Laureano Gómez
Encyclopedia
Laureano Eleuterio Gómez Castro (February 20, 1889 – July 13, 1965) was President of Colombia
from 1950 to 1953, and long time leader of the Colombian Conservative Party
.
ic family in Bogotá
on February 20, 1889. He studied engineering
at the National University of Colombia
, graduating in 1909. He was the founder and editor of the periodical La Unidad from 1909 to 1916. He was first elected to parliament in 1911, serving until 1918. He was elected again in 1921 serving in various cabinet roles throughout the next twenty years. In 1932 Gómez gained control of the Conservative party in Colombia, a role which he relished. Under his leadership the party was highly disciplined, and provided strong opposition to the ruling Liberal
Government. In 1936 he founded the Colombian daily El Siglo
. He was widely viewed as a brilliant parliamentarian and political tactician. However, he got into trouble because of his open sympathy for fascism
; he was an admirer of Adolf Hitler
and Francisco Franco
. He was exiled several times, the last time from 1946 to 1948.
in 1951. Although fearing for his life, he continued to control the government through a puppet successor. With public order collapsing, General Gustavo Rojas Pinilla
seized power in 1953. Gomez fled to Spain.
to counter the military regime.
.
Gómez returned to Colombia where he continued to dominate the Conservative party until his death on July 13, 1965, in Bogotá.
, he was a patron of the arts and did much for the Colombian artistic culture.
President of Colombia
The President of Colombia is the head of state and head of government of the Republic of Colombia. The office of president was established upon the ratification of the Constitution of 1819, by the Congress of Angostura, convened in December 1819, when Colombia was part of "la Gran Colombia"...
from 1950 to 1953, and long time leader of the Colombian Conservative Party
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...
.
Pre-election
Gómez was born into an aristocratAristocracy (class)
The aristocracy are people considered to be in the highest social class in a society which has or once had a political system of Aristocracy. Aristocrats possess hereditary titles granted by a monarch, which once granted them feudal or legal privileges, or deriving, as in Ancient Greece and India,...
ic family in Bogotá
Bogotá
Bogotá, Distrito Capital , from 1991 to 2000 called Santa Fé de Bogotá, is the capital, and largest city, of Colombia. It is also designated by the national constitution as the capital of the department of Cundinamarca, even though the city of Bogotá now comprises an independent Capital district...
on February 20, 1889. He studied engineering
Engineering
Engineering is the discipline, art, skill and profession of acquiring and applying scientific, mathematical, economic, social, and practical knowledge, in order to design and build structures, machines, devices, systems, materials and processes that safely realize improvements to the lives of...
at the National University of Colombia
National University of Colombia
The Universidad Nacional de Colombia , also called UNAL or just UN, is a public, national, coeducational, research university, located primarily in Bogotá, Medellín, Manizales and Palmira, Colombia...
, graduating in 1909. He was the founder and editor of the periodical La Unidad from 1909 to 1916. He was first elected to parliament in 1911, serving until 1918. He was elected again in 1921 serving in various cabinet roles throughout the next twenty years. In 1932 Gómez gained control of the Conservative party in Colombia, a role which he relished. Under his leadership the party was highly disciplined, and provided strong opposition to the ruling 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...
Government. In 1936 he founded the Colombian daily El Siglo
El Nuevo Siglo
El Nuevo Siglo is a daily newspaper published in Bogotá, Colombia. It was founded in 1936 by the conservatives Laureano Gómez and José de la Vega en Bogotá. In July 2007, it was run by Juan Gabriel Uribe...
. He was widely viewed as a brilliant parliamentarian and political tactician. However, he got into trouble because of his open sympathy for fascism
Fascism
Fascism is a radical authoritarian nationalist political ideology. Fascists seek to rejuvenate their nation based on commitment to the national community as an organic entity, in which individuals are bound together in national identity by suprapersonal connections of ancestry, culture, and blood...
; he was an admirer of Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician and the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party , commonly referred to as the Nazi Party). He was Chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945, and head of state from 1934 to 1945...
and Francisco Franco
Francisco Franco
Francisco Franco y Bahamonde was a Spanish general, dictator and head of state of Spain from October 1936 , and de facto regent of the nominally restored Kingdom of Spain from 1947 until his death in November, 1975...
. He was exiled several times, the last time from 1946 to 1948.
Election
He assumed the presidency in 1950 in an election in which the Liberals refused to participate. Gómez assumed dictatorial powers, muzzled the courts and violently suppressed the opposition. He suffered a heart attackMyocardial infarction
Myocardial infarction or acute myocardial infarction , commonly known as a heart attack, results from the interruption of blood supply to a part of the heart, causing heart cells to die...
in 1951. Although fearing for his life, he continued to control the government through a puppet successor. With public order collapsing, General Gustavo Rojas Pinilla
Gustavo Rojas Pinilla
Gustavo Rojas Pinilla was a Colombian politician, military officer, General of the Army and President of Colombia between 1953 and 1957.- Biographic data :...
seized power in 1953. Gomez fled to Spain.
In Exile
Gómez continued to lead the Conservatives in exile. He was instrumental in a 1956 agreement, the Pact of Benidorm, between the two main parties, negotiated with Liberal leader Alberto LlerasAlberto Lleras Camargo
Alberto Lleras Camargo was an important Colombian diplomat and political figure.He was a member of the Liberal Party of Colombia; he served as congressman , Minister of Education, Minister of the Interior and Minister of Foreign Affairs, during the governments of Alfonso López Pumarejo and Eduardo...
to counter the military regime.
Return
A year after the collapse of the military regime, Laureano Gómez, leader of the Conservative Party, and Alberto Lleras Camargo, representing the Liberals, signed the Declaration of Sitges, which defined the next 15 years of Colombian politics. The unique agreement provided for alternation of Conservatives and Liberals in the presidency, an equal sharing of ministerial and other government posts. The declaration and the resulting coalition divided authority between the parties until 1974. This period is known as the National FrontNational Front (Colombia)
National Front was a period in the history of Colombia in which the two main political parties; Liberal Party and Conservative Party agreed to let the opposite party govern, intercalating for a period of four presidential terms....
.
Gómez returned to Colombia where he continued to dominate the Conservative party until his death on July 13, 1965, in Bogotá.
Author
Gómez was also a writer and a well known art critic; he had candid disputes with artists he criticized like, Eladio Velez and artists he acclaimed like Santiago Martinez DelgadoSantiago Martínez Delgado
Santiago Martínez Delgado was a Colombian painter, sculptor, art historian and writer. He established a reputation as a prominent muralist during the 1940s and is also known for his watercolors, oil paintings, illustrations and woodcarvings....
, he was a patron of the arts and did much for the Colombian artistic culture.