Howard Prince-Gonzalez: Difference between revisions
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| office = President Of Slokais | | office = President Of Slokais | ||
| term_start =January 2nd, 1893 | | term_start =January 2nd, 1893 | ||
| term_end = January 2nd, | | term_end = January 2nd, 1901 | ||
| alongside = <!--For two or more people serving in the same position from the same district. (e.g. United States Senators.)--> | | alongside = <!--For two or more people serving in the same position from the same district. (e.g. United States Senators.)--> | ||
| vicepresident = | | vicepresident = | ||
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| pronunciation = | | pronunciation = | ||
| birth_name = | | birth_name = | ||
| birth_date = {{Birth date | | birth_date = {{Birth date|1858|04|06}} | ||
| birth_place = San Fernando | | birth_place = San Fernando | ||
| death_date = | | death_date = {{Death date|1928|05|07}} | ||
| death_place = San Fernando | | death_place = San Fernando | ||
| death_cause = Natural Causes | | death_cause = Natural Causes | ||
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==Early Life and Career== | |||
Howard Cremescia Prince-Gonzalez was born April 6th, 1858 in [[San Fernando]]. His father was a simple groundskeeper of Mesizto ancestry and his mother was an heiress of Costeno ancestry. In addition, Gonzalez's grandmother was a Damersara women named Maria Dioup-Prince who was enslaved in modern-day Kolda. Gonzalez attended a local Catholic preparatory school, Saint Mark's funded by the Prince estate. Gonzalez was regarded as a exceptional student by his teachers and peers, as he began writing poems and books at the age of 14. In 1876 he attended New Liverpool University, as a political studies major. In 1878, he was arrested for writing pieces in a student newspaper called "Los Plebeyos". He was then jailed and sentenced to 15 years in prison. Gonzalez was sent to Rio Bravos Prison, where he ended up interacting with several other independence leaders such as Thomas Rizal and Francisco Vegas but got out in 6 years due to good behavior and a good early release appeal. | |||
==Indpendence Era== | |||
Gonzalez maintained a low profile during the early 1880s, as he feared if arrested again he would be executed. Despite this, Gonzalez wrote dozens of essay's on the Slokasian identity, a new concept at the time. Gonzalez argued despite the extreme division of those living in the region, more united the citizens then not. Gonzalez proposed a strong central government, with a representative democratic system which provided for all citizens. These writings where released in 1885 as the "Reflections of a Slokasian Man" under the simple name of "Citizen". Reflections was distributed within independence circles before seeing a wider release, with Gonzalez being adamant about the book being sent to "every corner, in every language, in the hands of every man". The book saw extreme success as its language and writing was unique for the time and was one of the first examples of "Republikisan". Gonzalez eventually met several other's leaders at the 1887 Conference of the Republican-Left Association. Upon hearing of this, Gonzalez was elevated to the Assistant Secretary of the RLA where he began to speak publicly as the author of Reflections. | |||
Gonzalez would end up going on a nationwide tour of Slokais, with large crowds meeting him in every city. Attempts to arrest Gonzalez remained futile as he often left area's before he could be arrested. This grew Gonzalez to a folk hero status across ethnic and religious lines as he toured the country. In 1888, Gonzalez was elected General Secretary of the RLA despite opposition from Henry Banks, who was a popular figure in his own right. In 1890, when the First Slokasian Civil War broke out within the dominion, Gonzalez denounced retaliatory attacks against Sactarian settlers and instead shifted opposition towards just colonial officials who soon became extremely outnumbered in many instances. Gonzalez stated in 1891, "The greatest ill of our occupation is how they turn brother's and cousins, we all swelter under the heat of one sun, and are cooled by the water's of one ocean". | |||
==President of Slokais Islands== | |||
In 1892, upon the foundation of the Republic of Slokais Islands, an election was scheduled for the winter of 1892. Gonzalez had largely consolidated support within the Left Party. During this period, voting was restricted to land ownership an effect of colonial voting laws in addition, issues with establishing national infrastructure meant the 1892 Election had low turnout. Those who did come out where mostly land-owning Costenos and Blancos, who had a preference for Gonzalez instead of the more radical Henry Banks and Roberto Kohang. Gonzalez achieved 77% of the vote with the Left Party securing 83 of the 100 seats in the Slokaisan Legislature. At this point, the federal government remained relatively ineffective with military, education and tax largely being in the hands of the Legislature alone. | |||
In 1893, Gonzalez announced an expansion to the Constitution to be formalized at the 2nd Congress of the Constitution in New Liverpool. Within the newly built, Republic Hall from May to August 1893 delegates from every province where in attendance with President Gonzalez holding a speaker-like position. The resulting discussion and writing would come to be known as the "Revolution of the Republic" as delegates debated national versus provincial power, the role of religion and the power of the executive branch. In the end, Gonzalez pushed through a final draft which was soon adopted. To secure the legitimacy of the Congress, Gonzalez delivered a referendum in May of 1894 with full male suffrage. In 1895, during the Northern Isles Tax Rebellion, Gonzalez personally took control of the situation by traveling to the region and commanding military forces. Gonzalez is elected to a second term and is very popular as the land-owner requirement is removed and he gets 77% of the vote. The Left continued its appeal in rural areas with gains for the Center Party in urban areas. | |||
Gonzalez called for the formalization of Slokais as the "Republic of many". This included the increased usage of English and Spanish, with Gonzalez leading with English, although sometimes repeating himself in Spanish. This was due to the language policy of colonial powers, which taught English to those in urban areas and Spanish as a language of rural areas due to the work of missionaries. In 1897, the Ministry of Justice was created to replace the existing colonial-era justice system. Juries would consist of a random selection of citizens, instead of the existing system of juries being selected by the judge and only the judge. The Ministry of Justice also created a system of appeals courts and lower courts to oversee cases. | |||
==Legacy== | |||
In 1900, Gonzalez decided not to run as he thought, it would not be needed, as he had done so much for the country. In 1904, he started the [[Howard Prince-Gonzalez Institution]]. The HPGI was founded with the goal to promote problem-solving and monitor electoral and political activities internationally. Gonzalez also traveled to various countries supporting various political movements. In 1926 he died of natural causes at his estate in San Fernando. The home is now a popular historical site within San Fernando. He is the most popular politician in Slokasian history, with an 85% approval rating. | |||
==Policy== | |||
Howard Prince-Gonzalez is credited as the founder of modern Slokais and for creating a style of populist, modernization policy that had been replicated by many Presidents across the political spectrum. This has been called Howardism, and multiple leaders including [[Joseph Chavez]] have publicly stated they support the ideology. The main primary criticism is that Gonzalez was too focused on overarching ideals to address class and racial divides. There is a debate about where politically was Gonzalez aligned with some claiming he would have supported modern Conservatism, while others have described him as a social democrat. | |||
[[Category:Slokais Islands]][[Category:People]] | |||
Latest revision as of 10:51, 15 October 2025
| Howard Prince-Gonzalez | |
|---|---|
 | |
| 1st President Of Slokais | |
| In office January 2nd, 1893 – January 2nd, 1901 | |
| Succeeded by | Henry Banks |
| 1st Leader of the Left Party | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | April 6, 1858 San Fernando |
| Died | May 7, 1928 San Fernando |
| Cause of death | Natural Causes |
| Resting place | Grand Bank National Cemetary |
| Political party | The Left Party |
| Spouse(s) | Emma Gonzalez |
| Children | Alan Gonzalez, Martha Gonzalez, Alexander Gonzalez |
| Mother | Harriet Prince |
| Father | Mitchell Gonzalez |
| Residence | 1345, New Land RD |
| Alma mater | New Liverpool College |
Early Life and Career[edit | edit source]
Howard Cremescia Prince-Gonzalez was born April 6th, 1858 in San Fernando. His father was a simple groundskeeper of Mesizto ancestry and his mother was an heiress of Costeno ancestry. In addition, Gonzalez's grandmother was a Damersara women named Maria Dioup-Prince who was enslaved in modern-day Kolda. Gonzalez attended a local Catholic preparatory school, Saint Mark's funded by the Prince estate. Gonzalez was regarded as a exceptional student by his teachers and peers, as he began writing poems and books at the age of 14. In 1876 he attended New Liverpool University, as a political studies major. In 1878, he was arrested for writing pieces in a student newspaper called "Los Plebeyos". He was then jailed and sentenced to 15 years in prison. Gonzalez was sent to Rio Bravos Prison, where he ended up interacting with several other independence leaders such as Thomas Rizal and Francisco Vegas but got out in 6 years due to good behavior and a good early release appeal.
Indpendence Era[edit | edit source]
Gonzalez maintained a low profile during the early 1880s, as he feared if arrested again he would be executed. Despite this, Gonzalez wrote dozens of essay's on the Slokasian identity, a new concept at the time. Gonzalez argued despite the extreme division of those living in the region, more united the citizens then not. Gonzalez proposed a strong central government, with a representative democratic system which provided for all citizens. These writings where released in 1885 as the "Reflections of a Slokasian Man" under the simple name of "Citizen". Reflections was distributed within independence circles before seeing a wider release, with Gonzalez being adamant about the book being sent to "every corner, in every language, in the hands of every man". The book saw extreme success as its language and writing was unique for the time and was one of the first examples of "Republikisan". Gonzalez eventually met several other's leaders at the 1887 Conference of the Republican-Left Association. Upon hearing of this, Gonzalez was elevated to the Assistant Secretary of the RLA where he began to speak publicly as the author of Reflections.
Gonzalez would end up going on a nationwide tour of Slokais, with large crowds meeting him in every city. Attempts to arrest Gonzalez remained futile as he often left area's before he could be arrested. This grew Gonzalez to a folk hero status across ethnic and religious lines as he toured the country. In 1888, Gonzalez was elected General Secretary of the RLA despite opposition from Henry Banks, who was a popular figure in his own right. In 1890, when the First Slokasian Civil War broke out within the dominion, Gonzalez denounced retaliatory attacks against Sactarian settlers and instead shifted opposition towards just colonial officials who soon became extremely outnumbered in many instances. Gonzalez stated in 1891, "The greatest ill of our occupation is how they turn brother's and cousins, we all swelter under the heat of one sun, and are cooled by the water's of one ocean".
President of Slokais Islands[edit | edit source]
In 1892, upon the foundation of the Republic of Slokais Islands, an election was scheduled for the winter of 1892. Gonzalez had largely consolidated support within the Left Party. During this period, voting was restricted to land ownership an effect of colonial voting laws in addition, issues with establishing national infrastructure meant the 1892 Election had low turnout. Those who did come out where mostly land-owning Costenos and Blancos, who had a preference for Gonzalez instead of the more radical Henry Banks and Roberto Kohang. Gonzalez achieved 77% of the vote with the Left Party securing 83 of the 100 seats in the Slokaisan Legislature. At this point, the federal government remained relatively ineffective with military, education and tax largely being in the hands of the Legislature alone.
In 1893, Gonzalez announced an expansion to the Constitution to be formalized at the 2nd Congress of the Constitution in New Liverpool. Within the newly built, Republic Hall from May to August 1893 delegates from every province where in attendance with President Gonzalez holding a speaker-like position. The resulting discussion and writing would come to be known as the "Revolution of the Republic" as delegates debated national versus provincial power, the role of religion and the power of the executive branch. In the end, Gonzalez pushed through a final draft which was soon adopted. To secure the legitimacy of the Congress, Gonzalez delivered a referendum in May of 1894 with full male suffrage. In 1895, during the Northern Isles Tax Rebellion, Gonzalez personally took control of the situation by traveling to the region and commanding military forces. Gonzalez is elected to a second term and is very popular as the land-owner requirement is removed and he gets 77% of the vote. The Left continued its appeal in rural areas with gains for the Center Party in urban areas.
Gonzalez called for the formalization of Slokais as the "Republic of many". This included the increased usage of English and Spanish, with Gonzalez leading with English, although sometimes repeating himself in Spanish. This was due to the language policy of colonial powers, which taught English to those in urban areas and Spanish as a language of rural areas due to the work of missionaries. In 1897, the Ministry of Justice was created to replace the existing colonial-era justice system. Juries would consist of a random selection of citizens, instead of the existing system of juries being selected by the judge and only the judge. The Ministry of Justice also created a system of appeals courts and lower courts to oversee cases.
Legacy[edit | edit source]
In 1900, Gonzalez decided not to run as he thought, it would not be needed, as he had done so much for the country. In 1904, he started the Howard Prince-Gonzalez Institution. The HPGI was founded with the goal to promote problem-solving and monitor electoral and political activities internationally. Gonzalez also traveled to various countries supporting various political movements. In 1926 he died of natural causes at his estate in San Fernando. The home is now a popular historical site within San Fernando. He is the most popular politician in Slokasian history, with an 85% approval rating.
Policy[edit | edit source]
Howard Prince-Gonzalez is credited as the founder of modern Slokais and for creating a style of populist, modernization policy that had been replicated by many Presidents across the political spectrum. This has been called Howardism, and multiple leaders including Joseph Chavez have publicly stated they support the ideology. The main primary criticism is that Gonzalez was too focused on overarching ideals to address class and racial divides. There is a debate about where politically was Gonzalez aligned with some claiming he would have supported modern Conservatism, while others have described him as a social democrat.