Biography of Florencio Xatruch
Florencio Xatruch Villagra (San Antonio de Oriente, October 21, 1811 – Managua, February 15, 1893) was a Honduran lawyer, military officer, and politician, considered a Central American hero.
He achieved the rank of Division General and served as Vice President of Honduras from 1864 to 1868. He was elected as the fourteenth constitutional President of Honduras and took office in 1871, but was overthrown the same year. Xatruch is considered a Central American hero.
Biography
General Florencio Xatruch was born in San Antonio de Oriente, a municipality in the department of Francisco Morazán, Honduras, on October 21, 1811. This general had significant political and military involvement and influence throughout the Central American region. In addition to his military career, he was involved in mining and cattle ranching in Honduras and Nicaragua.
His father, Ramón Xatruch, was of Catalan origin, and his mother was Mrs. Eugenia Villagra, belonging to the high society of Choluteca, whose family owned mines. He studied at the University of León, Nicaragua.
Catracho: It is a demonym used to refer to Hondurans and it means «the men of Xatruch», in honor of their bravery demonstrated against the North American filibusters. Learn more
Military and Political Life
After completing his studies in Nicaragua, General Xatruch returned to Honduras and joined the troops of Domingo Sarmiento and Santos Sánchez in 1826 against the current government of Diego Vigil. Subsequently, Xatruch fought in the armies of General Francisco Morazán. It was on March 14, 1832, that Xatruch was promoted to sergeant by order of General Morazán himself. Later, he aligned himself with conservatism.
In 1841, Florencio Xatruch was promoted to Captain by the order of General Julián Tercero, who was part of the administration of President General Francisco Ferrera. But Xatruch’s rise was not limited to military ranks; his military fame also propelled him into Honduran politics.
He was elected as a member of the National Congress of the Honduran State in 1848 for the department of Choluteca, during the government of President Juan Lindo. A couple of years later, Florencio Xatruch took up arms in support of his friend José Santos Guardiola against the liberal government of General José Trinidad Cabañas. Due to these events, Xatruch was forced to flee to Nicaragua along with his brother Pedro Xatruch Villagra, who was also a military officer.
Campaign against North American Filibusters
In 1855, Florencio Xatruch was promoted to the rank of Brigadier General by Nicaraguan President José María Estrada, and by order of the Walker-Corral Agreement, he was appointed commander of Rivas in October 1855.
Around that time, the filibuster William Walker had taken over a large part of Nicaraguan territory with the intention of making it a state of the American Union.
In addition to this, Walker’s motivation was to reintroduce slavery and implement other policies similar to those of the Southern states in the United States in Nicaragua, and later extend them to Central America.
William Walker, a filibuster in Honduras
In response to this situation, Central America went on high alert. The five countries (Guatemala, Nicaragua, El Salvador, Honduras, and Costa Rica) put aside their political differences and united for the common good of the region.
At that time, Brigadier General José Santos Guardiola, the President of Honduras, contributed over three hundred men to the cause, who would be under the command of General Xatruch.
Once in Nicaragua, these men and others were placed under the command of Florencio Xatruch, who was appointed the first General-in-Chief of the Allied Armies of Central America. However, due to political agreements, José Joaquín Mora Porras assumed command, and Xatruch remained as the inspector general.
During this armed conflict, General Xatruch showed great leadership and bravery in effectively leading his men. One of the notable battles he commanded against the filibusters was the Battle of La Puebla in Rivas. The bloody battles of this war resulted in a significant number of casualties on both sides, but in the end, the allied forces prevailed over the filibusters, and Nicaraguan territory was recovered.
On June 12, 1857, the General made his triumphant entry into the colonial city of Comayagua, the capital of the State of Honduras, where he was received with all honors. In addition to Honduras, General Xatruch received various distinctions from the other governments of Central America, including his promotion to Brigadier General in Guatemala.
In 1858, President Guardiola appointed him as the director of two ministries, the Minister of War and the Minister of Finance, which were previously under a single office. Florencio Xatruch held this position from May 22, 1858, until February 3, 1860. During this period, Xatruch also served as the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Acting General Minister. He later returned to Nicaragua, where he worked on the roads in Mateare, Masatepe, and Jinotepe.
On February 15, 1864, the General Assembly of Honduras declared Xatruch Vice President of the Republic, in accordance with the 1848 Constitution of Honduras. However, due to conflicts with President Captain General José María Medina, he was removed from office by the Legislative Assembly.
After these events, General Xatruch sought refuge in El Salvador, where he was appointed commander and governor of San Miguel by the government of Francisco Dueñas. From El Salvador, with the support of the government, Xatruch launched a military offensive against President Medina.
Xatruch invaded Honduras with three hundred Hondurans and seven hundred Vicentinos. The military attack was successful, and the general managed to overthrow José María Medina. On March 26, 1871, in the city of Nacaome, he proclaimed himself the provisional President of the Republic of Honduras. He held this position until May 23 of the same year when he was defeated by the forces of José María Medina. As a result, Xatruch was forced to exile in Nicaragua, where he remained for some time.
Later Years
For his actions against José María Medina, Xatruch was rewarded much later when President Ponciano Leiva appointed him as the commander of arms in Trujillo in 1876.
In 1879, President Pedro Joaquín Chamorro of Nicaragua appointed him as the military governor of Chinandega and León. In that same year, on August 9, he was granted the rank of Division General of the Nicaraguan Army.
Death
General Florencio Xatruch passed away on February 15, 1892, at the age of 81. His remains rest at the current Memorial Cemetery «San Pedro» in the city of Managua.
The Nicaraguan newspaper «La Gaceta» referred to his funeral in the following manner:
«Thus, the Nicaraguan Government and community honored the memory of this distinguished military man, whose death Nicaragua considers a national loss out of gratitude for the great services he rendered with his sword and because the sons of the other sections into which the Central American homeland is divided are considered brothers here.»
Honors
The National Congress of Nicaragua, through a decree issued on February 24, 1893, authorized the Executive Power to place a plaque on his tomb with the following inscription:
«Nicaragua to the Honduran by birth and Nicaraguan by adoption, General Florencio Xatruch, a testimony of admiration and gratitude for the services rendered to the homeland.»
