Saavedra Lamas, Carlos (1878–1959)

Carlos Saavedra Lamas (b. 1 November 1878; d. 5 May 1959), statesman and Nobel Prize-winning Argentine diplomat. Born in Buenos Aires, Saavedra Lamas received a law degree from the University of Buenos Aires in 1903. He began his career as a professor, but he turned to politics in 1912. As a national deputy he authored the tariff law that protected Argentina's sugar industry in Salta Province. In 1915, he served as President Victorino de la Plaza's (1914–1916) minister of the interior and as minister of justice and public instruction.

It was as a member of the Concordancia that he achieved international prominence. Between 1932 and 1938 he served under President Agustín P. Justo (1932–1938) as minister of foreign affairs. Conservative and nationalistic, he represented Argentina at numerous international conferences. In particular, he challenged efforts to establish the hegemony of the United States in hemispheric affairs. He was instrumental in obtaining Latin American support for the Anti-War Pact (1933). His efforts to find a negotiated settlement to the Chaco War (1932–1935) between Bolivia and Paraguay earned him the Nobel Peace Prize in 1936. Although he remained active in national affairs, Saavedra Lamas retired from public service after 1938. He returned to teaching and became the rector of the University of Buenos Aires in 1941.

See alsoConcordancia .

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Harold F. Peterson, Argentina and the United States, 1810–1960 (1964).

Alberto A. Conil Paz and Gustavo Ferrari, Argentina's Foreign Policy, 1930–1962 (1966).

Additional Bibliography

Farcau, Bruce W. The Chaco War: Bolivia and Paraguay, 1932–1935. Westport, CT: Praeger, 1996.

Fraga, Rosendo, and Raúl Alberto Gatica. Carlos Saavedra Lamas: Estudio preliminar. Buenos Aires: Editorial Centro de Estudios Unión para la Nueva Mayoría, 1991.

                                          Daniel Lewis