time was as president of Republic of N ...

. He was a prominent journalist for several

Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. __TOC__ Active liberal parties This is a li ...

newspapers, and is considered one of the most important

orators Public speaking, also called oratory or oration, has traditionally meant the act of speaking face to face to a live audience. Today it includes any form of speaking (formally and informally) to an audience, including pre-recorded speech deliver ...

in Colombia's history.

Political career

José María Rojas Garrido had a wide and extensive political career, serving at the Local,

Departmental ''Departmental'' is a 1980 Australian TV movie based on a play by Mervyn Rutherford. It was part of the ABC's Australian Theatre Festival.Ed. Scott Murray, ''Australia on the Small Screen 1970-1995'', Oxford Uni Press, 1996 p43 Reviews were poor ...

and National levels, and in the

Legislative A legislature is an assembly with the authority to make laws for a political entity such as a country or city. They are often contrasted with the executive and judicial powers of government. Laws enacted by legislatures are usually known as p ...

Executive Executive ( exe., exec., execu.) may refer to: Role or title * Executive, a senior management role in an organization ** Chief executive officer (CEO), one of the highest-ranking corporate officers (executives) or administrators ** Executive dire ...

and Judicial branches of the National Government.

Early political career

Rojas Garrido received his

Doctorate A doctorate (from Latin ''docere'', "to teach"), doctor's degree (from Latin ''doctor'', "teacher"), or doctoral degree is an academic degree awarded by universities and some other educational institutions, derived from the ancient formalism ''l ...

Jurisprudence Jurisprudence, or legal theory, is the theoretical study of the propriety of law. Scholars of jurisprudence seek to explain the nature of law in its most general form and they also seek to achieve a deeper understanding of legal reasoning a ...

in 1847 from the ''Colegio de San Bartolomé''. In 1851 he was appointed Governor of the Province on Neiva by his close friend President

José Hilario López José Hilario López Valdés (18 February 1798, Popayán, Cauca – 27 November 1869, Campoalegre, Huila) was a Colombian politician and military officer. He was the President of Colombia between 1849 and 1853.Arismendi Posada, Ignacio; ...

. In 1856 he was elected to the Chamber of Representatives for the State of Antioquia, and shortly after was appointed

Chargé d'affaires A ''chargé d'affaires'' (), plural ''chargés d'affaires'', often shortened to ''chargé'' (French) and sometimes in colloquial English to ''charge-D'', is a diplomat who serves as an embassy's chief of mission in the absence of the ambassador ...

Venezuela Venezuela (; ), officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ( es, link=no, República Bolivariana de Venezuela), is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many islands and islets in th ...

by President

José María Obando José María Ramón Obando del Campo (August 8, 1795 – April 29, 1861) was a Neogranadine General and politician who twice served as President of Colombia. As a General, he initially fought for the Royalist Army during the Independence Wars o ...

. Rojas Garrido had a very close relationship with General Mosquera, they were close friends, and Rojas Garrido was appointed four times to the

Ministry of Foreign Affairs In many countries, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is the government department responsible for the state's diplomacy, bilateral, and multilateral relations affairs as well as for providing support for a country's citizens who are abroad. The entit ...

four times, during the various administrations of Mosquera. In 1861 he served as Governor of the Province of Bogotá, and in 1862 served as

Deputy Deputy or depute may refer to: * Steward (office) * Khalifa, an Arabic title that can signify "deputy" * Deputy (legislator), a legislator in many countries and regions, including: ** A member of a Chamber of Deputies, for example in Italy, Spai ...

in the Antioquia State Assembly, and from 1862 to 1863 he regained the office of Secretary of Foreign Affairs, having this time also control of the Ministry of War and Navy. In 1864 he returned to Venezuela this time as

Minister Plenipotentiary An envoy extraordinary and minister plenipotentiary, usually known as a minister, was a diplomatic head of mission who was ranked below ambassador. A diplomatic mission headed by an envoy was known as a legation rather than an embassy. Under th ...

and Special Commissioner. When he returned return to New Granada he was elected by Congress to the

Supreme Court of Colombia The Supreme Court of Justice of Colombia ( es, Corte Suprema de Justicia de Colombia) in Bogotá is the highest judicial body in civil and penal matters and issues of criminal and civil procedure in Colombia. The Supreme Court of Colombia is th ...

Presidency 1865

In 1866, former President General

was elected once again to the Presidency. On February 17, 1866, Congress held elections for the Presidential Delegates for that

calendar year Generally speaking, a calendar year begins on the New Year's Day of the given calendar system and ends on the day before the following New Year's Day, and thus consists of a whole number of days. A year can also be measured by starting on any o ...

and elected José María Rojas Garrido First Presidential Designate, and

Santos Acosta Manuel María de los Santos Acosta Castillo (November 1, 1828 – January 9, 1901) was a Colombian General and political figure. He served as the president of Colombia from 1867 until 1868. Biographic data Acosta was born in Miraflores, Boya ...

, and Marcelino Gutierrez as the Second and Third Presidential Designates. The Presidential Delegates were those who because of the abolishment of the office of Vice President were in line to succeed the President in his absence. The title did not carry an official office, but because General Mosquera was in Europe at the time, Rojas Garrido assumed the office of the Presidency on April 1, 1866,

acting Acting is an activity in which a story is told by means of its enactment by an actor or actress who adopts a character—in theatre, television, film, radio, or any other medium that makes use of the mimetic mode. Acting involves a broad r ...

in the absence of the

President Elect An ''officer-elect'' is a person who has been elected to a position but has not yet been installed. Notably, a president who has been elected but not yet installed would be referred to as a ''president-elect'' (e.g. president-elect of the Unit ...

as the 3rd President of the United States of Colombia, until May 22, 1866 when General Mosquera returned to the country and was sworn in.

Post presidency

After ceding power, José María Rojas Garrido remained an active advisor to the President being appointed one last time as Secretary of Foreign Affairs. He was later re-elected as Magistrate to the Supreme Court in 1870, and in 1872, Rojas Garrido ran an unsuccessful bid for the Presidency, losing the election to

Manuel Murillo Toro Manuel Murillo Toro (January 1, 1816–December 26, 1880) was a Colombian statesman who served as President of the United States of Colombia (present day Colombia) on two occasions, first from 1864 to 1866, and again between 1872 and 1874.A ...

. José María Rojas Garrido remained in the Supreme Court until his death on July 18, 1883 in

Bogotá Bogotá (, also , , ), officially Bogotá, Distrito Capital, abbreviated Bogotá, D.C., and formerly known as Santa Fe de Bogotá (; ) during the Spanish period and between 1991 and 2000, is the capital city of Colombia, and one of the larges ...

because of a

pulmonary congestion Pulmonary edema, also known as pulmonary congestion, is excessive liquid accumulation in the tissue and air spaces (usually alveoli) of the lungs. It leads to impaired gas exchange and may cause hypoxemia and respiratory failure. It is due t ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rojas Garrido, Jose Maria 1824 births 1883 deaths Ambassadors of Colombia to Venezuela Colombian governors Colombian journalists Male journalists 19th-century Colombian judges Magistrates of the Supreme Court of Justice of Colombia Colombian Liberal Party politicians Members of the Chamber of Representatives of Colombia Presidents of Colombia Presidential Designates of Colombia People from Huila Department 19th-century journalists 19th-century male writers

Political career

Early political career

Presidency 1865

Post presidency

See also

References