Francisco Orlich Bolmarcich

Who was Francisco Orlich Bolmarcich?

Francisco José Orlich Bolmarcich was President of Costa Rica from 1962 to 1966. His grandfather on the Orlich side and his mother came to Costa Rica from the town of Punat on the island of Krk, Croatia. His villa in Punat is named "Villa Costarica".

Together with his brothers he founded in 1928 FJ Orlich & Hnos Ltda.. At first a large supply store in his hometown of San Ramón, this eventually grew to become one of Costa Rica's largest coffee firms.

A long-time friend of José Figueres Ferrer, with whom he had traveled together to study in the United States, Orlich was Figueres' second in command within the National Liberation Army in the Costa Rican Civil War.

Following that, the National Liberation Party was founded in the Orlich family farm in La Paz, San Ramón.

He twice served as Public Works Minister in Figueres' cabinets. Afterwards he ran for president in 1958, but lost to Mario Echandi Jiménez. He ran again in 1962, against the defeated 1948 leader Dr Rafael Ángel Calderón Guardia, and won the presidency.

Always called by his countrymen 'Don Chico', during his presidency he faced the major eruption of the Irazú volcano, that started just as U.S. President John F.