Julia Elena Astaburuaga Larraín (17 April 1919 - 14 March 2016), better known as Julita Astaburuaga, was a prominent Chilean

socialite A socialite is a person from a wealthy and (possibly) aristocratic background, who is prominent in high society. A socialite generally spends a significant amount of time attending various fashionable social gatherings, instead of having traditio ...

and a recognized icon of Chilean high society.

Early life and family background

Born into a traditional and conservative family, Astaburuaga was the second daughter of Jorge Astaburuaga Lyon and Elena Larraín Velasco, and she had two brothers, Carlos and Jorge. Her paternal grandfather, Jorge Astaburuaga Vergara, had held positions as a deputy, mayor, and diplomat. On the other hand, her maternal grandfather, Carlos Larraín Claro, had served as Minister of War and Navy under Presidents

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 furth ...

Elías Fernández Albano Elías Fernández Albano (1845 - September 6, 1910) was a Chilean politician, who was acting president of Chile from August 16, 1910 until his death. He was born in Santiago de Chile, the son of Juan de Dios Fernández Gana and María del Pilar ...

, and

Emiliano Figueroa Larraín Emiliano Figueroa Larraín (; July 12, 1866 – May 15, 1931) was President of Chile from December 23, 1925 until his resignation on May 10, 1927. He also served as Acting president for a few months in 1910. Biography Figueroa was born on July 1 ...

. Astaburuaga spent some time in

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

before returning to

Santiago Santiago (, ; ), also known as Santiago de Chile, is the capital and largest city of Chile as well as one of the largest cities in the Americas. It is the center of Chile's most densely populated region, the Santiago Metropolitan Region, whose ...

, where she attended various schools, including Jeanne D'Arc, the English Nuns, the English University, and the French Nuns, where she stayed as a boarder. In 1939, Astaburuaga participated in the national beauty contest, which was a precursor to

Miss Universe Chile The Miss Universo Chile or Miss Chile is a national beauty pageant that selects Chile's representative to the Miss Universe pageant. History Chile is one of the few countries that has participated in Miss Universe since 1952, has sent 53 represe ...

. She achieved second place in the contest, sharing the position with María Luisa Correa. The winner that year was Elisa Ripamonti, who later became the wife of politician Francisco Bulnes Sanfuentes.

Marriage, career, and later years

At the age of 27, Astaburuaga married diplomat Fernando Maquieira Elizalde, with whom she had two children: Cristián, who followed in his father's career, and Diego, a poet. Two days after their wedding, which took place in the Iglesia El Golf in 1947, the couple relocated to

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

, where Maquieira became the secretary of the Chilean embassy at the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and international security, security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be ...

. She accompanied her husband to various countries until they eventually returned to Chile in the early 1970s. After twenty-five years of living together, they separated. In the following decade, Astaburuaga became the director of the Corporación Amigos del Teatro Municipal (Friends of the Municipal Theater Corporation). In 1996, Astaburuaga published a book titled ''Así lo hago yo'' ("This is How I Do It"), which includes chronicles about her life and provides advice on

gastronomy Gastronomy is the study of the relationship between food and culture, the art of preparing and serving rich or delicate and appetizing food, the cooking styles of particular regions, and the science of good eating. One who is well versed in gastr ...

, manners, and other topics. In September 2009, due to her appreciation and past connections during her time living with her husband in the diplomatic mission in

Peru , image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg , image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg , other_symbol = Great Seal of the State , other_symbol_type = Seal (emblem), National seal , national_motto = "Fi ...

, she made efforts to strengthen relations between the two countries. As a result, she was awarded the "Order of Merit for Distinguished Services," which was presented at the Embassy of Peru in Chile. Astaburuaga died from

pancreatic cancer Pancreatic cancer arises when cell (biology), cells in the pancreas, a glandular organ behind the stomach, begin to multiply out of control and form a Neoplasm, mass. These cancerous cells have the malignant, ability to invade other parts of t ...

on the morning of March 14, 2016, at the age of 96.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Astaburuaga, Julita 1919 births 2016 deaths People from Santiago Chilean socialites Deaths from cancer in Chile Deaths from pancreatic cancer