General Manuel Bonilla Chirinos (1849–1913) was President of Honduras

President of Honduras

This page lists the Presidents of Honduras.Colonial Honduras declared its independence from Spain on 15 September 1821. From 5 January 1822 to 1 July 1823, Honduras was part of the First Mexican Empire of Agustín de Iturbide....

 from 13 April 1903 to 25 February 1907, and again from 1 February 1912 till 21 March 1913.

He was born in Juticalpa, Olancho, Honduras

Honduras

Honduras is a republic in Central America. It was previously known as Spanish Honduras to differentiate it from British Honduras, which became the modern-day state of Belize...

. He started out as a liberal

Liberalism

Liberalism is the belief in the importance of liberty and equal rights. Liberals espouse a wide array of views depending on their understanding of these principles, but generally, liberals support ideas such as constitutionalism, liberal democracy, free and fair elections, human rights,...

, and then became a conservative

Conservatism

Conservatism is a political and social philosophy that promotes the maintenance of traditional institutions and supports, at the most, minimal and gradual change in society. Some conservatives seek to preserve things as they are, emphasizing stability and continuity, while others oppose modernism...

, and he is considered the founder of the ideas that led to the creation of the National Party of Honduras

National Party of Honduras

The National Party is a centre-right conservative political party in Honduras and the main right-wing political party in the country. Founded in 1902 the PNH is identified with the color blue as its rival the Liberal Party of Honduras , is red. All the democratic elections in Honduras have been...

. He was involved in various military actions as a young man. As president he gave generous concessions to the banana companies along the north coast, namely to Sam Zemurray

Sam Zemurray

Samuel Zemurray was a U.S. businessman who made his fortune in the banana trade...

's Cuyamel Fruit Company

Cuyamel Fruit Company

Cuyamel Fruit was a Honduran fruit company founded by Samuel Zemurray in 1910, to export fruit inland from Puerto Cortés, Honduras. Zemurray started as a banana retailer in Mobile, Alabama and moved to Honduras in order to participate in growing and exporting fruit...

.