Rómulo Gallegos

President of Venezuela

2 August 1884 Caracas, Venezuela

5 April 1969(1969-04-05) (84) Caracas, Venezuela

17 February 1948 – 24 November 1948

In this Spanish name, the first or paternal surname is Gallegos and the second or maternal family name is Freire. Rómulo Ángel del Monte Carmelo Gallegos Freire (2 August 1884 – 5 April 1969) was a Venezuelan novelist and politician. For a period of nine months during 1948, he governed as the first freely elected president in Venezuela's history. Rómulo Gallegos is considered the most relevant Venezuelan novelist of the 20th century, and a prominent figure in Latin American literature.