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Alfredo González Flores served as President of Costa Rica from 1914 to 1917. He was unable to complete his presidential mandate following a coup d'état on 27 January 1917, led by Federico Tinoco, his secretary for War and the Navy.
Alfredo González was born in Heredia, Costa Rica on 15 July 1877 as the son of Domingo González Pérez and Elemberta Flores. González graduated from the Grammar school of Costa Rica in 1896 and earned the title of lawyer in 1903.
He was called to the Presidency on 8 May 1914 by the Congress, resulting from a pact between the two political groups with greater number of votes: the Republican Party and the Duranista party, when none of the three competing parties managed to secure an absolute majority.
During his administration, he founded the Normal School of Heredia in 1915 and the International Bank of Costa Rica (today the National Bank). It created the Meetings of Agricultural Credit, that led to the resurgence of economic, commercial, and industrial activity of the country. He established the General Depots of Deposit, the system of Direct Tributación and the Law of the Tax of Charity. He governed during World War I, which brought serious consequences for the financial situation of the government and the country in general. When the banks refusing to facilitate credit to him, he created the Bank the International with the ability to emit currency. From that moment, the State entered to compete with the private bank.
He was considered an authority in financial questions and a great precursor of the dynamic democracy. He was trusting and so dedicated to accomplishing his administration's work that it did not pay attention to the warnings on disloyalty of his collaborators. On 27 January 1917, his own Secretary of the Army and Navy, Federico Tinoco, became strong in the quarters and it overthrew it. González followed the advice of his other ministers who thought about their personal security and left the country for the United States of America. Later he was representing of Costa Rica in the outside, worked in benefit of the recognition of the rights of the country in different international forums.
He was founder and president of the National Meeting of Electricity. He served the President of the Meeting of the Normal School of Heredia and the Herediana Municipality.
He was declared Meritorious of the Mother country on 23 July 1954. He died in Heredia on 28 December 1962.
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