Juvenal Hernández Jaque

Juvenal Hernández Jaque (6 September 1899 – 24 April 1979) was a Chilean lawyer, academic, diplomat and politician.

He served as rector of the University of Chile from 1932 to 1953, minister of national defense on two occasions, ambassador of Chile to Venezuela between 1959 and 1963, and deputy during the XXXVI Legislative Period of the National Congress of Chile.

He received honorary doctorates from the National University of La Plata and other academic institutions and was named professor emeritus of the Faculty of Law of the University of Chile in 1978. He was also honored by the University of Concepción and received decorations from several foreign governments.

Biography He was born in El Carmen, Department of Yungay, on 6 September 1899, the son of Rigoberto Hernández Pino and Dolores Jaque Cifuentes. His family later settled near Chillán, where he grew up in close contact with Jesuit communities. He married María Dolores Stevens Soto, and they had two children.

He studied at the Liceo de Hombres de Concepción and later entered the Faculty of Law of the University of Chile. He obtained his law degree in 1924 with a thesis on expropriation for public utility.

He began his academic career as professor of grammar and literature at the Liceo de Concepción and later became professor of Roman law and civil law at the University of Chile. At age 33 he was appointed dean of the Faculty of Law and, in the same year, rector of the university.

Rector of the University of Chile He served as rector from 1932 to 1953, a period marked by major institutional expansion and academic modernization. During his tenure, new faculties were established, including economics, architecture, dentistry, chemistry, and veterinary medicine, along with research institutes in biology, physiology, nutrition, and marine biology.

He promoted university extension programs, leading to the creation of Editorial Universitaria, the Institute of Musical Extension —which gave rise to the National Ballet, the University Choir, and the Orquesta Sinfónica de Chile— and the Experimental Theater. He also strengthened student welfare services and reorganized the university's central library.

Under his leadership, the university expanded its national presence and achieved international academic recognition.

Political and diplomatic career He was a lifelong member of the Radical Party and also belonged to the Masonic movement.

He was elected deputy for the 17th Departmental Circumscription (Yungay, Bulnes, and Chillán) for the 36th National Congress of Chile (1930–1934 legislative period); however, his mandate ended prematurely when Congress was dissolved on 6 June 1932 following the political crisis of that year.

He served as minister of national defense from 24 October 1940 to April 1942 and again from April to August 1947, during the presidency of Gabriel González Videla.

In 1948 he headed the Chilean delegation to the Ninth Pan-American Conference in Bogotá. During the presidency of Jorge Alessandri, he served as ambassador to Venezuela between 1959 and 1963. He was later elected to the Executive Council of UNESCO and was appointed a member of the Council of State during the military government.

Death He died in Santiago, Chile, on 24 April 1979.