Jorge Córdova

Jorge Córdova (23 April 1822, La Paz – 23 October 1861) was a Bolivian general and politician who served as the 12th President of Bolivia from 1855 to 1857.

Jorge Córdova
12th President of Bolivia
In office 15 August 1855 – 9 September 1857
Preceded by	Manuel Isidoro Belzu
Succeeded by	José María Linares
Personal details
Born	23 April 1822 La Paz, Viceroyalty of Peru (now Bolivia)
Died	23 October 1861(1861-10-23) (aged 39) La Paz, Bolivia
Cause of death	Assassination
Nationality	Bolivian
Spouse(s)	Edelmira Belzu Gorriti
Relatives	Manuel Isidoro Belzu (son-in-law)
Occupation	Military officer politician
Signature
Military service
Allegiance	Bolivia
Rank	Lieutenant Colonel
Battles/wars	Battle of Ingavi

A general, Córdova was longtime dictator Manuel Isidoro Belzu's son-in-law. As such, he was the main support to his despotic regime. When in 1855 Belzu decided to call elections and "retire" from politics in the face of repeated rebellions against his rule, he sponsored Córdova's candidacy. The latter was elected president and proceeded to be sworn in on August 15, 1855, at age thirty-three. Not surprisingly, Córdova was widely seen as ex-president Belzu's proxy, and merely an instrument of his power. Belzu remained the proverbial "power behind the throne," and this fact only spurred the opposition to continue to conspire against the hated Belzu-Córdova regime, which had run Bolivian politics since 1847. Eventually, the forces arrayed against the president coalesced around the forceful civilian Constitutionalist José María Linares, who in October 1857 at long last succeeded in toppling Córdova from power. Fleeing the country, he eventually returned to Bolivia, eager as always to support his father-in-law's ambitions to return to the Bolivian Government Palace.

Former president Jorge Córdova was assassinated on 23 October 1861, during the so-called "Matanzas de Yáñez" (Yáñez Bloodbath), when president José María de Achá's supporter and military governor of La Paz Province, Plácido Yáñez, massacred dozens of opposition figures, many of them from the pro-Belzu camp. He was 39 years old at the time of his death.