Venancio Roberto was a resident of Hagåtña, Guam

Hagåtña, Guam

Hagåtña , formerly English Agana and in Spanish Agaña, is the capital of the United States island territory of Guam. It is the island's second smallest village in both area and population. From the 18th through mid 20th century, it was Guam's population center...

 who briefly seized the office of Commissioner of Guam from December 31, 1898 to January 2, 1899 before his rule was declared illegitimate by Lieutenant Commander

Lieutenant commander (United States)

Lieutenant commander is a mid-ranking officer rank in the United States Navy, the United States Coast Guard, the United States Public Health Service Commissioned Corps, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Commissioned Corps, with the pay grade of O-4 and NATO rank code OF-3...

 Vincendon Cottman of the USS Brutus

USS Brutus (AC-15)

USS Brutus, formerly the steamer Peter Jebsen, was built in 1894 at South Shields-on-Tyne, England, by John Readhead & Sons and was acquired by the United States Navy early in 1898 from L. F. Chapman & Company. She was renamed Brutus and commissioned at the Mare Island Navy Yard on 27 May 1898,...

. In 1898, Roberto overthrew José Sisto

José Sisto

José Sisto, also called José Sisto Rodrigo and José Sixto, was twice Governor of Guam, first after overthrowing Francisco Portusach Martínez, and again after being legitimately placed in the position by the United States government. He served as Spanish administrator of the Public Treasury in Guam...

, and was put in office by a military junta

Military junta

A junta or military junta is a government led by a committee of military leaders. The term derives from the Spanish language junta meaning committee, specifically a board of directors...

 composed of a number of district leaders from around the island; only two days later, the United States Navy

United States Navy

The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...

 decided that Sisto held the legitimate claim to the office, despite Roberto's generally more pro-United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 leanings. The coalition, which included local leader Father José Palomo and former governor Francisco Portusach Martínez

Francisco Portusach Martínez

Francisco Portusach Martínez was a Spanish merchant and whaler who was briefly the Governor of Guam, before he was deposed. In the American media of the time, he was often referred to as Francisco Portusach or Frank Portusach....

, stepped aside until the ownership of Guam could be determined.