Maipina de la Barra

Translated by Anyely Membreno

Maipina de la Barra Lira was born in Paris on April 15, 1834. She was the eldest of eight siblings. Her parents were the prominent Chilean diplomat, politician, writer and academic, José Miguel de la Barra López Guerrero, and the European Athenais Pereira de Lira.

The decisive Battle of Maipú (1818) proved to be a crucial victory for the patriots fighting for the independence of Chile and served as the origin of Maipina’s unique name. Maipina de la Barra was the goddaughter of José de San Martín, her father’s comrade-in-arms in the war for independence.

At only four years old, Maipina moved to Chile and spent her childhood in the then affluent downtown neighborhood of Plaza Yungay, in an environment influenced by the social connections of her father, a member of the country’s ruling elite. There aren’t any records about

Maipina’s education, but it can be assumed that she was under the care of her family and a governess since she spoke both French and Italian.

Maipina married José Ignacio Cobo y Cobo in 1851, the same year her father died. At 17 years of age, she had a daughter, Eva Filomena Cobo de la Barra born in 1857. Maipina de la Barra played the piano, the flute and violin and she also sang. After being widowed and not having an inheritance that would allow her to live comfortably, she dedicated herself to teaching piano in Valparaíso.

At the age of 39,  de la Barra traveled to Italy and France with the intention of visiting her mother, who had returned to Europe shortly after the death of her husband. De la Barra began this journey in Valparaíso aboard the ship Corcovado accompanied by her daughter Eva Cobo. A year later, in May 1873, she returned to Valparaíso aboard the ship Puno.

According to Maipina’s own account, this journey not only served to visit her mother, but also to educate her daughter, Eva, in European society, in the standards of “Proper Manners” which she greatly admired. For nine months De la Barra lived in Paris surrounded by friends who provided her with lodging, entertainment, and social connections.

Back in Chile, Maipina had a distressing visit with her daughter. She embarked on another journey between March and June of 1877, crossing the Andes mountain range with Buenos Aires as her destination. She lived temporarily in Mendoza and Rosario, where she worked as a piano teacher.

From these two experiences, while residing in Buenos Aires, Maipina published a memoir of her travels titled “Mis impresiones y mis vicisitudes en mi viaje a Europa pasando por el Estrecho de Magallanes y en mi excursión [sic] a Buenos Aires pasando por la cordillera de los Andes.” She dedicated this work to Argentine women. The book explores the importance of women’s education and the role of mothers in the social process of socialization while also describing the places she visited and offering her evaluation on what she considered an urgent need: women’s education.

During the 1880s, de la Barra appeared in both the Chilean and foreign press for her cultural work related to music. She was considered an artist by her contemporaries. Alongside her musical performances, Maipina also spoke at public lectures. In 1887, de la Barra spoke in Spain about the problem of women’s instruction and the need for women’s education. In Madrid, she published a translation titled “La ciencia oculta. Estudio sobre la doctrina esotérica de Luis Dramand,” just three years after it was originally published in French, a clear indication of involvement in the spiritual movement of the time.

Maipina also spoke at the Fourth General Chilean Scientific Congress, held in Talca, Chile, in April of 1897; her speech was titled “Discurso sobre la instrucción de la mujer.” Maipina de la Barra joined the Freemasonry movement in Spain according to a document from the Logia Unión Italiana No. 90 of Buenos Aires.

Her role as a promoter of spiritual doctrine appears to have been significant. De la Barra’s involvement with freemasonry and the liberal circles of that period reflect a forward-thinking mindset for her time. Her intellectual curiosity was complemented by her work as a translator. She translated from French and Italian “Textos de lectura para escuelas y colegios de ambos sexos” sent to Bolivia in 1896. During the last 30 years of her life, de la Barra maintained a strong interest in education, actively promoting a women’s right to access education.

Everything suggests that she traveled sporadically from Argentina to Chile but resided in Buenos Aires from 1880 until her death. In 1904, months before her death, Maipina visited the Tolstoyana Colony, a community-cultural project initiated by Augusto D’Halmar and other Chilean writers in San Bernardo, near Santiago. On September 2, 1904, at the age of 70, Maipina de la Barra died in Buenos Aires.

Carla Ulloa Inostroza

Professor of History, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Valparaíso.

Master’s Degree in Latin American Studies, Universidad de Chile.

Doctoral Candidate in Latin American Studies, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México.

carla.ulloa.i@gmail.com.