Santana, Pedro

Born in a planter family in the border zone (birthplace, Ensche , now in Haiti ). Father - Pedro Santana, mother - Petronia Familias. Around 1805, the family moved first to Sibao , then to Santa Cruz de el Ceibo in the east of the country.

At the suggestion of his brother, Colonel Ramon Santana was introduced to Juan Pablo Duarte and joined the Dominican Republic independence movement. Quickly became one of the most influential movement figures. January 16, 1844 was among the signatories of the Manifesto of Independence. On February 27, Santana set off for Santo Domingo, where he enlisted the support of the French consul. On the same day, the Dominican Republic declared independence from Haiti. On March 7, President of the Central Junta, Thomas Bobadilla y Briones, appointed Santana commander of the forces on the southern border. At the end of May, a fight broke out between Bobadilla and Juan Pablo Duarte, as a result of which Bobadilla was removed from his post and Santana was fired. However, he and his troops moved to Santo Domingo, where on July 16 he proclaimed himself president of the central junta and head of the Republic. In August 1844, he expelled from the country the architects of her independence, led by Duarte, and remained the most significant political figure. On November 13, 1844, Pedro Santana was proclaimed the first constitutional president of the Dominican Republic.

Santana quickly showed dictatorial tendencies. He insisted that Article 210 be introduced into the constitution, which would allow the president of the country to issue any decrees in time of war and not bear any responsibility for them. On February 27, 1845 , on the first anniversary of independence, he ordered the execution of Andres Sanchez and Maria Trinidad Sanchez , brother and aunt of former Prime Minister Francisco Sanchez , as well as Jose del Carmen Figueiroa, on charges of conspiracy against the government. Maria Trinidad Sanchez was the author of the national flag and is considered the heroine of the liberation movement.

Almost the entire first term of the presidency of Santana on the Haitian border, as well as in the east of the country, hostilities took place.

It was assumed that Santana was elected for two four-year terms, so that he should rule until 1852 . However, the political and economic crisis undermined the authority of his government, and on August 4, 1848, he resigned, citing health problems as the cause. Four days later, Manuel Jiménez González became his successor, but Congress demanded his resignation. On May 28, 1849, Santana carried out a coup d'etat, dismissing Jimenez and taking the post of Supreme Leader of the Republic. His task was to organize the elections in which Buenaventura Baez won. September 23, 1849 Santana resigned, transferring power to Baez.

In the 1853 election , Santana was re-elected president. His rule was not much different from the previous one and was marked by despotism and self-will. On the other hand, he conducted a political amnesty that allowed many opposition leaders to return to the country. The amnesty did not include Juan Pablo Duarte, who lived in exile in Venezuela.

Santana continued negotiations with the United States , begun by his predecessor, Baez, to establish a US protectorate over the Dominican Republic. Spain, which had previously shown no interest in the Dominican Republic, was now interested in influencing the country, which led to the signing of several agreements between the two countries. In 1856, the Spanish consul in Santo Domingo, Antonio Maria Segovia, who was tasked with overseeing the development of relations between the United States and the Dominican Republic, proposed Spanish citizenship to all citizens of the Dominican Republic who so wished. In fact, this meant support for the Dominican opposition by Spain.

The diplomatic crisis and dire economic situation led to the resignation of Santana on May 26, 1856 . He was replaced by Vice President Manuel de Relia Mota .

On July 28, 1858, another coup d'etat took place, as a result of which Santana ousted President Jose Desiderio Valverde , who had been in power for only a month and a half, and became president himself. The country at that time was in a state of dire economic crisis caused by previous political events. Exports of trim wood, the main trading product, were greatly reduced, and revenue from it decreased. The central government had virtually no resources of its own. Santana tried to normalize the situation by holding the presidential election in January 1859 , which he won.

During this period, the Dominican Republic feared an invasion of Haitian troops led by Emperor Faustin I. On January 15, 1859, the latter was overthrown and fled the country. The new president, Fabre Jeffrar , advocated good-neighborly relations between the two countries. However, the economic situation of the Dominican Republic only worsened, as Santana, continuing the monetary policy of its predecessors, increased the money supply. The rationale for this was the need to resist the hypothetical aggression of Haiti. Therefore, in spite of Jeffrar's statements, Santana was forced to seek rapprochement with Spain in order to justify his policy on the pretext of protection from Haiti. In a letter to Queen Isabella II, he requested a Spanish protectorate or even annexation of the Dominican Republic by Spain. Santana and its government benefited from a protectorate or annexation, since they presupposed the preservation of privileges and social status, and were supposed to protect the government from the population. Spain, however, was afraid that the annexation would be rejected by the population. Santana made serious efforts to ensure proper political support by appointing those responsible for work in the provinces and expelling opponents of annexation from the country.

On March 18, 1861, the annexation of the Dominican Republic by Spain was proclaimed, which marked the beginning of long unrest in the country. Pedro Santana was appointed Governor General of Santo Domingo, but resigned on July 20, 1862 , reporting health problems. The real reason was the loss of support and authority. March 28, 1862 he received from the Queen the title of Marquis of Carreras.

Pedro Santana died in Santo Domingo on June 14, 1864 .

• Historia Patria Dominicana (Spanish)