Guillermo Edwards Matte
Guillermo Edwards Matte (23 October 1889 – 16 August 1945) was a Chilean lawyer, businessman and politician.
A member of the Liberal Party, he served in the Chamber of Deputies of Chile from 1918 to 1924 and briefly as its president in 1920. He subsequently held several cabinet positions under Arturo Alessandri, Vice President Luis Barros Borgoño and President Carlos Ibáñez del Campo.
Early life and career
Edwards was born in Santiago on 23 October 1889, the son of Rosario Matte Pérez and geographer and politician Guillermo Edwards Garriga, who represented La Serena, Elqui and Coquimbo in the Chamber of Deputies of Chile. His brother, architect Ismael Edwards Matte, also pursued a political career and represented Santiago in the Chamber of Deputies.
He attended the Instituto Nacional and subsequently studied law at the University of Chile, qualifying as a lawyer on 12 January 1912. He married María Hurtado Quesney, with whom he had five children.
Outside politics, Edwards was involved in agriculture and business. He managed the Lo Valdivieso estate in Ñuñoa, on land where the National Stadium was later built. Over the course of his career, he held directorships or other senior positions in financial, industrial, shipping and insurance companies. These included the Compañía Sud Americana de Vapores, Banco de Chile and several insurance and manufacturing companies. He was appointed to the governing council of the Central Bank of Chile in 1929 and also served as a director of the Club Hípico de Santiago.
Political career
Edwards was initially a member of the Liberal Party and later joined the Liberal Democratic Unionist Party, serving as its vice president in 1925.
In the 1918 parliamentary election, Edwards was elected to the Chamber of Deputies for Victoria, Melipilla and San Antonio for the 1918–1921 term. He served on the Permanent Commissions on Public Assistance and Worship and on Public Instruction. From 18 November to 9 December 1920, he was president of the Chamber of Deputies.
He was reelected in 1921, this time representing Rancagua, Cachapoal and Maipo for the 1921–1924 term, during which he served on the Permanent Commission on Public Instruction.
President Arturo Alessandri appointed Edwards Minister of Finance on 29 August 1922. He held the portfolio until 21 December of that year. He returned to the Finance Ministry from 2 October to 23 December 1925 during the vice presidency of Luis Barros Borgoño. Edwards also participated in the commission and subcommittee responsible for drafting the Constitution of 1925.
During the presidency of Carlos Ibáñez del Campo, Edwards was appointed Minister of the Interior on 5 June 1928, succeeding acting minister Osvaldo Koch. He remained in office until 24 August 1929.
Edwards returned to the cabinet during the final days of the Ibáñez administration. On 22 July 1931, he was simultaneously appointed Minister of Justice, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Commerce, and Minister of Lands and Colonization. He held the three portfolios until 23 July.
Edwards died in Santiago on 16 August 1945, aged 55.