Jorge Huneeus Zegers
Jorge Segundo Huneeus Zegers (28 October 1835 – 21 May 1889) was a Chilean lawyer, academic and politician who served as rector of the University of Chile from 1883 to 1888. He was also Minister of Justice, Worship and Public Instruction under President Aníbal Pinto and served in both the Chamber of Deputies of Chile and the Senate of Chile.
Education
Huneeus was born in Santiago on 28 October 1835, the son of German-born Jorge Huneeus Lippmann and musician Isidora Zegers. He first married Micaela Armstrong Gana and, after her death, Domitila Gana Cruz, with whom he had ten children who reached adulthood.
He completed his secondary education at the Instituto Nacional before studying law at the University of Chile. He qualified as a lawyer in 1858 with a thesis comparing the legal status of foreigners in Chile, England and France.
Between 1859 and 1860, Huneeus served as substitute rapporteur of the Supreme Court of Chile and later as a substitute judge in Santiago. In 1861, he became professor of constitutional and administrative law at the University of Chile, a chair he held until his death.
Political career
Huneeus entered Congress as substitute deputy for San Carlos for the 1861–1864 term and subsequently served as substitute deputy for Ancud from 1864 to 1867. He later represented La Serena from 1873 to 1876 and Elqui continuously from 1876 to 1888. He frequently served on the Permanent Commission on Constitution, Legislation and Justice and was also a member of the Conservative Commission during several congressional recesses.
In May 1870, Huneeus was appointed minister plenipotentiary ad hoc to negotiate a treaty of friendship, commerce and navigation with Austria-Hungary. For this work, Emperor Franz Joseph I awarded him the Order of Franz Joseph. In 1873, President Federico Errázuriz Zañartu appointed him to commissions reviewing legislation concerning the organization of the courts and civil procedure.
Under President Aníbal Pinto, Huneeus served as Minister of Justice, Worship and Public Instruction from 17 April to 20 August 1879. During the same period, he was acting Minister of Foreign Affairs and Colonization from 20 June to 20 August. In May 1879, he publicly announced in Santiago the news of the Battle of Iquique.
Huneeus was elected senator for Atacama for the 1888–1894 term and served on the Permanent Commission on Constitution, Legislation and Justice. He died before completing his term and was replaced by substitute senator Waldo Silva.
Rector of the University of Chile
Huneeus succeeded Ignacio Domeyko as rector of the University of Chile in 1883. His administration promoted the recruitment of foreign professors and scholarships for advanced study in Europe. He also reorganized the university administration, creating the office of prorector and expanding its administrative staff.
During his rectorate, the Fine Arts Section was transferred to the second floor of the National Congress building, while the libraries of the Instituto Nacional and the university were brought together in the former San Diego church. Land adjoining the San Vicente Hospital was acquired for the future School of Medicine, the pharmacy curriculum was reorganized, and a Practical School of Agriculture was established to provide vocational education to the children of soldiers who had fought in the War of the Pacific.
Huneeus was reelected rector in 1887 but resigned the following year. He was succeeded by José Ignacio Vergara.
Huneeus died in Santiago on 21 May 1889 following a cerebral hemorrhage.