Jose Rufino Echenique Benavente , Republic President. Born in Puno on November 16, 1808, he was the son of José Martín Echenique Vásquez and Hermenegilda Benavente Macoaga. During the initial riots of the Pumacahua revolution and at only six years of age, he was kidnapped and dedicated to herding. Casually recognized by a postal employee he was returned to his parents and studied at the Prince's College. In 1822 he joined the battalion No. 3 of the Peruvian Legion and with the rank of second lieutenant he participated in the second expedition to intermediates, under the orders of General Agustín Gamarra . Defeated in the Alsuri encounter, he was imprisoned on the island of Esteves until 1824, once the battle of Ayacucho was over. Reincorporated into the army, he was assigned to Lima, integrating, as a lieutenant, the forces stationed in Huancayo, with which he had to fight the Iquichanos, who expressed untimely support for the king. He supported Gamarra in his campaign over Bolivia, participated in the war against Colombia (1829) and due to his behavior in Pórtete del Tarqui he obtained the stripes of sergeant major. In 1832 he assumed command of the "Piquiza" battalion with the rank of lieutenant colonel and helped defeat the conspiracy of Captain Felipe Rossel. He seconded the statement of January 4, 1834 of General Pedro Bermúdez massively rejected. Echenique then promoted the exceptional "embrace of Maquinhuayo" on April 22. Being in command of the Cuzco garrison, already with the rank of colonel, he retired from service when the Bolivian intervention of 1835 took place, dedicating himself to the exploitation of sugar cane in the "San Pedro" hacienda, in the Lurín valley, where he introduced some technical improvements, such as the use of the steam trapiche. Before the pronouncement of Manuel Ignacio de Vivanco in 1843, he took up arms again and as prefect of Lima he was in charge of stopping the advance of the constitutional forces led by Ramón Castilla. He again had to yield to popular pressure and opted for the restoration of legal authorities. The following year, after successive promotions, he reached the rank of brigadier general after defeating Domingo Elias in Carmen Alto, and was elected councilor of state by President Ramón Castilla . In 1845 he was appointed Vice President and later Minister of War and Navy.
Government of José Rufino Echenique
On April 20, 1851, Congress proclaimed him President of the Republic , achieving that same year the right to free navigation in the Amazon, through an agreement signed with the Brazilian government. Serious scandals surrounding the procedures for the consolidation of the internal debt led to uprisings against him, led first by Domingo Elias and then by his predecessor in government, Ramón Castilla. He based his campaign, markedly liberal, on the vindication of the slave and the indigenous, winning the final victory in La Palma on January 5, 1855.
Life after the presidency
Echenique was banished and prevented from returning until the management of San Román, although he made several attempts to enter clandestinely. In 1862 he began a fruitful parliamentary career, two years later presiding over the Chamber of Deputies and in 1868 the corresponding Senate. Elected presidential candidate to succeed José Balta, he declined in favor of Antonio Arenas. In 1872, in his capacity as president of Congress and in what would constitute his last public action, he signed a declaration condemning the revolt of the Gutiérrez brothers. He traveled to Europe the following year and remained on the sidelines of politics until his death on June 16, 1887 .