Andrés de Jesús María y José Bello López (; November 29, 1781 – October 15, 1865) was a Venezuelan humanist, diplomat, poet, legislator, philosopher, educator and philologist, whose political and literary works constitute an important part of Spanish American culture. Bello is featured on the old 2,000 Venezuelan bolívar and the 20,000 Chilean peso notes.
In Caracas, where he was born, Andrés Bello was Simón Bolívar's teacher for a short period of time and participated in the process that led to Venezuelan independence. As a diplomat for the new independent government that he helped establish, he went with Luis López Méndez and Simón Bolívar on their first diplomatic mission to London. He lived in London from 1810 to 1829.
In 1829, Bello went with his family to Chile. He was hired by the Chilean government and made great works in the field of law and humanities. In Santiago he held positions as a senator and a professor, as well as directing several local newspapers. As a legislator, he was the main promoter and editor of the Chilean Civil Code, one of the most innovative and influential American legal works of his time. In 1842, under his inspiration and with his decisive support, the University of Chile was created, an institution of which he became the first rector, staying in the post for more than two decades. Due to his great contributions, on 17 October 1832 he was given Chilean nationality through a law approved by the Congress.
Biographical information
Life in Venezuela (1781-1810) Bello was born in Caracas and grew up studying at the academy of Ramón Vanlonsten. He was the first son of the lawyer don Bartolomé Bello and Ana Antonia López, whose parents descended from people from the Canary Islands. He also frequented the Convent of las Mercedes, where he studied Latin under Father Cristobal de Quesada. After the monk's death in 1796, Bello translated Book V of the Aeneid.
He studied Liberal Arts, Law and Medicine at the University of Caracas and graduated on May 9, 1800, with a degree of Bachelor of Arts. As well as having unfinished studies in law and medicine, he also learned English and French on his own. He gave private classes, with the young Simón Bolívar among his students. His translations and adaptations of classic texts gave him prestige, and in 1802 won, by contest, the rank of officer Second Secretary of the colonial government. During the period 1802–1810, Bello became one of the most intellectually influential people in the society of Caracas, standing in performing political work for the colonial administration, besides gaining notoriety as a poet, translating the tragedy Zulima by Voltaire. He later became known for his early writings and translations, edited the newspaper Gazeta de Caracas and held important offices in the government of the Captaincy General of Venezuela. He accompanied Alexander von Humboldt in a part of his Latin American expedition (1800) and was for a short time Simón Bolívar's teacher. His relationships with both men became a major factor in cultivating his ideas for his intellectual career.
Bello spent ten years after his formal education in his homeland of Caracas. He authored two pieces of literary work, Calendario manual y guía universal del forastero en Venezuela para el año de 1810 and the Resumen de la historia de Venezuela.
Both works became widely accepted in Venezuela, and from this point Bello started his career as a poet. As time progressed, Bello further expanded his notions on humanism and conservatism. From his theories and ideas, Bello was eventually hailed as one of the foremost humanists of his time.
On April 19, 1810, Bello participated in events that helped to spark the independence of Venezuela, including the dismissal of Captain General Vicente Emparan by the Cabildo de Caracas. The Supreme Junta of Caracas, the institution that governed the Captaincy General of Venezuela following the forced resignation of Emparan, and immediately named Bello First Officer of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. On June 10 of that year, he set sail on a diplomatic mission to London as a representative of the new Republic. He was commissioned, together with Simón Bolívar and Luis López Méndez, to obtain British support for the cause of independence. Bello was chosen for his knowledge and command of the English language, which he had acquired predominantly on his own.
Life in Britain (1810-1829)