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José Gregorio Rafael Reyes Prieto (December 5, 1849- February 18, 1921), simply known as General Reyes, was a Colombian explorer, merchant, lawyer, politician, diplomat and military. He was President of Colombia between August 7, 1904 and June 9, 1909.

Member of the Colombian Conservative Party.

He was a successful entrepreneur of the quina and pioneer of the colonization of the Colombian forests. He then stood out as an exceptional military, participating in the Thousand Day War, and in several local conflicts for several decades, reaching the rank of General of the Colombian National Army. He also served as a diplomat in several special positions and as a minister of public works in the 1980s and 1990s.

He was president of Colombia between 1904 and 1909, established in his residence in Madrid, Cundinamarca, being the first president to rule for more than 4 years since the 1886 Constitution was issued. His government is self-called National Union. Reyes was forced to resign from various social problems and pressured by his opponents.

His five years of government were known by his followers as El Quinquenio Reyes and his opponents as La Dictadura Reyes.

Biography
Rafael Reyes Prieto was born in Santa Rosa de Viterbo, Tundama Province (now Boyacá) on 5 December 1849, in the home of rich landowners of Spanish descent. Shortly after, Rafael became a father orphan, and his family moved to Duitama.

Business career

After completing his studies he moved to Popayán to work under the care of his half-brother, Elías Reyes, who had a successful shopping house in the city. At the age of 17 Reyes created with his brothers and the mother of the Kings the company "Elias Reyes & Hermanos," which was dedicated to exporting the quina to Europe for the treatment of malaria from the inhospite forests of Putumayo and Amazonas.

The commercial success of Reyes allowed him to carry out large urban projects in the Colombian forests, as the colonization of the region began, attracting the attention of the press and scientists to the region. The fame of his expeditions led him to contact the emperor of Brazil, Peter II, in Rio de Janeiro, who, enthusiastic about the reach of Reyes, sponsored his cause.

After great explorations, they found villages and discovered rivers in the Amazon forests of Brazil, Peru, Ecuador and Colombia, their time began to decline in 1884: several ships had succumbed, most of their workers were decimated by the diseases and others emigrated.

His company ended tragically with the death of his brothers Elías Reyes who died of a heart disease, Enrique Reyes who died of yellow fever, and his younger brother Nestor Reyes in the Amazon forest. In the face of the death of his brothers, a nephew and a cousin and before