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Ismael Montes
Ismael Montes Gamboa | |
|---|---|
 | |
| 26th President of Bolivia | |
| In office August 14, 1904 – August 12, 1909 | |
| Preceded by | José Manuel Pando Solares |
| Succeeded by | Eliodoro Villazón Montaño |
| In office August 14, 1913 – August 15, 1917 | |
| Preceded by | Eliodoro Villazón Montaño |
| Succeeded by | José Gutiérrez Guerra |
| Personal details | |
| Born | October 5, 1861 |
| Died | October 16, 1933 (aged 72) |
| Party | Liberal Party of Bolivia |
| Spouse | Bethsabé Montes |
| Parent(s) | Clodomiro Montes Tomasa Gamboa |
| Occupation | Military officer, lawyer and politician |
| Profession | Military officer and lawyer |
| Signature | .svg){kind=small} |
| Military service | |
| Battles/wars | War of the Pacific:
|
Ismael Montes Gamboa (Coro Coro, La Paz, Bolivia; October 5, 1861 – La Paz, Bolivia; October 16, 1933) was a Bolivian military officer, lawyer and politician, twenty-sixth President of Bolivia on two occasions: his first government lasted from August 14, 1904 to August 12, 1909 and the second from August 14, 1913 to August 15, 1917. During his first term the Treaty of Peace and Friendship with Chile of October 20, 1904 was signed.
His figure also stands out nationally for having been the only President of Bolivia to take part in three international wars involving Bolivia, in different eras. At barely 18 years old, Montes fought in the War of the Pacific against Chile (1879–1880); at 40 he was present in the Acre War against Brazil (1900–1903); and finally, at 71 years of age, in the Chaco War against Paraguay (1932–1935).
Biography
Ismael Montes Gamboa was born on October 5, 1861 in the city of La Paz, Bolivia. He belonged to a well-off middle class family, since his father was a military officer. Ismael was the son of General Clodomiro Montes and Tomasa Gamboa. He completed his primary and secondary studies in his native city.
In 1878, he continued his higher education by entering the Faculty of Law of the Higher University of San Andrés (UMSA), but because of the invasion of the Bolivian town of Antofagasta by the Chilean Army on February 14, 1879, Ismael Montes decided to leave the university to enlist as a private soldier in the "Murillo" Regiment, which at that time belonged to the "Bolivian Legion," at 18 years of age during the War of the Pacific.
In 1880, Ismael Montes's regiment was assigned to take part in the Battle of Alto de la Alianza (the last great battle between Bolivia and Chile in the war), in which Ismael fought but barely survived, ending the battle very gravely wounded; he was subsequently captured by the Chilean Army and then held as a prisoner of war.
Upon his return to Bolivia, because of the heroism he had shown in combat, Montes was promoted directly to the rank of captain by the government of the time. Once the War of the Pacific had ended for Bolivia in 1880, Ismael began his military career working as an instructor in the Bolivian Army. But in 1884, Montes decided to retire from the army to resume his university studies in law at the Higher University of San Andrés (UMSA), which he had left when the war began. He graduated with the title of lawyer on June 12, 1886.
From his university years onward, Montes became a militant of the Liberal Party of Bolivia.
Political life
In 1890, at 29 years of age, Montes was elected Deputy, but his liberal ideology clashed with the conservatism then predominant, which prevented him from winning in the following elections. Later, he won by competitive examination the chair of Civil Law at the law faculty of the Higher University of San Andrés (UMSA).
As a liberal he took part in the Federal Revolution of 1898, under the orders of Colonel José Manuel Pando. He rose to colonel and was appointed chief of the general staff. He attended the Assembly of Oruro, and under Pando's constitutional presidency (1899–1904), he was appointed Minister of War of Bolivia.
During his tenure as minister, Montes took care to improve the army, subjecting it to greater discipline and equipping it with modern materiel. Montes also led a military expedition to the north of the country to fight against the Brazilian filibusters in the so-called Acre War (1900–1903). Once the war was over he devoted himself fully to politics, with the intention of replacing José Manuel Pando when his term of government concluded.
In 1904, his party (the governing party) chose him as its candidate for the presidency. His opponent was Lucio Pérez Velasco; Montes emerged victorious after a closely contested election.
President of Bolivia
First government (1904–1909)
During his first government, Montes introduced notable improvements, which increased public revenues as well as the inflow of foreign capital.
- He carried out a vast educational plan; he built schools, created the Teachers' School, and brought a Belgian pedagogical mission in order to systematize education.
- He secured the approval of an important railway plan.
- On October 20, 1904, the Treaty of Peace and Friendship with Chile was signed, which ended the state of war existing between the two countries since the War of the Pacific of 1879–1880 (since in 1884 only a Truce Pact had been signed), recognizing the absolute and perpetual cession of the Bolivian coastline occupied by Chile.
According to Bolivian historiography from the mid-20th century onward, this treaty, whose negotiations began under the government of José Manuel Pando, was the result of the oppressive pressure exerted by Chile on Bolivia (motivated by the expropriation of Chilean and foreign capital that triggered the War of the Pacific), through customs controls and trade restrictions. The liberal governments of Pando and Montes believed that it was time to turn the page and became convinced that the development of railways and free transit, stipulated in the Treaty, were compensations worth the sacrifice.[1] The truth is that in 1902 Chile had signed a treaty with Argentina that ended the arms race with Buenos Aires, reducing its military personnel, creating a compulsory military service law and reducing the number of naval units, so Chile could hardly aspire to put military pressure on the government of Sucre.
- He enacted liberal measures, such as the establishment of civil marriage, freedom of worship and the abolition of the ecclesiastical fuero, which led the Holy See to break with the national government.
- He modernized the Bolivian Army, bringing the French military mission from Europe.
For the presidential elections of 1908, the government promoted the candidacy of the politician Fernando Eloy Guachalla for President and Eufronio Viscarra for Vice President, a ticket that proved victorious; but Guachalla fell ill and died shortly before assuming the presidency.
On Montes's instructions, the liberal majority in Congress denied Vice President Viscarra the right of succession, arguing that the death of the president-elect had occurred before he took office. Montes continued governing for one more year, until in 1909 the new presidential elections gave victory to the liberal candidate Eliodoro Villazón Montaño (also of the Liberal Party).
Once the presidential handover had taken place, Montes traveled to Europe to carry out diplomatic duties representing Bolivia.
Second government (1913–1917)
In 1913, Montes returned to Bolivia to run again for the presidency of the republic. He won the presidential elections of 1913 by a wide margin and took power again, until the year 1917. The most important works of this second term were the following:
- The founding of the Banco de la Nación
- Construction began on the Potosí–Villazón and Potosí–Sucre railways
- Public education continued to be promoted.
On the political front, dissent grew among members of the Liberal Party, who in 1914 founded the Republican Party, headed by General and former President of Bolivia José Manuel Pando. Pando was found dead in a ravine near El Kenko (on the heights of La Paz) on June 17, 1917, an event that was then regarded as a political crime perpetrated at the instigation of the Liberal Party.
However, modern research has determined that this death was due to natural causes.[2] As the end of his constitutional term approached, Montes promoted the candidacy of the liberal José Gutiérrez Guerra, who was victorious, thus maintaining the hegemony of the Liberal Party.
After his government ended, Montes became ambassador of Bolivia to France. In 1920 he was still in the city of Paris when the liberals were ousted from power by the republicans in Bolivia, which forced Montes to continue residing in France as an exile until 1928, the year in which he returned to Bolivia to assume the leadership of the Liberal Party.
Chaco War and death
During his life, Montes had begun his military career at a very early age, taking part initially in the War of the Pacific in 1879, then in the Civil War of 1898–1899 and finally in the Acre War of 1900–1903. These international as well as internal conflicts had given him valuable experience, earning him military prestige nationwide for more than 50 years. It was for this reason that for the Chaco War (1932–1935), President Daniel Salamanca decided to commission him as military advisor to the Bolivian Army in the Chaco.
But Ismael Montes was unable to witness the outcome and conclusion of the war, since while still serving as military advisor, and owing to his advanced age, he died on October 16, 1933 in the city of La Paz at 72 years of age.
Today one of his private automobiles is kept in the museum of the city of La Paz.
References
- ↑ Historia de Bolivia / La República: El Tratado de 1904 Archived (Date missing) at historia.ibolivia.net (Error: unknown archive URL).
- ↑ Carolina Hoz de Vila (21/08/2012). «Se devela la muerte del general Pando Archived (Date missing) at laprensa.com.bo (Error: unknown archive URL)». La Prensa (Bolivia).
Bibliography
- RED ESCUELA. Ismael Montes Gamboa. Retrieved October 7, 2013.
- Biografías y Vidas: Biografía de Ismael Montes. Retrieved October 7, 2013.
- Biografía Ismael Montes Gamboa
