Philippe Bunau-Varilla

Philippe-Jean Bunau-Varilla (French: [filip ʒɑ̃ byno vaʁija]; 26 July 1859 – 18 May 1940) was a French engineer, soldier and political lobbyist. With the assistance of American lobbyist and lawyer William Nelson Cromwell, Bunau-Varilla greatly influenced Washington's decision concerning the construction site for the Panama Canal. He worked closely with President Theodore Roosevelt in the latter's orchestration of the Panamanian Revolution, and represented Panama in the treaty negotiations leading to the Hay-Bunau-Varilla Treaty (1903).