Pedro Alejandrino Pina García (November 20, 1820 – August 24, 1870) was a Dominican politician and military man considered one of the heroes of Dominican independence. He was the co-founder of the Secret Society La Trinitaria and first cousin of the father of Dominican history, Jose Gabriel García and the Dominican activist Concepción Bona.
Early years Pedro Alejandrino Pina was born in Santo Domingo on November 20, 1820, a year before the declaration of independence led by José Núñez de Cáceres, so his youth passed during the Haitian occupation, which began in February 1822.
As was common, his parents, located in an incipient urban middle class, decided not to leave the country, aware of the disappointments experienced by those who had left in the waves of emigration. His father, Juan Pina, was a small merchant, a grocery store, who had his business in the vicinity of Puerta del Conde, at that time a rather marginal area within the walled city. Juan Pina's offspring, in two marriages, were numerous and some of the hero's brothers were outstanding people. This was the case of Calixto María Pina, who took up a priestly career and became provisional governor of the Archdiocese. Within the Pina family the national ideal and the rejection of Haitian domination were bubbling. (Juan Pina was one of the signatories of the Manifesto of January 16, 1844, which called for the separation of Haiti. And it was in the home of the Pina family where Concepción Bona made the first Dominican flag in January 1844, for which she had the help of María Jesús Pina, Pedro's sister).
In that environment, Pina harbored opposition to Haitian rule since he was a child, in which it is possible that he mixed ethnic motives with national consciousness. This feeling of rejection was evident when he provoked a confrontation against his Haitian classmates, which earned him sanctions and resulted in an insurmountable resentment between both groups. The family environment explains why Pina became a precocious patriot, with concepts defined from his early youth. He was noted for his proficiency in philosophy studies. His entry into the core of young intellectuals who fostered the national ideal was the product of an exceptional cultural development for the time. He distinguished himself at school for his high performance and for consecutive years obtained the medal of merit awarded to the best student on campus. His training was perfected by the private lessons he received from Auguste Brouat, a cultured Haitian resident in Santo Domingo, who developed a beneficial educational action.
In those same years, Pina decided to join the priestly state, a destination that was common due to the difficult circumstances in which the country developed. As there was no seminary, he received training from the Peruvian priest Gaspar Hernández, who in those years led a circle of philosophical scholars, among whose members were several of the young people who would soon undertake conspiratorial actions against foreign oppression. Gaspar Hernández had a conservative stance and preached the return to Spanish sovereignty. But, for the most part, the disciples do not seem to have been influenced by such a position, perhaps because they received the counterweight of other positions that was in favor of an independent State. Historian José Gabriel García, who knew Pina, highlights, in the biography he dedicated to him, "the impetuous character that distinguished him then, and the revolutionary ideas that from the morning of his life were bubbling in his ardent imagination, soon divorced him from the Church." García adds that his renunciation of the priesthood led him to study law, which was also done personally, with an already established lawyer. He also describes his decision to marry Micaela Rosón in 1840, when he was 20 years old.
Independence activist Joining the Trinitarios and La Reforma
By the 1830s the deterioration of the Haitian regime was realized, and some disaffected sectors began to pursue a cause for the complete independence of Santo Domingo. One such case was the emergence of a revolutionary secret society called La Trinitaria, on July 16, 1838. Non-consistent versions have been offered about this event, but they can be assumed. stated some facts. That day several conspirators signed an oath to be faithful to the independence cause and the leadership of its leader, Juan Pablo Duarte. They were all young people from the middle and upper urban sectors, a position that gave them access to the liberal doctrines that justified the national cause. Within that conglomerate, Pina was the youngest, at eighteen years old. And far from being an impediment to taking a leading part in the events, youth operated as an incentive to action. The historian García, well aware of the details of the events of those days, relates for example that the recruitment of Francisco del Rosario Sánchez to La Trinitaria was a product of Pina's efforts. Such provision was highlighted on the occasion of the beginning of the processes that led to the proclamation of national independence. Following the fall of the Haitian dictator Jean Pierre Boyer, an uprising occurred in the city of Santo Domingo on March 24, 1843. Duarte's followers gathered that day in the small square of the Carmen church, in front of where almost five years earlier they had founded La Trinitaria. From there they began a march towards the headquarters of the governor's office, demanding the deposition of the incumbent, Bernard-Philippe-Alexis Carrié. They were joined by the Haitian liberals residing in the city of Santo Domingo, led by Alcius Ponthieux, who apparently had links with the Haitian liberal opposition sector originating in the city of Les Cayes. The "reformists", both Dominicans and Haitians, sought the appointment as governor of Commander Etienne Desgrottes, from the liberal sector, in order to extend the Reform process.
The protest was attacked by government troops, resulting in several deaths. The protesters had to leave the city in the direction of San Cristóbal, where they prepared an offensive that forced Governor Carrié to abdicate. A provisional committee was installed composed of three Dominicans and two Haitians. One of its members was Pina who, at the age of 22, jumped to the center of political life. But the most interesting thing was that he became the main tribune of the Dominican sector and acquired fame for his oratory eloquence. Along with the young Pina, his leader and friend, Juan Pablo Duarte, and another Trinitario, Manuel Jiménes, who would also have important performances in the subsequent months and years, were part of the Popular Board, elected by a Popular Assembly on March 30.
From the beginning of the sessions of the Popular Board, in which Pina served as secretary and Ponthieux as president, the national status of the Dominicans was raised. This caused confrontation between the Dominican liberals and the Haitians. Thanks to his oratory skills, Pina took the lead in the organization's sessions, in defense of the national rights of Dominicans. He directed his arguments against those of Jean Baptiste Morin, the other Haitian who belonged to the organization. After one of the exchanges of disagreements, Auguste Brouat concluded that everything was lost for Haiti, since the breakup of the Dominicans was looming closer.
Persecution and exile
The Trinitarios, who now controlled the Popular Junta, promoted the issuance of a document that stated national demands aimed at the autonomy of the Dominican conglomerate and respect for its cultural customs. Faced with these signs, Haitian President Charles Rivière-Hérard, who had led the Reform movement, decided to quell the dissent of the "Spanish boys". At the head of 10,000 soldiers, he entered Dominican territory through the northern part, proceeding to arrest all those suspected of harboring independence purposes. The Trinitarios tried to resist Hérard's entry into Santo Domingo, but, on July 11, 1843, the eve of his arrival, they had no choice but to hide. Pina was one of the most persecuted but, unlike the majority, he managed to evade the search of the Haitian soldiers. However, he had to leave the country, together with Duarte and another of the Trinitarios, Juan Isidro Pérez, because he considered that it was unfeasible to remain hidden for any longer.
The stay of Duarte, Pina and Pérez abroad for more than six months consolidated an endearing sense of brotherhood between the three. Duarte and his sister Rosa would take care of Pina's second daughter, Amelia, in exile. Three months after leaving the country, Pina's third child and first son was born, whom she gave the name Juan Pablo. In September 1843, less than three weeks after arriving in Venezuela and waiting for the start of events, Duarte decided to send Pina and Pérez to Curaçao, from where he hoped they would be able to maintain fluid communications with Santo Domingo, being that small island. one of the two links of the country's foreign trade. They were accompanied by Prudencio Diez, Duarte's uncle, and José Patín, another Dominican resident in Venezuela. Unfortunately, Pina and Pérez could not do anything, since Duarte did not obtain the support of the Venezuelan president, causing him to head to Curaçao.
Duarte and his two comrades, accompanied by a few other Dominicans, planned to secretly enter the country through Guayacanes to start the insurrection, as highlighted in a letter sent to them by Francisco del Rosario Sánchez and Vicente Celestino Duarte. These plans could not come to fruition, so Sánchez decided to follow another course to overthrow the Haitian regime: he established an agreement with a conservative sector led by Tomás Bobadilla. On February 27, 1844, the founding of the First Dominican Republic was proclaimed and a Central Government Board was installed, whose presidency was delegated a few hours later to Bobadilla.
First Republic Return to the Dominican Republic At the beginning there was no controversy between the Trinitarios and the conservatives, although they had strongly divergent criteria about the components of the State that was going to be founded. One of the first measures adopted by the Central Government Board was to commission Juan Nepomuceno Ravelo to go look for Duarte and his companions in Curaçao, on the schooner Leonora. When he arrived at the port on March 15, Duarte was hailed as the Father of the Nation by Archbishop Tomás de Portes e Infante. However, the differences did not take long to surface after his arrival, as Duarte showed hostility towards any media coverage of independence, as was contemplated in the secret negotiations that Dominican conservatives had held with the consul general of France, Auguste Levasseur, while they participated as deputies in the Constituent Assembly of 1843. Duarte led a process of questioning the conservatives' plans, for which he had the support of most of his old friends from La Trinitaria.
On March 22, a week after his return, Pina was assigned to serve as an aide to General Pedro Santana, stationed in Baní as commander of the Southern Expeditionary Front after the Battle of Azua. He stayed at Santana's side longer than Duarte and, unlike Duarte, it does not seem that he had any disagreements with his superior. Rather, Santana appreciated Commander Pina's military skills and came to consider him essential in the campaign.
Political dissent and second exile