Apolinar de Jesús Soto Quesada

Who was Apolinar de Jesús Soto Quesada?

Apolinar de Jesús Soto Quesada was a Costa Rican politician and soldier. He was born on 23 July 1827 in Alajuela, Costa Rica, to Bernardo Soto Herrera and Josefa Quesada González. He married Joaquina Alfaro Muñoz on 23 April 1849 in Alajuela, with whom he had two children: Bernardo Soto Alfaro, President of the Republic from 1885 to 1890, and José María Soto Alfaro, presidential candidate in 1919.

He followed a career in the army and rose to the rank of General in the Costa Rican army. A supporter of President Tomás Guardia Gutiérrez, he was a member of the Consejo de Estado from 1880 to 1882. Subsequently, during the terms of his son Bernardo Soto Alfaro, on whom he exercised enormous influence, he held positions of great importance. He was Second Designate to the Presidency from 1885 to 1886, First Designate to the Presidency from 1886 to 1890, and Secretary of War and Navy from 1886 to 1887 and from 1888 to 1889.

In his native city he was called Tepezcuintle. He died in Alajuela, Costa Rica, on 13 June 1911.