Francisco del Rosario
Sánchez
One of the Padres de la
Patria / Fathers of the Patriotism
Born March 9, 1817
and died July 4, 1861
Francisco Sanchez was one of the three founding fathers of Dominican
Republic. He, including Juan Pablo Duarte, Ramón
Matías Mella, are the Padres de la Patria / Fathers of the Patriotism. He is
also considered by many to be the strongest of them all. Giving his life in
martyrdom for his dream of a free country and for the men whom fought with him.
Sanchez was the son of Narciso Sánchez and
Olaya Del Rosario. He was born in San Juan de la Maguana. At the time of his
birth his parents were not married. His father, Narcisco, came to Dominican
Republic from Spain. All that is known of his mother is that she was "a
person of color", maybe African decent, according to the baptismal
records. He taught himself Latin and French, studied philosophy and also
studied with Father Gaspar Hernandez, a priest who was anti-Haitian.
During his time studying under the priest, with many other young people,
is when Sanchez met Juan Pablo Duarte. In 1838 he joined the Trinitarios
to fight against the Haitian occupation. He was known for his hard work,
determination and honesty. Because of his leadership abilities, when Duarte was
later exiled to Venezuela, he took over leadership of this group. While leading
the Trinitarios he always kept in touch with Duarte. Duarte had complete confidence in
Sanchez.
