Juan José Nieto Gil
Encyclopedia
Juan José Nieto Gil was a Colombian politician, Army general and writer. A Liberal party
caudillo
of Cartagena, he served interimly as Governor of the Province of Cartagena
, and was later elected President of the Sovereign State of Bolívar from 1959 to 1964. In 1961, during the Colombian Civil War
, he fought on the side of the Liberal rebels against the Administration of President Mariano Ospina Rodríguez
, and acting in rebellion proclaimed himself President of the Granadine Confederation
in his right as the Presidential Designate
, relinquishing power four months later to the Liberal leader, General Tomás Cipriano de Mosquera y Arboleda, who led a successful coup d'état
against the Conservative
Government in Bogotá.
Nieto, of mulatto
background, was the first Afro-Colombian
to rise to politics in the history of Colombia
becoming the first Afro-Colombian to become the executive officeholder of a first level administrative division of Colombia. His role, name, and background however, were subjugated to the obscure confines of history until he was rediscovered in the late 1970's by the Colombian historian and sociologist, Orlando Fals Borda
.
politicians in power and the Liberal
opposition on the question of federated state's rights and sovereignty, the caudillo and President of Cauca
, General Tomás Cipriano de Mosquera y Arboleda, broke relations with the central government and declared civil war
against the Administration of President Mariano Ospina Rodríguez
. Nieto followed suit and on 3 July broke relations with the central government, soon Mosquera recruited the help of Nieto to overthrow Ospina from power, and sent Ministers Plenipotentiaries to sign a treaty with Bolívar and Nieto as its President; on 10 September, Nieto signed the Treaty of Union and Confederation of the States of Bolívar and Cauca (Tratado de Unión y Confederación de los Estados de Bolívar y Cauca) creating a provisional government and setting the framework for a new republic called United States of New Granada
. The treaty also named Mosquera, Nieto and Obando
as the First, Second, and Third Presidential Designate
respectively.
and Tubará
, in the Province of Santa Marta
part of the then Viceroyalty of the New Granada. Born to a humble family of scarce resources, his parents were Tomás Nicolás Nieto and Benedicta Gil, a mason
and candlemaker respectively, who lived in the town of Baranoa
and moved to Cartagena de Indias in 1811 following the Declaration of Independence of Cartagena Province
as part of the larger struggle of the South American Wars of Independence
that started in 1810 and gave birth to the Republic of Colombia
. On 13 September 1827 he married María Margarita del Carmen Palacio García del Fierro, daughter of José de Palacio y Ponce de León, a Canarian
businessman for whom Nieto worked for as a scrivener
, and of María Francisca García del Fierro y Velacorte, a Neogranadine lady of reputable family of Cartagena who died during childbirth and related to Rafael Núñez Moledo as his grandaunt. Together they had one son, Ricardo, who died during childhood and shortly after Nieto became a widower as well after the passing of his wife. On 21 April 1834 he remarried this time to Josefa Teresa Plácida de los Dolores Cavero y Leguina, likewise of reputable and influential family and daughter of José Ignacio de Cavero y Cárdenas
, a Precursor of the Independence of Colombia of Mexican birth, and María Teresa de Leguina y López Tagle, granddaughter of the Count of Pestagua.
Colombian Liberal Party
The Colombian Liberal Party is a center-left party in Colombia that adheres to social democracy and social liberalism.The Party was founded in 1848 and, together with the Colombian Conservative Party, subsequently became one of the two main political forces in the country for over a century.After...
caudillo
Caudillo
Caudillo is a Spanish word for "leader" and usually describes a political-military leader at the head of an authoritarian power. The term translates into English as leader or chief, or more pejoratively as warlord, dictator or strongman. Caudillo was the term used to refer to the charismatic...
of Cartagena, he served interimly as Governor of the Province of Cartagena
Cartagena Province
Cartagena Province was a province of Gran Colombia. With the 1824 changes in the subdivisions of Gran Colombia, it became part of Magdalena Department....
, and was later elected President of the Sovereign State of Bolívar from 1959 to 1964. In 1961, during the Colombian Civil War
Colombian Civil War (1860–1862)
The Colombian Civil War of May 8 1860 to November 1862 was an internal conflict between the newly formed conservative Grenadine Confederation and a more liberal rebel force from the newly seceded region of Cauca, composed of dissatisfied politicians commanded by General Tomás Cipriano de Mosquera,...
, he fought on the side of the Liberal rebels against the Administration of President Mariano Ospina Rodríguez
Mariano Ospina Rodríguez
Mariano Ospina Rodríguez was a Colombian politician, journalist and lawyer, founder of the Colombian Conservative Party and later President of Colombia between 1857 and 1861 during the Granadine Confederation.- Biographic data :...
, and acting in rebellion proclaimed himself President of the Granadine Confederation
Granadine Confederation
The Granadine Confederation was a short-lived federal republic established in 1858 as a result of a constitutional change replacing the Republic of New Granada. It comprised the present day nations of Colombia and Panama...
in his right as the Presidential Designate
Presidential Designate
The Presidential Designate 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 purpose was to replace the President in his absence, death, or inability to...
, relinquishing power four months later to the Liberal leader, General Tomás Cipriano de Mosquera y Arboleda, who led a successful coup d'état
Coup d'état
A coup d'état state, literally: strike/blow of state)—also known as a coup, putsch, and overthrow—is the sudden, extrajudicial deposition of a government, usually by a small group of the existing state establishment—typically the military—to replace the deposed government with another body; either...
against the Conservative
Colombian Conservative Party
The Colombian Conservative Party , is a conservative political party in Colombia. The party was unofficially founded by a group of Revolutionary Commoners during the Revolutionary War for Independence from the Spanish Monarchy and later formally established during the Greater Colombia...
Government in Bogotá.
Nieto, of mulatto
Mulatto
Mulatto denotes a person with one white parent and one black parent, or more broadly, a person of mixed black and white ancestry. Contemporary usage of the term varies greatly, and the broader sense of the term makes its application rather subjective, as not all people of mixed white and black...
background, was the first Afro-Colombian
Afro-Colombian
Afro Colombians refers to Colombians of African ancestry, and the great impact they have had on Colombian culture. Notable Afro-Colombians include Colombian scientists like Raul Cuero, writers like Manuel Zapata Olivella and politicians:...
to rise to politics in the history of Colombia
History of Colombia
This article deals with the history of Colombia, a country in South America.-Pre-Colombian period:Approximately 10,000 years BC hunter-gatherer societies existed near present-day Bogotá , and they traded with one another and with cultures living in the Magdalena River valley...
becoming the first Afro-Colombian to become the executive officeholder of a first level administrative division of Colombia. His role, name, and background however, were subjugated to the obscure confines of history until he was rediscovered in the late 1970's by the Colombian historian and sociologist, Orlando Fals Borda
Orlando Fals Borda
Orlando Fals Borda was a Colombian researcher and sociologist, one of the most important Latin American thinkers, and one of the founders of participatory action research. Together with Father Camilo Torres Restrepo, in 1959 he set up the first sociology faculty in Latin America at the National...
.
Presidency 1861
On 8 May 1860, amid raising tensions between Conservative partyColombian Conservative Party
The Colombian Conservative Party , is a conservative political party in Colombia. The party was unofficially founded by a group of Revolutionary Commoners during the Revolutionary War for Independence from the Spanish Monarchy and later formally established during the Greater Colombia...
politicians in power and the Liberal
Colombian Liberal Party
The Colombian Liberal Party is a center-left party in Colombia that adheres to social democracy and social liberalism.The Party was founded in 1848 and, together with the Colombian Conservative Party, subsequently became one of the two main political forces in the country for over a century.After...
opposition on the question of federated state's rights and sovereignty, the caudillo and President of Cauca
Cauca State
Cauca State was one of the states of Colombia.Today the area of the former state makes up most of modern day west and southern Colombia, with some portion of its vast territories acquired by present day Peru, Brazil, Ecuador and Venezuela.- Naming :...
, General Tomás Cipriano de Mosquera y Arboleda, broke relations with the central government and declared civil war
Colombian Civil War (1860–1862)
The Colombian Civil War of May 8 1860 to November 1862 was an internal conflict between the newly formed conservative Grenadine Confederation and a more liberal rebel force from the newly seceded region of Cauca, composed of dissatisfied politicians commanded by General Tomás Cipriano de Mosquera,...
against the Administration of President Mariano Ospina Rodríguez
Mariano Ospina Rodríguez
Mariano Ospina Rodríguez was a Colombian politician, journalist and lawyer, founder of the Colombian Conservative Party and later President of Colombia between 1857 and 1861 during the Granadine Confederation.- Biographic data :...
. Nieto followed suit and on 3 July broke relations with the central government, soon Mosquera recruited the help of Nieto to overthrow Ospina from power, and sent Ministers Plenipotentiaries to sign a treaty with Bolívar and Nieto as its President; on 10 September, Nieto signed the Treaty of Union and Confederation of the States of Bolívar and Cauca (Tratado de Unión y Confederación de los Estados de Bolívar y Cauca) creating a provisional government and setting the framework for a new republic called United States of New Granada
United States of Colombia
The United States of Colombia was the name adopted in 1861 through the Rionegro Constitution for the nation which had been known as the Republic of New Granada since the dissolution of the federation of Gran Colombia in 1830-1831....
. The treaty also named Mosquera, Nieto and Obando
José María Obando
José María Ramón Obando del Campo was a Neogranadine General and politician who twice served as President of Colombia...
as the First, Second, and Third Presidential Designate
Presidential Designate
The Presidential Designate 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 purpose was to replace the President in his absence, death, or inability to...
respectively.
Personal life
Born 24 June 1804 in the settlement of Cibarco, between the towns of BaranoaBaranoa
Baranoa is a municipality and town in the Colombian department of Atlántico, located 22 km south of Barranquilla. The municipality occupies an area of 127 km2, including rural, urban, suburban and protected land...
and Tubará
Tubará
Tubará is a municipality and town in the Colombian department of Atlántico.-External links:...
, in the Province of Santa Marta
Santa Marta Province
Santa Marta Province was a province of Gran Colombia. With the 1824 changes in the subdivisions of Gran Colombia, it became part of Magdalena Department....
part of the then Viceroyalty of the New Granada. Born to a humble family of scarce resources, his parents were Tomás Nicolás Nieto and Benedicta Gil, a mason
Mason
Mason may refer to:* Masonry worker, who builds with concrete, brick or stone* Bricklayer, a craftsman who lays bricks to construct brickwork* Mason , a common English surname* Mason , Dutch electronic music duo* Mason , on the Moon...
and candlemaker respectively, who lived in the town of Baranoa
Baranoa
Baranoa is a municipality and town in the Colombian department of Atlántico, located 22 km south of Barranquilla. The municipality occupies an area of 127 km2, including rural, urban, suburban and protected land...
and moved to Cartagena de Indias in 1811 following the Declaration of Independence of Cartagena Province
Cartagena Province
Cartagena Province was a province of Gran Colombia. With the 1824 changes in the subdivisions of Gran Colombia, it became part of Magdalena Department....
as part of the larger struggle of the South American Wars of Independence
South American Wars of Independence
The Latin American Wars of Independence were the various revolutions that took place during the late 18th and early 19th centuries and resulted in the creation of a number of independent countries in Latin America. These revolutions followed the American and French Revolutions, which had profound...
that started in 1810 and gave birth to the Republic of Colombia
Gran Colombia
Gran Colombia is a name used today for the state that encompassed much of northern South America and part of southern Central America from 1819 to 1831. This short-lived republic included the territories of present-day Colombia, Venezuela, Ecuador, Panama, northern Peru and northwest Brazil. The...
. On 13 September 1827 he married María Margarita del Carmen Palacio García del Fierro, daughter of José de Palacio y Ponce de León, a Canarian
Canarian people
The Canarians are an ethnic group living in the archipelago of the Canary Islands , near the coast of Western Africa...
businessman for whom Nieto worked for as a scrivener
Scrivener
A scrivener was traditionally a person who could read and write. This usually indicated secretarial and administrative duties such as dictation and keeping business, judicial, and history records for kings, nobles, temples, and cities...
, and of María Francisca García del Fierro y Velacorte, a Neogranadine lady of reputable family of Cartagena who died during childbirth and related to Rafael Núñez Moledo as his grandaunt. Together they had one son, Ricardo, who died during childhood and shortly after Nieto became a widower as well after the passing of his wife. On 21 April 1834 he remarried this time to Josefa Teresa Plácida de los Dolores Cavero y Leguina, likewise of reputable and influential family and daughter of José Ignacio de Cavero y Cárdenas
José Ignacio de Cavero y Cárdenas
José Ignacio de Cavero y Cárdenas was a Mexican-Colombian lawyer and politician. A Precursor of the Independence of Colombia, as the 4th President of the Supreme Junta of Cartagena de Indias he was a signatory of the declaration of independence of the Cartagena Province from the Viceroyalty of the...
, a Precursor of the Independence of Colombia of Mexican birth, and María Teresa de Leguina y López Tagle, granddaughter of the Count of Pestagua.