José María Vargas Ponce (10 March 1786, in La Guaira – 13 April 1854, in New York City) was the president of Venezuela from 1835 to 1836. Vargas was Venezuela's first civilian president.
He graduated with a degree in philosophy from the Seminario Tridentino, and obtained in 1809 his medical degree from the Real y Pontificia Universidad de Caracas. Vargas was imprisoned in 1813 for revolutionary activities. Upon his release in 1813, he travelled to Europe for medical training.[1] Vargas performed cataract surgery. He was one of the earliest oculists (eye surgeons) in Puerto Rico after his arrival there in 1817.[1] He returned to Venezuela to practice medicine and surgery in 1825.[1] He resigned from his presidency in 1836.
Personal life
José María Vargas was married to Encarnación Maitín,[citation needed] who served as First Lady of Venezuela from 1835 to 1836.[citation needed] In 1877, his ashes were brought to Caracas and buried in the National Pantheon on 27 April of that same year.
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Encarnación Maitín in 1827
Honors
The Venezuelan state of Vargas is named after him.
References
- ^ a b c Leffler CT, Wainsztein RD (2016). "The first cataract surgeons in Latin America (1611-1830)". Clinical Ophthalmology. 10: 679–94. doi:10.2147/OPTH.S105825. PMC 4841434. PMID 27143845.
External links
- (in Spanish) Doctor José María Vargas – Official biography.
- (in Spanish) José María Vargas
- José María Vargas at Find a Grave
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Acting / interim / caretaker presidents shown in italics 1 Recognized by the National Assembly as "interim president" during the Venezuelan presidential crisis until 2023 | ||
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