Mariano Melgarejo (English spelling)

Bolivian soldier and politician. A mestizo (mixed white and Indian) orphan, he joined the army at a young age, later participated in several revolutionary movements, and defeated his political opponents to become president of Bolivia in 1864. He was known for many eccentric and barbaric acts, such as stripping a British envoy naked and parading him around the city, which angered Queen Victoria, but at the same time, he was a pioneer in the modernization of Bolivia, adopting the metric system, founding a bank, and introducing steam engines. He dismantled Indian communal land and promoted privatization, which led to Indian rebellions. He was overthrown in 1871 and fled to Peru, where he was killed by his lover's younger brother.

[Fumio Nakagawa]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

ボリビアの軍人、政治家。メスティソ（白人とインディオの混血）の孤児で幼少より軍隊に加わり、のちにいくつかの革命運動に参加し、1864年に政敵を倒してボリビアの大統領となった。イギリス公使を裸にして街を引き回し、ビクトリア女王の怒りを買うなどの多くの奇行と蛮行で知られたが、同時に、メートル法の採用、銀行の創設、蒸気機関の導入などボリビア近代化の先駆者となった。インディオの共有地を解体して私有地化を促進し、そのためインディオの反乱を誘発した。71年失脚しペルーに逃れ、愛人の弟に殺された。

［中川文雄］

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