Rafael Segundo Sotomayor Gaete (November 16, 1848 – February 16, 1918) was a

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in western South America. It is the southernmost country in the world and the closest to Antarctica, stretching along a narrow strip of land between the Andes, Andes Mountains and the Paci ...

an politician and several times minister. He was born in

Cauquenes Cauquenes, a city and commune in Chile, is the capital of the Cauquenes Province and is located in the Maule Region. History According to the historical records of Alonso de Ercilla, Cauquenes was originally inhabited by an indigenous community ...

, the son of Rafael Sotomayor Baeza and Pabla del Carmen Gaete Ruiz. He studied at the Instituto Nacional and later graduated as a lawyer from the

Universidad de Chile The University of Chile () is a public research university in Santiago Santiago (, ; ), also known as Santiago de Chile (), is the capital and largest city of Chile and one of the largest cities in the Americas. It is located in the co ...

on January 7, 1871. During the

War of the Pacific The War of the Pacific (), also known by War of the Pacific#Etymology, multiple other names, was a war between Chile and a Treaty of Defensive Alliance (Bolivia–Peru), Bolivian–Peruvian alliance from 1879 to 1884. Fought over Atacama Desert ...

, he accompanied his father, who was the Minister of War, as personal secretary and auditor, and after his death, in 1880, he became CO of the Customs House Guard in

Iquique Iquique () is a port List of cities in Chile, city and Communes of Chile, commune in northern Chile, capital of both the Iquique Province and Tarapacá Region. It lies on the Pacific coast, west of the Pampa del Tamarugal, which is part of the At ...

and later Intendant of

Tarapacá San Lorenzo de Tarapacá, also known simply as Tarapacá, is a town in the region of the same name in Chile. History The town has likely been inhabited since the 12th century, when it formed part of the Inca trail. When Spanish explorer Diego ...

. On May 4, 1895, he married Inés Neuhaus Ugarteche, and together they had 6 children. He joined the Radical Party, and in 1898 President

Federico Errázuriz Echaurren Federico Errázuriz Echaurren (Santiago, November 16, 1850 – Valparaíso, July 12, 1901) was a Chilean politician who served as the 12th president of Chile. Early life He was son of the president Federico Errázuriz Zañartu and of Eulogia ...

appointed him first as

Minister of Finance A ministry of finance is a ministry or other government agency in charge of government finance, fiscal policy, and financial regulation. It is headed by a finance minister, an executive or cabinet position . A ministry of finance's portfolio ...

(1898–1899) and later

Minister of the Interior An interior minister (sometimes called a minister of internal affairs or minister of home affairs) is a cabinet official position that is responsible for internal affairs, such as public security, civil registration and identification, emergency ...

(1899). President

German Riesco German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

appointed him Minister of the Interior (1903) and then Minister of Foreign Affairs, Cult and Colonization (1903–1904). In 1906 Sotomayor was elected Senator for "Aconcagua" (1906–1912). President

Pedro Montt Pedro Elías Pablo Montt Montt (; 29 June 1849, Santiago, Chile – 16 August 1910, Bremen, Germany) was a Chilean political figure. He served as the president of Chile from 1906 to his death from a probable stroke in 1910. His government fur ...

appointed him Minister of Finance (1906–1907) and then Minister of the Interior (1907–1908). As such he is held responsible of giving the shoot-to-kill order to General Roberto Silva Renard that caused the

Santa María School massacre The Santa María School massacre was a massacre of striking workers, mostly saltpeter works (nitrate) miners, along with their wives and children, committed by the Chilean Army in Iquique, Chile, on December 21, 1907. The number of victims ...

in 1907, where the estimates range between 1,100 and 3,500 men, women and children killed. His reputation never recovered. Sotomayor died of

Spanish flu The 1918–1920 flu pandemic, also known as the Great Influenza epidemic or by the common misnomer Spanish flu, was an exceptionally deadly global influenza pandemic caused by the H1N1 subtype of the influenza A virus. The earliest docum ...

very early on in the pandemic. He had been on board the ship '' Infanta Isabel'', in front of

Pernambuco Pernambuco ( , , ) is a States of Brazil, state of Brazil located in the Northeast Region, Brazil, Northeast region of the country. With an estimated population of 9.5 million people as of 2024, it is the List of Brazilian states by population, ...

, at the age of 69, on the return trip from Europe, after having been the Chilean Ambassador to France.

External links

Genealogical chart

Genealogical chart of Sotomayor family
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sotomayor Gaete, Rafael 1848 births 1918 deaths People from Cauquenes Chilean mass murderers Radical Party of Chile politicians Chilean people of Galician descent Ministers of the interior of Chile Foreign ministers of Chile Ministers of finance of Chile Members of the Chamber of Deputies of Chile Members of the Senate of Chile Ambassadors of Chile to France Instituto Nacional General José Miguel Carrera alumni University of Chile alumni Deaths from the Spanish flu pandemic Intendants of Tarapacá Province