Pedro Lascuráin

Pedro Lascuráin
34th President of Mexico
In office 19 February 1913 - 19 February 1913 (c. 45 minutes )
Preceded by	Francisco I. Madero
Succeeded by	Victoriano Huerta
Personal details
Born	8 May 1856 Mexico City
Died	21 July 1952 (aged 96) Mexico City
Nationality	Mexican
Spouse(s)	María Flores

Pedro José Domingo de la Calzada Manuel María Lascuráin Paredes (8 May 1856^[1] – 21 July 1952) was a Mexican politician who served as the 34th President of Mexico for less than one hour on February 19, 1913, the shortest presidency in the history of the world. He had earlier served as Mexico's foreign minister for two terms and was the director of a small law school in Mexico City for sixteen years.

Early career

Lascuráin received a law degree in 1880 from the Escuela Nacional de Jurisprudencia in Mexico City. He was mayor of Mexico City in 1910 when Madero began his antireelectionist campaign against Díaz. Lascuráin was a supporter of Madero and after Madero was elected president to replace Díaz, Lascuráin served twice as foreign secretary in Madero's cabinet (10 April 1912 to 4 December 1912 and 15 January 1913 to 19 February 1913). In between the two terms, he again became mayor of Mexico City. As foreign minister, he had to deal with the demands of U.S. Ambassador Henry Lane Wilson.

Presidency

On 19 February 1913, General Victoriano Huerta overthrew President Madero. Lascuráin was one of the people who convinced Madero to resign the presidency while he was being held prisoner in the National Palace, claiming that his life was in danger if he refused.

Under the 1857 Constitution of Mexico, the vice-president, the attorney general, the foreign minister and then the interior minister stood next in line to the presidency. As well as Madero, Huerta had ousted Vice-President José María Pino Suárez and Attorney General Adolfo Valles Baca,^[2] so, to give the coup d'état some appearance of legality, he had Lascuráin, as foreign minister, assume the presidency, appoint him as his interior minister – making Huerta next in line to the presidency – and then resign. The presidency thus passed to Huerta. As a consequence, Lascuráin was president for less than an hour; sources quote figures ranging from 15 to 56 minutes.^[3] To date, Lascuráin's presidency is the shortest in history, even briefer than that of Venezuelan politician Diosdado Cabello in 2002.

Huerta called a late-night special session of Congress and, under the guns of his troops, the legislators endorsed his assumption of power. A few days later, Huerta had Madero and Pino Suárez killed. The coup and the events surrounding it became known as la decena trágica ("the tragic ten days").

Later life

Huerta offered Lascuráin a post in his cabinet, but Lascuráin declined. He retired from politics and began practicing again as a lawyer. He was the director of the Escuela Libre de Derecho, a conservative law school, for sixteen years and published extensively on commercial and civil law.

Notes

1. Lascuráin, un presidente tan fugaz como medio partido de fútbol
2. Procurador General de la República
3. Braddy, Haldeen (Autumn 1969). "Revolution: Agony South of the Border". Montana: The Magazine of Western History (Montana Historical Society) 19 (4): 32, 44. Pedro Lascurain (Interim President for 28 minutes) became president for one day only, February 19, 1913

References

• (Spanish) "Lascuráin Paredes, Pedro," Enciclopedia de México, vol. 8. Mexico City, 1996, ISBN 1-56409-016-7
• (Spanish) Altamirano Cozzi, Graziella, Pedro Lascurain: Un hombre en la encrucijada de la revolución. Instituto Mora, 2004 ISBN 978-970-684-097-4
• (Spanish) García Purón, Manuel, México y sus gobernantes, v. 2. Mexico City: Joaquín Porrua, 1984.
• (Spanish) Orozco Linares, Fernando, Gobernantes de México. Mexico City: Panorama Editorial, 1985, ISBN 968-38-0260-5

External links

• (Spanish) La decena trágica by Alejandro Rosas
• (Spanish) La decena trágica
• (Spanish) Brief biography at Encarta
• (Spanish) Brief biography
• (Spanish) A little more biographical information