de La Victoria). In July 1863, he became the undersecretary of Interior and Justice (Interior y Justicia) during the government of Juan Crisostomo Falcon. In August 1863, he was appointed Minister of Interior and Justice in the Ministry of Interior Justice (Ministerio de Interior y Justicia). As Minister of Interior and Justice, he drafted the decree of Constitutional Guarantees (Constitución Federal) which removed the death penalty, exile, and confinement for political enemies of the government. He also guaranteed freedom of expression and extended the right to vote to those over 18 years of age. On August 7, 1863, he was appointed Minister of Foreign Affairs of Venezuela (Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores) when he temporarily assumed the role of Antonio Guzman Blanco during Blanco's absence. He remained the 65th Minister of Foreign Affairs of Venezuela until January 21, 1864. He became an appointed member of the Federal High Court in 1864, and was appointed again two years later. 1867-1869: Revolution and new government Villegas participated in the La Genuina revolution led by General Luciano Mendoza in 1867, along with others such as Pedro Ezequiel Rojas, Elias Rojas, Martin Sanabria and Jose Antonio Mosquera. Shortly before the start of the Blue Revolution (Revolución Azul), in early 1868 Villegas served as vice president at a meeting of around 1,000 people, all meeting in a theatre in Caracas in an attempt to reconcile Falcon's government with the new "blue" movement led by Miguel Antonio Rojas and José Tadeo Monagas. He was elected president of the Chamber of Deputies (Cámara de Diputados) in April 1868, where he openly opposed Falcon's government. The Blue Revolution ended in June 1868 with the "blue" movement coming into power, with Villegas serving as a key figure in the new Venezuelan government. Under President José Ruperto Monagas, Villegas served as the 78th Minister of Foreign Affairs of Venezuela from June 27, 1868, until February 24, 1869. Preceded in the role by Rafael Arvelo, he was succeeded by Juan Pablo Rojas Paúl. 1868-1869: First terms as president On June 28, 1868, he succeeded Manuel Ezequiel Bruzual as President of Venezuela. During his eight-month tenure, he worked to completely abolish the political system established by Falcon. Villegas granted amnesty to political prisoners, reinstated the Federal Constitution from 1864, and re-enforced civil rights. He also instated federal law and the union of the parties. On October 1, 1868, there was an assassination attempt