Caballero, Bernardino (1839–1912)

Bernardino Caballero (b. 20 May 1839; d. 26 February 1912), Paraguayan military leader and president (1880–1886). Born in the interior town of Ybycuí, Caballero spent his early career in the cavalry and by the beginning of the War of the Triple Alliance in 1864, had risen to the rank of sergeant. He participated in almost every engagement of the war, from the Mato Grosso campaign to those of Humaitá and the Cordilleras. His success in harassing the advancing Brazilians, as well as his exceptional loyalty, drew the attention of President Francisco Solano López. Advancements for Caballero came rapidly, until 1869, when he achieved the rank of general and with it command over what was left of López's army. Even after the fall of Asunción, he continued the fight, until, in March 1870, the Brazilians cornered and killed López at Cerro Corá. Caballero was taken prisoner shortly thereafter.

Caballero's star rose much higher in the postwar period. As one of the only Paraguayan generals to survive the war, he naturally caught the eye of various contending factions, who sought to use him as a figurehead. A Conservative movement led by Cándido Bareiro secured his appointment as war minister in 1878, but he proved to be his own man.

Caballero assumed the presidency in 1880 after the death of Bareiro. His administration made only limited contributions to the public welfare. It disposed of thousands of hectares of state land by selling them to foreign buyers. Caballero also founded the National Bank and the National Law School. The most important innovation of his tenure, however, was in the political realm. In 1887, with the help of José Segundo Decoud, he founded one of the country's traditional parties, the Asociación Nacional Republicana, or Partido Colorado. He continued to direct this organization long after he left the presidency in the hands of his colleague Patricio Escobar. Caballero died in Asunción.

See alsoWar of the Triple Alliance .

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Harris G. Warren, Rebirth of the Paraguayan Republic: The First Colorado Era (1985), esp. pp. 51-61.

Carlos Zubizarreta, Cien vidas paraguayas, 2d ed. (1985), pp. 184-188; The Cambridge History of Latin America, vol. 5 (1986), pp. 475-496.

Additional Bibliography

Bergonzi, Osvaldo. Bernardino Caballero: El auténtico. Asunción(?): O. Bergonzi, 2005.

Prieto Ruiz, Leandro José. Breve historia de la línea nacional y popular: Mensaje a mis contemporaneous. Asunción: Editorial Cuadernos Republicanos, 2002.

                                    Thomas L. Whigham