Carlos Saavedra Lamas

Carlos Saavedra Lamas
(1878-1959)


Argentine jurist who in 1936 was awarded the Nobel Prize for Peace for his part in ending the Chaco War (1932-35), fought between Bolivia and Paraguay over the northern part of the Gran Chaco region and especially its oil fields.
Educated in law, Saavedra Lamas taught at the National University of La Plata and at the University of Buenos Aires, of which he was rector from 1941 to 1943. In 1915 he became Argentinian minister of justice and of public education, and from 1932 to 1938 he served as minister of foreign affairs. Between October 1933 and June 1934 the United States, Italy, and 14 Latin-American nations signed an antiwar treaty prepared by Saavedra Lamas. He organized and presided over the international mediation committee (Brazil, Chile, Peru, Uruguay, and the United States) that secured an armistice (June 12, 1935) in the Chaco War. Subsequently he was prominent in negotiations resulting in a permanent peace agreement (July 21, 1938).

Saavedra Lamas was president of the International Labour Congress, Geneva (1928); the Pan-American Conference, Buenos Aires (1936); and the League of Nations Assembly (1936). He also wrote several books on international law and peacekeeping, economics, and education.