Gabriel Gonzalez Videla Biography and Timeline

President of Chile

Takes office as President of Chile after winning the 1946 election.

Role range: 1946-1952 – 1946-1952

Broad Coalition Inauguration

Gabriel González Videla assumed the presidency with backing from a broad coalition that initially included Communist ministers. Ideological tensions soon complicated the composition of his government.

Break with Soviet Bloc

Breaks diplomatic relations with the Soviet Union and several Eastern European governments.

Role range: 1946-1952

Two-Hundred-Mile Maritime Claim

Proclaims Chilean sovereignty and jurisdiction over a two-hundred-mile maritime zone.

Role range: 1946-1952

University Technical of the State

Creates the Universidad Tecnica del Estado by reorganizing state technical education institutions.

Role range: 1946-1952

Law for Permanent Defense of Democracy

Promulgates legislation outlawing the Communist Party and removing many members from electoral rolls.

Role range: 1946-1952

First Presidential Antarctic Visit

President Gabriel González Videla visited Chile's Antarctic bases in 1948, becoming the first serving head of state to visit Antarctica. The journey publicly reinforced Chile's territorial claims in the region.

National Suffrage for Women

Promulgates legislation granting women equal voting rights in presidential and parliamentary elections.

Role range: 1946-1952

Huachipato Steel Plant

Inaugurates the Huachipato steel works, a major project of state-supported industrialization.

Role range: 1946-1952

Creation of ENAP

Creates the national petroleum company ENAP to develop Chilean oil resources.

Role range: 1946-1952

Women Vote in Presidential Election

Oversees the first Chilean presidential election in which women participate on equal national voting terms.

Role range: 1946-1952