Jorge Ubico Castaneda (10 November 1878-14 June 1946) was the dictator of Guatemala from 14 February 1931 to 1 July 1944, succeeding Jose Maria Reina and preceding Juan Federico Ponce Vaides.
Biography[]
Jorge Ubico Castaneda was born on 10 November 1878 in Guatemala City, Guatemala, the son of a lawyer of the Guatemalan Liberal Party. In 1897, he was commissioned in the Guatemalan Army, and Ubico took part in the 1921 coup that placed Jose Maria Orellana in power. In 1926, he lost the elections to Lazaro Chacon Gonzalez, but in 1931 he was elected President after Gonzalez resigned due to a stroke, with the United States backing him. Ubico became a military dictator, and he admired Napoleon Bonaparte, with his nickname being "the Little Napoleon of the Tropics" due to his obsession over him as well as his resemblance to him. Ubico was known to be arrogant and repressive, and on 1 July 1944 he was forced to resign due to a general strike and a popular insurrection in the Guatemalan Revolution. Juan Federico Ponce Vaides became his successor, and Ubico went into exile, dying in New Orleans, Louisiana, United States in 1946 at the age of 67.