Teodoro A. Dehesa Méndez

Teodoro A. Dehesa Méndez (October 1, 1848 - September 25, 1936) was the Governor of the state of Veracruz in Mexico for five terms from 1892 to 1911.

Early years

Teodoro Dehesa was the son of Teodoro Dehesa y Bayona, an Aragonese pastry chef, and Antonia Méndez y Ruiz de Olivares, member of a wealthy family of Xalapa, Veracruz.

He studied his first letters at La Amiga, under supervision of Jacinta, Dolores and Carmen Torres. Later he studied at the Juan Rodríguez College. After his family moved to Xalapa, he finished his primary education at Francisco Ramos school and then joined Teodoro Kerlegand's Liceum.

Dehesa and the artist Diego Rivera

When the artist Diego Rivera was looking for a sponsor to allow him to travel to Europe to further his art career, he approached Governor Dehesa who agreed to sponsor him. A chapter in Diego Rivera's autobiography, My Art, My Life, is dedicated to Governor Dehesa and details how the opposition forces respected Dehesa and refused to attack the city in which he was staying. Diego Rivera also mentions his great respect for Teodoro Dehesa.

The Mexican Revolution

As a result of the Mexican Revolution of 1910, Teodoro Dehesa, his son, and Teodoro's brother, Francisco, were forced to flee Mexico. Teodoro Dehesa moved to Cuba and, at some point, returned to Mexico, where he later died in 1936. Descendants of Teodoro Dehesa still live in Mexico. It is unknown what happened to Francisco Dehesa, but his wife and children moved to California, where their descendants still live.

References

• Rivera, Diego. My Life, My Art. Dover Publications, Inc., New York, 1991.