Cipriano Castro

Jos Cipriano Castro Ruiz was a highranking member of the Venezuelan military, politician and the President of Venezuela from 1899 to 1908. He was the first man from the Andes to rule the country, and was the first of five military strongmen from the Andean state of Tchira to rule the country over the next 46 years.

Cipriano Castro was the son of Jos Carmen Castro and Pelagia Ruiz. He was born onOctober 1858 in Capacho, Tchira. Castros father was a midlevel farmer and he received an education typical of the tachirense middleclass. His family had significant mercantile and family relations with Colombia, in particlular with Ccuta and Puerto Santander. After studying in his native town and the city of San Cristbal, he continued his studies at a seminary school in Pamplona, Colombia . He left those studies to return to San Cristbal, where he began work as employee of a company called Van Dissel, Thies and Cia. He also worked as a cowboy in the Andean region.

Source: Wikipedia