in these terms: Independent Republic After the proclamation of the First Republic, Mella took part in the Central Government Board, with Sánchez serving as president. On March 2, Mella sent a letter to Duarte, Pérez and Pińa, all of whom were in Curaçao, informing them of the success of the revolt and of affairs of the Dominican Republic. A few days later, Mella had left for the Cibao in order to enlist José María Imbert, from Moca, as second in command of the newly constituted National Army, which would later become the Liberation Army. Mella would also assume the position of governor of Santiago and delegate of the Central Government Board, acting as chief political and general for the army. But at that moment, Mella received news from Cap-Haïtien that the new Haitian president, Jean-Louis Pierrot, who did not accept the independence of the Dominican Republic, was approaching Santiago. With this sudden update, Mella heads out on tour throughout the region to not only warn his comrades, but to also enlist more soldiers, but not before giving instructions to Imbert, who was now the lieutenant, to combat the upcoming attack. This was a success, as Imbert's forces were able to repel off the attack and drive the Haitian army out of the country in the Battle of Santiago. Events took a different turn following the victory in the Battle of Azua. With the independence of Dominican Republic now installed, and Duarte's return to the country, Mella voted to elect him as president of the Central Government Board with the purpose of preventing another annexation by any foreign power. He would address this in a letter to Sánchez: Despite having successfully expelling the Haitians from the country, many sectors of the country felt that the new nation could not survive without being annexed to a colonial power. This caused a long-standing divide between the independent Trinitarians and the pro-annexation sectors within the country. This in turn resulted in public disputes, which at times turned for the worse. For instance, Tomás Bobadilla, the conservative president of the Central Governing Board and advocate for the Trinitarios, attempted to annex the Dominican Republic to France, but was deposed in a joint coup led by Sánchez, and Mella. In response to the coup d'état, military general Pedro Santana, initiated a coup in return, and sent Duarte, Mella, and Sánchez into exile. These stand offs and