Eva Perón – Spiritual Leader of a Nation

/ historicallywoman

Before she became Evita, Eva Duarte had to fight her way through life. Born out of wedlock, her father abandoned her mother and their five children for his ‘real’ family before Eva was a year old, cutting off all financial support. Eva’s impoverished upbringing and lack of education placed her firmly among Argentina’s working class; when she moved to Buenos Aires in 1935, she was just one of thousands in search of a living in the capital. Nevertheless, Eva Duarte would soon rise through the ranks, becoming Eva Perón – Evita, as the world came to know her. 

Evita’s success is by now intrinsically linked with her husband, Juan Perón. It is true that, without him, she never could have risen as high as she did – her status as the second most powerful person in Argentina hinged on Perón being the first. Nevertheless, her achievements as Eva Duarte cannot and should not be overlooked; as a young, poor woman alone in the world, Eva managed to build herself up into a flourishing career.

From a young age, Eva loved movies and the theatre. She had dreams of becoming an actress and, in 1934 at the age of 15, she moved to Buenos Aires where she took a radio job. This earned her very little, though she made sure to send money to her family in Junín. 

For the following years, Eva bounced from job to job, working as a travelling theatre actress, taking small film roles, and doing some modelling. But it wasn’t until 1942 that she experienced a measure of financial security. She had been hired to star daily in a radio drama called Muy Bien, which aired on Radio El Mundo, then the most important radio station in the country. 

Eva Duarte in 1944, aged 25, photographed by Annemarie Heinrich

Her breakthrough came when she signed a contract with Radio Belgrano, which gave her a role in a historical drama called Great Women of History. Eva would portray, among others, Elizabeth I of England, Catherine the Great, Sarah Bernhardt, and Alexandra, last Tsarina of Russia. She later came to co-own the company, and by 1943 she was one of the highest-paid radio actresses in the country. Aged 23, Eva had managed to escape her childhood poverty to an upmarket neighbourhood where she lived in stability and comfort.

Eva’s move to Buenos Aires coincided with a great deal of political change in Argentina. The country was ruled by an oligarchy who had no interest in improving the lives of the working class. During a bloodless coup on 4th June 1943, a group of officers seized power, including Colonel Juan Perón, who took charge of the labour department and distinguished himself as a champion of the ‘descamisados’ – literally, the shirtless ones.

Eva met Perón in 1944 while using her fame to help collect money for earthquake victims. The pair connected and Perón soon made Eva his mistress, though he treated her more like a wife, much to the disapproval of his superiors. Eva was included in his daily life and sat in on his political meetings, contrary to expectations of women at the time. She became one of his most ardent supporters and used her radio show to promote him as a benevolent figure. On the show, she made a point of speaking in ordinary language, thus emphasising her connection to the working classes. 

In 1945, Perón was arrested over fears of him becoming too powerful. But, at least in part due to Eva’s efforts, thousands of supporters took to the streets, demanding his release. At 11pm on 17th October 1945, they got their wish. A few days later, Eva and Perón were married in a small civil ceremony.

The following year, Perón was elected president. Eva – now fondly known as Evita (‘Little Eva’) – had campaigned fervently, praising her husband and his desire for social reform. Upon his inauguration, Eva embraced her new role as First Lady and even began to carve out a new model for what a First Lady should be.

She met with labour leaders three times a week, visiting them in factories and asking about their needs. She also unofficially took positions in the ministries of health and labour, making herself Perón’s ambassador to the working class. They loved her, and not without reason. Through her charity, the Eva Perón Foundation, she built new houses, schools, and hospitals, and made sure the worst off in society were taken care of. 

Before I am the First Lady of the Argentinians, I would rather be Evita for all who need me.

Eva Perón

Eva also made significant contributions towards the suffrage movement in Argentina. Though she did not describe herself as a feminist (indeed, she seemed to hate the term, and often promoted the traditional role of women as caretakers), she was a strong supporter of the female vote. 

“The time has come for women to think and judge, reject or accept, and the hour of women as bound and powerless to the capricious political elaboration of her country’s destiny is dead,” she declared*.

Eva Perón’s official portrait in 1951, just months before her death

Law 13,010, which established universal suffrage in Argentina, was unanimously approved in 1947. In a public ceremony, Perón signed the bill, then symbolically handed it to Eva, effectively making it hers. Eva subsequently created the Female Peronist Party, Argentina’s first large women’s party, which had around 500,000 members. 

Eva would cast her first and only vote in 1951 when her husband ran for re-election. She had hoped to run alongside him for vice president, but military opposition forced her to withdraw her candidacy. Perón won the election, many of his votes coming from the working class and the newly enfranchised women. Eva’s efforts had paid off. 

She made her last public appearance at Perón’s second inauguration in 1952. Around this time, she was also given the title ‘Spiritual Leader of the Nation’, which she was the first and only holder of. Dying from cancer, she was at this point too weak to stand without assistance, and she would succumb just under two months later, aged 33. Some two million Argentinians turned out for her funeral, and even now many continue to mark the anniversary of her death. 

Eva saw herself as having a dual persona. The first – Eva Perón, Argentina’s First Lady. The second – Evita, champion of the poor. It is this second persona that has endured; in many ways, it is the persona that she chose, asking that the common people call her by the nickname. Evita’s glamour and celebrity has been immortalised in the popular musical, but it is in Argentina where her true impact can still be seen today.

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*Translation mine. Original: ‘Ha llegado la hora de la mujer que piensa y juzga, rechaza o acepta, y ha muerto la hora de la mujer que asiste atada e impotente a la caprichosa elaboración política de los destinos de su país’

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