Luis Batres Juarros or Luis Batres y Juarros ( New Guatemala de la Asunción 7 May 1802 – 17 June 1862) was an influential conservative Guatemalan politician during the regime of General

Rafael Carrera José Rafael Carrera y Turcios (24 October 1814 – 14 April 1865) was the president of Guatemala from 1844 to 1848 and from 1851 until his death in 1865, after being appointed President for life in 1854. During his military career and presiden ...

. Member of the Aycinena clan, was in charge of writing most of the legislation that was enacted during this period. The liberal historians portray him as a villain in a despotic and tyrannical government headed by illiterate ''Raca Carraca'' -

- who was taking each and every one of Batres recommendations since he was considered ''infallible''; However, research conducted between 1980 and 2010 has shown a more objective biography of both Batres and

and show that it was in fact Carrera who had the reins of the Conservative government.

Biography

Batres Juarros was the son of José María González de Batres y Muñoz and María de las Mercedes Juarros Lacunza. He attended the Pontifical University of San Carlos Borromeo from which he graduated in 1823. He participated in the war against

Francisco Morazán José Francisco Morazán Quesada (; born October 3, 1792 – September 15, 1842) was a Central American politician who served as president of the Federal Republic of Central America from 1830 to 1839. Before he was president of Central America h ...

and his liberal forces under the command of the Governor of Guatemala,

Mariano de Aycinena y Piñol Mariano de Aycinena y Piñol (16 September 1789 – 29 March 1855) was wealthy and influential Guatemalan merchant family and an important conservative politician. A younger son of the first marquis of Aycinena, peninsular-born Juan Fermín de Ay ...

with whom he was related. After Aycinena's defeat, he was banished by Morazan with another one hundred families belonging to the Aycinena clan, going into exile to Panama and then to the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

. He returned to Guatemala in 1839 when rebel general

began to assert his authority in the state and managed to become one of his top aides and government ministers He even got his wife, Adelaida García Granados, to become a confidant and mentor to Carrera's wife, Petrona Alvarez

State of Los Altos

After the violent and bloody reinstatement of the State of Los Altos by Carrera in April 1840, Batres Juarros -then secretary general of the Guatemalan government of recently reinstated

Mariano Rivera Paz Mariano Rivera Paz (24 December 1804 – 26 February 1849) was Head of State of Guatemala and its first president. Biography Mariano Rivera Paz was born in Guatemala City and studied law in the Royal and Pontifical University of San Carl ...

- obtained from the vicar Larrazabal authorization to dismantle the regionalist Church. Acting priests of

Quetzaltenango Quetzaltenango (, also known by its Maya name Xelajú or Xela ) is both the seat of the namesake Department and municipality, in Guatemala. The city is located in a mountain valley at an elevation of above sea level at its lowest part. It m ...

-capital of the would-be-state of Los Altos, priest Urban Ugarte and his coadjutor, priest José Maria Aguilar, were removed from their parish and likewise the priests of the parishes of San Martin Jilotepeque and

San Lucas Tolimán San Lucas Tolimán is a municipality in the Sololá department of Guatemala. The town of 17,000 people sits on the southeastern shore of Lago de Atitlán. The population is 90–95% Highland Maya. There is a population of about the same size livi ...

. Larrazabal ordered the priests Fernando Antonio Dávila, Mariano Navarrete and Jose Ignacio Iturrioz to cover the parishes of Quetzaltenango, San Martin Jilotepeque and San Lucas Toliman, respectively.

References

Bibliography

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Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Batres Juarros, Luis 1802 births 1862 deaths Rafael Carrera People from Guatemala City Conservatism in Guatemala Guatemalan people of Spanish descent Mayors of Guatemala City Universidad de San Carlos de Guatemala alumni 19th-century Guatemalan people Guatemalan politicians Members of the Aycinena family in Central America