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Felipe Julio de Curtis (1927 – 1985) was an Altivebrian statesman, politician and a social worker who served as the President of Altivebrio from 1984 till his assassination by Reyo de la Mozza in 1985.
He took office on 20 January, 1984 representing the Altivebrian Republican Party and the Communist Party of Latin America after defeating Marcelo Vargas of the New Conservative Party and Alfonso Lucio Osario of the Altivebrio Labour Party.
The Altivebrian Civil War broke out during the first year of his tenure, and being the Supreme Commander of the Altivebrio Defense Forces opted to focus the military attention towards the relatively low-intensity Altivebrian-Mexican War which enabled the ALC to gain territory within Altivebrio. After the ADF defeat Battle of Puerto del Sol, Felipe began an aggressive attack on the rebels.
Felipe Julio Llorente was born sometime in 1927 to Hugo Michel Llorente, an Altivebrian communist politician who was part of the team that wrote Altivebrio's constitution. He attended and graduated from the Baldomero Military Academy in 1943 and served two years in the military police after the Fascist Coup d'état attempt in 1940.
After World War II, Felipe attended the St. Adelemus University where he studied journalism from 1945 till 1948 and political science from 1948 till 1952. His father changed their family name to de Curtis in 1946.
Felipe de Curtis met Rodrigo Alvarez in 1950, and under his advise joined the youth wing of the Communist Party of Altivebrio, despite his father telling him otherwise. Felipe aggressively promoted communism in Altivebrio, and spoke with various trade organizations to join their party and accept communism.
He left the communist party and joined the Conservative Party in 1955, and became the mayor of Las Direuz from 1957 till 1962, and later became the Chief Secretary to the Vice President following the previous Vice-President's mysterious disappearance in 1962. He worked as the chief secretary to Vice President Delphia de Odeo y Guardiola.
He then resigned from his position as the secretary to the Vice President in 1967, and joined the leadership committe for the Conservative Party and remained there till it's dissolution in 1965.
Secretary of StateEdit
He joined the Altivebrian Republican Party after a brief hiatus in 1966, and served as the Secretary of State from 1968 till 1974. His tenure as Secretary of State was widely appreciated in Altivebrio, as well as in Latin America and by the wp:United States of America. He resolved border conflicts with Mexico and supervised the signing of many bilateral and trilateral trade agreements within the Latin American countries.
After his father died in 1975, he inherited most of the de Curtis family wealth.
He took a break from his political career from 1974 till 1978, and then for two years till 1980 was Altivebrio's representative to the UN.
In 1983, he announced that he had intentions of becoming the President of Altivebrio. On 3 August, 1983, the coalition between the Altivebrian Republican Party and the Communist Party of Latin America chose Felipe de Curtis as it's candidate for presidency. de Curtis' presidential campaign was deemed too aggressive by the international media, and widespread accusations of corruption and suppressed news articles were raised.
Even though he had a remarkable career as Secretary of State, many considered de Curtis' presidency to be below average. His popularity soured down after the Altivebrian Civil War began.
He announced in 1984, that Alconbrian-speaking people had to pay an inhabiting tax, along with a rise in their income taxes, and later Altivebrio closed it's borders to the Alconbrians, preventing them from seeking refuge in their neighbouring countries, especially Mexico. The situation worsened when the Legiones de Pureza massacred 1,400 Alconbrians in Puerto Pedro on New Years' Day, 1984.
The beginning of the Segundo Limpieza increased the tensions between the Alconbrian people and the Altivebrian government. Emmanuel Jiménez and Antonio Durán, two famous Alconbrian politicians led a reformation movement and united all Alconbrian people's parties, creating the Alconbria Liberation Council; the council's only aim is to create a sovereign independent state for the Alconbrians using any means necessary.
Around the same time, an Altivebrian jet fighter was shot down by the Mexican Air Force 25 miles ahead of the border, creating a stir in the tense relations. This escalated the Altivebrian-Mexican conflict from low-intensity to total war. Felipe de Curtis, as per the instructions of his Secretary of Defense, ordered an invasion of Xpiankmul, and wanted to capture the Mexican city of Campeche, which was claimed by Altivebrio since 1922. The invasion failed, and more than 400 Altivebrian soldiers were killed by the Mexicans, while the latter only lost 87 soldiers and three scout helicopters.
In the 19th of January, the Alconbria Liberation Council attacked and captured the city of Los Guez. As a result of this and the failed invasion of Mexico, President Curtis' popularity ratings soured down.
He then left for a diplomatic visit to France and Germany to procure advanced weapons in fighting the Mexicans, as well as the ALC. He placed a $80 billion order for purchasing European attack helicopters and bombers, and a $20 billion dollar deal to supply the Altivebrio Defense Forces with state of the art weapons.
Using his Presidential authority, he passed a bill which would raise taxes on importing motor vehicles from Asia, hoping that it would raise the sales of locally and European made cars.
On 22 January, 1985; the ALC slaughtered more than 250 Altivebrians in Los Guez, triggering an international outcry. de Curtis laid out plans to bomb till the self-proclaimed Alconbrian Territories were levelled. He also persuaded international organizations to aid Altivebrio in combating the terrorists.
His assassin, Reyo de la Mozza was captured by the Altivebrio Defense Forces in 1987 and was imprisoned for 15 years before being executed by shooting in 2002.
Felipe de Curtis married Marta Aracruz, a physicist and an university professor in 1953, and gave birth to his first child, Maria de Curtis in 1955. They subsequently gave birth to Lucio de Curtis in 1957, who would later be the CEO of Luccom Inc., Altivebrio's leading telecommunications operator since 1995.
Felipe and Marta divorced in 1965. Felipe subsequently married Mariana Roldán a Mexican model in 1968 who is 16 years younger than him, and gave birth to his second daughter, Cairistiona de Curtis in 1972 and his second son, Christopher de Curtis in 1975.
Being the son of the rich statesman Hugo de Curtis, Felipe lived a privileged life right from his birth. Prior to his assassination, his net worth was reported to be around $40 million dollars.
His home in Los Guez was reportedly sold for $5 million in 1979 to raise funds for his elections. He inherited one of Delphia de Odeo's 500,000 sq. ft mansions in Los Viñedos, which is rumored to cost around $5 million and now currently belongs to his eldest daughter, Maria de Curtis.
He was also an avid collector of luxury watches, and according to his second wife Mariana, had about $1 million worth of luxury watches. He also owned 50 cars, 15 of them being classic German luxury sports sedans and 2 limousines. He also owned a single-seat helicopter and a motor boat, both of which were sold by his son in 2000. His car collection is estimated to be around $15 million. One of his garages was set fire by the Alconbria Liberation Council during the Altivebrian Civil War.