Juan Santamaría

Juan Santamaría (August 29th 1831 - April 11th 1856), is recognized officially like the national Héros of the Republic of the Costa Rica. One bank holiday, the Día de Juan Santamaría , was created in Costa Rica, the April 11th to commemorate its death.

was born in the town of Alajuela, in the province éponyme. When the adventurer and American mercenary William Walker reversed the government of the Nicaragua and tried to conquer the other nations of Central America, including Costa Rica, with an aim of creating a personal empire and slave, the president of Costa Rica Juan Rafael Mora Porras invited the population to take the weapons and to go on Nicaragua to fight against the foreign invader. Santamaría, a poor worker and hybrid Child of a esseulée mother, engaged in the army as drums. The other soldiers called it el erizo (" the hérisson") because of its hair in peak.

After having crossed a quota of soldiers of Walker with Santa Rosa, (province of Guanacaste), the troops costaricaines continued their walk towards north and reached the town of Rivas, with the Nicaragua, the April 8th 1856. The combat were wild but Costaricains did not succeed in dislodging the men of Walker of an inn close to the downtown area which ensured a dominant position to them.

The legend tells that, the April 11th the general costaricain Jose María Cañas suggested that a soldier advances towards the inn provides with a Torche to put fire at it. Several soldiers tested and failed, and finally Santamaría went voluntary in the only condition that, if ever it had suddenly died, other soldiers take care of his mother. It advanced but was mortally wounded by enemy fire. However, right before dying, he managed to put fire at the inn, contibuant thus désicivement with the Rivas victory.

This account is apparently coroboré by the request for pension of State filled in November 1857 by the mother with Santamaría, as by governmental documents showing that the pension was indeed versed. Several historians, however wondered about the veracity of the account, and if Santamaria mourrut indeed at the time of this battle or of an other. At one time, at the end of the 19th century, intellectuals and politicking Costaricains seized the symbol which Juan Santamaría represented to defend their nationalist ideas .

Juan Santamaría has its statue on the central place of Alajuela, like its own museum in the same city; ace has side note, the body and the uniform of the statue does not correspond to its description because of an error of routing: a statue of a French soldier intended for Haiti was delivered to the place, and the statue of Santamaría, was sent to Alajuela. The main thing international airport of Costa Rica bears her name.

External bonds

{{be}} Museo Histórico Juan Santamaría

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