Pelegrín Meza Loyola

Pelegrín Aníbal Meza Loyola (4 May 1901 – 26 November 1978) was a Chilean lawyer, farmer, and politician. Initially affiliated with the Radical Party, he later joined the Socialist Party.

He served multiple terms as a member of the Chamber of Deputies and was President of the Chamber in 1941.

Biography Meza Loyola was born in Achao, Chile, on 4 May 1901, the son of Pelegrín Meza Loyola and Celia Rosa Loyola Burgos. He completed his secondary education at the Osorno High School and the Internado Nacional Barros Arana. He studied law at the University of Chile, qualifying as a lawyer on 28 August 1925. His graduation thesis was titled Las sociedades de hecho.

He practiced law in Osorno and Santiago, representing major commercial firms. Parallel to his legal career, he worked as a farmer, specializing in livestock production. He managed the Putrihu estate in Riachuelo, Río Negro, and held land rights in the Andes range in the Chanquicó area. He also served as manager of Martínez Casas Ltda., vice president of the Osorno Agricultural and Livestock Society (1929–1931), vice president of the Agricultural Export Board, and adviser to the Agricultural Credit Fund. He was a co-owner of Radio Yungay CB-101 and a member of the Osorno Club and the Club de la Unión.

Political career Meza Loyola joined the Radical Party in the early 1930s. In 1933 he was elected to the Chamber of Deputies representing Valdivia, La Unión, and Osorno for the 1933–1937 legislative term. He was re-elected in 1937, serving until 1941, and participated in the Standing Committee on Agriculture and Colonization.

In 1940 he joined the Socialist Party of Chile. The following year he was elected deputy for Valdivia, La Unión, and Río Bueno for the 1941–1945 term. During this period he served on the Standing Committee on Constitution, Legislation and Justice. Between May and December 1941, he served as President of the Chamber of Deputies of Chile.

Personal life He married Elena Wevar Cañas in Osorno in 1929, with whom he had three children: Rodrigo, Fernán, and Gustavo Adolfo. In 1967 he married Ángela Inés Raquel Hofer Kackschies, with whom he had two additional children.

Death Meza Loyola died in Valdivia on 26 November 1978.