Jacinta Parejo

She first served as First Lady of Venezuela from 1884[1] until 1886.[1] Parejo was the first woman in Venezuela to intercede in official policy in such a fashion. She held meetings, worked on projects of the head of state, and at times interceded on the behalf of political prisoners to Crespo.[1]

According to Venezuelatuya, Crespo relied greatly on her advice and confidence during his career, and asserts that in 1892 she "made up for the lack of committees or revolutionary juntas in the clandestine organization of the Legalista Revolution."[1] While Crespo campaigned with the military in remote areas of Venezuela, Parejo lived in Caracas and contributed to the campaign through secret correspondence and shipping items to officers at the battlefront.[1] On June 17, 1892,[3] Parejo's husband overthrew President Raimundo Andueza Palacio.[1] Following the resignation of subsequent president Guillermo Tell Villegas[4] during the crisis of the Legalist Revolution,[5] Guillermo Tell Villegas Pulido was selected by the Federal Council as the provisional president of Venezuela in August 1892.[6] After Crespo established himself as president by force in October 1892, Villegas Pulido left the country.[6] She again became First Lady on October 7, 1892.[1]

Drawing depicting the moment Parejo receives condolences from Juan Pietri on the death of Crespo.

In 1897, Crespo did not campaign for a third presidential term but supported Ignacio Andrade against key opponent Jose Manuel Hernandez. Andrade won the election,[7] and his wife María Isabel Sosa Saa replaced Parejo as First Lady on February 28, 1898.[1] Hernandez decried the results as fraudulent and took up arms. Hernandez was quickly defeated, with resultant political turmoil.[7] Crespo was killed in battle on April 16, 1898[2] in the Battle of Mata Carmelera while defending the government of Ignacio Andrade.[1] Parejo afterwards became the defender of their family's legacy. According to VenezuelaTuya, while grieving, she failed to prevent several lawsuits, particularly one filed by the Colombian general Vicente Sebastián Mestre. Sebastián claimed that he was owed Bs. 700,000 in damages for a canceled military contract.[1]