José del Carmen Marín Arista (March 2, 1899 – December 6, 1980) was a

Peruvian Peruvians (''/peruanas'') are the citizens of Peru. What is now Peru has been inhabited for several millennia by cultures such as the Caral before the Spanish conquest in the 16th century. Peruvian population decreased from an estimated 5–9 ...

general A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air force, air and space forces, marines or naval infantry. In some usages, the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colone ...

cabinet minister A minister is a politician who heads a ministry, making and implementing decisions on policies in conjunction with the other ministers. In some jurisdictions the head of government is also a minister and is designated the ' prime minister', ' p ...

and academic.

Early life and military schooling

Marín was born in the

Department of Amazonas Amazonas Department may refer to: * Amazonas (Colombian department), the Colombian department of Amazonas * Amazonas (Peruvian department), the Peruvian department of Amazonas * Department of Amazonas (Peru–Bolivian Confederation), the department ...

Peru Peru, officially the Republic of Peru, is a country in western South America. It is bordered in the north by Ecuador and Colombia, in the east by Brazil, in the southeast by Bolivia, in the south by Chile, and in the south and west by the Pac ...

. He went to the

Chorrillos Military School The Chorrillos Military School () is the institution in charge of the undergraduate education of officers of the Peruvian Army. Overview The school was opened in 1830 during the first government of Agustín Gamarra and was relocated to Chorri ...

in 1917, then was moved to the Top Division in 1918, graduating with honours in 1922. In 1927, Marín graduated with a

bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Medieval Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six years ...

mathematical sciences The Mathematical Sciences are a group of areas of study that includes, in addition to mathematics, those academic disciplines that are primarily mathematical in nature but may not be universally considered subfields of mathematics proper. Statisti ...

from the

National University of San Marcos The National University of San Marcos (, UNMSM) is a public university, public research university located in Lima, the capital of Peru. In the Americas, it is the first officially established (Privilege (legal ethics), privilege by Charles V, ...

. That same year, he graduated with honours (earning the second highest marks in his class) as a

military engineer Military engineering is loosely defined as the art, science, and practice of designing and building military works and maintaining lines of military transport and military communications. Military engineers are also responsible for logistics ...

from the National Architecture School of Versailles, in

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

Military career

In 1928, was assigned responsibility to set up an advanced training program for the Peruvian Signals Corp (), improving the standards for

military communications Military communications or military signals involve all aspects of communications, or conveyance of information, by armed forces. Examples from '' Jane's Military Communications'' include text, audio, facsimile, tactical ground-based communica ...

and command and control in the armed forces. From 1929 to 1933, Marín taught at the

Officer Candidate School An officer candidate school (OCS) is a military school which trains civilians and Enlisted rank, enlisted personnel in order for them to gain a Commission (document), commission as Commissioned officer, officers in the armed forces of a country. H ...

, first as instructing

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

, then studies principal, then

commandant Commandant ( or ; ) is a title often given to the officer in charge of a military (or other uniformed service) training establishment or academy. This usage is common in English-speaking nations. In some countries it may be a military or police ...

of the school. In 1934 Marín was promoted to

major Major most commonly refers to: * Major (rank), a military rank * Academic major, an academic discipline to which an undergraduate student formally commits * People named Major, including given names, surnames, nicknames * Major and minor in musi ...

. He attended the Peruvian

War College A war college is a senior military academy which is normally intended for veteran military officers and whose purpose is to educate and 'train on' senior military tacticians, strategists, and leaders. It is also often the place where advanced tac ...

, receiving graduate-level instruction to prepare for senior leadership assignments and responsibilities. While there, Marín also taught some classes. He graduated at the top of his class, earning the Espada de España (Sword of Spain). In 1937, Marín returned to

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

, attending France's Superior Officers War College, graduating with honorable mention and the highest grades. When he returned to Peru, he was appointed to a senior position with the Army General Staff ( (EMGE)), a post he still held during the actions of the

Ecuadorian–Peruvian War The Ecuadorian–Peruvian War, known locally as the War of '41 (), was a South American border war fought between 5–31 July 1941. It was the first of three military conflicts between Ecuador and Peru during the 20th century. During the war, ...

of 1941. In 1946, Marín was promoted to brigadier general and appointed director of the

, a position he left in 1947 when the

president of Peru The president of Peru (), officially the constitutional president of the Republic of Peru (), is the head of state and head of government of Peru. The president is the head of the executive branch and is the supreme head of the Peruvian Armed ...

, José Bustamante y Rivero, appointed Marín as minister of war in his cabinet. In 1948, Marín chaired the Commission of Military Institutes, in charge of proposing a new set of fundamental policies upgrading the preparedness the Peruvian armed forces. This led to the creation of a cabinet-level Ministry of Defence in Peru, as well as the creation of the Center of Advanced Military Studies ( (CAEM)). The CAEM was created in 1950, with Marín as its first Commandant. In December 1952, Marín became commandant of the School of Applied Engineering. He later created the

Leoncio Prado Military School The Leoncio Prado Military Academy () is a Peruvian educational institution founded on 27 August 1943 by President of the Republic Manuel Prado Ugarteche and Secretary of Education Elías La Rosa.Decreto de creación del Colegio The academy came ...

, then was appointed as director of the

. In December 1956, Marín was promoted to major general. He retired from the military in January 1957, though he continued as an academic adviser for the CAEM for three years.

Continued academic career

After Marín's retirement from the military, he did continue working in public academia, building on the work in advanced education he had championed throughout his time with the Peruvian armed forces. Marín was the principal professor at the

National University of Engineering The National University of Engineering (, UNI) is a public engineering and science university located in the Rímac District of Lima, Peru. It's widely considered as one of Peru's most prestigious educational institutions. History The National ...

, teaching there for 32 years, retiring as

professor emeritus ''Emeritus/Emerita'' () is an honorary title granted to someone who retirement, retires from a position of distinction, most commonly an academic faculty position, but is allowed to continue using the previous title, as in "professor emeritus". ...

. He was a professor at the High Command School of the

Air Force of Peru The Peruvian Air Force (, FAP) is the branch of the Peruvian Armed Forces tasked with defending the nation and its interests through the use of air power. Additional missions include assistance in safeguarding internal security, conducting disas ...

, from its inception, and also of the Peruvian Diplomatic Academy. Marín was a member of the National Academy of Mathematical and Physical Sciences, and president of the Institute of Natives Language. Marín died on December 6, 1980.

Honors

National honors

* ** Grand Cross of the Military Order of

Ayacucho Ayacucho (, , derived from the words ''aya'' ("death" or "soul") and ''k'uchu'' ("corner") in honour of the battle of Ayacucho), founded in 1540 as San Juan de la Frontera de Huamanga and known simply as Huamanga (Quechua: Wamanga) until 1825, i ...

PER Order of the Sun of Peru - Grand Officer BAR

Grand Officer of the

Order of the Sun of Peru The Order of the Sun of Peru (Spanish: ''Orden El Sol del Perú''), formerly known as the Order of the Sun, is the highest award bestowed by the nation of Peru to commend notable civil and military merit. The award is the oldest civilian award in ...

Peruvian Cross of Aeronautical Merit ** Ribbon Bar of None

Order of the Magisterial Palms of Peru ** Ribbon Bar of None

Order of Merit of the Investigative Police of Peru ** Ribbon Bar of None

Grand Cross of the Order of Merit of the

Peruvian Civil Guard The Civil Guard (; ) was the main preventive police force of Peru until its dissolution in 1988. As a national gendarmerie force, it was responsible for civil policing under the authority of the Ministry of the Interior, while investigative work ...

International honors

* **

Buenos Aires Peace Conference Medal * ** BOL Order of Condor of the Andes - Knight BAR

Order of the Condor of the Andes of Bolivia * ** CHL Order of Merit of Chile - Grand Cross BAR

Grand Cross of the

Order of Merit The Order of Merit () is an order of merit for the Commonwealth realms, recognising distinguished service in the armed forces, science, art, literature, or the promotion of culture. Established in 1902 by Edward VII, admission into the order r ...

* **

''Commandeur'' of the

Legion of Honour The National Order of the Legion of Honour ( ), formerly the Imperial Order of the Legion of Honour (), is the highest and most prestigious French national order of merit, both military and Civil society, civil. Currently consisting of five cl ...

* ** National Order of Merit * ** VEN Order of the Liberator - Knight BAR

Order of the Liberator The Order of the Liberator was the highest distinction of Venezuela and was appointed for services to the country, outstanding merit and benefits made to the community. For Venezuelans the order ranks first in the order of precedence from other o ...

While he was still alive, Marín was made an honorary professor of the Universidad San Luis Gonzaga. A state school located in the facilities of the ex-barracks of Santa Catalina, in

Lima Lima ( ; ), founded in 1535 as the Ciudad de los Reyes (, Spanish for "City of Biblical Magi, Kings"), is the capital and largest city of Peru. It is located in the valleys of the Chillón River, Chillón, Rímac River, Rímac and Lurín Rive ...