Hope Portocarrero
This article needs additional citations for verification. (May 2017) |
Hope Portocarrero | |
---|---|
First Lady of Nicaragua | |
In Role 1 December 1974 – 17 July 1979 | |
President | Anastasio Somoza Debayle |
Preceded by | Vacant |
Succeeded by | Maria Luisa Muñoz |
In Role 1 May 1967 – 1 May 1972 | |
President | Anastasio Somoza Debayle |
Preceded by | Carmen Reñazco (1966) |
Succeeded by | Vacant |
Personal details | |
Born | 28 June 1929 Miami, Florida, United States |
Spouse(s) | Anastasio Somoza Debayle Archie Angelo Baldocchi |
Children | Anastasio, Julio, Carolina, Carla, and Roberto |
Parent(s) | Nestor Portocarrero Gross (father) Blanca Debayle Sacasa de Portocarrero (mother) |
Alma mater | Barnard College (1950) |
Occupation | First Lady of Nicaragua |
Hope Portocarrero, also known as Madame Somoza and Hope Somoza Baldocchi later in life,
Early life
Born in 1929 in
She was of
She spoke fluent English, Italian, Spanish, and French and had an appreciation for art and culture. After 1943, she moved to Washington, D.C., where she often spent time with her cousin Lillian Sevilla-Sacasa (née Somoza). She attended Barnard College of Columbia University and was in the class of 1950.[3] Portocarrero spent the summer of 1949 traveling in Europe accompanied by her mother.
Marriage
Portocarrero and her cousin Anastasio Somoza Debayle were married on 10 December 1950 in Managua's Cathedral by Archbishop José Antonio Lezcano. Over 4,000 guests attended the ceremony. The reception was given by her father-in-law, President Anastasio Somoza García, in the luxurious and modern Palacio de Comunicaciones. The couple traveled to South America for their honeymoon.
The Somozas had five children: Anastasio, Julio, Carolina, Carla, and Roberto Somoza Portocarrero. Her daughter, Carolina, is married to James Minskoff Sterling, son of New York real estate developer Henry H. Minskoff and his wife.[4]
First Lady of Nicaragua
When her husband became president of Nicaragua in 1967, Portocarrero became the
Somoza was also president of the Junta Nacional de Asistencia y Previsión Social (National Social Security). She created the National Cultural Center, the General Archives of the National Library, National Conservatory of Music, National School of Fine Arts (Bellas Artes), National Museum, and Plurar Gallery. Her biggest legacies were the construction of
Final years
Due to continuing marital strife, her husband Anastasio began a relationship with a mistress, Dinorah Sampson. Portocarrero later relocated to London. Since the couple were Catholic, she never divorced Somoza. A year after he died, she married Archie Baldocchi, a wealthy American businessman. She died of cancer in
References
- ^ "Hope Somoza Baldocchi, wife of former Nicaraguan leader". Tampa Bay Times. 1991-10-09. Archived from the original on 2022-06-28. Retrieved 2022-06-28.
- ISBN 9781317451662.
- ^ "Barnard Alumnae Magazine, Fall 1966 | Barnard Digital Collections". digitalcollections.barnard.edu. Retrieved 2020-07-05.
- ^ "Miss Somoza Wed to Dr. J. M. Sterling", New York Times, October 16, 1984
- SOMOZA'S SON MARRIES; 4,000 See Wedding in Managua to Hope Portocarrero of Miami The New York Times
- Primeras damas: poder y apariencia El Nuevo Diario
- Bracing for the Aftershocks Time magazine
External links
Further reading
- Death of Somoza by Claribel Alegria and Darwin J. Flakoll
- La saga de los Somoza by Agustin Torres Lazo
- Somoza Falling by Anthony Lake