Juan Lindolfo Cuestas

Background

Juan Lindolfo Cuestas was a prominent member of the Uruguayan Colorado Party, which dominated the country's politics for over a century. He served as Minister of Justice and Education from 1884 to 1886.

His son, Juan Cuestas, was a diplomat.

President of Uruguay

First term

Lindolfo Cuestas first assumed the Presidency in crisis circumstances . On August 25, 1897 the sitting President of Uruguay, Juan Idiarte Borda was assassinated by a gunman, Avelino Arredondo.

Within two years Lindolfo Cuestas had ceded the Presidency to José Batlle y Ordóñez on an interim basis.

Second term

He soon reassumed the office, however, and served until 1903, when he again stepped down in favour of José Batlle y Ordóñez.

Political background

Lindolfo Cuestas's periods of Presidential office were characterized by crises, not only originating from the assassination of Idiarte, but also by internal dissension within the Colorado Party and by strife with the Opposition Blanco Party, which continued to propel the country into outbreaks of the intermittent Civil War which beset Uruguay throughout the mid- to late- 19th century.

Post presidency

After relinquishing the Presidency for the second time, in 1903, the country soon slipped into civil war, the decisive battle of which was the Battle of Masoller in 1904. Lindolfo Cuestas died in 1905.