Text/Comrade Guevara
In authoritarian societies, it is not uncommon for the throne to be hereditary and husbands and wives to serve as emperors one after another, but since entering modern society, especially after World War II, it is rare for "husband and wife" to come to power through elections, and it is easy to attract the attention of the world. So, how did Juan Perón and his third wife, Isabel Peron, become Argentine presidents one after another, as the world's first husband and wife presidents?
Born in 1895 in the province of Buenos Aires to a family of estate owners, Perón graduated from the Argentine Army School, engaged in military teaching and research for many years, and became a military attaché in Italy in 1936. On his return from Italy in 1941, Perón immediately participated in the formation of the "Unified Officer Corps" and greatly expanded his influence in the army. In 1943, President Castillo was overthrown in a coup d'état by the "Unification Officers", and Perón was immediately appointed Deputy Secretary of Defense by President Ramirez.
Perón (right) and Farrell
During his tenure in Ramirez's regime, Perón took control of the War Department through his cronies and built up a large national police force, thus laying the groundwork for control of the country. In February 1944, Perón overthrew Ramirez in a coup d'état because of his feud with him, and immediately installed his boss, Defense Minister Farrell, as president. After Farrell came to power, Perón was appointed vice president and secretary of the army, thus becoming the most powerful "number two man".
In June of the same year, Perón made a public speech, declaring that war was inevitable and that it was therefore necessary to arm the country, and that he was preaching "national independence" and industrial development to get rid of the "control" of Britain and the United States. Peron's extremist ideas sparked panic, and under pressure from the United States, Farrell dismissed Perón from his post and imprisoned him on the island of Martin Garcia. In order to save Peron, his second wife, Eva, instigated a massive protest by the labor and army forces, which eventually forced Farrell to release Peron and reinstate him as an official.
Eva Peron
After taking power again, Pico purged the opposition and seized the presidency in February 1946 through electoral rigging. After Perón came to power, he promoted the so-called "doctrine of justice", which promoted the country's industrialization process by confiscating the assets of Britain and the United States and other major powers in Argentina, restricting the development of foreign capital, and strengthening state intervention. At the same time, Perón also vigorously enlisted the support of the labor class, enacting a series of new labor laws to greatly increase workers' wages and social welfare.
Peron's series of reforms did boost the economy in the short term and greatly improved the living conditions of the workers, winning their widespread support. However, Peron's achievements were entirely supported by the huge profits from the massive export of grain and meat to war-ravaged and starving Europe, and when Europe recovered from the trauma of the war, international food and meat prices plummeted, coupled with two consecutive years of drought in Argentina, which made Peron's policies unsustainable and caused a severe economic recession.
When Perón was in power, he almost brought Argentina down
In order to solve the dilemma, Perón was forced to settle with the United States, signing a contract with Mobil Oil in 1953 to exploit oil fields in southern Argentina, and then enacting a foreign investment law that granted foreign companies, first and foremost, a series of concessions. Peron's massive betrayal of economic sovereignty provoked a deep moral crisis among the population, and his frequent refusal of wage increases from the labor class directly offended the very foundations of his rule.
Under these circumstances, the "Unified Officers" began to break with Peron, and the Catholic Church openly called for his overthrow. On September 16, 1955, the army based in Córdoba and Bahia Blanco mutinied and launched an operation to overthrow Perón by force. Three days later, Perón was forced to resign and went into exile in Uruguay, where he soon fled to Panama. Three years before Peron's resignation, Mrs. Peron, who was deeply loved by the people, had died of illness, and Peron was really depressed at this time.
Isabel Ben is a dancer
While in exile in Panama, Perón met Isabel Martínez, an Argentine dancer who was performing in the country, and the two fell in love at first sight and soon became lovers. At the time, Isabel was only 25 years old, and Peron was an old man over the age of six. After Isabel's commitment to Peron, she followed him to Nicaragua, Venezuela, and the Dominican Republic for refuge, and finally moved to Madrid, where she was sheltered by the Spanish dictator Franco.
During this time, Isabel was always with Peron, not only taking care of his daily life, but also acting as his secretary at work, taking care of him in every detail. Because of this, Perón officially married Isabel the year after his arrival in Spain (1962). For the next 11 years, Peron's supporters in Spain were "remotely controlled" in China, hoping to return to power again one day.
Perón returned home after 18 years of exile and was elected president
In March 1973, Campora, one of Peron's faithful believers, was elected president, but only one month after his inauguration, he personally welcomed Perón back to China and relinquished the presidency to him. Thus, after 18 years of exile, Perón finally came to power again. Peron's long exile has made Peron sensitive and suspicious, and he no longer trusts anyone but his wife, Isabel. Because of this, Peron immediately appointed Isabel as vice president after returning to power.
After Perón became president again, he died of illness after just over one year in office at the age of 80 on July 1, 1974. On the day of Peron's death, Isabel was sworn in as the new president, making her the world's first female president at the age of 43. However, Isabel did not have the talent to govern the country, and in less than two years in office, the country was in shambles, leading to soaring inflation and unemployment, and escalating violent conflicts in the country.
After Peron's death, Isabel became president
Under these circumstances, Army Commander-in-Chief Védila staged a coup d'état on March 26, 1976, overthrew Isabel and proclaimed himself president. Isabel was placed under house arrest after being overthrown and was not released until 1981, when Wedila stepped down. After that, Isabel moved to Spain and lived a plain, stable life until now. As the world's first husband and wife presidents, Perón and Isabel performed extremely badly during their tenure, almost ruining Argentina, and can be called "national sinners".
Sources: Chronicles of Nations: Argentina, Perón and Argentina