Arturo Fortunato Alessandri Palma (December 20 1868–August 24 1950) was a Chilean political figure and reformer, who served twice as the
President of Chile, first between 1920 and
1924, and then again in 1925, and finally from 1932 until 1938.
Early life
He was son of Pedro Alessandri Vargas, son of an Italian immigrant, and Susana Palma Guzmán. His father was dedicated to the
agricultural labor of the estate in which he lived. At the age of 12 he entered the Sacred School of
Hearts of the French Parents, where his brothers were studying and is father had studied.
He began a law career in the University of Chile at the age of 20, graduating in
1893. In 1891, while studying, he participated in the newspaper "La Justicia", which was in opposition to the President of the
time, José Manuel Balmaceda. After graduating as a lawyer, he married Rosa Ester Rodríguez
Velasco, with whom he had 9 children.
He began his political life in 1897, entering the Liberal Party, and assuming
as the representative of Curicó, where he would be re-elected for almost 20 years. In 1915,
already showing his first presidential aspirations, he challenged the senator of the province of Tarapacá, Arturo del Río. Alessandri won a disputed and violent election, from where he earned the nickname of León de
Tarapacá (Lion of Tarapaca), due to his charisma, his popularity with the people and his
abilities of speech.
In 1920 he ran for President of the Republic for the Liberal Alliance ,
defeating by a narrow margin his opponent of the Coalition (now named the National Union since it incorporated the Conservative
Party) Luis Barros Borgoño. With his speeches favoring the working class, he caused
great fear in the more conservative sectors of Chilean society, which saw its interests in jeopardy. Since the opposition
controlled the National Congress, Alessandri favored strengthening the executive power, which lacked political weight before the
Congress (Parliamentary Era).
First administration
During most of 1924, Chile had been politically paralyzed by a conflict between the President and the conservatively
controlled Congress, who refused to enact the laws that he submitted. On September 3,
1924 a group of 56 military officers protested for their low salaries, in the incident known as the
saber-rattling (ruido de sables). The next day the same group of young
military officers led by Colonel Marmaduque Grove and Major Carlos Ibáñez del Campo, created the "military committee" to defend themselves from the
government. On September 5, the "military committee" demanded of President Alessandri the dismissal of three of his ministers,
including the Minister of War; the enactment of a labor code, the passage of an income tax
law, and the improvement of the military salaries. Alessandri had no option but to appoint General Luis Altamirano, the Army Inspector General, as head of a new cabinet. On September 8, General
Altamirano appeared in front of Congress to demand the passage of eight laws, including Alessandri's labor code. Congress didn't
dare to protest, and the laws were passed in a matter of hours.
At that point, Alessandri felt that he had become just a pawn of the military and on September 9, he resigned, and requested
assylum at the US Embassy. Congress refused to accept his resignation, and instead granted him a six-month constitutional leave
of absence. He left the country immediately for Italy. On September 11th, a
military Junta — the September Junta — was established to rule the
country in his absence.
Second administration
The September Junta was not homogeneous, and quickly a progressive wing, headed by Marmaduque Grove and Carlos Ibáñez del
Campo, developed contacts with the Comité Obrero Nacional and others labour organizations
who advocated for Alessandri's return. This led to a coup in January 1925,
directed by Colonel Grove who handed out the power to General Pedro Dartnell as interim
president while waiting for Alessandri's return. Dartnell formed the January
Junta, before retroceding the power to Alessandri on March 20, 1925. Alessandri had a new Constitution drafted, and approved by plebiscite by
134,421 voters on August 30. The Constitution, which was promulgated on September 18, 1925, renforced presidential powers over the legislative.
Furthermore, Alessandri created a Central Bank, initiating the first rupture with
classical liberalism's laissez faire
policies [1]
His second government began with the support of left-wing and radical groups. However, this second group began to distance
itself from the President. In March 1925, Alessandri's government repressed a demonstration, leading to the Marusia massacre, soon followed by La Coruña massacre. This break with
the working classes caused him to try and maintain a right-wing-radical alliance until 1937, when it took a turn towards the
left. In order to face the threats of a coup, Alessandri relied on the republican forces, entrusted with repressing any intent to
revolt and never to get involved in politics. They were created shortly before Alessandri's return, as a consequence of the civil
movement. They functioned in secret and then publicly, marching in a great parade May 7,
1933 in front of the President, who saluted them. They auto-disbanded in 1936, having considered
their mission complete. The President asked the Parliament on several opportunities for the state of constitutional exception,
resulting in illegal actions, such as the famous burning of the Topaze Magazine issue No. 285,
which depicted a caricature of Alessandri he considered offensive.
Such precautions were not without reason, especially considering the appearance of new violent occurrences, such as the rural
rebellion of Ránquil and their bloody repression, and the Nazi-inspired National Socialist Movement of Chile of Jorge González von Marées.
In the economic sphere, the recovery of the crisis of 1929 was
begun with the work of the Treasury Minister Gustavo Ross, a pragmatic liberal who implemented a
"towards in" approach to growth. With respect to nitrates, he dissolved COSACH and created the
COVENSA (Corporation of Nitrate and Iodine Sale), a multi-faceted distributor and not a producer.
He balanced the fiscal deficit with new taxes and resumed payment of the external debt, with losses for holders of Chilean bonds.
When they reached a surplus, they focused on public works. The construction of the National Stadium in Santiago, inaugurated in December of 1938, stands out.
Public life after the presidency
His political life does not culminate with his presidency. Due to the death of the communist Senator for Curico, Talca,
Linares and Maule, Amador Pairoa, he participates in a complementary Senatorial election and achieves victory, returning November
8 to the Senate. In 1949 he is reelected but this time for Santiago, while also chosen to be President of this body.
He was of vital importance in the presidential elections of 1942 and 1946, in the first by causing the division of votes of
the liberals, supporting Juan Antonio Ríos, and in the second by presenting himself as
a preliminary candidate of the liberals. He later yielded his candidacy to his son Fernando, resulting in the division of the presidential candidates of the right and conservative
support for Dr. Eduardo Cruz-Coke, in turn favoring the victory of Gabriel González Videla. While President of
the Senate of Chile, Alessandri died at the age of 82, on August 24, 1950, and was replaced by his son Fernando Alessandri. Other of his sons, Jorge Alessandri,
was president of Chile from 1958 to 1964.
Additional information
See also
Notes
External links
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