Palm Sunday Coup

The Palm Sunday Coup was an attempted military coup d'état in El Salvador which occurred in April 1944. The coup was staged by pro-Axis sympathizers in the Salvadoran Army against President Maximiliano Hernández Martínez.

Palm Sunday Coup
Part of World War II

Soldiers in San Salvador during the coup attempt.
Date2–3 April 1944
Location
El Salvador
Result Coup suppressed
Belligerents
Military government
Loyal armed forces		 Rebel armed forces
Commanders and leaders
Maximiliano Hernández Martínez
Andrés Ignacio Menéndez		 Unknown
Units involved
Salvadoran Army First Infantry Regiment
Second Artillery Regiment
Salvadoran Air Force

Background

Brigadier General Maximiliano Hernández Martínez became President of El Salvador following a military coup d'état on 2 December 1931 against President Arturo Araujo Fajardo.[1] During the lead up to World War II, Hernández Martínez heavily sympathized with Germany and Italy.[2] Despite his sympathies for the Axis, El Salvador joined the Allies on 8 December 1941 following the Attack on Pearl Harbor by Japan.[2][3][4]

Coup

Hernández Martínez held an election in January 1944 and was reelected to a third term as President.[5] His action angered many businessmen, politicians, and military officer since he blatantly violated the Constitution.[6]

On 2 April 1944, military officers who had pro-Axis sympathies from the 1st Infantry Regiment and the 2nd Artillery Regiment initiated a coup against Hernández Martínez.[6] The coup started on Palm Sunday and most senior military and government officials were either at home or attending church.[6][7] The rebels rose up in the departments of San Salvador and Santa Ana.[7] They took control of the national radio station and the police headquarters of Santa Ana during the coup.[7] The Salvadoran Air Force joined the conspirators and bombed the city of Santa Ana while the army attacked civilians and overthrew the local government.[7]

By the end of the day, Hernández Martínez ordered military units still loyal to him to crush the revolt.[7] The coup was suppressed on 3 April, martial law was declared, and a national curfew was put in place.[7]

Aftermath

Following the coup attempt, Hernández Martínez initiated reprisals that lasted for two weeks.[7] Civilian protestors eventually forced Hernández Martínez to resign on 9 May in the Strike of Fallen Arms.[7][8]

See also

References
  1. Grieb, Kenneth J. (1971). "The United States and the Rise of General Maximiliano Hernandez Martinez". Journal of Latin American Studies. 3 (2): 151–172. doi:10.1017/S0022216X00001425. JSTOR 156558.
  2. Haggerty 1990, p. 17
  3. Astilla 1976, p. 184
  4. Armstrong 1982, p. 34
  5. Nohlen, Dieter (2005). Elections in the Americas: A Data Handbook. 1. p. 287.
  6. Haggerty 1990, p. 18
  7. Zunes, Stephen (October 2010). "Movements and Campaigns - El Salvador: 1944". Nonviolent Conflict. Archived from the original on 31 December 2010. Retrieved 19 September 2020.
  8. Ackerman, Peter; DuVall, Jack (2015). A Force More Powerful: A Century of Non-violent Conflict. St. Martin's Press. pp. 256–263.

Bibliography
  • Armstrong, Robert; Shenk, Janet (1982). El Salvador: The Face of Revolution. Boston: South End Press. ISBN 0896081389.
  • Carmelo Francisco Esmeralda Astilla (1976). "The Martinez Era: Salvadoran-American Relations, 1931-1944". Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College.
  • Federal Research Division Library of Congress (1990). Haggerty, Richard A. (ed.). El Salvador: A Country Study (PDF). Washington, D.C.: The Library of Congress. Retrieved 17 September 2020.
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