Pedro María Rivas Vicuña (27 December 1876 – 13 March 1938) was a Chilean diplomat, writer, military officer and politician.
A member of the Radical Party, he served in the Chamber of Deputies of Chile from 1918 to 1924, was president of the Chamber from 1922 to 1923, and briefly served as Minister of Foreign Affairs, Worship and Colonization in 1923.
Early life Rivas was born in Santiago on 27 December 1876, the son of Pedro María Rivas de la Cruz and Ana Vicuña y Prado. He attended St. Ignatius College from 1884 to 1886 and later the Instituto Nacional. Politicians Manuel Rivas Vicuña and Francisco Rivas Vicuña were his first cousins.
He married Laura Serrano Arrieta, with whom he had two sons, Gastón and Paulo Rivas Serrano.
During the Chilean Civil War of 1891, Rivas joined the Congressional forces as an officer and took part in military operations at Pisagua, Viña del Mar and Placilla. He later served in military administration and retired from the Chilean Army in 1916 with the rank of colonel.
Following the civil war, Rivas entered the diplomatic service. He served as secretary of the Chilean legations in La Plata and Bolivia between 1895 and 1897. He later served as Chilean minister to China and Japan in 1925.
Rivas was also active as a journalist and writer. He contributed to La Flecha and El Nacional of Iquique, and wrote for La Ley under the pseudonym "Perdican". He founded the Radical newspaper La Época in 1920 and, with Eduardo Phillips, established El Nuevo Siglo. He also wrote plays and short stories and was among the founders of the Society of Theatrical Authors.
Political career A member of the Radical Party, Rivas served as one of the secretaries of Germán Riesco's presidential campaign. During the presidency of Juan Luis Sanfuentes, he was sent to Europe to study military organization and spent more than two years studying at the École Militaire and a school of political science. After returning to Chile, he published a work on international law that was subsequently used as a textbook.
Rivas was elected to the Chamber of Deputies for Rere and Puchacay for the 1918–1921 term and was reelected in 1921 and 1924. He served as president of the Chamber from 2 June 1922 to 5 June 1923. During his parliamentary career, he served on committees dealing with foreign affairs and colonization, war and the navy, and the national budget.
Under President Arturo Alessandri, Rivas served as Minister of Foreign Affairs, Worship and Colonization from 14 June to 2 July 1923.
His final parliamentary term, scheduled to run from 1924 to 1927, was cut short when Congress was dissolved following the September 1924 coup.
During the first presidency of Carlos Ibáñez del Campo, Rivas lived in exile, returning to Chile in July 1931. He later served as intendant of Aconcagua Province from 1933 to 1935.
Rivas died in Santiago on 13 March 1938.
Works
Sepias (Santiago: Imprenta Cervantes, 1899) Un montón de cartas (Valparaíso: Imprenta Universo, 1906)
References