Francisco Tudela y Varela

Francisco Tudela y Varela (1876–1962) was a lawyer and Civil Party politician whose career moved between Parliament, the cabinet, and diplomacy. Born in Paris, he studied at Guadalupe and San Marcos, writing theses on nationality, compulsory voting, and American international law. He served in the legation in Colombia, became secretary to Presidents Manuel Candamo and José Pardo, taught administrative and diplomatic law, and represented Pallasca in the Chamber of Deputies, which he presided over in 1915. ¹

As prime minister and foreign minister in 1917–1918, Tudela handled the dispute over Germany’s sinking of the Peruvian vessel Lorthon. He demanded redress and guarantees for Peruvian shipping and defended the proposed break in relations before Congress in October 1917. His Washington mission followed. In January 1919 he asked whether Peru, which had broken relations with Germany without declaring war, could participate in the Paris Peace Conference and whether it should send delegates immediately. The American reply encouraged Peru to send representatives but could not promise admission. ^{1, 2}

Tudela left the mission after Leguía’s July 1919 coup and spent the ensuing period in Europe. In the 1930s he returned to senior diplomatic service, leading Peru’s delegation to the London economic conference and representing it at the League of Nations. He also headed the Peruvian delegation in the boundary negotiations with Ecuador in Washington during 1936–1938, then served in Spain. ^{1, 3}

Back in Peru, he advised the Foreign Ministry and chaired the Central Reserve Bank from 1945 to 1948. His publications extended from his early legal theses to studies of arbitration, Peru’s boundary disputes, monetary problems, and the postwar economy. He died in Lima in November 1962. ^{3, 1}