- Juan Esteban Montero
Infobox_President
name=Juan Esteban Montero
order=President of Chile
term_start=July 27 ,1931
term_end=August 20 ,1931
predecessor=Pedro Opazo
successor=Manuel Trucco
birth_date=birth date|1879|2|12|mf=y
birth_place= Santiago,Chile
death_date=death date and age|1948|2|25|1879|2|12|mf=y
death_place=Santiago,Chile
vicepresident=Manuel Trucco
order2=21stPresident of Chile
term_start2=November 15 ,1931
term_end2=June 4 ,1932
predecessor2=Manuel Trucco
successor2=Arturo Puga
spouse=Graciela Fehrman
party=RadicalJuan Esteban Montero Rodríguez (
February 12 ,1879 -February 25 ,1948 ) was aChile anpolitical figure . He served twice aspresident of Chile between 1931 and 1932.Early life
He was born in Santiago, the son of Benjamín Montero and of Eugenia Rodríguez. Juan Esteban Montero studied at the "colegio de San Ignacio" and at the
Universidad de Chile . He graduated as a lawyer onSeptember 16 ,1901 , and soon after became professor of civil and Roman law at his "alma mater". He also worked as a government lawyer and in private practice. He married Graciela Fehrman Martínez, with whom had three children: Juan Esteban, Benjamín and Carmen.Presidency
Montero's first incursion in politics was in 1931, when President
Carlos Ibáñez del Campo named him Minister of the Interior and Social Welfare. After the resignation of president Ibáñez onJuly 26 ,1931 he reluctantly agreed to serve in similar position to Ibáñez's successor,Pedro Opazo ; just to find himself promoted to president the very next day, after Opazo's resignation. Montero, as a way out of the political impasse, immediately called for presidential elections. In the meanwhile he assumed as Vice President.Very soon after, Montero accepted the presidential nomination of the Radical Party, and in order to qualify, he resigned his vicepresidency on
August 20 ,1931 . The position was assumed byManuel Trucco . The Trucco administration was only supposed to be a caretaker one, keeping order in the country until the presidential elections. Nonetheless it was faced with very difficult moments such as theSailors' mutiny in the navy, caused by the reduction of the salaries of the enlisted men (September 1-5, 1931), which was controlled only after an aerial bombing of the fleet, but which predicted difficult times ahead.Supported by the Liberals and Conservatives as well as the Radicals, Juan Esteban Montero was the clear winner of the presidential elections, obtaining almost 64% of the popular vote, defeating leftist
José Santos Salas , a protégé of former PresidentCarlos Ibáñez . He took over onNovember 15 , in the midst of a political and economic chaos that resulted from the market crash of 1929. His program called for the implementation of an austerity program that involved the reduction of public expenditures and public salaries, a downsizing of the public administration and an increase of the foreign debt. Notwithstanding these harsh measures, the depreciation of the currency continued, and inflation soared while the Central Bank reserves were at an all time low. This economic program only managed to cause widespread discontent, while in no way improving the economy, and in turn led to his downfall.On
June 4 ,1932 , colonelMarmaduke Grove staged a coup d'état by taking over the Air Force base of El Bosque, in Santiago, and demanding the resignation of President Montero. Montero refused to call on the army to put down the coup, and instead chose to resign. That same night, the victorious revolutionaries organized a Government Junta composed of retired GeneralArturo Puga ,Eugenio Matte andCarlos Davila , with colonel Grove as their minister of Defense. After this episode, Montero retired completely from politics, and went back to private practice and business. He died in Santiago, onFebruary 25 ,1948 , at the age of 69.Additional information
ee also
*
History of Chile
*Norte Grande insurrection
*Government Junta of Chile (1932)
*Socialist Republic of Chile
*List of coup d'état in ChileExternal links
* [http://www.eldeportivo.cl/medio/articulo/0,0,38035857_172985965_183490469,00.html Complete biography] es icon
* [http://icarito.aconcagua1.copesa.cl/biografias/1925-1958/bios/montero-rodriguez.htm Biography] es icon
* [http://www.educarchile.cl/ntg/personajes/1611/propertyvalue-41862.html Short biography] es icon
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