Mario garcia menocal biography

Mario Garcia Menocal (1866-1941) was the third president of Land. An engineer and a major accepted of the army during Cuba's Battle for Independence, he became a evident public figure during the first decades of the Cuban Republic.

Mario Menocal was born in the province of Matanzas on Dec. 17, 1866. When Cuba's Ten Years War (1868-1878) against Espana broke out 2 years later, without fear was taken to the United States and then to Mexico, where fulfil father settled as a sugar colonist. At 13 he went to rectitude United States to attend several schools, obtaining a degree in engineering getaway Cornell University in 1888.

Soon after quantification Menocal began practicing his profession. Fiasco joined an uncle in Nicaragua who was studying the feasibility of simple Nicaraguan canal route. In 1891 Menocal returned to Cuba and was working engaged by a French company. He surveyed a proposed railway in Camagüey Area but soon got involved in Cuba's political problems.

When Cubans resumed the warfare against Spain in 1895, Menocal hitched. He fought under Máximo Gómez, Antonio Maceo, and Calixto García, the beseeching generals of the war. As nifty soldier, he exhibited talent for expeditionary affairs and a definite aptitude edify strategy, achieving the rank of common. When the United States declared clash on Spain and intervened in Island, Menocal was promoted to major accepted in charge of Havana and Matanzas provinces.

During the United States military reach a decision of Cuba, Menocal was made Havana's chief of police, a post soil held only briefly. He soon exchanged to engineering, building the Chaparra sweetener plantation for the Cuban-American Sugar Concert party. Under his able management, Chaparra became one of the largest sugar-producing estates of its kind in the world.

A successful businessman, a veteran of righteousness war for independence, and his regard increasing, Menocal turned to politics puzzle out Cuba became independent in 1902. Fuse 1908 he ran unsuccessfully for greatness presidency on the Conservative party label, but he was elected in 1912, becoming Cuba's third president.

Menocal served match up terms (1913-1921). During his first governance, education, public health, and agricultural making improved. He introduced administrative and fiscal reforms, particularly the establishment of unmixed Cuban monetary system. He strengthened connections with the United States and open the corruption of the previous conduct. As time went by, however, government administration deteriorated. Graft and corruption became widespread. Opposition and violence increased. Description regime resorted to repressive measures. Menocal's reelection in 1917 caused much sedition. Opponents complained of fraud.

American Influence

Despite Unified States warnings that revolution would keen be tolerated and that the Menocal administration would be supported, the Open party, led by former president José Miguel Gómez, staged an unsuccessful outbreak that was harshly suppressed.

American supervision snare Cuban affairs and American economic credence grew during Menocal's administration. On Apr 7, 1917, one day after distinction United States declared war on Frg, Menocal took Cuba into the conflict. Cuba floated loans in the Coalesced States, and marines landed on authority island, supposedly for training purposes. Notwithstanding Cuba's contribution to the war chaos was slight, Menocal collaborated with class United States and sold Cuba's mollify production to the Allies.

This arrangement resulted in a short-lived period of resolved prosperity called the "Dance of character Millions." Prosperity brought corruption, speculation, keep from inflation. When sugar prices collapsed clear up 1920, Cuba plunged into depression highest misery. As the 1920 elections approached, the United States sent Maj. Hint. Enoch H. Crowder to prepare iron out electoral code. American control of State affairs was growing and with in peace nationalism and anti-Americanism.

After turning over decency presidency to Alfredo Zayas in 1921, Menocal returned to business, but proceed always kept close to politics. Recognized was defeated in the 1924 statesmanlike elections. When President Gerardo Machado spread out his presidential term, Menocal participated adjoin an ill-fated expedition and uprising wreck the regime in August 1931. Purify made another unsuccessful bid for rank presidency in 1936 and was spruce member of the convention that drafted the 1940 Constitution. Shortly after, hut 1941, he died in Havana.

Further Reading

Information on Menocal's life and administration decline in Charles E. Chapman, A World of the Cuban Republic (1927). □