Maturín


Maturín is a city in Venezuela, the capital of the Venezuelan state of Monagas and a centre for instrumental exploration and development of the petroleum industry in Venezuela. The metropolitan area of Maturín has a population of 401,384 inhabitants. Maturín is also a busy regional transportation hub, connecting routes from the northeastern coast to the Orinoco Delta and the Gran Sabana.

History

Foundation

December 7, 1760 is the official date of the foundation of Maturín by the Franciscan missionary Lucas de Zaragoza. However, the Jesuit priest Pablo Ojer found in the Archivo General de Indias a document which proves a previous foundation of the city in 1722. This primitive town was called San Juan de la Tornera de Maturín and its founder was the Spanish governor Juan de la Tornera y Sota. San Juan de la Tornera de Maturín had the category of city for Spaniards, but it did not survive very long because of the lack of population and little economical resources. At the beginning San Judas Tadeo de Maturín was a Spanish mission created for the conversion of Indians Chaimas and Waraos, who lived next to Maturín. The Spaniards decided to move to Maturín and in the 19th century it received the category of city and the name of San Fernando de Maturín.

Origin of the name Maturín

Maturín was named after an Indian chief who lived with his tribe next to the bank of Guarapiche River. The Indian chief was murdered by a supposed Spanish captain named Arrioja during a battle of the Indians against Spaniards in the actual location of the town in 1718. Since then the place was known as el Sitio de Maturín.
Some historians concluded that the name Maturín has a French root, not an Indian one. They based their opinions on the legend of a supposed French missionary who had explored this area at the end of the 17th century. The legend says that the missionary baptized a young Indian and gave him the name Mathurin. This young Indian became el indio Maturín later. Besides there is a French saint who lived during 4th century whose name was Saint Mathurin. The young Indian might have been named after this saint by the French missionary. However the legend of this supposed French missionary has not been proved yet. On the other hand, other historians disagreed with that theory. They argued that there is a plant with the same name. Besides there are some place names of Indian roots which are very similar to the name Maturín.

Independence war

Maturín was on the republican side during the Venezuelan Declaration of Independence on July 5, 1811. Five battles took place in Maturín from 1813 to 1814, including the famous Battle of Alto de los Godos. In this battle the Venezuelan patriots, led by Manuel Piar, obtained a great victory against the Spanish general Juan Domingo de Monteverde. Antonio José de Sucre, José Francisco Bermúdez, José Tadeo Monagas, José Gregorio Monagas and José Félix Ribas were others who fought in the five battles. The last battle of Maturín, however, was a defeat. Persons, who had escaped from Caracas during the military campaign of José Tomás Boves against the republic, came to Maturín to shelter from the Spanish troops. After the battle of Urica Tomás José Morales, a Spanish general, decided to take the town. The republicans defended the town, but they were beaten and many of them were murdered by Morales. The town was destroyed. Some survivors of the last battle rebuilt Maturín two years later.

19th and 20th centuries

Maturín grew slowly during the 19th century. The causes of this lack of population were civil wars and fatal diseases, such as malaria and yellow fever, which were caused by mosquitoes. In 1909 Maturín became capital of the new Monagas state. Before that the town was the capital of the Province Maturín from 1856 to 1859. In the 20th century Maturín had rapid demographic growth thanks to the discovery of petroleum fields near the town and a health campaign carried out by doctors to eliminate mosquitoes. Maturín has been the headquarters of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Maturín since 1958.

Geography

Maturin is located at 67 meters of altitude and 520 kilometres from the country's capital, Caracas. It is right next to the Guarapiche River and it's a crossroad for roads towards the center, the Caribbean coast and the Orinoco River

Climate

Maturín features a tropical savannah climate.

Law and government

Maturín has one municipality: Maturín Municipality; Venezuelan law specifies that municipal governments have four main functions: executive, legislative, comptroller, and planning. The executive function is managed by the mayor, who is in charge of representing the municipality's administration. The legislative branch is represented by the Municipal Council, composed of seven councillors, charged with the deliberation of new decrees and local laws. The comptroller tasks are managed by the municipal comptroller's office, which oversees accountancy. Finally, planning is represented by the Local Public Planning Council, which manages development projects for the municipality.

Mayors since 1990

Maturín is one of the most important cities in the east of the country as its strategic position serves as a bridge to the other states of the region. The city had grown during the last few years mainly because of the increase of the oil industry in the state. However, Maturín has been hit hard by Venezuela's recent economic crisis.

Transportation

It is possible to travel there by land or by using José Tadeo Monagas International Airport.

Higher education

Public Universities
Private Universities
Private Institutes of Higher Education

Roman Catholic temples

Sports

Sports facilities