Allende

Salvador Allende

By jkerr21@bigspringsd.org

  • Birth

    Birth
    Salvador Allende was born on June 26,1908 in Valparaiso Chile.It was a day no one will ever forget.

  • Mentor

    Mentor
    Salvador was influenced by a shoemaker named Juan De Marchi.Salvador was arrested multiple times at the University of Chile for protesting against the government.

  • Presidency

    Presidency
    He unsuccessfully ran for the presidency in the 1952, 1958, and 1964 elections. In 1970, he won the presidency in a close three-way race. He was elected in a run-off by Congress as no candidate had gained a majority.

  • Govnerment

    Govnerment
    Allende's Popular Unity government tried to maintain normal relations with the United States. When Chile nationalized its copper industry, Washington cut off U.S. credits and increased its support to opposition. Forced to seek alternative sources of trade and finance, Chile gained commitments from the Soviet Union to invest some $400 million in Chile in the next six years.

  • Support

    Support
    In addition to nationalizing many large-scale industries, Allende expropriated American-owned copper industries without compensation. This solidified opposition from U.S. President Richard Nixon's administration, which increased support to Allende's political opponents and led efforts to cut off international lines of credit to Chile.

  • Economic

    Economic
    Poor economic planning and a growing dysfunctional relationship between Allende and Congress deepened the country's economic difficulty. When this happened they were in deep economic trouble.

  • Economic Crisis

    Economic Crisis
    When Allende took office. Chile was in the middle of a severe economic crisis. Unemployment was high and an estimated half of the country's children under the age of 15 were suffering from malnutrition.

  • Turn Down

    Turn Down
    Allende's government was disappointed that it received far less economic assistance from the Soviet Union than it hoped for. Trade between the two countries did not significantly increase and the credits were mainly linked to the purchase of Soviet equipment. Moreover, credits from Russia were much less than those provided by China and countries of Eastern Europe. When Allende visited Soviet Union in late 1972 in search of more aid and additional lines of credit, he was turned down.

  • Deputies

    Deputies
    Allende was elected to the Chamber of Deputies in 1937, and eventually served as minister of health. During this he helped a free school lunch program and safety laws for factory workers. In 1940, he married Hortensia Bussi, with whom he had three daughters, Carmen Paz, Isabel and Beatriz.

  • Death

    Death
    In May 2011, Allende's remains were analyzed by a team of international experts, which concluded that the former president had shot himself with an AK-47 assault rifle. He comitied suicide for unknown reasons.