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General Francisco Morazán (October 3, 1792 – September 15, 1842) was a general and a politician who ruled several Central American states at different times during the turbulent period from 1827 to 1842. He rose to prominence at the legendary Battle of La Trinidad on November 11, 1827. Since then, and until his execution in 1842, Morazán dominated the political and military scene of Central America. In
the political arena, Francisco Morazán was recognized as a
visionary and great thinker, as he attempted to transform Central
America into one large and progressive nation. He enacted liberal
reforms in the new Federal Republic of Central America, including freedom of the press, speech and religion. Morazán also limited church power by making marriage secular and abolishing government aided tithing. These
reforms made him some powerful enemies, and his period of rule was
marked by bitter infighting between liberals and conservatives. But
through his military skills, Morazán was able to keep a firm
grip on power until 1837, when the Federal Republic became irrevocably
fractured. This was exploited by the conservative leaders, who rallied
around the leadership of Rafael Carrera and in order to protect their own interests, ended up dividing Central America into five nations. José Francisco Morazán Quezada was born on October 3, 1792, in Tegucigalpa (then in the Captaincy General of Guatemala, now the capital of Honduras) during the waning years of Spanish colonial rule to Eusebio Morazán Alemán and Guadalupe Quezada Borjas, both members of an upper-class Creole family dedicated to trade and agriculture. His grandparents were: Juan Bautista Morazán (a Corsican immigrant)
and María Borjas Alvarenga. Thirteen days after his birth
Morazán was baptized at San Miguel Arcángel church, by father Juan Francisco Márquez. Francisco Morazán was for the most part, a self-educated man. According
to historian Ramon Rosa; he "had the misfortune of being born ... in
that sad era of isolation and total darkness in which Honduras lacked
schools ... therefore Morazan had to learn in private schools with an
awful organization and sustained by parents' contributions." In
1804, his parents took advantage of the opening of a Catholic school in
the village of San Francisco. At the age of twelve, José
Francisco was sent there to learn to write and read, and to receive
instruction in mathematics and drawing. The teachings he received were
through Friar Santiago Gabrielino, appointed religious instructor to
the Guatemalan priest José Antonio Murga. In 1808 Francisco Morazán and his family moved to Morocelí where
they worked the fields inherited by Mr Eusebio. In addition, young
José Francisco also engaged in helping the town's mayor with his
clerk duties. On
1813 the family moved back to Tegucigalpa. Once there, Mr. Eusebio
placed his son under the tutorship of Leon Vasquez who taught him civil law, criminal procedure and Notaries. Francisco now had access to a library where he learned French, which in turn, allowed him to familiarize himself with the works of Montesquieu, the social contract of Jean-Jacques Rousseau, the French Revolution, the history of Europe, as well as the biographies of the Greek and Roman leaders.
This dedication and spirit of improvement took Francisco to
occasionally excel in his hometown, where he even represented the
interest of some people before the colonial courts. Francisco Morazán married María Josefa Lastiri in the Cathedral of Comayagua on December 30, 1825. They had one daughter, Adela Morazán Lastiri, born in San Salvador in
1838. Lastiri belonged to one of the wealthiest families in the province of
Honduras. Her father was the Spanish trader Juan Miguel Lastiri, who
played an important part in the commercial development of Tegucigalpa.
Her mother was Margarita Lozano, member of a powerful Creole family in
the city.
María
Josefa was a widow who had first married the landowner Esteban
Travieso, with whom she had 4 children. Upon his death, she inherited a
fortune. Her fortune and the new circle of powerful and influential
friends, that came out of this marriage only enhanced Morazán's
own business, and thus his political and military prospects. Outside
his marriage, Francisco Morazán fathered a son, Francisco
Morazán Moncada, who was born on October 4, 1827 to Francisca
Moncada, daughter of a well known Nicaraguan politician named Liberato
Moncada. Francisco Morazán Junior lived in the
Morazán - Lastiri home and accompanied his father in Guatemala, El Salvador, Panama, Peru and finally in Costa Rica, where his father was executed. After the death of his father, Francisco Morazán Moncada settled in Chinandega, Nicaragua, where he devoted himself to farming. He died in 1904 at age 77. Morazán
also had an adoptive son named José Antonio Ruiz. He was the
legitimate son of Eusebio Ruiz and the Guatemalan lady Rita
Zelayandía, who handed her son to General Morazán when he
was 14 years old. José Antonio accompanied his adoptive father
on military actions and became a Brigadier General. He died in
Tegucigalpa in 1883. After the Captaincy General of Guatemala, which included Honduras, became independent from Spain (on
September 15, 1821) Francisco Morazán began to take an active
part in politics and public administration. He worked at Tegucigalpa's
City Hall as deputy mayor and public defender in civil and criminal
court cases. Such activities allowed him to acquire a great knowledge
of the structure and operation of the public administration of the
province. This job also allowed him to get in close contact with the
problems of post colonial society. In
November 1821, shortly after the Captaincy had declared its
independence from Spain, a group of dignitaries and politicians known
as the 'Interim Advisory Board' sat in Guatemala City in the process of
organizing a government to succeed Spanish colonial rule. On November
18, a note from General Agustin de Iturbide arrived in Guatemala City suggesting a union between the Captaincy and the Mexican Empire, pursuant to the Plan of Iguala and the Treaty of Córdoba.
The members of the Interim Advisory Board, after reviewing the issue,
stated they were not empowered nor deputized to decide on this matter,
but suggested forums be held in different cities to hear the views of
the people, and thus explore their willingness to go forward with the
proposal. The question of annexation to Mexico caused divisions within
each of the provinces as some cities were in favor and others against.
In Honduras, Comayagua, through its Governor José Tinoco de Contreras, supported the idea of the annexation. But Tegucigalpa,
the second most important city of the province, strongly opposed it.
Tinoco then decided to take repressive actions against the authorities
of that city. In
order to offset Tinoco's aggressiveness and to defend their
independence, an army of volunteers organized in Tegucigalpa. It was
during these events, that Francisco Morazán enlisted as a
volunteer at the service of the authorities in Tegucigalpa. He was
appointed captain of one of the companies, by decision of the
organizers of the militias. Thus began Morazán's military life
and his struggle against conservative interests. Tegucigalpa
could not maintain its opposition, however, and recognized its
annexation to Mexico on August 22, 1822. The annexation to the Mexican
Empire was short-lived, with the collapse of the Mexican Empire and the
subsequent creation of the Federal Republic of Central America on April
1, 1823. That same year, the Constitutional Assembly in Guatemala
appointed Morazán as a member of a commission to study the
affairs of the Federation. That same commission determined the
electoral districts, district boards and the departmental boards of the
Federal Republic. A year later Morazán's uncle Dionisio de Herrera, was elected Head of State in Honduras. On September 28, 1824, he appointed Morazán as his secretary general. Central
American Federation (1824 – 38) comprised the republics of Central
America — Costa Rica, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Salvador.
United under a captaincy general in Spanish colonial times, they gained
independence in 1821 and were briefly annexed to the Mexican empire
formed by Agustín de Iturbide. On July 1, 1823, these nations regained their independence, and joined together in a loose federal state. On
the following year, the Constituent Congress of Central America met in
Guatemala City, in which the objective was to decide which system of
government would be adopted for the young nation. On the table of
debates, two different proposals emerged: the members of the Liberal
Party wanted a federalist government, similar to that of the United
States of 1789. This type of government would provide every state
significant autonomy of self-administration, freedom to create its own
laws and reforms, among other things, but always, under the supervision
of the federal government, keeper of the constitution. The
Conservatives on the other hand, wanted a centralist government. In
this system, the decisions and laws adopted by the central government
would apply equally to all the other states. After debating the
proposals, the Liberal majority prevailed, and the federalist system
was adopted. On November 22, 1824, under the motto: "God, Union,
Liberty", the new constitution was approved, and the nation was renamed
the Federal Republic of Central America, appointing Manuel José
Arce (1825 – 29) as their first president. In 1826, the Federal Government headed by Manuel José Arce pretended to dissolve the federal congress and called a meeting to be held in Cojutepeque, on October 10, 1826, to elect an extraordinary congress. This unconstitutional move was rejected by the Honduran head of state, Dionisio de Herrera.
But President Arce did not recognize Herrera's authority, claiming that
Herrera's provisional mandate had expired, and that he was in power
illegitimately. For this reason, the National Assembly had called for
new elections in Honduras, but Herrera had ignored this decree and
remained in power. For these reasons, but under the guise of protecting
Copan's tobacco plantations owned by the federal government, Arce
decided to oust Herrera. This
mission was entrusted to colonel Justo Milla, who on April 9, 1827,
commanded 200 men and seized Comayagua (the state capital) capturing
Herrera and sending him to a Guatemalan prison. While
Milla was busy consolidating power in Comayagua, Morazán escaped
from the federal troops. He left the besieged capital in the company of
colonels Remigio Díaz and José Antonio Márquez,
with the purpose of getting reinforcements in Tegucigalpa. Their plan
was to return, and to liberate the state capital. Upon their return
from Tegucigalpa, his men clashed with Milla's forces on the ranch 'La
Maradiaga'. This confrontation, had no major consequences for either
side; Milla remained in charge of Honduras, and Morazán left for Ojojona where he was captured and transferred to Tegucigalpa by order of Major Ramon Anguiano. But Francisco Morazán managed to escape from his captors and left for La Union, El Salvador, with the intention of emigrating to Mexico. In La Union, he met Mariano Vidaurre, a special Salvadoran envoy to the government of Nicaragua.
Vidaurre convinced him that, in that country, he could find the
military support he needed to expel Milla from Honduran territory. He
arrived in the city of Leon, Nicaragua, where he met with the commander-in-chief of the Nicaraguan armed forces, José Anacleto "Cleto" Ordóñez. For
Morazán the meeting paid off; the Nicaraguan leader provided him
with weapons and a contingent of 135 men. These men were joined by
Colonel Zepeda's troops from El Salvador, and some columns of Honduran
volunteers in Choluteca, Honduras. When
Justo Milla discovered the presence of Morazán in southern
Honduras, he quickly moved his troops to Tegucigalpa, where he
established his headquarters, meanwhile Morazán headed for
Sabanagrande. At 9 am on a November 11, Morazán faced General
Milla in the in the memorable battle of 'La Trinidad'.
After five hours of intense fighting, Milla's federal troops were
crushed by Morazán's men. Milla and few of his officers survived
and fled the scene of battle. Following this victory, Morazán
marched to Comayagua where he was declared Honduras' new Chief of State. Following
his victory at 'La Trinidad', Morazán emerged as the leader of
the liberal movement and his military skills became known throughout
Central America. For these reasons, Morazán received calls for
help from liberals in El Salvador. As in Honduras, El Salvadoreans
opposed the new congressmen and other government officials elected by
the decree issued on October 10, 1826. They demanded their restitution,
but President Manuel Arce argued that this move was necessary to
re-establish the constitutional order. El Salvador responded by
attempting to take over the federal government through military force.
President Arce however, defeated the Salvadorean army in Arrazola on
March 23, 1828. He then ordered 2,000 federal troops under the command
of General Manuel de Arzu to occupy El Salvador. This event marked the
beginning of the civil war. Francisco Morazán accepted the challenge. He placed Diego Vigil as
Honduras's new head of state and left for Texiguat, where he prepared
the Salvadorean campaign. In April, 1828, Morazán headed to El
Salvador with a force of 1,400 men. This group of militants, known as
the "Army Protector of the Law", was composed of small groups of
Hondurans, Nicaraguans, and Salvadoreans, who brought their own tools
of war; others had the support of Indians who served as infantry. Some
volunteers continued his liberal convictions, others worked for a
political leader, others simply hoped to get something for their
efforts after the war ended. This was the combination of forces that
joined Morazán in their fight against federal troops.
While
the Salvadorean army battled the Federal forces in San Salvador,
Morazán positioned himself in the eastern part of the state. On
July 6, Morazán defeated Col. Vicente Dominguez's Federal troops
at the 'El Gualcho' ranch. In his memoirs, Morazán described the
battle like this: "At 12 midnight I undertook my march ... but the rain
didn't let me turn the day, and I was forced to wait in El Gualcho, ...
At 3 o'clock in the morning, the rain stopped, I put two companies of
hunters on the hill overlooking to the left of the ranch ... At 5
o'clock I learned the position occupied by the enemy ... I could not go
back under these circumstances ... It was no longer possible to
continue the march, without serious danger, a vast plain and the very
presence of the enemy. Less I could defend myself in the ranch, placed
under a height of more than 200 feet ... It was therefore necessary to
accept the battle with all the advantages reached by the enemy ... I
ordered the hunters to advance over the enemy to stop their movement
...
While the force rose by a slope and narrow path, fire broke-out ... But
175 inexperienced soldiers made impotent for a quarter of an hour, the
repeated attacks by the bulk of the enemy. The enthusiasm that produced
in all the soldiers the heroism of these brave Hondurans, exceeded the
number of the enemy. When the action became general on both sides, our
right wing was forced to back down. And occupied the light artillery
that supported it. But the reserve working on that side, re-established
our line, recovered the artillery and ended the action ...The
Salvadoran reinforcements ... arrived in time to pursue the
dispersed..."
enemy soldiers. Morazán kept on fighting around San Miguel,
defeating every platoon dispatched by General Arzu from San Salvador.
This prompted Arzu to leave Col. Montufar in charge of San Salvador and
personally deal with Morazán. When the 'liberal caudillo'
learned about this, he left for Honduras to recruit more troops. On
September 20, Gen. Arzu was along the Lempa River with
500 men in pursuit of Morazán, when he learned that his forces
had capitulated in Mejicanos. In the meantime, Morazán returned
to El Salvador with a respectable army. Arzu feigning illness returned
to Guatemala, leaving his forces under the command of lieutenant
colonel Antonio de Aycinena. The colonel and his troops then marched
towards Honduran territory, when they were intercepted by
Morazán's men in San Antonio. On October 9 Aycinena was forced
to surrender. With
the capitulation of San Antonio, El Salvador was finally free of
federal troops. On October 23, Morazán triumphantly entered the
plaza of San Salvador. A few days later, he marched on Ahuachapán, to organize the army with which he intended to invade Guatemala. In
Ahuachapán Morazán made every effort to organize a large
army. He asked the government of El Salvador to provide 4,000 men, but
had to settle for 2,000. When he was in position to act in early 1829,
he sent a division commanded by Juan Prem to enter Guatemalan territory
and to take control of Chiquimula. The order was carried out by Prem in
spite of the resistance offered by the enemy. Shortly after,
Morazán placed a small force near Guatemala City under the
command of Col. Gutierrez to force the enemy out of their trenches and
to cause the defection of their troops. Col. Dominguez had left from
Guatemala City with 600 infantrymen to attack Prem but he was informed
about Gutierrez's small force. He changed his course of action and went
after Gutierrez. This opportunity was seized by Prem who then moved from Zacapa and
on to Dominguez's forces, defeating them on January 15, 1829. Prem then
was ordered to march with 1400 men under his command to occupy the post
of San José, near the capital city. Meanwhile the people of Antigua organized against the Guatemalan government and placed the department of Sacatepequez under
Morazán's protection. This prompted Morazán to invade
Guatemala with his 'Protector Army of the law'. Morazán situated
his men in the village of Pinula near the capital city. Military
operations on the capital began with small skirmishes in front of
government fortifications. On February 15 one of Morazán's
largest divisions under the command of Cayetano de la Cerda was
defeated in Mixco by federal troops. Due to this defeat Morazán
lifted the siege of the city and concentrated his forces in Antigua. A
strong division of federal troops followed him from the capital under
the command of Col. Pacheco, heading towards Sumpango and Tejar with
the purpose of attacking Morazán in Antigua. But Pacheco spread
his forces, leaving some of them in Sumpango.
When he went into San Miguelito with a smaller army, he was beaten by
Morazán. This incident raised the morale of Morazán's men
once again. After
the victory of San Miguelito, Morazán's army grew larger when
Guatemalan volunteers joined his ranks. On March 15 when Morazán
was on his way to occupy his former positions, he was intercepted by
Col. Prado's Federal troops at the 'Las Charcas' ranch. Morazán,
with a superior position, crushed Prado's army. The battlefield was
left full of dead bodies, prisoners and weapons, and Morazán
moved on to recover his former positions in Pinula and Aceytuno, and to
put Guatemala City under siege again. General Verveer, plenipotentiary minister of the king of the Netherlands to
the Central America Federation, attempted to mediate between the
Government under siege and Morazán, but they could not reach an
agreement. Military operations continued, with great success for the
allied army. On April 12, Guatemala's Chief of State, Mariano Aycinena,
capitulated and the next day the Central Plaza was occupied by
Morazán's troops. Immediately thereafter President Arce, Mariano
Aycinena, Mariano Beltranena, and all the officials who had had some
role in the war were sent to prison. After these events, the General
ran the country dictatorially, until senator Juan Barrundia took over
on June 25, 1829. Francisco Morazán won the popular vote of the 1830 presidential election, against the conservative challenger José del Valle.
He was inaugurated on September 16. In his inaugural speech he
declared: "The sovereign people sent me, to place myself, in the most
dangerous of their destinies. I must obey and fulfill, the solemn oath
that I have just rendered. I offer, to uphold the Federal Constitution,
which I defended as a soldier and as a citizen." With
Morazán's as president and governors sponsored by him, the
liberals had consolidated power. The General was now in position to
advance his liberal reforms. Through them, he attempted to dismantle
what he felt were archaic Spanish institutions, and to give to his people a society based upon general education, religious liberty and social and political equality. In 1931 Morazán and Governor Mariano Galvez turned Guatemala into a testing ground for these 'enlightenment like'
policies. They oversaw the building of schools and roads, enacted free
trade policies, invited foreign capital and immigrants, allowed secular
marriage and divorce and freedom of speech, tried to make public lands
available to the expanding cochineal economy, separated church from
state, abolished tithes,
proclaimed religious liberties, confiscated church property, suppressed
religious orders, and removed education from church control, among other policies. All
of this new approved legislation struck a blow at the heart of the
Guatemalan oligarchy. But more importantly, it stripped the Spanish
clergy of their privileges, and curtailed their power. According to
historian Mary Wilhelmine Williams: "The immediate reasons for the
different enactments varied. Some laws were intended to protect the
state from the clergy ... others aimed to help the recoup of the public
treasure, and at the same time sweep away aristocratic privilege; while
still other legislation – especially that of latter date – was enacted
for the punishment of opposition for earlier acts and of intrigues
against the government" when Francisco Morazán first came to
power. Back
then, the General had to expel from the country archbishop Ramon Casaus
and certain members of the monastic orders, because they were under
suspicion of opposing independence. They used their influence against
him and the liberal party during the civil war. They also had opposed
the reforms, particularly those in the interest of general education
which the liberals were determined to push. In March, 1832, another conflict erupted in El Salvador. Chief of State, José María Cornejo had
rebelled against some federal decrees, which prompted President
Morazán to act. The commander in chief at the head of the
Federal Troops marched on to El Salvador where they beat Cornejo's
State Army on March 14. On the 28 of the same month, Morazán had
occupied San Salvador. From that point forward, rumors about the need
to reform the constitution began. In 1834 at the request of Governor, Mariano Galvez, the General moved the capital city to Sonsonate and
later to San Salvador. The same year, the first four years of Francisco
Morazán's presidency had ended. According to the constitution,
elections needed to be held in order to elect the next president of the
Republic. Moderate, José Cecilio del Valle ran against the
incumbent president; for this reason, General Francisco Morazán
deposited the presidency on General Gregorio Salazar, so the federal
congress could verify the fairness of the election. When all the votes were counted, José del Valle had defeated Francisco Morazán. The
Federal elections showed strong popular opposition to liberal reforms.
Valle, however, died before taking office. Most historians agree that
had he lived, he might have brought conciliation and harmony between
the opposing forces (Liberals and Conservatives). On June 2, the
Federal Congress called for new elections, which were won by Francisco
Morazán. On February 14, 1835 General Morazán, was sworn
as president for a second term. In
February 1837 there occurred in central America a series of events that
ignited a revolution that culminated with the fall of the Federation.
An epidemic of cholera scourged Guatemala leaving approximately 1000
people dead and 3000 infected with the virus. The epidemic struck
especially the poor and the Indians in the highlands of the state. At
the time when it appeared, the Indians of the district of Mita,
influenced by their priests, were much perturbed over the system of
trial by jury (incomprehensible to them) which was being introduced. The
disease spread rapidly and the government of Mariano Galvez, hoping to
alleviate the situation, dispatched the available physicians, medical
students and remedies for distribution. But these measures were of
little help because the Indians continued to die. The church viewed this as an opportunity to strike back a the liberal government of Mariano Galvez.
The local priests spread the rumor that the government had poisoned the
rivers and streams for the purpose of wiping out the indigenous
population, and repopulating it with foreigners. In proof, they pointed
to a recent grant of territory in Vera Paz made to a British
colonization company. A cry was then raised by the frantic Indians
against their supposed murderers. As
the cholera continued to spread the Indians took to arms, killed whites
and liberals, burned their houses, and prepared to confront Galvez's
government. The
governor sent an army to try to stop the revolt. But the army's
measures were so repressive, that it only made matters worse. By June
Santa Rosa erupted, and from the village of Mataquescuintla emerged a
young Rafael Carrera. Carrera was an illiterate,but shrewd and charismatic swineherd turned highwayman, whom the rebels wanted as their leader. The
priests proclaimed to the natives that he was their protecting angel
Rafael, descended from the heavens to take vengeance on the heretics,
Liberals and foreigners and to restore their ancient dominion. They
devised various tricks to favor the delusion, which were heralded as
miracles. A letter was let down from the roof of one of the churches,
in the midst of a vast congregation of Indians, which was supposed to
come from the Virgin Mary, commissioning Carrera to lead a revolt
against the government.
Under
cries of "Long live religion!", and "Death to foreigners!", Carrera and
his forces initiated a war against the government. Encouraged by these
events the conservatives joined in. The liberal government called
General Morazán for help. Francisco Morazán repeatedly
defeated Carrera's forces and pacified the state, but he could never
catch the Indian leader, as he simply retreated to the mountains and
came back to re-occupy the key positions as soon as Morazán's
troops left. By
1838 Morazán was presiding over a dying institution. Galvez had
relinquished power, Congress tried to restore some life to the Federal
Government by transferring control of their custom revenues. But
Honduras, Nicaragua and Costa Rica opposed this move and used it as an
the opportunity to leave the union. The Federation was dead. On February 1, 1839, Morazán had completed his second constitutional term as president, congress
had dissolved and there was no legal basis to name his successor. In
the end ignorance, the power of the church, bitter infighting between
conservatives and liberals, and the quest for personal glory were the
main reasons for the downfall of the 'Federation'. After
Francisco Morazán's second term as President of the Federal
Republic ended, he was left without political or military power. On
July 13, 1839, however, the general was elected Chief of State of El
Salvador. When
Rafael Carrera and the Guatemalan conservatives learned about
Morazán's new role, they declared war on El Salvador. Francisco
Morazán personified the 'Old Federation' itself and for that
reason alone they vowed to defeat him. On July 24, Guatemala and
Nicaragua signed a treaty of alliance against Morazán's
Government. Carrera then called the Salvadorian people to rise against
their government. These calls resulted in small uprisings within El
Salvador, but they were quickly put down and without much effort by
Morazán. When
Carrera's attempt failed, Morazán's enemies formed an army of
Nicaraguan and Honduran troops. On September 25, 1839, these forces
invaded El Salvador and faced Morazán's army during the Battle
of San Pedro Perulapán. The General only needed 600 Salvadorans
to defeat 2,000 men commanded by Generals Francisco Ferrera,
Nicolás de Espinosa, and Manuel Quijano. After their defeat, the
humiliated generals and their troops fled to neighboring states,
leaving behind over three hundred dead. On
March 18, 1840 Morazán made a last attempt to restore the
'Union'. He gathered what he thought, were enough Salvadorean forces to
face Carrera and with them marched to Guatemala. Once positioned,
Morazán moved in from the south, striking towards the capital.
Carrera then pulled most of his own force out of the capital, leaving
only a small, very visible garrison inside. Morazán jumped in,
slaughtered much of the bait, then found himself assaulted from all
directions by Carrera's main force of about 5,000 men. It
was a battle which became notorious for its savagery and revealed the
ruthless side of Carrera, whose Indians sang Salve Regina, and shouted
"Long Live Carrera!", "Death to Morazán!" By
the next morning, it was Morazán who was running out of
ammunition. He then ordered an increase in fire from three corners of
the plaza, in order to attract attention, while he himself slipped out
through the fourth corner of the plaza with a small escort, to escape
back to El Salvador. This
time, the General didn't have the support of the common people, as he had in 1830. The 'Liberal Reforms' hadn't produce
enough good results for the people to believe, but rather, they
resented some of them as it was the case with the Livingston Code, the
system of taxation, among others. As for the 'Liberals', they were too
busy fighting among themselves that even former liberal president,
José Francisco Barrundia had joined Rafael Carrera.
Morazán's defeat was so decisive that
on March 27, he deposited the headquarters of the State in the hands of
director José Antonio Canas and directed a proclamation to the
people of El Salvador. Morazán, did not want to cause any more
problems to the Salvadoreans. With Francisco Morazán's final
defeat, the hopes of a Central American federation vanished. On
April 8, 1840, General Francisco Morazán took the road of exile.
He left from the port of La Libertad, El Salvador, and embarked on the schooner Izalco accompanied
by 30 of his closest friends and war veterans. He stopped in Costa Rica
where he sought and got political asylum for most of his companions.
Seven of them continued the journey to South America with him.
Morazán landed at Chiriquí Province, then he moved on to David where
his family awaited him. While in David, Morazán was informed by
his friends about the fierce persecutions suffered by his supporters at
the hands of Rafael Carrera and other Central American leaders. Outraged
by this and by the chain of insults and slander against him by some
members of the press, he wrote and published his famous 'Manifest of
David' dated July 16, 1841. When
he was still in David, Morazán also received calls from his
liberal colleagues in Costa Rica. Braulio Carrillo, governor of that
state had restricted individual liberties, placed limits on freedom of
the press, and derogated the Political Constitution of 1825. He
replaced it with a new constitutional charter, denominated "Law of
Bases and Guarantees", where he declared himself 'Chief of State for
Life'. Furthermore, Carrillo declared Costa Rica a free and independent
State. However,
Morazán wanted to stay away from Central America affairs, and he
travelled to Peru. Once in Lima, he received the invitation of Mariscal Agustín Gamarra to
command a Peruvian division, at a time when his country was at war with
Chile. But Morazán declined, because he found this war to be
very confusing and troubling. Peru, Bolivia, Colombia and Chile were
all involved in a twelve-year war, which brought about a train of
baneful stages of chaos, among all countries involved. In Peru, Morazán was fortunate to find good friends with whom he shared the same ideals. These included Generals José Rufino Echenique and
Pedro Bermudez. Around 1841, the English began to intervene in the
Mosquito territory, located between Honduras and Nicaragua. This event
prompted Morazán to end his self-imposed Peruvian exile, and he
decided that it was time to return to Central America. With the
financial backing of General Pedro Bermudez, he departed from Callao on
board the "Crusader" in late December 1841. On that trip he was
accompanied by General Cabañas and Saravia, and five other
officers. He and his companions made stops in Guayaquil, Ecuador, and
Chiriqui where he had the chance to meet with his family before
returning to Central America. On
January 15, 1841, Morazán arrived in El Salvador. He made
himself available to the Central American leaders for the common
defense against the British intervention. On February 16, 1842, he told
his countrymen that his return was a "duty" and a "irresistible
national sentiment", not only for him but for all "those who have a
heart for their homeland." But his offers were rejected, nonetheless.
After this episode, he put forth a plan to overthrow Costa Rican head
of State Barulio Carrillo. In La Union, El Salvador, Morazán
hired three boats. He then travelled to Acajutla, San Salvador and
Sonsonate where he was able to reactivate the local forces. From
Acajutla, he left for the island of Martin Perez, located on the Gulf
of Fonseca. There he organized a military contingent of about 500 men.
On April 7 and without any mishap, Morazán's fleet of five
vessels landed at Port of Caldera in Costa Rica. When Braulio Carrillo
was informed of the presence of Morazán in Costa Rica, he
organized a military force under the command of General Vicente
Villasenor. On April 9, 1842, Morazán issued a proclamation to
the people of Costa Rica in which he stated that he was never
indifferent to the "misfortunes" of the Costa Rican people. "Your
cries", he said, "have for a long time hurt my ears, and I finally
found the means to save you, even at the expense of my own life". With
more experience and political skills, Morazán avoided an armed
confrontation with the forces sent by Carrillo. Through negotiations,
he and Vicente Villaseñor signed "The Jocote Accord". This
agreement provided for the integration of a single military body, the
convening of a National Constituent Assembly, the ousting of Braulio
Carrillo and other members of his administration, and the installation
of a provisional government under the command of Francisco
Morazán. On April 13, 1842, Morazán's forces entered the
city of San José. Thereafter
Chief Carrillo was persuaded to accept the treaty. He approved it only
when some modifications were added. He then turned the government over
to Morazán and left the country. Morazán's first act was
to open the doors of the state to Costa Rican and Central American
political refugees. He then abolished the laws that Carrillo had
imposed limiting trade and property, restored individual and political
rights, devoted
himself to urgent reforms, and convened the Constituent Assembly, which
appointed him Supreme Chief of the Costa Rican State. According to historian Gomez Carrillo, in
the months that followed, Morazán concentrated on recruiting
military personnel for the purpose of 'restoring the Central America
motherland.' Thereafter,
rumors of the possibility of war against the neighboring states spread.
This troubled Costa Ricans; they feared Rafael Carrera would intervene
in their affairs, specially after Guatemala broke ties with them. In
addition they felt financially incapable of sustaining a war, and also
considered it unnecessary. After all, the restoration of the 'Union'
was a cause they didn't believe in. For all these reasons they decided to conspire against Morazán. On September 11, 1842, a popular movement opposed to Morazán erupted in San José. Led by Portuguese General Antonio Pinto Soares, 400 men attacked Morazán's guard of 40 Salvadoreans. Morazán
and his men managed to repel the attacks and retreat to their
headquarters. The fighting continued bloody and relentless, and the
insurgents increased to 1000, while the besieged diminished. Chaplain José Castro then proposed a capitulation to Morazán
ensuring his life, but he refused. After 88 hours of fighting,
Morazán and his closest collaborators resolved to break the
siege. General José Cabañas with 30 men held the retreat,
which made it possible for the others to flee towards Cartago. But
the insurrection had spread there too, so Morazán turned for
help to his friend, Pedro Mayorga. But Mayorga betrayed him, and turned
him over to his enemies along with generals, Vicente Villaseñor,
José Saravia and José Trinidad Cabañas. Saravia committed suicide, Villaseñor attempted the same but
survived. Subsequently, Morazán and Vicente Villaseñor
were sentenced to death. On September 15, Morazán and
Villaseñor were transferred to the central plaza in San
José. Before
his execution, Morazán dictated his famous will to his son,
Francisco. In it, he calls his death "murder" and declares, "I do not
have enemies, nor the smaller resentment I take to the grave against my
murderers, I forgive them and wish them the greatest good." When he was
done, a chair was offered to him but he refused it. Seated next to him
was Gen. Villaseñor, sedated and almost unconscious.
Morazán then said, "Dear friend, posterity will do us justice"
and crossed himself. A few minutes later, Morazán himself commanded the firing squad that ended his life and that of Villaseñor. With his death, the nation lost a man described by José Martí as "a powerful genius, a strategist, a speaker, a true statesman, perhaps the only one Central America has ever produced". In
1848, the government of José María Castro sent
Morazán's remains to El Salvador, fulfilling one of his last
wishes. More
than a man of ideas, Morazán was a man of action wrote
biographer Rafael Eliodoro Valle. But his name can not fail to brighten
the history of ideas in Central America, because he knew how to instill
in them; the power of his sincerity, the passion that inflamed him, and
his faith in the future, like men of vision who always think big. Francisco
Morazán pushed with his liberal and progressive ideas a series
of revolutionary measures for the time. Thus, promoting education,
immigration, established freedom of worship and the press. The
first federal administration headed by Morazán was oriented to
the peaceful reconstruction of the several States that comprised the
republic. When
liberalism seemed to finally find the opportunity to implement its
noblest principles, after a long process of integration as ideological
tendency, as a political group and as a power option, the liberal
regime was unable to achieve cohesion within the Central American
society. The Liberals' sustained fight against the aristocracy and
their quest to exclude conservatives from political life was not
accompanied by a parallel effort to integrate other sectors such as
indigenous people, (the bulk of the population) to the national modern
project that they so vehemently postulated. The indigenous people never
found the liberal proposal to be attractive enough, so as to break free
from the deep rooted ancient order taught by the Church and the
stability they have had for three centuries under the colonial regime. According
to writer, David Alejandro Luna, one of Morazán's biggest
mistakes was to not design a plan to break the feudal estates where his
secular enemies were sitting ... Morazán's fight was marred of romanticism,
his strategic line tended to politically displace the oppressive
aristocratic landowners of Central America , his tactics however,
disagreed with the political reality. Despite the strenuous efforts
made by General Francisco Morazán from the presidency of the
Republic. The clerical and aristocratic forces staged a strong
anti-liberal building block taking advantage of the fanaticism and
discontent that permeated large sections of the population, especially
in the state of Guatemala. Francisco
Morazán became a martyr and a symbol of the Republic of Central
America. He gave his life however unsuccessfully, attempting to
preserve the 'Union'. Now, more than one hundred and sixty years after
his death, Central America is still plagued by power struggles, corruption, and poverty. More often than not, the five republics have emulated Carrera than Morazán; but
the dream of The Great Central American Country is still alive. His image
can be found in bills, logos, and stamps. Institutions, cities,
departments, schools, and parks among other things bear
Morazán's name, in order to preserve his legacy. El
Salvador was among the first countries to pay tribute to
Morazán. In March 14, 1887. The National Assembly of the
Republic of El Salvador replaced the name of the department of "Gotera"
with "Morazán". So as "to perpetuate the name of the great
leader of the Central American Union". In
1943, Honduras renamed the Tegucigalpa department, Francisco
Morazán. On Novembre 15, 1887 the town of Tocoy Tzimá
became 'Morazán' in Guatemala. In 1945, Port Morazán was
founded in Nicaragua. In
the political field the idea of integration is still preserved in the
mind of many Central Americans. For example; the Central American
Parliament, also known by the abbreviation "Parlacen" (from the Spanish
Parlamento Centroamericano). This is a political institution devoted to
the integration of the Central American countries. The Parlacen
represents a modern version of the historic Federal Republic of Central
America, though not including Costa Rica but including Panama and the
Dominican Republic. In the past several unsuccessful attempts have been made to restore the 'Union' (1851, 1886, 1921) Morazán's
legacy is also present in the arts. The first play of record in El
Salvador is titled "La Tragedy of Morazán" written by Francisco Díaz (1812 – 45) and dramatizing the life of the Central American President. The
modern period of in Honduran theater began with Luis Andrés
Zúñiga Portillo when he wrote "Los Conspiradores" (The
Conspirators, 1916), a historic drama that honored the virtues of
Francisco Morazán. In his book Canto General, Pablo Neruda also pays tribute to the 'Liberal Caudillo', with a poem to Central America. Statues and busts of Francisco Morazán can be found in Chile, El Salvador, United states, Spain among
others. The most famous and controversial of these, is the equestrian
statue of Morazán located in Tegucigalpa's Central Park. On his
book The Open Veins of Latin America, Uruguayan writer, Eduardo Galeano mentions, that this statue is that of French marshal Michel Ney. According to Galeano, the statue was bought at a flea market, because the persons entrusted to buy it, spent the money in binges. He later retracted. Similar comments were made by Gabriel García Márquez. |