Mariano Prado
Encyclopedia
León, Nicaragua
León is a department in northwestern Nicaragua . It is also the second largest city in Nicaragua, after Managua. It was founded by the Spaniards as Santiago de los Caballeros de León and rivals Granada, Nicaragua, in the number of historic Spanish colonial homes and churches...
; d. Guatemala
Guatemala
Guatemala is a country in Central America bordered by Mexico to the north and west, the Pacific Ocean to the southwest, Belize to the northeast, the Caribbean to the east, and Honduras and El Salvador to the southeast...
) was a Central American lawyer and a four-time, liberal chief of state of El Salvador
El Salvador
El Salvador or simply Salvador is the smallest and the most densely populated country in Central America. The country's capital city and largest city is San Salvador; Santa Ana and San Miguel are also important cultural and commercial centers in the country and in all of Central America...
, while it was a state in the Federal Republic of Central America
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...
(1823-24, 1824, 1826-29 and 1832-33).
Born in Nicaragua
Nicaragua
Nicaragua is the largest country in the Central American American isthmus, bordered by Honduras to the north and Costa Rica to the south. The country is situated between 11 and 14 degrees north of the Equator in the Northern Hemisphere, which places it entirely within the tropics. The Pacific Ocean...
to José de la Trinidad Prado and Clara Baca, Prado moved with his family at a young age to San Vicente, El Salvador
San Vicente, El Salvador
San Vicente is a municipality in the San Vicente department of El Salvador. It was founded by 50 Spanish families in 1635, under the Tempisque tree, which is still standing today....
. He spent some years in the Regiment Fijo de Bandera, but then decided to pursue a career in civil law. He received his law degree in 1797. He became a city councilman in San Vicente, where he owned considerable rural property. On June 30, 1809 he married Engracia Vasconcelos in San Vicente.
Prado repudiated the revolution of 1811. After the proclamation of independence in 1821, he opposed the union of the province of El Salvador with the Mexican Empire. He was one of the outstanding figures in the political party later called "Exaltado" (Exalted). He was a deputy in the provincial congress of 1822. As political chief of San Salvador
San Salvador
The city of San Salvador the capital and largest city of El Salvador, which has been designated a Gamma World City. Its complete name is La Ciudad de Gran San Salvador...
he organized the civic militia during a time of threat to the capital by an invasion from Guatemala. (El Salvador had seceded from Guatemala in order to avoid incorporation into Mexico.) On February 7, 1823 the defenders evacuated San Salvador. Prado took command of one of the military columns in the retreat. They camped at his hacienda, "Santa Catalina", near San Vicente, and then continued to march toward 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...
. They surrendered a short time later at Gualcince
Gualcince
Gualcince is a municipality in the Honduran department of Lempira.Gualcince is one of the several municipalities of the Lempira department. It is located 78 km from Gracias city. It is necessary to pass by San Juan, Intibuca and through the municipalities of Santa Cruz and San Andrés. It has 2...
.
On the fall of Emperor Agustín de Iturbide
Agustín de Iturbide
Agustín Cosme Damián de Iturbide y Aramburu , also known as Augustine I of Mexico, was a Mexican army general who built a successful political and military coalition that was able to march into Mexico City on 27 September 1821, decisively ending the Mexican War of Independence...
, and of the Mexican Empire itself, El Salvador regained sovereignty. Prado occupied the political leadership of San Salvador and presided over the Consultative Governmental Junta of the Province of San Salvador. He governed as provisional chief from June 17, 1823 to April 22, 1824. He served a second, brief, period as provisional chief executive of the state from October 1, 1824 to December 13, 1824.
A third term followed, from November 1, 1826 to January 30, 1829. During this period (in 1826), El Salvador broke relations with the federal government in Guatemala City
Guatemala City
Guatemala City , is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Guatemala and Central America...
. Once again, El Salvador was invaded from Guatemala, in a civil war that lasted until 1829.
He was succeeded by José María Cornejo
José María Cornejo
José María Cornejo Merino y Guevara was a Salvadoran politician. Two times he served as chief of state of El Salvador ....
, a conservative, who withdrew El Salvador from the Federation. This led to another invasion by federal troops, under 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...
. Morazán deposed Cornejo and put Prado back in power. During his fourth term, which lasted from July 25, 1832 to July 1, 1833, there was an Indian uprising led by Anastasio Aquino
Anastasio Aquino
Anastasio Mártir Aquino was a Salvadoran indigenous leader who led the Insurrection of the Nonualcos, a campesino uprising in El Salvador during the time it belonged to the Federal Republic of Central America.Aquino was born into a family belonging to the Taytes of the...
. In the church of San Vicente Aquino was crowned King of the Nonualcos.