Pablo Neruda is buried in a plot on his
estate at Isla Negra, Santiago, Chile. He was originally buried in Santiago's
Cementerio General, but his remains were moved in 1992 after the restoration of democracy.
Grave of Pablo Neruda
Neruda, the son of a Chilean railwayman, was born Neftali Ricardo Reyes Basoalto
but assumed the surname of the Czech poet Jan Neruda.
His first volume of verse Crepusculario (1923) was
self-published but the following year he found a publisher for his
well known collection Veinte poemas de amor y una cancion
desesperada (Twenty Love Poems and a Song of Despair).
As one of the leading young Chilean poets of his day, he was offered
a position in the country's diplomatic service - a career which he
followed until his death in 1973. He worked in many consulates
throughout the world, and while in Buenos Aires began a friendship with the
Spanish poet Federico García Lorca.
Following Lorca's murder during the Spanish Civil War, Neruda was
inspired to write Espana en el corazon (1937).
In 1943 Neruda joined the Communist
Party and was elected to the Chilean Senate. Five years later
he was forced to flee the country on horseback when trouble
flared up between the Communist Party and the government.
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