Evita Perón was First Lady of Argentina from June 1946 until her death in July 1952. She was also the wife of Argentine President Juan Perón (1895–1974). As the youngest of five children, she was born in poverty in the rural village of Los Toldos, in the Pampas. In 1934 at the age of 15, she moved to the nation’s capital of Buenos Aires to pursue a career as a stage, radio, and film actress.

Evita’s father, Juan Duarte, was a wealthy rancher who already had a wife and children in Chivilcoy. When Evita was a year old, Duarte decided to permanently stay with his legal family leaving Juana Ibarguren (Evita’s mother) and her children in abject poverty. Forced to move to the poorest area of Junín, Evita’s mother made ends meet by sewing clothes for neighbors while her daughters took up jobs as cooks at local estancias.

At age 14, Evita’s love for acting was reignited when she played a small role in a school play. Evita already wanted to become an actress but being in that play made her determined to reach that goal. At age 15, Evita ran off with a young musician to Buenos Aires to pursue jobs on the stage and radio. In 1935, Evita made her professional acting debut in the play Mrs. Perez (la Señora de Pérez). She went on to cast roles in other B-grade movies as well as being hired by a company called Candilejas, in which she’d play a small role for their radio dramas Muy Bien which aired on Radio El Mundo. Later that year, she signed a 5 year contract with Radio Belgrano in which she’d have roles to play Elizabeth the 1 of England, Sarah Bernhardt, and the last Tsarina of Russia in a popular historical-drama show.

Eventually, Evita received the opportunity to co-own the radio company and was now one of the highest paid radio actresses in the nation making 5 to 6 thousand pesos a month. Although her film-career was short lived and none of her films were ever successful, she did get the chance to act alongside famous actress and singer, Libertad Lamarque in La cabalgata del circo (The Circus Cavalcade), one of Evita’s last films before entering the world of politics. Due to her success in radio dramas and films, she was financially stable enough to move into an apartment in the wealthy neighborhood of Recoleta.

“I demanded more rights for women because I know what women had to put up with” – Evita Perón

In 1945, Evita married Juan Perón who was just a Colonel at the time. The following year, he became President of Argentina. Evita used her position as first lady to fight for the rights of women including women’s suffrage and improving the lives of the poor. She became a legendary figure in Argentine politics as she was a skilled speaker and was adored by many.

In 1948, Evita started The Eva Perón Foundation The goal of the Foundation was to provide financial assistance and scholarships to brilliant children from impoverished backgrounds. Building schools, homes, hospitals, and orphanages was also part of the Foundation’s aims. Evita was known to use her weekly radio show to deliver powerful speeches to raise awareness for the things she believed in and that’s exactly what she did to also support women’s suffrage.

“When the rich think about the poor, they have poor ideas.” -Evita Perón

In 1952, shortly before her death from cancer at 33, Eva Perón was given the title of “Spiritual Leader of the Nation” by the Argentine Congress.

On January 9, 1950 Evita underwent surgery three days after she fainted publicly and was diagnosed with advanced cervical cancer. Fainting episodes, extreme weakness, and extreme vaginal bleeding continued through 1951. It was clear that her health was rapidly declining. In an attempt to eradicate her cervical cancer, Evita secretly underwent a radical hysterectomy, performed by the American surgeon George T. Pack of the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center. June 1952 was Evita’s last public appearance and by June 1954, Evita’s condition only got worse, so much so that she couldn’t stand up without support. At one point, she had a frame made of plaster and wire that made it easier for her to stand.

Despite the hysterectomy and countless efforts to help, Perón’s cervical cancer returned and metastasized rapidly causing her to lose an excessive amount of weight very quickly and sadly, Evita Perón died on July 26, 1952.

Works Cited:

“Eva Peron Foundation – Evita Peron Historical Research Foundation.” Eva Peron Foundation – Evita Peron Historical Research Foundation, Apr. 1998, www.evitaperon.org/f0.htm

“Eva Perón.” Biography.com, A&E Networks Television, 2 Apr. 2014, www.biography.com/political-figure/eva-peron

“Eva Perón.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., 28 June 1998, www.britannica.com/biography/Eva-Peron

“Eva Perón.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 25 Feb. 2021, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eva_Per%C3%B3n.

Prepared by Leah Llano