| Laureano Gómez | |
|---|---|
| 24th President of Colombia | |
| In office August 7, 1950 – November 5, 1951 |
|
| Preceded by | Mariano Ospina Pérez |
| Succeeded by | Roberto Urdaneta Arbeláez |
| Minister of Foreign Affairs | |
| In office March 21, 1948 – April 10, 1948 |
|
| President | Mariano Ospina Pérez |
| Preceded by | Domingo Esguerra Plata |
| Succeeded by | Eduardo Zulueta Ángel |
| Minister of Public Works | |
| In office June 8, 1925 – August 7, 1926 |
|
| President | Pedro Nel Ospina |
| Preceded by | Aquilino Villegas |
| Succeeded by | Mariano Ospina Pérez |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Laureano Eleuterio Gómez Castro February 20, 1889 Bogotá, Colombia |
| Died | July 13, 1965 (aged 76) Bogotá, Colombia |
| Nationality | Colombian |
| Political party | Conservative |
| Spouse(s) | María Hurtado Cajiao |
| Alma mater | National University of Colombia |
| Occupation | Journalist, politician |
| Profession | Civil engineer |
| Religion | Roman Catholic |
Laureano Eleuterio Gómez Castro (February 20, 1889 – July 13, 1965) was President of Colombia from 1950 to 1953, and long time leader of the Colombian Conservative Party.
Contents |
Gómez was born into an aristocratic family in Bogotá on February 20, 1889. He studied engineering at the National University of Colombia, graduating in 1909. He was the founder and editor of the periodical La Unidad from 1909 to 1916. He was first elected to parliament in 1911, serving until 1918. He was elected again in 1921 serving in various cabinet roles throughout the next twenty years. In 1932 Gómez gained control of the Conservative party in Colombia, a role which he relished. Under his leadership the party was highly disciplined, and provided strong opposition to the ruling Liberal Government. In 1936 he founded the Colombian daily El Siglo. He was widely viewed as a brilliant parliamentarian and political tactician. However, he got into trouble because of his open sympathy for fascism; he was an admirer of Adolf Hitler and Francisco Franco. He was exiled several times, the last time from 1946 to 1948.
He assumed the presidency in 1950 in an election in which the Liberals refused to participate. Gómez assumed dictatorial powers, muzzled the courts and violently suppressed the opposition. He suffered a heart attack in 1951. Although fearing for his life, he continued to control the government through a puppet successor. With public order collapsing, General Gustavo Rojas Pinilla seized power in 1953. Gomez fled to Spain.
Gómez continued to lead the Conservatives in exile. He was instrumental in a 1956 agreement, the Pact of Benidorm, between the two main parties, negotiated with Liberal leader Alberto Lleras to counter the military regime.
A year after the collapse of the military regime, Laureano Gómez, leader of the Conservative Party, and Alberto Lleras Camargo, representing the Liberals, signed the Declaration of Sitges, which defined the next 15 years of Colombian politics. The unique agreement provided for alternation of Conservatives and Liberals in the presidency, an equal sharing of ministerial and other government posts. The declaration and the resulting coalition divided authority between the parties until 1974. This period is known as the National Front.
Gómez returned to Colombia where he continued to dominate the Conservative party until his death on July 13, 1965, in Bogotá.
Gómez was also a writer and a well known art critic; he had candid disputes with artists he criticized like, Eladio Velez and artists he acclaimed like Santiago Martinez Delgado, he was a patron of the arts and did much for the Colombian artistic culture.