Vicente Reyes
Encyclopedia
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 lawyer, journalist, political figure, and candidate during the 1896 presidential election
Chilean presidential election, 1896
The Chilean presidential election of 1896 took place through a system of electors, and resulted in the election as President of Federico Errázuriz Echaurren...
.
Vicente Reyes was born in Santiago, the son of Manuel Reyes Saravia and of Mercedes Palazuelos Astaburiaga. He completed his studies in the Instituto Nacional
Instituto Nacional
Instituto Nacional , founded on August 10, 1813 by the Chilean patriot José Miguel Carrera , officially Liceo Ex A-0 - Instituto Nacional General José Miguel Carrera, is Chile's oldest and most prestigious school...
and at the Universidad de Chile, where he graduated as a lawyer in 1858 with a thesis about the copyright of literary works. By 1856 he was already well-known in the literary circles of the time and as a journalist of the El Ferrocarril newspaper and the La Semana magazine. In 1857 he joined the civil service as section chief at the Ministry of the Interior
Ministry of the Interior (Chile)
The Ministry of the Interior and Public Security is the cabinet-level administrative office in charge of "maintaining public order, security and social peace" within Chile. It is also charged with planning, directing, coordinating, executing, controlling, and informing the domestic policies...
and later at the Ministry of Public Instruction, where he remained until 1861, when he was elected as alternate deputy for Ovalle for the period 1861-1864. He also became a professor at the School of Law of the Universidad de Chile and was one of the original members of the Chilean Academy of Language.
On June 15, 1863 he married Luisa Solar Valdés and together they had 10 children. In 1869 he was elected president of the Club de la Reforma, the historical nucleus of the Liberal party
Liberal Party (Chile)
The Liberal Party of Chile was a Chilean political party created by a faction of pipiolos in 1849. After the conservative victory in the Chilean Civil War of 1829 the liberals became the principal opposition party to the Conservative Party...
. He was elected deputy (this time representing Talca) for the period 1870-1873 and reelected to congress as a deputy for Valparaíso
Valparaíso
Valparaíso is a city and commune of Chile, center of its third largest conurbation and one of the country's most important seaports and an increasing cultural center in the Southwest Pacific hemisphere. The city is the capital of the Valparaíso Province and the Valparaíso Region...
for the period 1876-1879 and 1879-1882. President Aníbal Pinto
Aníbal Pinto
Aníbal Pinto Garmendia was a Chilean political figure. He served as the president of Chile between 1876 and 1881.-Early life:...
designed him Minister of the Interior
Ministry of the Interior (Chile)
The Ministry of the Interior and Public Security is the cabinet-level administrative office in charge of "maintaining public order, security and social peace" within Chile. It is also charged with planning, directing, coordinating, executing, controlling, and informing the domestic policies...
, a position he held from October 27, 1877 to August 5, 1878.
In 1885, he was elected Senator for Coquimbo
Coquimbo
Coquimbo is a port city, commune and capital of the Elqui Province, located on the Pan-American Highway, in the Coquimbo Region of Chile. Coquimbo lies in a valley south of La Serena, with which it forms Greater La Serena with more than 400,000 inhabitants. The commune spans an area around the...
for the period 1885-1891; and was one of the principal supporters of the presidential bid of José Francisco Vergara, who went on to lose the party nomination to José Manuel Balmaceda
José Manuel Balmaceda
José Manuel Emiliano Balmaceda Fernández was the 11th President of Chile from September 18, 1886 to August 29, 1891. Balmaceda was part of the Castilian-Basque aristocracy in Chile...
. On June 5, 1889 was elected President of the Senate
President of the Senate of Chile
The President of the Senate of Chile is the highest authority of the Senate of Chile. The position comes after the Ministers of State in the line of succession of the President of Chile in the case of temporary incapacitation or vacancy ....
; position he resigned shortly after and was one of the few senators who refused to sign the Act of Destitution of President Balmaceda; and did not participate in the Chilean Civil War
Chilean Civil War
The Chilean Civil War of 1891 was an armed conflict between forces supporting Congress and forces supporting the sitting President, José Manuel Balmaceda. The war saw a confrontation between the Chilean Army and the Chilean Navy, which had sided with the president and the congress, respectively...
. In 1894, President Jorge Montt
Jorge Montt
Jorge Montt Álvarez was vice-admiral of the Chilean Navy and president of Chile from 1891 to 1896.-Early life:...
asked him to head a coalition cabinet, but he refused.
Reyes was reelected a Senator (for Santiago this time) for the period 1891-1897, was elected President of the Senate on April 26, 1895 and again on August 25, 1909. For the 1896 presidential election
Chilean presidential election, 1896
The Chilean presidential election of 1896 took place through a system of electors, and resulted in the election as President of Federico Errázuriz Echaurren...
, the Liberal party
Liberal Party (Chile)
The Liberal Party of Chile was a Chilean political party created by a faction of pipiolos in 1849. After the conservative victory in the Chilean Civil War of 1829 the liberals became the principal opposition party to the Conservative Party...
named him their candidate. He lost to 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:...
by only two electoral votes. He was reelected a Senator for the periods 1897-1903, 1903-1909, 1909-1915 and 1915-1921, but died in Santiago before completing his last period, of Bronchopneumonia
Bronchopneumonia
Bronchopneumonia or bronchial pneumonia or "Bronchogenic pneumonia" is the acute inflammation of the walls of the bronchioles...
at the age of 83 in 1918.