“(1908-73) Chilean statesman. As president of Chile (1970-73), he was the first avowed Marxist to win a Latin American presidency in a free election. Havin bid of the office on two previous occasions (1958 and 1964), Allende’s 1970 victory was brought about by a coalition of leftist parties. During his brief tenure he set the country on a socialist path, incurring the antipathy of the Chilean military establishment. Under General Pinochet, a military coup (which enjoyed some indirect support from the USA) overthrew him in 1973. Allende died in the fighting, and was given a state funeral in 1990.”
Excerpted from: Wright, Edmund, Ed. The Oxford Desk Encyclopedia of World History. New York: Oxford University Press, 2006.
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