Republic of New Granada
Colombia, 1831–1858. Draft, not yet reviewed
The Republic of New Granada was a centralist unitary republic consisting primarily of present-day Colombia and Panama that existed from 1831 to 1858. The state was created after the dissolution of Gran Colombia in 1830 through the secession of Ecuador and Venezuela. The history of the Republic of New Granada was marked by competing economic and political interests and rocked by violent conflicts and civil wars. In 1858, the state was renamed into the Granadine Confederation.
Seat of power: Bogotá
Rulers
Francisco de Paula Santander
President of Colombia, 1832–1837
After the dissolution of Gran Colombia, in 1832 the newly established congress of the Republic of New Granada elected him as President where he served his term from 1832 to 1837. As president he implemented a policy of creating public schools with trained teachers operated by the government for the general population.
Portrait of Francisco de Paula Santander: Ricardo Acevedo Bernal, Public domain, file
Pedro Alcántara Herrán
President of Colombia, 1841–1845
He was elected president by Congress in 1841 for a four-year period, but was not inaugurated at once because he was still commanding government troops in the war against the southern revolt. He returned to Bogotá on May 19, 1842, and was sworn in as president.
Portrait of Pedro Alcántara Herrán: José Luiz, CC BY-SA 4.0, file
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José María Obando
President of Colombia, 1853–1854
In 1853 there was a Liberal constitutional reform under his presidency. He was overthrown as president in a coup in 1854.
Portrait of José María Obando: LUIS MIGUEL CERON, CC BY-SA 4.0, file
José de Obaldía
President of Colombia, 1854–1855
He and the opposition to Melo reconvened in Ibagué, headed the government-in-exile and launched the military campaign to remove Melo from power. He is the only Colombian president born in what is now Panama, which separated from Colombia in 1903.
Portrait of José de Obaldía: José María Duque, Public domain, file
José María Melo
President of Colombia, 1854–1854
Melo took power in a coup d'etat in 1854, amid a schism in the Liberal Party. He ruled for eight months until he was overthrown by an alliance of Conservatives and rival Liberals.
Portrait of José María Melo: Atribuido a la Galería del Daguerrotipo, Public domain, file
Culture
- One of the prime features of the political climate of the Republic was the position of the Roman Catholic Church and the level of autonomy for the federal states.
- In 1839, a dispute arose over the dissolution of monasteries by the Congress of New Granada.
- In 1851, a civil war was triggered by the Liberal reforms of President José Hilario López, among them the emancipation of slaves, the expulsion of the Jesuits, the granting of freedom of the press and the abolition of the death penalty.
Picture
The Neoclassical cathedral on the Plaza de Bolívar in Bogotá was designed by Domingo de Petrés and built between 1807 and 1823.
Image: Bernard Gagnon, CC BY-SA 4.0, file
Sources
Text adapted from the Wikipedia articles listed as sources, CC BY-SA 4.0.