The Legalist Revolution was a civil war in Venezuela that was caused by the "Continuity movement" of President Raimundo Andueza Palacio who wanted to perpetuate himself in power through a constitutional reform. Although it was constitutionally stipulated that his term would end on 20 February 1892, Andueza planned to reform the Constitution in order to prolong his stay in power for two more years, which is why he was called a Continuationist.[5]
| Legalist Revolution | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of the Venezuelan civil wars | |||||||
 General Joaquín Crespo and the leaders of the Legalist Revolution painting | |||||||
| |||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||
| Legalist Rebels | Continuist Government | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
| Joaquín Crespo | Raimundo Andueza Palacio | ||||||
| Strength | |||||||
| 9.000[1]-12.000[2] | 5,000 at the beginning[3] | ||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||
| 10.000 deaths y 6000 wounded in total.[4] | |||||||
Joaquín Crespo took up arms on March 11 in his power base of "El Totumo", in Guárico state, starting the war that spread to the rest of the country. The government appointed General Sebastián Castañas, commander of the army, to fight the Revolution while Generals Ramón Guerra, Wenceslao Casado and José Manuel Hernández, known as "El Mocho Hernández", joined the Legalist movement of Juan Crespo.
Battle of Los Colorados and Battle of Boquerón edit
On 15 April 1892, Crespo defeated the Minister of War Sebastián Castañas in the Battles of Jobo Mocho and made him retreat to Calabozo.
In autumn Joaquín Crespo advanced towards Caracas at the head of more than 10,000 men, and encountered the Continuationist army of Generals José Ignacio Pulido and Luciano Mendoza at Los Teques.
The Battle of Los Colorados and the Battle of Boquerón took place between 3 and 5 October 1892, and was a defeat for the Continuationists.
Mendoza, Pulido and Guillermo Tell Villegas Pulido withdrew and abandoned Caracas on 6 October. The city was left unprotected, and gangs of looters invaded the residences of Raimundo Andueza Palacio, Pulido, Sarria and other leaders of the defeated government, as well as the offices of the newspaper La Opinión Nacional. A few hours later, Crespo entered the capital, marking the triumph of the Legalist Revolution.[6]
Crespo immediately took charge of the national executive power and would remain President until 1898.[7] On 21 June 1893, a new Constitution was signed that would stipulate in its article 63, direct and secret voting, and a Presidential period of maximum 4 years in its article 71.
References edit
- ^ Fernández, Pablo Emilio (1956). Gómez: el rehabilitador. Caracas: Jaime Villegas, pp. 94.
- ^ Araujo, Jesús (1984). Andes durante la segunda mitad del siglo XIX. Caracas: J. Araujo, pp. 76.
- ^ Recopilación de Leyes y Decretos de Venezuela, Volume 15, 1891, "La Opinion Nacional, pp. 365. Size of the army in 1891 that was also expected to be in 1892.
- ^ Morales Pérez, Salvador E. (2005). Encuentros en la historia: Cuba y Venezuela. Instituto de Cultura del Estado Cojedes. ISBN 978-980-6686-00-7; Morales Pérez, Salvador E. & Agustín Sánchez Andrés (1998). Diplomacias en conflicto: Cuba y España en el horizonte latinoamericano del 98. Centro de Investigación Científica "Ing. Jorge L. Tamayo", pp. 373. ISBN 978-970-18-2306-4. Cifras de Rondón Márquez.
- ^ "Se alzó un General en el Hato "El Totumo", Estado Guárico | Informe21.com". 29 April 2020. Archived from the original on 29 April 2020. Retrieved 28 July 2022.
- ^ "Revolución Legalista | Fundación Empresas Polar". bibliofep.fundacionempresaspolar.org. Retrieved 28 July 2022.
- ^ "Efemérides Venezolanas".