Pedro Lascuráin

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Pedro Lascuráin Paredes

President of Mexico
In office February 18, 1913 – February 18, 1913
Preceded by	Francisco I. Madero
Succeeded by	Victoriano Huerta

Born	May 12, 1856 Mexico City
Died	July 21, 1952 Mexico City
Spouse	María Flores

Pedro José Domingo de la Calzada Manuel María Lascuráin Paredes (May 12, 1856, Mexico City—July 21, 1952, Mexico City) was very briefly interim president of Mexico.

Lascuráin was the foreign minister in Francisco I. Madero's cabinet. On February 18, 1913, General Victoriano Huerta overthrew President Madero. Lascuráin was one of the individuals who convinced Madero to resign the presidency when Madero was being held prisoner in the National Palace, claiming that his life was in danger if he refused.

To give the coup d'état an appearance of legality, Huerta had Lascuráin assume the presidency. Lascuráin then appointed Huerta to be his interior minister and promptly resigned, thus handing the office of president over to Huerta. Huerta called a late-night special session of Congress and under the guns of Huerta's troops the legislators endorsed his assumption of power. A few days later, Huerta had Madero and Vice-President José María Pino Suárez killed. The coup and the events surrounding it became known as la decena trágica (the tragic ten days) in Mexico.

Lascuráin was thus president for less than one hour. (Sources quote figures ranging from 15 to 55 minutes.) This makes his presidency the shortest in world history. Huerta subsequently offered him a post in his cabinet, but Lascuráin declined. He retired from politics and began practicing again as a lawyer.

Lascuráin received a law degree in 1880 from the Esuela 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 the later was elected president to replace Díaz, Lascuráin served twice as Mexican foreign secretary in Madero's cabinet (April 10, 1912 to December 4, 1912 and January 15, 1913 to February 18, 1913). In between the two terms he was again mayor of Mexico City. As foreign minister he had to deal with the demands of U.S. Ambassador Henry Lane Wilson, who was later involved in planning Huerta's coup.

Lascuráin was the director of the Escuela Libre de Derecho, Mexico City's top law school, for 16 years, and he published extensively on commercial and civil law.

[edit] 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 Puron, 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.