Francisco Gonzalo Marin
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Lieutenant Francisco Gonzalo Marin, also known as Pachin Marin (March 9, 1863-November 1897) born in Arecibo, Puerto Rico, designer of the Puerto Rican Flag was a poet and journalist who fought alongside José Martí as a member of the Cuban Liberation Army.
Marin was raised in Arecibo, town in which he received both his primary and secondary education. It was a period in history when the last two remaining Spanish Colonies in the Antilles, Puerto Rico and Cuba were demanding either more autonomy or full independence. Marin himself was a believer of the independence cause and openly advocated his ideas. He had an older brother, Wencenlao Marin, whom he admired and with whom he shared his ideals. Marin expressed his love for his country in his poems and in the newspaper he founded, "El Postillon".
Marin's brother enlisted in the Cuban Liberation Army which was fighting the Spanish Crown and was given the rank of Lieutenant. In the meantime, Marin was the victim of political persecution by the Spanish Government in the island and went into exile to the Dominican Republic in 1889 and to Venezuela in 1890.
In 1892, Marin received the tragic news that his brother Lt. Wencenlao Marin had perished in the Battle of Manigua in Cuba. This motivated Marin to travel to New York City and enlist in the Cuban Liberation Army. The New York headquarters of the Cuban Army was situated in the New York offices of the Cuban Revolutionary Party. The person registering the volunteers when Marin went to enlist was José Martí. The meeting of the two was the beginning of a friendship which was cut short by the death of Martí in 1895. Marin is credited with designing the Puerto Rican Flag. He used the Cuban Flag as a model and inverted the colors in the flags triangle and stripes. He presented the flag in New York's "Chimney Corner Hall" a gathering place of independence advocates. The flag soon came to symbolize the ideals of the Puerto Rican independence movement. It should be noted that some people believe that Manuel Besosa was the designer , based on a letter written by his daughter where she says, "...my father asked me to sew together some pieces of cloth, white, red and blue that he brought himself , this tiny flag had 5 alterned stripes, red and white, and a triangle with a five point star within it...".
Soon, Marin found himself fighting in Cuba where he was given the rank of Lieutenant. On November 1897 Lt. Francisco Gonzalo Marin died from the wounds he received during a skirmish against the Spanish Army.
The Puerto Rican Flag designed by Marin was approved by the Government of Puerto Rico on July 24, 1952, making it the official flag of Puerto Rico. However, the flag adopted by the government was slightly different. Instead of a light blue triangle, preffered by the independence movement, the government approved a dark blue triangle similar to the blue used in the flag of the United States. The City of Arecibo named an Avenue in his honor.
Among his poetic works are:
- Flores Nacientes (Born Flowers)-1884
- Mi Obalo-1887
- Romances-1892
- Arenas (Sands), Obra Poetica (Poetic Work) and Antologia De Pachin Marin, were published posthumously in 1898.
