Germán Riesco
Encyclopedia
Germán Riesco Errázuriz was a Chile
an political figure, and he served as President of Chile
between 1901 and 1906.
, the son of Mauricio Riesco, a Spanish
merchant and of Carlota Errázuriz Zañartu, sister of President Federico Errázuriz Zañartu
, of Basque
descent. He studied at the Seminario Conciliar and at the Universidad de Chile. At the age of 17 (four years before graduating as a lawyer) he obtained his first public job as a clerk at the ministry of Justice, in order to help support financially his family.
He graduated as a lawyer on April 19, 1875, and was promoted to chief clerk at the ministry in 1880. The same year he married his cousin, María Errázuriz Echaurren
, thus becoming brother-in-law to future president Federico Errázuriz Echaurren
. He became clerk of the Appeals Court of Santiago in 1891, and clerk of the Supreme Court in 1897. He retired from the judiciary in 1898, to dedicate himself to private practice.
in 1900. After the sudden death of president Federico Errázuriz Echaurren
and due to the proximity of the presidential elections, he was proclaimed candidate by the Liberal Alliance, on March 8, 1901. This alliance was formed by the radicals, the democrats, the Balmacedists and the liberals, even though Riesco was more of a Conservative.
From the beginning his candidacy was strongly opposed by the clerical-conservative groups. Their newspaper El Porvenir led a campaign accusing him of being a "threat against religion". Nonetheless, he was elected by a huge majority of votes, thanks mainly to the fact that he had almost no political exposure, since most of his life had been spent in the judiciary. Himself summarized his appeal by saying that he wasn't a threat to anybody. He assumed on September 18, 1901.
As a former member of the judiciary, his principal efforts were channeled towards legal reforms. He managed to establish a new Code of Civil Procedure (1902) which is still in force today, and a Code of Penal Procedure (1906), which lasted almost 100 years. In 1905 he began construction of the new building for the Supreme Court, that was finished in 1911. He concluded several important public works, such as the sewers for the city of Santiago and the new network of electrical trams. He greatly expanded the secondary education, specially for women, and doubled the number of Normal Schools for the preparation of new teachers.
Due to the rising inflation, he was forced to refuse a return to the metallic conversion
, and to authorize a new emission of paper money
. This measure caused a dramatic fall in the exchange rates and higher inflation, which in turn gave way to higher social unrest.
were on the brink of war, due to border disputes. There was an ongoing naval arms race, and both countries called their reserve soldiers. Nonetheless, diplomacy prevailed, and both countries signed the May Treaties
on May 28, 1902, followed by arbitration on Patagonia
, on November 20 of the same year. These treaties were complemented by the union of the telegraphic lines of both countries, with commonality of tariffs.
He signed a final peace treaty with Bolivia
on October 20, 1904, putting an official end to the War of the Pacific
. He also re-established the diplomatic relations with Peru in 1906, in order to move ahead on the solution of the Tacna and Arica controversy; and gave the first impulse to establishing a claim to Antarctica, by issuing a law regimenting seal-hunting there.
During his administration, the so called "social question" suddenly became critical. Between 1903 and 1905, there were a great many strikes in different areas: miners, ship-loaders and railroad workers in the north of the country; house-painters, tanners, postal workers, policemen, garbage collectors and bus drivers in Santiago; coal miners in La Calera, Lebu, Lota and Coronel, ship-loaders in Valparaíso; most of which ended in deaths and injuries of the protesters.
organized a march to protest for the high price of meat. The price of meat was kept artificially high by the government, by means of the combination of a special tariff applied to cattle imports from Argentina, in order to protect the domestic producers, and high inflation. These factors put the price of the product beyond the financial means of a high percent of the population. By the time that the march arrived peacefully to La Moneda and asked for an audience with President Riesco, it had already swelled to about 25 to 30 thousand people.
The people started to grow impatient when the president didn't appear, and when the police tried to dissolve them, they fought back and tried to storm the presidential palace. The police responded by shooting at the crowd, and riots ensued. The violence lasted for almost a week, with widespread riots and looting, in what was called the Meat riots or the red week. Between 200 and 250 protesters were killed over this period. This revolt emphasized that the social problems were far more serious than what the authorities believed.
. The workers that were laying the rails for the Antofagasta-Bolivia railroad presented a letter of demands to management, that was completely refused by the company. As a result, a general strike was called. The previous experience with the Meat riots alerted the government, that decided to send in the Esmeralda regiment and the cruise-ship Blanco Encalada to reinforce the local forces.
On February 6, 1906, approximately 3 thousand workers gathered in the public square of Antofagasta to protest in favor of his demands. The troops opened fire on the unarmed workers, causing approximately 58 deaths and more than 300 injured.
After the first shock, people started to look for survivors. After approximately fifteen minutes, the second shock hit the port. This one was shorter, approximately a minute, but far stronger than the first one. It completed the destruction of the city and caused most of the victims. Most of the city was leveled, and some looting happened. The governor decreed martial law and any looter caught in the act was shot immediately.
With the total interruption of the communications, the city was isolated. The first news arrived to Santiago (located only 120 kilometers inland) on the afternoon of the 17. Three days later, on the 20, the ministers of Interior and War managed to arrive to the port. President Riesco and the newly elected Pedro Montt
arrived on the 25. They had to travel by train, on foot and by horseback in order to arrive to the destroyed port.
He died in Santiago
, at the age of 62, on December 8, 1916, of a heart ailment.
Chile
Chile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...
an political figure, and he served as President of Chile
President of Chile
The President of the Republic of Chile is both the head of state and the head of government of the Republic of Chile. The President is responsible of the government and state administration...
between 1901 and 1906.
Early life
He was born in RancaguaRancagua
Rancagua is a city and commune in central Chile, part of the Rancagua conurbation. It is the capital of the Cachapoal Province and of the O'Higgins Region, located south of the national capital of Santiago. It had a 2002 population of 214,344...
, the son of Mauricio Riesco, a Spanish
Spanish people
The Spanish are citizens of the Kingdom of Spain. Within Spain, there are also a number of vigorous nationalisms and regionalisms, reflecting the country's complex history....
merchant and of Carlota Errázuriz Zañartu, sister of President Federico Errázuriz Zañartu
Federico Errázuriz Zañartu
Federico Marcos del Rosario Errázuriz Zañartu was a Chilean political figure. He served as the president of Chile between 1871 and 1876. He was born in Santiago in 1825 and died there in 1877. Errázuriz was of Basque descent....
, of Basque
Basque people
The Basques as an ethnic group, primarily inhabit an area traditionally known as the Basque Country , a region that is located around the western end of the Pyrenees on the coast of the Bay of Biscay and straddles parts of north-central Spain and south-western France.The Basques are known in the...
descent. He studied at the Seminario Conciliar and at the Universidad de Chile. At the age of 17 (four years before graduating as a lawyer) he obtained his first public job as a clerk at the ministry of Justice, in order to help support financially his family.
He graduated as a lawyer on April 19, 1875, and was promoted to chief clerk at the ministry in 1880. The same year he married his cousin, María Errázuriz Echaurren
María Errázuriz
María Errázuriz Echaurren was First Lady of Chile and the wife of President Germán Riesco. María Errázuriz was of Basque descent.She was born in Santiago, the daughter of President Federico Errázuriz Zañartu and of former First Lady Eulogia Echaurren García-Huidobro. She was also the sister of...
, thus becoming brother-in-law to future president Federico Errázuriz Echaurren
Federico Errázuriz Echaurren
Federico Errázuriz Echaurren was a Chilean political figure. Born in Santiago, he served as President of Chile between 1896 and his death in 1901. Federico Errázuriz was of Basque descent.-Early life:...
. He became clerk of the Appeals Court of Santiago in 1891, and clerk of the Supreme Court in 1897. He retired from the judiciary in 1898, to dedicate himself to private practice.
Presidency
Germán Riesco's first incursion in politics was when elected as a senator for TalcaTalca
Talca is a city and commune in Chile located about south of Santiago, and is the capital of both Talca Province and Maule Region . As of the 2002 census, the city had a population of 193,755....
in 1900. After the sudden death of president Federico Errázuriz Echaurren
Federico Errázuriz Echaurren
Federico Errázuriz Echaurren was a Chilean political figure. Born in Santiago, he served as President of Chile between 1896 and his death in 1901. Federico Errázuriz was of Basque descent.-Early life:...
and due to the proximity of the presidential elections, he was proclaimed candidate by the Liberal Alliance, on March 8, 1901. This alliance was formed by the radicals, the democrats, the Balmacedists and the liberals, even though Riesco was more of a Conservative.
From the beginning his candidacy was strongly opposed by the clerical-conservative groups. Their newspaper El Porvenir led a campaign accusing him of being a "threat against religion". Nonetheless, he was elected by a huge majority of votes, thanks mainly to the fact that he had almost no political exposure, since most of his life had been spent in the judiciary. Himself summarized his appeal by saying that he wasn't a threat to anybody. He assumed on September 18, 1901.
Public policies
As president Riesco was faced with crippling parliamentary divisions. He was forced to appoint no fewer than 17 different governments, each lasting an average of just three and a half months. Even though he had been elected with the support of the Liberal Alliance, he was deserted by them and had to seek the support of the Conservative Coalition (his former opponents). In the end, he had to switch back and forth between both groups in order to complete his period. The result was that since he lacked a congressional majority of his own, he was forced to name caretaker ministers, lacking efficacy or permanence.As a former member of the judiciary, his principal efforts were channeled towards legal reforms. He managed to establish a new Code of Civil Procedure (1902) which is still in force today, and a Code of Penal Procedure (1906), which lasted almost 100 years. In 1905 he began construction of the new building for the Supreme Court, that was finished in 1911. He concluded several important public works, such as the sewers for the city of Santiago and the new network of electrical trams. He greatly expanded the secondary education, specially for women, and doubled the number of Normal Schools for the preparation of new teachers.
Due to the rising inflation, he was forced to refuse a return to the metallic conversion
Gold standard
The gold standard is a monetary system in which the standard economic unit of account is a fixed mass of gold. There are distinct kinds of gold standard...
, and to authorize a new emission of paper money
Banknote
A banknote is a kind of negotiable instrument, a promissory note made by a bank payable to the bearer on demand, used as money, and in many jurisdictions is legal tender. In addition to coins, banknotes make up the cash or bearer forms of all modern fiat money...
. This measure caused a dramatic fall in the exchange rates and higher inflation, which in turn gave way to higher social unrest.
International situation
On the international stage, at the end of 1901, Chile and ArgentinaArgentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
were on the brink of war, due to border disputes. There was an ongoing naval arms race, and both countries called their reserve soldiers. Nonetheless, diplomacy prevailed, and both countries signed the May Treaties
Treaty of Arbitration between Chile and Argentina of 1902
The Cordillera of the Andes Boundary Case 1902 , was a British arbitration that established the present day boundaries between Argentina and Chile in Patagonia between the latitudes of 40° and 52° S as a interpretation of the Boundary treaty of 1881 between Chile and Argentina...
on May 28, 1902, followed by arbitration on Patagonia
Patagonia
Patagonia is a region located in Argentina and Chile, integrating the southernmost section of the Andes mountains to the southwest towards the Pacific ocean and from the east of the cordillera to the valleys it follows south through Colorado River towards Carmen de Patagones in the Atlantic Ocean...
, on November 20 of the same year. These treaties were complemented by the union of the telegraphic lines of both countries, with commonality of tariffs.
He signed a final peace treaty with Bolivia
Bolivia
Bolivia officially known as Plurinational State of Bolivia , is a landlocked country in central South America. It is the poorest country in South America...
on October 20, 1904, putting an official end to the War of the Pacific
War of the Pacific
The War of the Pacific took place in western South America from 1879 through 1883. Chile fought against Bolivia and Peru. Despite cooperation among the three nations in the war against Spain, disputes soon arose over the mineral-rich Peruvian provinces of Tarapaca, Tacna, and Arica, and the...
. He also re-established the diplomatic relations with Peru in 1906, in order to move ahead on the solution of the Tacna and Arica controversy; and gave the first impulse to establishing a claim to Antarctica, by issuing a law regimenting seal-hunting there.
Social unrest
During his administration, the so called "social question" suddenly became critical. Between 1903 and 1905, there were a great many strikes in different areas: miners, ship-loaders and railroad workers in the north of the country; house-painters, tanners, postal workers, policemen, garbage collectors and bus drivers in Santiago; coal miners in La Calera, Lebu, Lota and Coronel, ship-loaders in Valparaíso; most of which ended in deaths and injuries of the protesters.
Meat riots
On October 22, 1905, some of the poorest people in SantiagoSantiago, Chile
Santiago , also known as Santiago de Chile, is the capital and largest city of Chile, and the center of its largest conurbation . It is located in the country's central valley, at an elevation of above mean sea level...
organized a march to protest for the high price of meat. The price of meat was kept artificially high by the government, by means of the combination of a special tariff applied to cattle imports from Argentina, in order to protect the domestic producers, and high inflation. These factors put the price of the product beyond the financial means of a high percent of the population. By the time that the march arrived peacefully to La Moneda and asked for an audience with President Riesco, it had already swelled to about 25 to 30 thousand people.
The people started to grow impatient when the president didn't appear, and when the police tried to dissolve them, they fought back and tried to storm the presidential palace. The police responded by shooting at the crowd, and riots ensued. The violence lasted for almost a week, with widespread riots and looting, in what was called the Meat riots or the red week. Between 200 and 250 protesters were killed over this period. This revolt emphasized that the social problems were far more serious than what the authorities believed.
Antofagasta general strike
A few months later, a similar revolt took place in AntofagastaAntofagasta
Antofagasta is a port city in northern Chile, about north of Santiago. It is the capital of Antofagasta Province and Antofagasta Region. According to the 2002 census, the city has a population of 296,905...
. The workers that were laying the rails for the Antofagasta-Bolivia railroad presented a letter of demands to management, that was completely refused by the company. As a result, a general strike was called. The previous experience with the Meat riots alerted the government, that decided to send in the Esmeralda regiment and the cruise-ship Blanco Encalada to reinforce the local forces.
On February 6, 1906, approximately 3 thousand workers gathered in the public square of Antofagasta to protest in favor of his demands. The troops opened fire on the unarmed workers, causing approximately 58 deaths and more than 300 injured.
Valparaiso earthquake
The earthquake had been announced ten days earlier by the chief of the Navy Metheorological Office. August 16, 1906 started as a very clear day, but in the afternoon started to drizzle. As the sun was setting, and when most of the people were having their suppers, came the first shock. It lasted for about 4 minutes.After the first shock, people started to look for survivors. After approximately fifteen minutes, the second shock hit the port. This one was shorter, approximately a minute, but far stronger than the first one. It completed the destruction of the city and caused most of the victims. Most of the city was leveled, and some looting happened. The governor decreed martial law and any looter caught in the act was shot immediately.
With the total interruption of the communications, the city was isolated. The first news arrived to Santiago (located only 120 kilometers inland) on the afternoon of the 17. Three days later, on the 20, the ministers of Interior and War managed to arrive to the port. President Riesco and the newly elected Pedro Montt
Pedro Montt
Pedro Elías Pablo Montt Montt was a Chilean political figure. He served as the president of Chile from 1906 to his death from a probable stroke in 1910...
arrived on the 25. They had to travel by train, on foot and by horseback in order to arrive to the destroyed port.
He died in Santiago
Santiago, Chile
Santiago , also known as Santiago de Chile, is the capital and largest city of Chile, and the center of its largest conurbation . It is located in the country's central valley, at an elevation of above mean sea level...
, at the age of 62, on December 8, 1916, of a heart ailment.