Isabel Martinez de Perón (born 1931) became the first female president in Latin America when she assumed the Argentine presidency upon the death of her husband, Juan Perón. Her term in office was characterized by political violence and economic instability until she was finally overthrown by the military.

Isabel Perón was born María Estela Martinez Cartas on February 4, 1931, in La Rioja, a provincial capital in the impoverished mountainous region of northwestern Argentina. Her father, a local bank manager, died when she was still a young child. By the time of her father's death, the family had moved to Buenos Aires, where she studied piano, dance, and French, although she was not able to finish her formal education.

After leaving school she became a dancer, performing in folk music groups, night clubs, and finally the ballet corps of two leading theaters in...