Rafael de la Cruz Franco Ojeda (October 22, 1896 – September 16, 1973) was a Paraguayan military officer and politician, served as Provisional President of Paraguay from February 17, 1936, to August 13, 1937, being also the historical leader and founder of the National Revolutionary Party (Revolutionary Febrerista Party since 1951). Early life and education Franco was born in Asunción on October 22, 1896, in the barrio of Santísima Trinidad. He was the son of Federico Franco and Marcelina Ojeda. His father was a professor of mathematics at the School of Agronomy, founded by Moisés Santiago Bertoni, and in 1940 she was transferred to San Lorenzo. He was married to Deidamia Solalinde and they had six children. After conducting his basic studies, Franco entered the Military College in 1915. Military career Franco's first assignment, with the rank of second lieutenant, was to Encarnación in the Department of Itapúa under the command of Colonel Pedro Mendoza. On May 9, 1921, Franco was promoted to first lieutenant in the infantry and, on August 13 of the same year he was appointed commander of the machine gun group, with its seat in Asunción. He was commander of Infantry Regiment No. 5 under General Eduvigis Diaz, based in Bahía Negra. On August 13, 1924, Franco was promoted to captain. On February 10, 1926, he was appointed commander of the company cadets of the Military College. He was assigned important tasks, such as training new cadres of officers or troops. In November 1926, he was appointed commander of Infantry Regiment No. 2, with a seat in Villa Hayes. Franco was next assigned to the Paraguayan Chaco. In 1928, acting without orders, Major Franco led an attack that seized and destroyed a Bolivian fort in the Chaco that had been constructed inside Paraguayan territory. Franco was later removed from his command for this action. In August 1928, Franco was appointed commander of the Military Aviation School. Promoted to colonel in 1933, Franco commanded the first division of the Paraguayan Third Corps in the Chaco War. Franco soon developed a tactic of using long-range patrols to explore weaknesses in the enemy lines. After finding gaps in the Bolivian defenses at Alihuatá, Franco launched a surprise attack on July 12, 1933, that quickly penetrated enemy defenses, forcing the Bolivian 4th Division into headlong retreat. Franco later became the director of Paraguay's Military School At the end of the