Antonio José Cañas
Encyclopedia
Antonio José Cañas Quintanilla was a Salvadoran military officer, diplomat, and politician. For two brief periods he was head of state of the State of El Salvador, within the Federal Republic of Central America
(1839 and 1840).
The Central American provinces declared independence from Spain on September 15, 1821. Cañas was one of the commissioners named by the legislature of El Salvador to oppose annexation to the Mexican Empire in 1822. Central America as a whole nevertheless supported annexation, and the region became part of the Mexican Empire in 1822. In 1823 Emperor Agustín de Iturbide was overthrown and the Empire came to an end. Central America withdrew from Mexico and formed a federal republic.
In May 1824, President James Monroe
granted United States recognition to this new Republic of Central America. The United States became the first nation to do so, and shortly thereafter Monroe received the Central American ambassador, Antonio José Cañas. Cañas's objectives were to gain protection from Mexico, and perhaps also from Spain, and to negotiate a commercial treaty. He was also interested in securing aid for a proposed interoceanic canal across Central America. The United States refused to sign a security treaty and was not interested in the canal, but it was interested in a commercial treaty. The treaty was signed December 5, 1825.
Nearly 150 years later, U.S. President John F. Kennedy
addressed a summit meeting of Central American presidents in San José, Costa Rica
with the following words:
In May 1838, Salvadoran head of state Timoteo Menéndez
named Cañas a minister without portfolio. He began working diligently to organize the public administration into four departments: hacienda (treasury), guerra (war), relaciones (foreign affairs) and gobernación (interior). In Salvadoran history, Cañas is considered the first minister of each of these four cabinet departments.
On May 23, 1839, Menéndez provisionally turned over power to Colonel Cañas. He served until July 11, 1839. He was succeeded by General Francisco Morazán
, who served until February 1840.
On April 15, 1840, the Municipal Council of San Salvador named Cañas head of state of El Salvador for a second time. He served until September 20, 1840, when a revolt by General Francisco Malespín
forced his resignation. (Malespín had intended to rule through Cañas, but Cañas was not agreeable.) After José Damián Villacorta
rejected the appointment, Senator Norberto Ramírez
took over the government.
Federal Republic of Central America
The Federal Republic of Central America, known as the United Provinces of Central America in its first year of creation, was a sovereign state in Central America, which consisted of the territories of the former Captaincy General of Guatemala of New Spain...
(1839 and 1840).
The Central American provinces declared independence from Spain on September 15, 1821. Cañas was one of the commissioners named by the legislature of El Salvador to oppose annexation to the Mexican Empire in 1822. Central America as a whole nevertheless supported annexation, and the region became part of the Mexican Empire in 1822. In 1823 Emperor Agustín de Iturbide was overthrown and the Empire came to an end. Central America withdrew from Mexico and formed a federal republic.
In May 1824, President James Monroe
James Monroe
James Monroe was the fifth President of the United States . Monroe was the last president who was a Founding Father of the United States, and the last president from the Virginia dynasty and the Republican Generation...
granted United States recognition to this new Republic of Central America. The United States became the first nation to do so, and shortly thereafter Monroe received the Central American ambassador, Antonio José Cañas. Cañas's objectives were to gain protection from Mexico, and perhaps also from Spain, and to negotiate a commercial treaty. He was also interested in securing aid for a proposed interoceanic canal across Central America. The United States refused to sign a security treaty and was not interested in the canal, but it was interested in a commercial treaty. The treaty was signed December 5, 1825.
Nearly 150 years later, U.S. President John F. Kennedy
John F. Kennedy
John Fitzgerald "Jack" Kennedy , often referred to by his initials JFK, was the 35th President of the United States, serving from 1961 until his assassination in 1963....
addressed a summit meeting of Central American presidents in San José, Costa Rica
San José, Costa Rica
San José is the capital and largest city of Costa Rica. Located in the Central Valley, San José is the seat of national government, the focal point of political and economic activity, and the major transportation hub of this Central American nation.Founded in 1738 by order of Cabildo de León, San...
with the following words:
In 1825 a son of El Salvador, and a citizen of Central America — Antonio José Cañas — the first minister accredited by the United Provinces of Central America to the United States, delivered an invitation to Secretary of State Henry Clay. He asked him to send representatives to the first Inter-American Congress at Panama, a meeting at which, he said, the struggling new nations of the hemisphere "might consider upon and adopt the best plan for defending the states of the New World from foreign aggression, and... raise them to that elevation of wealth and power, which, from their resources, they may attain."
Today, 138 years later, we are gathered in this theater in pursuit of those same goals: the preservation of our independence, the extension of freedom, and the elevation of the welfare of our citizens to a level as high as "from our resources" we can attain. And today I have come from the United States at the invitation of a Central America which, with Panama, is rapidly attaining a unity of purpose, effort and achievement which has been unknown since the dissolution of that earliest federation.
In May 1838, Salvadoran head of state Timoteo Menéndez
Timoteo Menéndez
Timoteo Menéndez was a Salvadoran politician. Twice he served as acting head of state of El Salvador, when it was a state within the Federal Republic of Central America ....
named Cañas a minister without portfolio. He began working diligently to organize the public administration into four departments: hacienda (treasury), guerra (war), relaciones (foreign affairs) and gobernación (interior). In Salvadoran history, Cañas is considered the first minister of each of these four cabinet departments.
On May 23, 1839, Menéndez provisionally turned over power to Colonel Cañas. He served until July 11, 1839. He was succeeded by General Francisco Morazán
Francisco Morazán
General Francisco Morazán was a Honduran general and a politician who ruled several Central American states at different times during the turbulent period from 1827 to 1842. He rose to prominence at the legendary Battle of La Trinidad on November 11, 1827...
, who served until February 1840.
On April 15, 1840, the Municipal Council of San Salvador named Cañas head of state of El Salvador for a second time. He served until September 20, 1840, when a revolt by General Francisco Malespín
Francisco Malespín
General Francisco Malespín Herrera was the president of El Salvador from 7 February 1844 to 15 February 1845.-References:...
forced his resignation. (Malespín had intended to rule through Cañas, but Cañas was not agreeable.) After José Damián Villacorta
José Damián Villacorta
Licenciado José Damián Villacorta Cañas was a Salvadoran lawyer and politician. He was chief of state of El Salvador from February 16, 1830 to December 4, 1830, while it was a state within the Federal Republic of Central America.His parents were Esteban Gabriel de Villacorta and María Ignacia de...
rejected the appointment, Senator Norberto Ramírez
Norberto Ramírez
Norberto Ramírez Áreas was a Nicaraguan lawyer and politician. From 20/23 September 1840 to 7 January 1841 he was the 13th President of El Salvador, still technically a state in the Federal Republic of Central America...
took over the government.