Joe Concha

Concha was born in Bogotá, on April 21, 1867, during the administration of General Tomás Cipriano de Mosquera. He died in Rome, on December 8, 1929, while serving as Ambassador to the Vatican City.

Concha joined the Colombian Conservative Party by the end of the presidency of Carlos Eugenio Restrepo. The "republicanism” movement had come to an end, and politicians were returning to the original political parties. He was elected to Congress, and in 1898, as majority leader, he led the debate against General Rafael Reyes, causing him to resign to the presidency.

As mentioned earlier, Concha had served as Colombian Ambassador to the US in 1902. He also served as Minister of Foreign Affairs during the administration of President Marco Fidel Suárez. In 1925, Concha is designated as Colombian Ambassador to Italy and later to the Vatican City in Rome, where he died. In one of his last statements he said: “I never violated the rights of people or parties, I was impartial and neutral in every political debate or election, I kept diplomatic and cordial relations with every nation and, I never placed the country at risk”.

Concha was inaugurated as President of Colombia on August 10, 1914. He initiated his administration in a prosperous and peaceful time, inherited from the government of Carlos Eugenio Restrepo.