Juan Santamaría Rodríguez (August 29, 1831 – April 11, 1856) was a drummer in the Costa Rican army, officially recognized as the national hero of his country for his actions in the 1856 Second Battle of Rivas, in the Filibuster War. He died in the battle carrying a torch he used to light the enemy stronghold on fire, securing a victory for Costa Rica against American mercenary William Walker and his forces. Thirty five years after his death, he began to be idolized and was used as a propaganda tool to inspire Costa Rican nationalism. A national holiday in Costa Rica, Juan Santamaría Day, is held annually on April 11 to commemorate his death.
On September 15, 1891, a huge bronze statue of the hero was erected in Juan Santamaría de Alajuela Park in his home town, Alajuela. Later, the main airport of Costa Rica, and the historical museum of Alajuela were named after him, and many literary, musical, and art works have been created in his honor. Along with commemorating his heroic acts, many historical studies have been done to investigate the true identity and actions of Juan Santamaría.
Life
Santamaría was born in the city of Alajuela on August 29, 1831. His mother was María Manuela Santamaría, and his father was unknown. He went to elementary school in Alajuela before working from a young age. Santamaría had many jobs in Alajuela such as a sweets vendor, laborer, coffee picker, and, finally, a drummer in the military band of Alajuela, which lead him to become a drummer for the Costa Rican Army. He was a drummer boy in the Costa Rican army until his death in the Second Battle of Rivas while completing the heroic deed for which he is remembered.
Participation in the Filibuster War
thumb|A depiction of the Second Battle of Rivas under the statue of Santamaría in Alajuela
The war began when William Walker, a United States filibuster, or person engaged in unauthorized warfare against a foreign country, overthrew the government of Nicaragua in 1856 and attempted to conquer the other nations in Central America, including Costa Rica, in order to form a private slaveholding empire. Costa Rican President Juan Rafael Mora Porras called upon the general population to take up arms and march north to Nicaragua to fight against the foreign invader. This started the Filibuster War. Santamaría, a poor laborer and the illegitimate son of a single mother, joined the army as a drummer boy. The troops nicknamed him "el erizo" ("the hedgehog") on account of his spiked hair.
This account is supported by a petition for a state pension filed in November 1857 by Santamaría's mother, as well as by government documents showing that the pension was granted. Various historians, however, have questioned whether the account is accurate and whether Santamaria died under different circumstances. At any rate, towards the end of the nineteenth century, Costa Rican intellectuals and politicians seized on the war against Walker and on the figure of Santamaría for nationalist purposes.
National symbolism
Santamaría's initial fame
thumb|Another feature of the statue in Alajuela depicting Santamaría's death.
Following his death, the Filibuster War raged on, eventually ending in the defeat of William Walker and his forces. Juan Santamaría's actions, however, were not mentioned in Costa Rican national discourse until 1885, 29 years after his death. His name was first mentioned in an article in El Diario de Costa Rica, a national newspaper, titled "Un Héroe Anómino". This article was written in response to the threats to Costa Rican independence from Guatemala's dictator at the time, Justo Rufino Barrios; Barrios declared he would use force to unite the countries of Central America in the Union of Central America if they did not consent on their own to unity. "Un Héroe Anónimo" was written about Santamaría's sacrifice and two other generals from the Filibuster War to inspire and mobilize the population of Costa Rica against the threat to their sovereignty. This call to arms was repeated as the article was published in other official newspapers, and the President of Costa Rica at the time declared a new national steamship would bear the name The Juan Santamaría in the hero's honor. Juan Santamaría was used as a figurehead around which Costa Rican leaders developed a national identity to rally support in defending Costa Rican sovereignty. While Costa Rican troops never even fought against Guatemalan forces due to the defeat of Barrios by troops from El Salvador, the story of Juan Santamaría remained a central feature of Costa Rican national identity, and he was soon declared a national hero.
The international airport, located in the city of Alajuela (Santamaría's place of birth), and which serves San José, the capital city of Costa Rica, was also named after him.
Anthem
In 1891, Pedro Calderón Navarro and Emilio Pacheco Cooper composed an anthem, Himno Patriótico A Juan Santamaría, 11 De Abril, to Juan Santamaría. It was sung for the first time during the Juan Santamaria Statue inauguration on the 15 of September of 1891. The lyrics are as follows:
<blockquote></blockquote>thumb|The bronze statue of Juan Santamaría in [[Alajuela.]]
thumb|The painting titled "La Quema del Méson por Juan Santmaría" done by Costa Rican painter Enrique Echandi in 1896.
thumb|The baptismal certificate of Juan Santamaría. He was baptized in Alajuela, Costa Rica.
Historical debate
No single or conclusive identity for Juan Santamaría has been agreed upon by scholars and historians, thus the debate over his existence continues to this day. They cite his baptismal certificate, documentation of his name on a list of soldiers from Alajuela, and his mother's pension filing.
The first writings about Juan Santamaría were by José de Obaldía and Álvaro Contreras Membreño; in their essays they referred to Santamaría as "glorious" and a "sublime martyr" who gave his life for Costa Rica. Their articles were not written just to tell Santamaría's story, but to unify the population against a threat to their sovereignty. This motivation is important to remember because it influenced how Santamaría was portrayed. Despite being a mulatto, or of mixed race, as his story was popularized, he was significantly white-washed. Even in the famous bronze statue of Santamaría, he looks white and is wearing a French soldier's uniform, further reinforcing the description that he was white. When Santamaría was first glorified, Costa Rican leaders wanted to unify the country as a homogenous and white nation, which caused them to depict Juan Santamaría as white. This misrepresentation caused many historians to question the authenticity of Santamaría as a real person. The municipality of Alajuela, in order to prove Santamaría was real, compiled witnesses and fellow soldiers to attest that he was real, and that he died burning down the enemy stronghold in Rivas. The municipality of Alajuela also provided materials such as his birth certificate, and his mother's request for pension from the government. These documents and statements were all assembled in the book called El Libro del Héroe, or The Book of Hero.