Raúl Porras Barrenechea

Raúl Porras Barrenechea was a Peruvian diplomat, historian, and politician who died on September 27, 1960. He was Senate President in 1957 and Minister of Foreign Affairs from 1958 to 1960. Porras, a well-known figure of the San Marcos student movement in the early twentieth century, went on to become one of the most prominent hispanist historians of his generation and a leading figure in Peruvian diplomacy. He is also among the most important historical figures in Peru.

He was appointed personal secretary to the Minister of Foreign Affairs in 1919. In 1922, he was appointed Ministry Librarian, and in 1924, he was appointed Adviser to the Peruvian Delegation in the Plebiscitary Commission for the Tacna-Arica Affair. In 1926, he was appointed Chief of the Archive of Limits, the Ministry's cartographic department, and Representative to the Panama Congress Centenary.

Porras, who was already a respected academic and published author, accepted a tenure position at San Marcos in 1928. He later taught Spanish literature, Peruvian history, and diplomatic history. He also began teaching at the Catholic University of Lima in 1933. During this time, he published a number of historical biographies and studies on the colonial period.

He relocated to Europe in 1934. He conducted research in Spain at the General Archive of the Indies, the National Historical Archive, and the Royal Palace of Madrid Library. Porras was appointed Counsellor of the Peruvian Legation in Madrid the following year, and in 1936, he was appointed Representative to the League of Nations in Geneva, a position he held until 1938. Before returning to his homeland in 1940, he edited some of César Vallejo's works in Paris and continued his research in the Spanish archives.

Porras was appointed Adviser to the Ministry and Chief of the Press Office in 1941. In 1942 and 1944, he was promoted to the ranks of Minister Plenipotentiary and Ambassador, respectively. In 1944, he was admitted to the Hispanic Society of America, and in 1945, he was awarded the National Prize in History. He was appointed Ambassador to Spain in 1948. Upon his return in 1950, he was appointed Director of the San Marcos Institute of History and elected President of the Peruvian Institute of Hispanic Culture.

He was elected Senator in 1956 and Vice President of his chamber the following year. Due to the sudden death of José Gálvez in 1957, he became President of the Senate for six months. President Manuel Prado appointed him Minister of Foreign Affairs the following year. He carried out his responsibilities as Minister with some interruptions due to his illness. Porras, on the other hand, attended the 13th United Nations General Assembly in 1958, the 14th General Assembly in 1959, and accompanied President Prado on state visits to France, Italy, and Germany in 1960. He delivered his historic speech against the new US intervention in Cuba in August of this year at the 8th Conference of American Ministers of Foreign Relations in Costa Rica.

Porras resigned on September 12, 1960, due to serious illness, and died fifteen days later on September 27, 1960.