JOSÉ DE LA MAR: BIOGRAPHY AND CHARACTERISTICS OF HIS GOVERNMENT - HISTORY - 2025

José de La Mar (c. 1778 - 1830) was a military man and politician born in Ecuador, but whose life was devoted to Peru, a nation where he was president on two occasions. He was a descendant of Spaniards and was brought to the Motherland for education during his young years. There he leaned towards the military career in which La Mar developed during the rest of his life.

He participated together with the Savoy regiment in the belligerent actions between Spain and France at the end of the 18th century. In those confrontations he stood out and received the rank of captain in 1808. He also fought in Zaragoza against the French invaders and obtained the appointment as lieutenant colonel.

Historic photo, via Wikimedia Commons

In 1812 he was a prisoner of France and returned to Spain when the throne was restored to Ferdinand VII. Then, La Mar was sent to Lima in 1816, as sub-inspector general of the Viceroyalty of Peru.

In 1819 he was awarded for maintaining order in the city and he was awarded the rank of field marshal, but on September 2, 1821, Lima surrendered to the libertarian insurgents.

José de La Mar renounced his Spanish ranks and privileges to join the patriotic forces. He participated in decisive battles for American liberation, such as those of Ayacucho and Junín.

Later he was selected as president of the Republic of Peru, although he was not born there, with the approval of the liberator Simón Bolívar. He took office in 1827; however, differences soon arose that pitted Gran Colombia against Peru over arms.

La Mar fought against Antonio José de Sucre and General Juan José Flores. He was defeated in different places, so he accepted a negotiation that culminated in the Girón agreement.

After being overthrown, he went to exile where he died, in Costa Rica, at the end of 1830.

Biography

Early years

José de la Mar y Cortázar was born on May 12, some sources assure that during the year 1778, although others go to 1776 to locate his birth. It came to the world in the city of Cuenca, then part of the Royal Court of Quito, now Ecuador.

His parents were Marcos La Mar, a Spanish peninsular who served as administrator of the Cajas Reales de Cuenca, and Josefa Cortázar y Lavayen from Guayaquil.

It is said that La Mar was descended from a noble Irish family and that his surname came from the title as Duke of La Mar, due to the nautical performance of one of his ancestors.

From a very young age, he went to Spain in the company of his uncle Francisco Cortázar, who was an important politician and jurist. Cortázar had served as oidor of the Audiencia of Bogotá and regent of that of Quito.

Upon arriving in Europe, José de La Mar was enrolled in the Colegio de Nobles de Madrid. There they prepared him intellectually and also gave him the notions of the military career that the young man followed as a profession.

Military career in Europe

Due to the influence of his uncle, José de La Mar managed to become part of the Saboya regiment with the position of lieutenant. There he received discipline and experience in combat, since in 1794, with less than 20 years, he participated in the dispute that was fought in Roussillon and obtained the promotion to captain.

In 1808, La Mar was present as part of the Spanish forces defending their lands from the Napoleonic invasion. When he was appointed to Zaragoza he was a lieutenant colonel, in that position he held until his superior had to surrender a year later.

Then he was in Valencia for several years under General Black and at the head of 4,000 men. Although they fought firmly, they had to surrender to the invader in 1812. Then, La Mar was taken as a prisoner of war.

In 1813 he managed to escape, heading to Switzerland and finally to Italy, where he spent several years together with his friend, Prince Castel Franco, until Fernando VII was reestablished as Spanish monarch.

For his loyalty to the crown and his gallantry in battle, José de La Mar was rewarded by the King of Spain, who granted him the rank of brigadier general and sent him as sub-inspector general of the Viceroyalty of Peru, in the city of Lime.

Realistic america

When José de La Mar arrived in Lima and took office, they made proposals to give him power if he deposed the viceroy, he rejected them immediately since his loyalty was with Spain and Fernando VII.

He successfully maintained control of the insurgents in Lima for a time. In 1819 he was appointed field marshal, the highest military position that existed in the New Continent.

In 1821, the Spanish had to take refuge in the mountains after the arrival of San Martín in Pisco. Meanwhile, the field marshal José de La Mar capitulated his position in Callao, although he requested favorable conditions for all peninsular and royalists in the area.

He took advantage of his arrival in Lima to renounce distinctions and military ranks awarded by Spain to Viceroy La Serna. Since then he joined the patriotic forces and broke his ties with the Government of the Old Continent.

Liberal Cause

The American armies quickly welcomed him. San Martín named him general of division in the same year 1821. Then José de La Mar went to Guayaquil.

There he was appointed Commander General of Arms of the City, the position was granted by José Joaquín Olmedo, but had previously been approved by Antonio José de Sucre.

From that position, he achieved the capitulation of the city of Guayaquil and some ships that passed into the hands of Peru. However, the city could not be established as an independent state, but was claimed by the Colombian administration, something that did not please La Mar, who left for Peru.

Governing Board

In September 1822, the Constituent Congress of the Nation wanted to grant the mandate to San Martín, who rejected it almost immediately. On the 21st of the same month, La Mar was selected as president of the Governing Board of Peru.

Then, La Mar traveled south and suffered a defeat. The cause of independence was weakened since everyone had an appetite for command among the patriotic ranks. At the same time, the royalists gained strength over the months.

On February 27, 1823, just 5 months after his swearing in, the activities of José de La Mar as president of the Governing Board of Peru concluded, since it was dissolved.

In replacement of that body, the military who led the Balconcillos mutiny imposed José de la Riva Agüero as President of the Republic.

At that time, La Mar remained at the head of the Peruvian troops who were still fighting for independence. He participated in the battle of Junín on August 6 and in that of Ayacucho on December 9, 1824.

La Mar convinced the royalist general Canterac that capitulating after the defeat at Ayacucho was the best option and that was done. In that battle, the work that the Peruvian battalion played to seal the victory of the liberators was essential.

On February 24, 1825, La Mar was selected by Bolívar to preside over the Governing Council of Lima. However, in search of recovering his good health, La Mar traveled to Guayaquil to rest for a time and in his place was General Santa Cruz.

Presidency of Peru

On June 10, 1827, José de la Mar was appointed president by Congress. The oath was taken by Vice President Manuel Salazar. When the commission that had traveled to Guayaquil arrived with the news, La Mar was not interested in accepting the position.

Despite that, he did so in August. Then, he had to face revolts that did not recognize his command. La Mar always advocated a conciliation plan and even granted a pardon to those who participated in the uprising against her.

Conflict with Colombia

The territorial disputes between Peru and Colombia had already been growing since the territories of present-day Ecuador were liberated. Peru believed that it had rights to part of the lands that Colombia had claimed for itself and the Guayaquil residents wanted to be independent.

In 1828 the Peruvian troops occupied Guayaquil. At that time, Sucre, who was passing between Bolivia and Colombia, tried to serve as a mediator against Peru, but his efforts were in vain as the clash was inevitable.

Thus the battle of Tarqui took place, and the Colombians were the victors led by Juan José Flores and Antonio José de Sucre, both Venezuelans.

Both sides were affected after the battle in which the lives of illustrious men who fought for American independence were lost.

Finally, the conflict was concluded with the signing of the Girón treaty, which established several points among which was that the Peruvian armies would leave Quito and Guayaquil in a short period of time.

In the Portete de Tarqui, where the battle took place, a plaque was placed that read: “The Peruvian army of eight thousand soldiers that invaded the land of their liberators was defeated by four thousand braves from Colombia on February twenty-seven, eighteen hundred twenty nine".

That was considered an offense by José de La Mar, who requested that it be removed, although he was unsuccessful.

Return to Peru

Upon returning to Piura, where the remaining troops of the Peruvian army gathered, La Mar ordered that the deserters be pardoned and that they report to the authorities.

The news of his defeat gave way to hundreds of calumnies that spread throughout Lima. The Peruvian president was called from inept and weak, to disloyal everywhere.

Coup

On June 7, 1829 there was an uprising. The military surrounded José de La Mar's house and tried to get him to resign, to which he refused. He was then forced to go to Paita.

It was alleged that this military intervention occurred because Congress should have met a year earlier; In addition, the fact that La Mar was not born in Peruvian territory and the rumors that his participation in the conflict with Colombia was due to personal interests were added.

These actions were guided by the hand of General Agustín Gamarra, who was in charge of complying with the Girón treaty to the letter.

Upon reaching Paita, José de La Mar was embarked on the Mercedes schooner, along with Pedro Bermúdez, the military chief. The deal he was offered was not fair, considering what La Mar had given to Peru, since he was not even granted the necessary provisions for his trip to Central America.

Exile

José de La Mar arrived in Punta de Arenas in Costa Rica on June 24, 1829. From there he moved to the capital, San José, where he was well received and the president requested that he be treated as a hero as he considered this to be what less than they deserved their past glories.

But his already declining health continued to deteriorate rapidly. He did not lack setbacks to collaborate with his decline, such as the doubt of his military achievements on account of his last battle, or the expulsion from the country for which he abandoned everything.

He moved to Cartago, then he tried to marry his niece Angela Elizalde with a power of attorney, but they could not meet, since he died before the arrival of the young woman.

His first wife, Josefa Rocafuerte, had died around 1826 leaving La Mar a widower and without children.

Death

José de La Mar died on October 11, 1830. He was buried in the city of Cartago, where he was his last residence.

Four years after his death, Peruvian President Luis José Orbegoso proposed to Congress that the repatriation of José de La Mar's remains be requested.

However, it was not until 1843 that, at the request of his friend Francisca Otoya, he was brought back to Peruvian soil. Three years later, Otoya handed over the remains to the government of his country, but these were also claimed by José de La Mar's native Ecuador.

In 1847, the remains of José de La Mar were deposited in a mausoleum in the General Cemetery of Lima.

Characteristics of his government

The first time he was selected as president of the Supreme Governing Board of Peru, in 1822, he received the honor of being the first elected president, although it was a collegiate body that made the choice of his person for the position.

Then, after a military failure, his management was questioned and the military decided that a triumvirate was not the best form of government. That is why the Board was dissolved, which they considered insufficient and José de La Mar was blamed for a weakness for the Spanish, since he had been on that side in the past.

But José de La Mar was able to exercise power appropriately when he was chosen as President of the Republic in 1827. On that occasion, progress was made in governance.

A kind of memory and account were made in which the La Mar administration presented before the congress the expenses that the government had incurred.

In addition, the 1828 constitution was promulgated, which gave way to the construction of a more modern republic, which moved away from the old peninsular customs. This Magna Carta was much more inclusive and progressive than that of 1823.

Another important point was the border defense of Peru against Colombia and the institutional separation with this nation. When the occupation of Bolivia occurred and it helped to remove Colombian dominion over the neighboring country, one of the fronts of military action that could be used against Peru was also eliminated.

José de La Mar tried to establish a solid and independent state. However, intrigues always haunted him and consequently his delivery to Peru was unjustly maimed for some time.

References

1. En.wikipedia.org. (2019). José de la Mar. Available at: en.wikipedia.org.
2. Avilés Pino, E. (2019). La Mar y Cortazar Gral. José Domingo - Historical Characters - Encyclopedia Del Ecuador. Encyclopedia Of Ecuador. Available at: encyclopediadelecuador.com.
3. Villarán, M. (1847). Biographical narration of the great Marshal José de La Mar. Lima: Eusebio Aranda Printing.
4. Pease G. Y, F. (1993). Peru, man and history - Volume III. Lima: Edubanco.
5. Pascual, E. (2007). Little Larousse illustrated. Barcelona: Larousse, p.1501.