The aristocratic Peruvian political leader Manuel Prado Ugarteche (1889-1967) was twice president, and although elected by conservative and centrist groups, he attempted to reduce the tensions within his nation by incorporating more popular elements.

Manuel Prado was born in Lima on April 21, 1889. His father, Gen. Mariano Ignacio Prado, was president of Peru for two short periods in the latter half of the 19th century. Manuel Prado graduated from the National School of Engineering in 1915. In 1918 he married Enriqueta Garland, and a son and daughter were born; after 40 years the marriage was annulled, amid popular outcry, and he then married Clorinda Málaga.

After getting his engineering degree, Prado became involved in the management of his family's properties, developing as his speciality the direction of the family banking interests. He also found time for other undertakings: between 1915 and 1919 he taught mathematics at San Marcos and was, in that...