page_title: Agustín Guzmán
section_title: Carrera exile and Los Altos
hierarchical_section_title: Agustín Guzmán / Biography / Carrera exile and Los Altos
caption_attribution_description: English: Guatemala 1 Real 1847 Silver Coin UNC. D.= 20 mm. 3.36 g Ag. Proclamation of the independent republic Guatemala on 21 March 1847. 3 lines in the arms of Guatemala: "15 DE SET. D. 1821", curved above: REPUBLICA DE GUATEM*" / 4 lines in a wreath of laurels: "21. DE MARZO DE 1847." Fonrobert 7236. Condition: Choice UNCIRCULATED, with an old very nice toning
context_page_description: Agustín Guzmán was a Mexican military officer, who was appointed as Army Commander in Chief of Los Altos when this new State was formed as part of the Central American Federation on 2 March 1838. He was defeated by Rafael Carrera on 19 March 1840, the same date on which the Los Altos State ceased to exist. Trying to create Los Altos once again while Carrera was briefly in exile in 1848, he tried to occupy Guatemala City along with rebel leader Agustín Reyes, and after setting fire to Carrera's house, he was killed by enemy fire in the Plaza de Armas.
context_section_description: During his first term as president, Rafael Carrera had brought the country back from excessive conservatism to a traditional climate; however, in 1848, the liberals were able to force Rafael Carrera to leave office, after the country had been in turmoil for several months.   Carrera resigned at his own free will and left for México.  The new liberal regime allied itself with the Aycinena family and swiftly passed a law where they emphatically ordered to execute Carrera if he dared to return to Guatemalan soil. On his absence, the liberal criollos from Quetzaltenango – led by general Agustín Guzmán, who occupied the city after Corregidor General Mariano Paredes was called to Guatemala City to take over the presidential office– declared that Los Altos was an independent state once again on 26 August 1848; the new state had the support of Vasconcelos' regime in El Salvador and the rebel guerrilla army of Vicente and Serapio Cruz who were declared enemies of general Carrera. The interim government was led by Guzmán himself and had Florencio Molina and priest Fernando Davila as his Cabinet members. On 5 September 1848, the criollos altenses chose a formal government led by Fernando Antonio Martínez. In the meantime, Carrera decided to return to Guatemala and did so entering by Huehuetenango, where he met with the native leaders and told them that they had to remain united to prevail; the leaders agreed and slowly the segregated native communities started developing a new Indian identity under Carrera's leadership. In the meantime, on the eastern part of Guatemala, the Jalapa region became increasingly dangerous; former president Mariano Rivera Paz and rebel leader Vicente Cruz were both murdered there after trying to take over the Corregidor office in 1849.
  Upon learning that officer José Víctor Zavala had been appointed as corregidor in Suchitepéquez, Carrera and his hundred jacalteco bodyguards crossed a dangerous jungle infested with jaguars to meet his former friend.  When they met, Zavala not only did not capture him, but agreed to serve under his orders, thus sending a strong message to both liberal and conservatives in Guatemala City, that realized that they were forced to negotiate with Carrera, otherwise they were going to have to battle on two fronts: Quetzaltenango and Jalapa.  Carrera went back to the Quetzaltenango area, while Zavala remained in Suchitepéquez as a tactical maneuver. Carrera received a visit from a Cabinet member of Paredes and told him that he had control of the native population and that he assured Paredes that he will keep them appeased. When the emissary returned to Guatemala City, he told the president everything Carrera said, and added that the native forces were formidable.
  Agustín Guzmán went to Antigua Guatemala to meet with another group of Paredes emissaries; they agreed that Los Altos would rejoin Guatemala, and that the latter would help Guzmán defeat his hated enemy and also build a port on the Pacific Ocean. Guzmán was sure of victory this time, but his plan evaporated when, in his absence, Carrera and his native allies had occupied Quetzaltenango; Carrera appointed Ignacio Yrigoyen as corregidor and convinced him that he should work with the k'iche', mam, q'anjobal and mam leaders to keep the region under control.  On his way out, Yrigoyen murmured to a friend: Now he is the King of the Indians, indeed!
  Guzmán then left for Jalapa, where he stroke a deal with the rebels, while Luis Batres Juarros convinced president Paredes to deal with Carrera; Guzmán could only get a temporary truce from the revolt leaders León Raymundo, Roberto Reyes and Agustín Pérez; however, the truce was short lived, as the rebels sacked Jalapa on June 3 and 4. Guzman then left for El Salvador, where after a while he issued a note to the rest of liberal leaders in Central America in which he attacked the immorality and viciousness of the savage Rafael Carrera, who -according to Guzman- had not governed Guatemala properly in the last nine years.  In his note, Guzman told that he had gone to El Salvador to ret
caption: Proclamation Coin 1847 of the independent Republic of Guatemala
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