Misplaced Pages

#163836

148-466: Named in honor of the 19th century caudillo and governor, Estanislao López , the highway was initiated by the Provincial Highway Bureau office during the tenure of Governor Aldo Tessio , and was built between 1964 and 1972. Provincial Law Nº 10.798, signed by Governor Carlos Reutemann in 1993, privatized the highway's operations and maintenance, and redesignated it as a toll road under

296-407: A president-for-life and the power to name his successor. In 1828 his supporters called on him to assume dictatorial powers and "save the republic". However, the political turmoil continued and Bolívar stepped down in 1830, going into self-imposed exile and dying shortly thereafter. "He is revered as the one person who made the greatest contribution to Spanish American independence" and admired by both

444-439: A rubber stamp to preserve a semblance of democracy. The result of the 1835 election was a predictable 99.9 per cent "yes" vote. Rosas believed that the manipulation of elections were necessary for political stability, because most of the country's population was illiterate. He acquired absolute power over the province with the assent and support of most estancieros and businessmen, who shared his views. The estancia formed

592-481: A brutal tyrant. Since the 1930s, an authoritarian, anti-Semitic, and racist political movement in Argentina called Revisionism tried to improve Rosas's reputation and establish a new dictatorship in the model of his regime. In 1989, his remains were repatriated by the government in an attempt to promote national unity, seeking to rehabilitate Rosas and pardon military personnel convicted of human rights abuses. Rosas remains

740-522: A career for himself, leaving his parents' estate. He produced salted meat and acquired landholdings in the process. As the years passed he became an estanciero (rancher) in his own right, accumulating land while establishing a successful partnership with second cousins from the politically powerful Anchorena clan. His hard work and organisational skills in deploying labour were key to his success, rather than creating new or applying nontraditional approaches to production. The May Revolution of 1810 marked

888-569: A century; and Porfirio Díaz of Mexico. Rosas and Díaz were military men, who continued to rely on armed forces to maintain themselves in power. This region was vulnerable to stronger powers, particularly the United States and the United Kingdom. Cuba remained in the hands of the Spanish crown until 1898. The United States seized a huge part of Mexico. Britain attempted to set up a protectorate on

1036-715: A civil war with the other provinces over the degree of autonomy which the provincial governments were supposed to have. The Unitarian Party supported the preeminence of Buenos Aires, while the Federalist Party defended provincial autonomy. A decade of strife over the issue destroyed the ties between capital and provinces, with new republics being declared throughout the country. Efforts by the Buenos Aires government to quash these independent states were met with determined local resistance. In 1820 Rosas and his gauchos, all dressed in red and nicknamed " Colorados del Monte " ("Reds of

1184-544: A constitution, as "constitutional dictators". There were a number of strongmen who went beyond raw struggles for power and its spoils and established "integrative dictatorships". These regimes attempted to curtail centrifugal forces, often termed "federalism", where regions or states of a nation-state had more autonomy and instead established the hegemony of the central government. According to political scientist Peter H. Smith , these include Juan Manuel de Rosas in Argentina; Diego Portales of Chile, whose system lasted nearly

1332-570: A controversial figure in Argentina in the 21st century; he was represented on the 20 Argentine peso bill until 2017. Juan Manuel José Domingo Ortiz de Rozas was born on 30 March 1793 at his family's town house in Buenos Aires , the capital of the Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata . He was the first child of León Ortiz de Rozas and Agustina López de Osornio. León Ortiz was the son of an immigrant from

1480-626: A coup under the Plan of Tuxtepec and became president of Mexico 1876–1880, succeeded by his military and political compadre Manuel González (1880–1884) and returned to the presidency until he was overthrown in 1911 in the Mexican Revolution. During the decade-long civil war, a number of regional caudillos arose. Pascual Orozco helped oust Díaz at the early stage of the Revolution, but then turned against Francisco I. Madero , who had been elected to

1628-505: A farce, and the legislature and judiciary became docile instruments of his will. Rosas created a cult of personality and his regime became totalitarian in nature, with all aspects of society rigidly controlled. Rosas faced many threats to his power during the late 1830s and early 1840s. He fought a war against the Peru–Bolivian Confederation , endured a blockade by France , faced a revolt in his own province and battled

SECTION 10

#1732856057164

1776-420: A few friends, he was buried in the town cemetery of Southampton. Serious attempts to reassess Rosas's reputation began in the 1880s with the publication of scholarly works by Adolfo Saldías and Ernesto Quesada. Later, a more blatant "Revisionist" movement would flourish under Nacionalismo (Nationalism). Nacionalismo was a political movement that appeared in Argentina in the 1920s and reached its apex in

1924-580: A few years before. The next year, with acquiescence of the provinces, he named himself "Supreme Head of the Confederacy" and became the indisputable ruler of Argentina. As Rosas aged and his health declined, the question of who would succeed him became a growing concern among his supporters. His wife Encarnación had died in October 1838 after a long illness. Although devastated by his loss, Rosas exploited her death to raise support for his regime. Not long after, at

2072-470: A government response. Rosas steadfastly endorsed policies which supported this expansion. During his governorship he granted lands in the south to war veterans and to ranchers seeking alternative pasture lands during the drought. Although the south was regarded as a virtual desert at the time, it had great potential and resources for agricultural development, particularly for ranching operations. The government gave Rosas command of an army with orders to subdue

2220-495: A growing consumer market in the United States. In Guatemala Justo Rufino Barrios ruled as a Liberal autocrat and expanded coffee cultivation. Fictional Hispanic American caudillos , sometimes based on real historical figures, are important in literature. Colombian Nobel Prize winner Gabriel García Márquez published two works with strongmen as main characters: The Autumn of the Patriarch and The General in his Labyrinth ,

2368-539: A handsome man, standing 1.77 meters (5 ft 10 in) tall with blond hair and "piercing blue eyes". Charles Darwin , who met Rosas during the Beagle survey expedition , assessed him as "a man of extraordinary character". British diplomat Henry Southern said that in "appearance Rosas resembles an English gentleman farmer—his manners are courteous without being refined. He is affable and agreeable in conversation, which however nearly always turns on himself, but his tone

2516-471: A judicial system still existed in Buenos Aires, Rosas removed any independence the courts might have exercised, either by controlling appointments to the judiciary, or by circumventing their authority entirely. He would sit in judgement over cases, issuing sentences which included fines, service in the army, imprisonment, or execution. The exercise of state terror as a tool of intimidation was restricted to Rosas himself; his subordinates had no control over it. It

2664-595: A legacy that has influenced political movements in the modern era. The term is often used pejoratively by critics of a regime. However, Spain's General Francisco Franco (1936–1975) proudly took the title as his own during and after his military overthrow of the Second Spanish Republic in the Spanish Civil War (1936–1939). Spanish censors during his rule attacked publishers who applied the term to Hispanic American strongmen. Caudillos' exercise of power

2812-437: A living the hard way by the sweat of my brow". A contemporary described him in final years: "He was then eighty, a man still handsome and imposing; his manners were most refined, and the modest environment did nothing to lessen his air of a great lord, inherited from his family." After a walk on a cold day, Rosas caught pneumonia and died at 07:00 on the morning of 14 March 1877. Following a private mass attended by his family and

2960-458: A loyal private army, Rosas became a caudillo , as provincial warlords in the region were known. He eventually reached the rank of brigadier general, the highest in the Argentine Army , and became the undisputed leader of the Federalist Party . In December 1829, Rosas became governor of the province of Buenos Aires and established a dictatorship backed by state terrorism . In 1831, he signed

3108-527: A major rebellion that lasted for years and spread to five northern Argentine provinces. Rosas persevered and extended his influence in the provinces, exercising effective control over them through direct and indirect means. By 1848, he had extended his power beyond the borders of Buenos Aires and was ruler of all of Argentina. Rosas also attempted to annex the neighbouring nations of Uruguay and Paraguay . France and Great Britain jointly retaliated against Argentine expansionism, blockading Buenos Aires for most of

SECTION 20

#1732856057164

3256-865: A military hero of the French intervention, who challenged Juárez and Lerdo by attempting rebellions, the second of which, the Plan of Tuxtepec , was successful in 1876. Juárez and Lerdo removed some caudillos from office, but this prompted them to rebel. These included Trinidad García de la Cadena in Zacatecas , Luis Mier y Terán in Veracruz , Juan Haro in Tampico , Juan N. Méndez in Puebla, Vicente Jiménez in Guerrero, and Juan Cortina in Matamoros . "That they slowly gathered around Porfirio Díaz

3404-629: A number of examples of continuismo in Hispanic America whereby presidents continue in office beyond the legal term limits, with constitutional revision, plebiscites, and the creation of family dynasties, such as the Somoza family in Nicaragua. A major example of a modernizing caudillo of the late nineteenth century is Díaz (r. 1876–1911), whose period of control is known as the Porfiriato . His slogan

3552-552: A plethora of bureaucratic institutions that prevented personalist rule. Historian John Lynch argues that the rise of caudillos in Spanish America is rooted not in the distant Spanish past but in the immediate context of the Spanish American wars of independence . The wars overthrew colonial rule and left a power vacuum in the early nineteenth century. Caudillos were very influential in the history of Spanish America and left

3700-584: A plot by dissident Rosistas to oust him from power in what became known as the Maza conspiracy. Rosas imprisoned some of the plotters and executed others. Manuel Vicente Maza , president of both the House of Representatives and the Supreme Court , was murdered by Rosas's Mazorca agents within the halls of the parliament on the pretext that his son was involved in the conspiracy. In the countryside, estancieros , including

3848-462: A powerful critic of such strongmen. An outlier in terms of subject matter is Rómulo Gallegos 's Doña Bárbara , depicting a woman caudillo . Juan Manuel de Rosas Juan Manuel José Domingo Ortiz de Rozas y López de Osornio (30 March 1793 – 14 March 1877), nicknamed "Restorer of the Laws", was an Argentine politician and army officer who ruled Buenos Aires Province and briefly

3996-631: A priest, caused a backlash throughout the continent. Nonetheless, it served as a clear warning that Rosas had no intention of loosening his grip. Rosas failed to realize that discontent was steadily growing throughout the country. Throughout the 1840s he became increasingly secluded in his country house in Palermo , some miles away from Buenos Aires. There he ruled and lived under heavy protection provided by guards and patrols. He declined to meet with his ministers and relied solely on secretaries. His daughter Manuela replaced his wife at his right hand and became

4144-497: A royalist general-turned-insurgent Agustín de Iturbide . In Spanish America, new sovereign states grappled with the question of balancing a central authority, usually in the hands of the traditional elites, with some kind of representation of the new "citizenry" of the republics. Constitutions were written laying out the division of powers, but the rule of personalist strongmen, caudillos, dominated. Dictatorial powers were granted to some caudillos , nominally ruling as presidents under

4292-420: A rural area that lacked any institutions of the state, and where the environment was one of violence and anarchy, a caudillo could impose order, often by using violence himself to achieve it. His local control as a strongman needed to be maintained by assuring the loyalty of his followers, so his bestowing of material rewards reinforced his own position. Caudillos could also maintain their position by protecting

4440-486: A standstill. This undeclared war caused more economic harm to France and Britain than to Argentina. The British faced increasing pressure at home once they realised that the access gained to the other ports within the Platine region did not compensate for the loss of trade with Buenos Aires. Britain ended all hostilities and lifted the blockade on 15 July 1847, followed by France on 12 June 1848. Rosas had successfully resisted

4588-620: A strong central state and defense of traditional institutional structures, particularly the Mexican Army and the Roman Catholic Church. Many regional strongmen were in the Federalist-Liberal camp, which supported local control and the continuation of their power. The quintessential Mexican caudillo , who gained national power for decades, was Santa Anna, who was initially a Liberal but became a Conservative and sought strengthening of

Brigadier Estanislao López Highway - Misplaced Pages Continue

4736-475: A temporary necessity, called for the adoption of a constitution. Rosas was unwilling to govern constrained by a constitutional framework and only grudgingly relinquished his dictatorial powers. His term of office ended soon after, on 5 December 1832. While the government in Buenos Aires was distracted with political infighting, ranchers began moving into territories in the south inhabited by indigenous peoples. The resulting conflict with native peoples necessitated

4884-556: A war-torn Paraguay." In the late nineteenth century, regimes in Spanish America were more stable and often less dominated by military men. Foreign investors, particularly the British, began building infrastructure in countries of greatest interest to the UK's economic needs. Such projects included railways, telegraph lines, and port facilities, which cut transportation time and costs and sped up communications. Stable political regimes that could ensure

5032-524: A year later. Rosas was then assigned to the Caballería de los Migueletes (a militia cavalry), although he was probably barred from active duty during this time due to illness. After the British invasions had been repelled, Rosas and his family moved from Buenos Aires to their estancia ( ranch ). His work there further shaped his character and outlook as part of the Platine region 's social establishment. In

5180-529: A younger brother of Rosas, revolted, beginning the Rebellion of the South . The rebels attempted to ally with France, but were easily crushed, many losing their lives and properties in the process. In September 1839, Juan Lavalle returned after ten years in exile. He allied with the governor of Corrientes, which revolted once again, and invaded Buenos Aires province at the head of Unitarian troops armed and supplied by

5328-412: Is a form considered authoritarian . Most societies have had personalist leaders at times, but Hispanic America has had many more, the majority of whom were not self-described caudillos . However, scholars have applied the term to a variety of Hispanic-American leaders. Since Spanish American independence in the early nineteenth century, the region has been noted for its number of caudillos and

5476-445: Is a type of personalist leader wielding military and political power . There is no precise English translation for the term, though it is often used interchangeably with " military dictator ," " warlord " and " strongman ". The term is historically associated with Spain and Hispanic America , after virtually all of the regions in the latter won independence in the early nineteenth century. The roots of caudillismo may be tied to

5624-674: Is not the people who have overthrown me. It is the monkeys, the Brazilians." Rosas arrived in Plymouth in England on 26 April 1852. The British gave him asylum, paid for his travel and welcomed him with a 21-gun salute . These honours were granted because, according to the British Foreign Secretary James Harris, 3rd Earl of Malmesbury , "General Rosas was no common refugee, but one who had shown great distinction and kindness to

5772-421: Is pleasant and agreeable enough. His memory is stupendous: and his accuracy in all points of detail never failing." On 6 December 1829, the House of Representatives of Buenos Aires elected Rosas governor and granted him facultades extraordinarias (extraordinary powers). This marked the beginning of his regime, described by historians as a dictatorship. He saw himself as a benevolent dictator , saying: "For me

5920-412: Is the story of the rise of Porfirian Mexico." Simón Bolívar , the foremost leader of independence in Spanish America, attempted to recreate the Viceroyalty of New Granada in the nation of Gran Colombia . As with other areas of Spanish America, centrifugal forces caused the country to fragment into separate nation-states. Bolivar saw the need for political stability, which could be put into effect with

6068-432: Is unknown whether Rosas was a closet monarchist . Later during his exile, Rosas declared that Princess Alice of the United Kingdom would be the ideal ruler for his country. Nonetheless, in public he stated that his regime was republican in nature. The breakup of the old Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata during the 1810s eventually resulted in the emergence of independent nations of Paraguay , Bolivia and Uruguay in

Brigadier Estanislao López Highway - Misplaced Pages Continue

6216-587: The jefe máximo ( maximum chief ), the power behind the presidency in a period known as the Maximato (1928–1934); PNR's iteration as the Institutional Revolutionary Party dominated Mexican politics until 2000 and functioned as a brake on the personalist power of regional caudillos in Mexico. With the improvement of transportation, tropical products such as coffee and bananas could be transported to

6364-680: The Andes to the coast and down to the Magellan Straits are now wide open for our children." While Rosas was away on the Desert Campaign in October 1833, a group of Rosistas (Rosas's supporters) laid siege to Buenos Aires. Inside the city, Rosas's wife, Encarnación, assembled a contingent of associates to aid the besiegers. The Revolution of the Restorers , as the Rosista coup came to be known, forced

6512-473: The Argentine Confederation . Although born into a wealthy family, Rosas independently amassed a personal fortune, acquiring large tracts of land in the process. Rosas enlisted his workers in a private militia , as was common for rural proprietors, and took part in the disputes that led to numerous civil wars in his country . Victorious in warfare, personally influential, and with vast landholdings and

6660-594: The Federal Pact , recognising provincial autonomy and creating the Argentine Confederation. When his term of office ended in 1832, Rosas departed to the frontier to wage war on the indigenous peoples . After his supporters launched a coup in Buenos Aires, Rosas was asked to return and once again took office as governor. Rosas reestablished his dictatorship and formed the repressive Mazorca , an armed parapolice that killed thousands of citizens. Elections became

6808-567: The Platine War . The army under Oribe in Uruguay surrendered to Urquiza in October. With arms and financial aid given by Brazil, Urquiza then marched through Argentine territory heading to Buenos Aires. Uncharacteristically, Rosas remained passive throughout the conflict. The Argentine ruler lost heart once he realized that he had fallen into a trap. Even if he defeated Urquiza, his forces would probably be weakened enough to prevent him from challenging

6956-508: The Rosismo movement. Rosas established a totalitarian regime , in which the government sought to dictate every aspect of public and private life. It was mandated that the slogan "Death to the Savage Unitarians" be inscribed at the head of all official documents. Anyone on the state payroll—from military officers, priests, to civil servants and teachers—was obliged to wear a red badge with

7104-729: The Unitarian League . The capture of José María Paz , the main Unitarian leader, in March 1831 resulted in the end of the Unitarian–Federalist civil war and the collapse of the Unitarian League. Rosas was content, for the moment, to agree to recognize provincial autonomy in the Federal Pact . In an effort to alleviate the government's financial problems, he improved revenue collection while not raising taxes and curtailed expenditure. By

7252-419: The mazorqueros included neighborhood sweeps in which houses would be searched and occupants intimidated. Others who fell into their power were arrested, tortured and killed. Killings were generally by shooting, lance-thrusting or throat-slitting. Many were castrated, or had their beards scalped or their tongues cut out. Modern estimates report around 2,000 people were killed from 1829 until 1852. Although

7400-527: The 1930s. It was the Argentine equivalent of the authoritarian ideologies that arose during the same period, such as Nazism , Fascism and Integralism . Argentine Nationalism was an authoritarian, anti-Semitic , racist and misogynistic political movement with support for racially based pseudo-scientific theories such as eugenics . Revisionismo (Revisionism) was the historiographical wing of Argentine Nacionalismo . The main goal of Argentine Nacionalismo

7548-614: The 1980s, Argentina was a fractured, deeply divided nation, having faced military dictatorships , severe economic crises and a defeat in the Falklands War . President Carlos Menem decided to repatriate Rosas's remains and take advantage of the occasion to unite the Argentines. Menem believed that if the Argentines could forgive Rosas and his regime, they might do the same regarding the more recent and vividly remembered past. On 30 September 1989, an elaborate and enormous cortege organized by

SECTION 50

#1732856057164

7696-506: The Argentine provinces, Rosas blockaded the port of Montevideo and closed the interior rivers to foreign trade. The loss of trade was unacceptable to Britain and France. On 17 September 1845 both nations established the Anglo-French blockade of the Río de la Plata and enforced the free navigation in the Río de la Plata Basin (or Platine region). Argentina resisted the pressure and fought back to

7844-503: The Brazilian army that was ready to invade Argentina. With no other alternative, Rosas remarked: "There is no other way; we have to play for the high stakes and go for everything. Here we are, and from here there is no retreat." After an unsuccessful battle against Urquiza on 3 February 1852, Rosas fled to Buenos Aires. Once there, he disguised himself and boarded a ship that took him to Britain to live in exile. Embittered, he remarked: "It

7992-471: The British merchants who had traded with his country". Months before his fall, Rosas had arranged with the British chargé d'affaires Captain Robert Gore for protection and asylum in the event of his defeat. Both his children by Encarnación followed him into exile, although Juan Bautista soon returned with his family to Argentina. His daughter Manuela married the son of an old associate of Rosas, an act which

8140-479: The Dominican Republic ( Desiderio Arias , Cipriano Bencosme), Paraguay ( Alfredo Stroessner ), Argentina ( Juan Perón and other military strongmen), and Chile ( Augusto Pinochet ). Caudillos have been the subject of literature in Spanish America. Hispanic America is not unique in having strong leaders emerge during times of turmoil. The cause of their emergence in Spanish America is generally seen to be in

8288-554: The French. Emboldened by Lavalle's actions, the provinces of Tucumán , Salta , La Rioja , Catamarca and Jujuy formed the Coalition of the North and also rebelled against Buenos Aires. Great Britain intervened on behalf of Rosas, and France lifted the blockade on 29 October 1840. The struggle with his internal enemies was hard-fought. By December 1842, Lavalle had been killed and the rebellious provinces subdued, except for Corrientes, which

8436-525: The House of Representatives. The army was led by officers who had backgrounds and values similar to his. Confident of his power, Rosas made some concessions by returning confiscated properties to their owners, disbanding the Mazorca and ending torture and political assassinations. The inhabitants of Buenos Aires still dressed and behaved according to the set of rules Rosas had imposed, but the climate of constant and widespread fear greatly diminished. When Rosas

8584-538: The House of Representatives. He exercised tight control over the bureaucracy as well as his cabinet, stating: "Do not imagine that my Ministers are anything but my Secretaries. I put them in their offices to listen and report, and nothing more." His supporters were rewarded with positions within the state apparatus, and anyone he deemed a threat was purged. Opposition newspapers were burned in public squares . Rosas created an elaborate cult of personality , presenting himself as an almighty and fatherlike figure who protected

8732-529: The Indian tribes in the coveted territory. Rosas was generous to those Indians who surrendered, rewarding them with animals and goods. Although he personally disliked killing Indians, he relentlessly hunted those who refused to yield. The Desert Campaign lasted from 1833 to 1834, with Rosas subjugating the entire region. His conquest of the south opened many possibilities for further territorial expansion, which led him to state: "The fine territories , which extend from

8880-609: The Mexican Constitution of 1917 , leading to the Cristero War , a failed major uprising under the leadership of some regional caudillos, including Saturnino Cedillo of San Luis Potosí . Obregón was elected again in 1928, but was assassinated before he could again resume the presidency. In 1929, Plutarco Elías Calles founded a political party, then known as the Partido Nacional Revolucionario (PNR), and became

9028-527: The Mosquito Coast of Central America. The two strongmen of this early century were Antonio López de Santa Anna in Mexico and Rafael Carrera in Guatemala. Mexico began its revolt against Spain in 1810, gaining independence in 1821. Political divisions in the post-independence period were labeled federalist, seeking a weak central government and often associated with liberalism , and centralist, who sought

SECTION 60

#1732856057164

9176-587: The Mount"), enlisted in the army of Buenos Aires as the Fifth Regiment of Militia. They repulsed invading provincial armies, saving Buenos Aires. At the end of the conflict, Rosas returned to his estancias having acquired prestige for his military service. He was promoted to cavalry colonel and was awarded further landholdings by the government. These additions, together with his successful business and fresh property acquisitions, greatly boosted his wealth. By 1830, he

9324-402: The North in 1915 after Villa had broken with Carranza. Obregón and fellow Sonoran generals Plutarco Elías Calles and Adolfo de la Huerta overthrew Carranza in 1920 under the Plan of Agua Prieta , with the presidency in the 1920s going in turn from de la Huerta, to Obregón, to Calles, and back to Obregón. During Calles's presidency (1924–1928), he stringently enforced the anticlerical laws of

9472-509: The Plata River for more than twenty years. So despotic was his power that Argentine writers have themselves styled this age of their history as 'The Tyranny of Rosas'." In 1961, William Dusenberry said: "Rosas is a negative memory in Argentina. He left behind him the black legend of Argentine history—a legend which Argentines in general wish to forget. There is no monument to him in the entire nation; no park, plaza, or street bears his name." In

9620-459: The Republic". If the constitution put formal limits on presidential power and term limits, caudillos could bend or break the rules to maintain power, a practice dubbed continuismo . Ideologically, caudillos could be either liberal or conservative . Liberalism had an advantage in the post-independence period, drawing on the ideas of the liberators and creating the institutional frameworks of

9768-488: The Spanish Province of Burgos . A military officer with an undistinguished career, León Ortiz had married into a wealthy Criollo family. The young Juan Manuel de Rosas's character was heavily influenced by his mother Agustina, a strong-willed and domineering woman who derived these character traits from her father Clemente López de Osornio , a landowner who died defending his estate from an Indian attack in 1783. As

9916-562: The Unitarians because he saw the Federalist invasion as a menace to Buenos Aires. When the Unitarians sought to appease the Federalists by proposing to grant the other provinces a share in the customs revenues flowing through Buenos Aires, Rosas saw this as a threat to his province's interests. In 1827, four provinces led by Federalist caudillos rebelled against the Unitarian government. Rosas was

10064-572: The Uruguayan government that still held out in Montevideo, as well as to the ambitious Justo José de Urquiza , a caudillo in Entre Ríos who rebelled against Rosas. Once one of Rosas' most trusted lieutenants, Urquiza now claimed to fight for a constitutional government, although his ambition to become head of state was barely disguised. In retaliation, Rosas declared war on Brazil on 18 August 1851, beginning

10212-403: The Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata, owners of large landholdings (including the Rosas family) provided food, equipment and protection for families living in areas under their control. Their private defence forces consisted primarily of labourers who were drafted as soldiers. Most of these peons , as such workers were called, were gauchos . The landed aristocracy of Spanish descent considered

10360-504: The age of 47, he began an affair with his fifteen-year-old maid, María Eugenia Castro, with whom he had five illegitimate children. From his marriage to Encarnación, Rosas had two children: Juan Bautista Pedro and Manuela Robustiana . Rosas established a hereditary dictatorship, naming the children from his marriage as his successors, stating that "[t]hey are both worthy children of my beloved Encarnación, and if, God willing, I die, then you will find that they are capable of succeeding me." It

10508-490: The authoritarian rule of conservatives, backed by the landowning class. Although he never sought the presidency, cabinet minister Diego Portales (1793–1837) is credited with creating a strong, centralized regime that lasted 30 years. In general, Chile prospered with an export-oriented economy based on agriculture and mining, an exception to most of the Spanish-American regimes. In the former Viceroyalty of Río de la Plata , political instability and violence were more typical of

10656-713: The central government. Following the Mexican–American War , regional caudillos such as Juan Álvarez of the state of Guerrero and Santiago Vidaurri of Nuevo León - Coahuila ousted Santa Anna in the Revolution of Ayutla , bringing Liberals to power. Álvarez follows the pattern of the "folk caudillo ", whom historian François Chevalier calls a "good cacique , [who] protected the mainly indigenous and mestizo peasants of Guerrero, who in turn gave him their loyalty". Álvarez briefly served as President of Mexico, returning to his home state, leaving ideological liberals to institute

10804-504: The closer power of the United States. Although elections were held in Mexico at regular intervals, they were by nature not democratic. The huge rural, illiterate, and mostly indigenous populations were more to be feared by the government than as a source for regime support. When Díaz failed to find a political solution to his succession, the Mexican Revolution erupted after the fraudulent 1910 general election . Diaz came to power by

10952-458: The colour. A red waistcoat, red badge and red hat band were required for men, while women wore ribbons in that colour and children donned school uniforms based upon Rosismo paradigms. Building exteriors and interiors were also decorated in red. Most Catholic clergy in Buenos Aires willingly backed Rosas' regime. The Jesuits , the only ones who refused to do so, were expelled from the country. The lower social strata in Buenos Aires, which formed

11100-532: The country, except for its capital Montevideo that endured a long siege starting in 1843. When pressed by the British, Rosas declined to guarantee Uruguayan independence. In South America , all potential foreign threats to Rosas's plans of conquest collapsed, including Gran Colombia and the Peru–Bolivian Confederation , or were troubled by internal turmoil, as was the Empire of Brazil . To reinforce his claims over Uruguay and Paraguay, and maintain his dominance over

11248-403: The coup was completed and cemented his position as president by quashing a counter-coup by Velasco. During his presidency, Belzu instituted several reforms to the country's economy in an effort to redistribute wealth more equitably. He rewarded the work of the poor and dispossessed. Like Paraguay ’s Jose Gaspar Rodriguez de Francia , Belzu chose to enact the aforementioned welfare programs because

11396-425: The destruction of the Spanish colonial state structure after the wars of independence, and in the importance of leaders from the independence struggles for providing government in the post-independence period, when nation-states came into being. Historian John Lynch states that "Before 1810 the caudillo was unknown. … The caudillo entered history as a local hero whom larger events promoted to a military chieftain." In

11544-451: The driving force behind the Federalist takeover of Buenos Aires and the election of Manuel Dorrego as provincial governor that year. Rosas was awarded with the post of general commander of the rural militias of the province of Buenos Aires on 14 July, which increased his influence and power. In December 1828 Juan Lavalle , the Unitarian governor of Buenos Aires had Dorrego seized and executed without trial. With Dorrego gone, Rosas filled

11692-695: The duration of their rule. The early nineteenth century is sometimes called "The Age of Caudillos", with Juan Manuel de Rosas , dictator of Argentina, and his contemporary in Mexico, Antonio López de Santa Anna , dominating national politics. Weak nation-states in Spanish America fostered the continuation of caudillismo from the late nineteenth century into the twentieth century. The formation of Mexico's Institutional Revolutionary Party in 1929 effectively ended caudillismo . Men characterized as caudillos have ruled in Cuba ( Gerardo Machado , Fulgencio Batista , Fidel Castro ), Panama ( Omar Torrijos , Manuel Noriega ),

11840-405: The early stage of a process which later led to the disintegration of Spain's Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata, independence and the eventual formation of Argentina . Rosas, like many landowners in the countryside, was suspicious of a movement advanced primarily by merchants and bureaucrats in the city of Buenos Aires. Rosas was specially outraged by the execution of Viceroy Santiago de Liniers at

11988-418: The end of his first term, Rosas was generally credited with having staved off political and financial instability, but he faced increased opposition in the House of Representatives. All members of the House were Federalists, as Rosas had restored the legislature that had been in place under Dorrego, and which had subsequently been dissolved by Lavalle. A liberal Federalist faction, which accepted dictatorship as

12136-642: The era of La Reforma . During the era of the Mexican Reform and the French intervention in Mexico , there were a number of generals who had regional personal followings. Important figures whose local power had consequences nationally included Mariano Escobedo in San Luis Potosí ; Ramón Corona in Jalisco and Durango ; and Porfirio Díaz in parts of Veracruz, Puebla, and Oaxaca. There were other caudillos whose power

12284-610: The era. In Argentina, Juan Manuel de Rosas (r. 1829–1852) dominated the Argentine confederation. He came from a wealthy landowning family, but also acquired large tracts of land in Buenos Aires Province . Rosas despised "the principles of political democracy and liberty [and] provided order in a region that had known near-anarchy since independence". During his two-decade reign, Rosas rose to power and created an empire. He used his military experience to gain support from gauchos and estancias to create an army that would challenge

12432-431: The exclusion of voters and intimidation of the opposition, the justices of the peace delivered any result Rosas favored. Half of the members of the House of Representatives faced reelection each year, and the opposition to Rosas had quickly been eliminated through rigged elections, allowing him to control the legislature. Control over finances had been stripped from the legislature, and its approval of legislation turned into

12580-663: The former dictator never forgave. A domineering father, Rosas wanted his daughter to remain devoted to him alone. Although he forbade her from writing or visiting, Manuela remained loyal to him and maintained contact. The new Argentine government confiscated all of Rosas' properties and tried him as a criminal, later sentencing him to death. Rosas was appalled that most of his friends, supporters and allies abandoned him and became either silent or openly critical of him. Rosismo vanished overnight. "The landed class, supporters and beneficiaries of Rosas, now had to make their peace—and their profits—with his successors. Survival, not allegiance,

12728-528: The framework of rule in medieval and early modern Spain during the Reconquista from the Moors . Spanish conquistadors such as Hernán Cortés and Francisco Pizarro exhibit characteristics of the caudillo , being successful military leaders, having mutual reliance on the leader and their supporters, and rewarding them for their loyalty. During the colonial era , the Spanish crown asserted its power and established

12876-553: The government I found the government in anarchy, divided into warring factions, reduced to pure chaos, a hell in miniature ..." Rosas' early administration was preoccupied with the severe deficits, large public debts and the impact of currency devaluation which his government inherited. A great drought that began in December 1828, which would last until April 1832, greatly impacted the economy. The Unitarians were still at large, controlling several provinces that had banded together in

13024-574: The government was held, after which the remains of the Argentine ruler were interred in his family vault at La Recoleta Cemetery , Buenos Aires. A week after the repatriation Menem felt able to pardon nearly 300 military personnel convicted of abuses in the Dirty War . Closely allied with neorevisionists, Menem (and his fellow Peronist presidential successors Néstor Kirchner and Cristina Fernández de Kirchner ) have honoured Rosas on banknotes , postage stamps and monuments, causing mixed reactions among

13172-575: The hands of the revolutionaries. Rosas felt nostalgic about colonial times, seeing them as stable, orderly and prosperous. When the Congress of Tucumán severed all remaining ties with Spain in July 1816, Rosas and his peers accepted independence as an accomplished fact. Independence resulted in a breakup of the territories that had formed the Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata. The province of Buenos Aires fought

13320-460: The idea of communalism was more in tune with the traditional values of native populations than the emphasis on private property that other caudillos embraced. Belzu was also known for his nationalization of the country's profitable mining industry – he enacted protectionist policies to reserve Bolivian resources for Bolivian use, provoking the ire of British, Peruvian, and Chilean shipping and mining interests. Many of Belzu's policies won him favor among

13468-404: The ideal of good government would be paternal autocracy, intelligent, disinterested and indefatigable ... I have always admired the autocratic dictators who have been the first servants of their people. That is my great title: I have always sought to serve the country." He used his power to censor his critics and banish his enemies. He later justified these measures, stating: "When I took over

13616-492: The illiterate, mixed-race gauchos, who comprised the majority of the population, to be ungovernable and untrustworthy. The gauchos were tolerated because there was no other labour force available, but were treated with contempt by the landowners. Rosas got along well with the gauchos in his service, despite his harsh, authoritarian temperament. He was known to dress like them, joke with them, take part in their horse-play, and pay them well, but he never allowed them to forget that he

13764-516: The inscription "Federation or Death". Every male was required to have a "federal look", i.e., to sport a large moustache and sideburns, leading many to wear false moustaches. The red colour—symbol of both the Federalist Party and of Rosismo —became omnipresent in the province of Buenos Aires. Soldiers wore red chiripás (blankets worn as trousers), caps and jackets, and their horses sported red accoutrements . Civilians were also required to wear

13912-535: The institutions of the colonial era as legacies to be rejected, but the Roman Catholic Church and traditional values remained strong in many regions, supported by elites seeking to maintain their power in the new order. Conservative caudillos , supported by the Church and elites, moved to the creation of strong, central governments. Although there was the hope of some Spanish American leaders of independence that

14060-433: The interests of regional elites. A local strongman who built a regional base could aspire to become a national caudillo , taking control of the state. In this situation, caudillos could bestow patronage on a large retinue of clients, who in turn gave him their loyalty. In general, caudillos ' power benefited elites. But these strongmen were also mediators between elites and the popular classes, recruiting them into

14208-628: The late 1830s and early 1840s, Rosas faced a series of major threats to his power. The Unitarians found an ally in Andrés de Santa Cruz , the ruler of the Peru–Bolivian Confederation . Rosas declared war against the Peru–Bolivian Confederation on 19 March 1837, joining the War of the Confederation between Chile and Peru–Bolivia. The Rosista army played a minor role in the conflict, which resulted in

14356-540: The late 1840s, but were unable to halt Rosas, whose prestige was greatly enhanced by his string of successes. When the Empire of Brazil began aiding Uruguay in its struggle against Argentina, Rosas declared war in August 1851, starting the Platine War . This short conflict ended with Rosas being defeated and absconding to Britain. His last years were spent in exile living as a tenant farmer until his death in 1877. Rosas garnered an enduring public perception among Argentines as

14504-635: The latter a controversial novel about Simón Bolívar . In 1946, Nobel Prize laureate Miguel Ángel Asturias published El Señor Presidente , based on the life of Manuel Estrada Cabrera (1898–1920), which was translated to English in 1975. In 1974, Augusto Roa Bastos published I, the Supreme based on Francia's life. In Mexico, two fictional caudillos are depicted by Mariano Azuela 's 1916 novel The Underdogs and Carlos Fuentes 's novel The Death of Artemio Cruz . In 1929, Mexican writer Martín Luis Guzmán published his novel La sombra del caudillo ,

14652-449: The leaders of the nation-states they had helped bring into being. In the wake of the violence and political disruption, new nations were faced with widespread property destruction, the disappearance of trade, and states that lacked political authority. The first few decades after independence saw the rise of strongmen with roots in the military. Spanish America had known no other type of regime than monarchy, and Mexico established one under

14800-402: The leadership of Argentina. After his rise to power using the rural workers, he changed his system in favor of using the military. He attempted to impose a ban on imported goods to help and win the support of the artisans in Argentina, but failed. He was forced to lift the ban on certain imports, like textiles, which opened a trade with Great Britain. Through his power over the imports and exports,

14948-474: The link between Rosas and the outside world. The reason for Rosas's increasing isolation was given by a member of his secretariat: "The dictator is not stupid: he knows the people hate him; he goes in constant fear and always has one eye on the chance to rob and abuse them and the other on making a getaway. He has a horse ready saddled at the door of his office day and night". Meanwhile, Brazil, now ascendant under Emperor Dom Pedro II , provided support to

15096-438: The long-downtrodden indigenous peoples of Bolivia, but came at the cost of enraging wealthy Creole Bolivians as well as foreign countries like Britain that sought to use resources from Bolivian mines. Belzu took steps to legitimize his leadership, and was at one point democratically elected. Despite his popularity in many sectors, Belzu had many powerful enemies and he survived 40 assassination attempts. His enemies wanted to destroy

15244-483: The lower orders with contempt. He gives examples of Juan Facundo Quiroga , Martín Güemes, and other Argentine caudillos , most importantly Juan Manuel de Rosas, who were popular and populist caudillos . Burns attributes the urban elites' bafflement and their contempt for followers of these folk caudillos for much of the negative role assigned to caudillos . National caudillos often sought to legitimize their rule by holding titles of authority such as "President of

15392-686: The management of AUFE. 32°52′44″S 60°42′49″W  /  32.87889°S 60.71361°W  / -32.87889; -60.71361 This article about roads and road transport in Argentina is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . This article about a place in Santa Fe Province , Argentina is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Caudillo A caudillo ( / k ɔː ˈ d iː ( l ) j oʊ , k aʊ ˈ -/ kaw- DEE(L) -yoh, kow- , Spanish: [kawˈðiʎo] ; Old Spanish : cabdillo , from Latin capitellum , diminutive of caput "head")

15540-462: The methods of the communal Indian society that existed previously in Paraguay. After independence the state gained control of the land which was once under control of the Church and the Spanish state. Francia created state ranches and rented out land for the use of citizens who were able to pay a fee. Francia's repressive measures included crushing the power of the elite American-born Spaniards and curbing

15688-458: The military, the police, and even the legislative branch of government, Rosas created a monopoly that would ensure his remaining in power for over two decades. By the 1850s, Rosas was under attack by the very people who had helped him gain power. He was driven out of power and eventually ended up in Great Britain, where he died in 1877. Uruguay attained independence from Brazil and Argentina and

15836-428: The new nation-states via written constitutions. Free trade as an economic policy created market-oriented economies. The model that these nation-states often adopted was federalism , keeping power in the component regions. Federalism, however, tended toward centrifugalism and fragmentation and was characterized by weak central governments. Conservative caudillos also emerged around 1830. New nation-states often rejected

15984-536: The northern portion of the Viceroyalty, while its southern territories coalesced into the United Provinces of the Río de la Plata. Rosas planned to restore, if not all, at least a considerable part of the former borders of the old Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata. He never recognized the independence of Paraguay and regarded it a rebel Argentine province that would inevitably be reconquered. He sent an army under Manuel Oribe who invaded Uruguay and conquered most of

16132-462: The opposition and anyone else he deemed a threat that historians have considered state terrorism . Terror was a tool used to intimidate dissident voices, to shore up support among his own partisans and to exterminate his foes. His targets were denounced, sometimes inaccurately, as having ties to Unitarians. Those victimised included members of his government and party who were suspected of being insufficiently loyal. If actual opponents were not at hand,

16280-413: The other Argentine provinces in the early 1840s turned them into satellites of Buenos Aires. He gradually put in place provincial governors who were either allied or too weak to have real independence, which allowed him to exercise dominance over all the provinces. By 1848, Rosas began calling his government the "government of the confederacy" and the "general government", which would have been inconceivable

16428-488: The overthrow of Santa Cruz and the dissolution of the Peru–Bolivian Confederation. On 28 March 1838, France declared a blockade of the Port of Buenos Aires , eager to extend its influence over the region. Unable to confront the French, Rosas increased internal repression to forestall potential uprisings against his regime. The blockade caused severe damage to the economy across all the provinces, as they exported their goods through

16576-523: The people. His portraits were carried in street demonstrations and placed on church altars to be venerated. Rosismo was no longer a mere faction within the Federalist ranks; it had become a political movement. As early as 1829, Rosas had confided to an Uruguayan diplomatic envoy: "I tell you I am not a Federalist, and I have never belonged to that party." During his governorship, he still claimed to have favoured Federalism against Unitarianism, although in practice Federalism had by that time been subsumed into

16724-404: The pliant House of Representatives predictably declined, claiming that maintaining him in office was vital for the nation's welfare. Rosas also allowed exiled Argentines to return to their homeland, but only because he was so confident of his control and that no one was willing to risk defying him. The execution in August 1848 of the pregnant Camila O'Gorman , charged with a forbidden romance with

16872-406: The political contours of regions would reconstitute the former viceroyalties , but with local autonomy. The Roman Catholic Church as an institution remained strong and the militaries won victories against royalist forces. The state as an institution in most areas was weak. Conflicts over the form the new governments should take were rampant, and veterans of the wars of independence saw themselves as

17020-436: The political left for opposing slavery and distrust of the U.S. and the right, which admires his authoritarianism . Veterans of the wars of independence assumed the leadership of the newly created nation-states, each with a new constitution. Despite constitutions and ideological labels of liberals and conservatives, personalist and opportunistic leaders dominated the early nineteenth century. As with Mexico and Central America,

17168-524: The political turmoil and penury of the governments of the Bolivarian republics prevented foreign investors from risking their capital there. One caudillo who was progressive for his time was Bolivia ’s Manuel Isidoro Belzu , who served as the fourteenth president from 1848 until 1855. The former president, Jose Miguel de Velasco , executed a coup for the presidency in 1848, promising the position of Minister of War to Belzu. Belzu seized power for himself once

17316-410: The port of Buenos Aires. Despite the 1831 Federal Pact , all provinces had long been discontent with the de facto primacy that Buenos Aires province held over them. On 28 February 1839, the province of Corrientes revolted and attacked both Buenos Aires and Entre Ríos provinces. Rosas counterattacked and defeated the rebels, killing their leader, the governor of Corrientes. In June, Rosas uncovered

17464-440: The power base on which Rosas relied. Lynch said that there "was a great deal of group cohesion and solidarity among the landed class. Rosas was the center of a vast kinship group based on land. He was surrounded by a closely knit economic and political network linking deputies, law officers, officials, and military who were also landowners and related among themselves or with Rosas." Rosas's authority and influence spread far beyond

17612-406: The power base, but also restraining them from achieving power themselves. There were a few strongmen who either rose from a humble background to protect the interests of indigenous groups or other rural marginalized groups, or strongly identified with those groups; historian E. Bradford Burns referred to them as "folk caudillos ,". In his analysis, they contrasted with Europeanized elites who viewed

17760-471: The power of the Roman Catholic Church. Francia allowed for religious freedom and abolished the tithe. He actively encouraged miscegenation. He has been a controversial figure in Hispanic American history: many modern historians credit him with bringing stability to Paraguay, preserving independence, and "bequeathing to his successors an egalitarian, homogeneous nation". However, because of his crackdown on

17908-499: The presidency in 1861, but he was gunned down by one of his rivals by the time he tried to run for presidency again. He was unable to leave a legacy and his populist programs died with him. After Bolivia's independence, Bolivia lost half of its territory to neighboring countries including Argentina, Chile, Peru, and Brazil through the war and agreements reached under the threat of invasion. In contrast to most of Spanish America, post-independence Chile experienced political stability under

18056-541: The presidency in 1911. Pancho Villa also helped oust Díaz, supported Madero, and following his murder in 1913, became a general in the Constitutionalist Army commanded by civilian Venustiano Carranza . Emiliano Zapata , peasant leader from the state of Morelos, opposed to Díaz and every subsequent Mexican government until his murder in 1919 by Carranza's agents. Álvaro Obregón emerged as another brilliant general from northern Mexico, defeating Villa's Division of

18204-442: The provincial governor Juan Ramón Balcarce to resign. In quick succession, Balcarce was followed by two others who presided over weak and ineffective governments. The Rosismo (Rosism) had become a powerful faction within the Federalist Party, and pressured other factions to accept a return of Rosas, endowed with dictatorial powers, as the only way to restore stability. The House of Representatives yielded, and on 7 March 1835, Rosas

18352-499: The regime found other targets that were punished to make an example. A climate of fear was used to create unquestioning conformity to Rosas' dictates. State terrorism was carried out by the Mazorca , an armed parapolice unit of the Sociedad Popular Restauradora political organization. The Sociedad Popular Restauradora and the Mazorca were creations of Rosas, who retained tight control over both. The tactics of

18500-519: The revisionists had a "lack of interest in scholarly standards" and were known for "their institutional marginality in the intellectual field". They also never succeeded in changing mainstream views regarding Rosas. William Spence Robertson said in 1930: "Among the enigmatical personages of the 'Age of Dictators' in South America none played a more spectacular role than the Argentine dictator, Juan Manuel de Rosas, whose gigantic and ominous figure bestrode

18648-550: The security of foreign investments, facilitate extraction of resources, and production of agricultural crops and animals were the necessary structures. Industrialization also took hold in a few countries (Mexico, Argentina, Colombia) to produce consumer goods locally. In general, foreign governments and entrepreneurs had no interest in directly administering countries of Hispanic America in a formal colonial arrangement so long as their interests could be nurtured by modernizing national governments, often seen as neocolonialism . There are

18796-417: The situation and possibly obtain control over the former Misiones Orientales territory. He exercised complete control over all aspects of society with the solid backing of the army. Rosas was raised from colonel to brigadier general (the highest army rank) on 18 December 1829. On 12 November 1840 he declined the newly created and higher rank of grand marshal ( gran mariscal ), which had been bestowed on him by

18944-399: The state-run projects that helped nationalist program but likewise improved the public sphere on which the country's poor were reliant. However, the despotism that is so rife among the caudillos also found a home with Belzu – from the early 1850s until his abdication of power in 1855, he is said to have ruled despotically, making himself very wealthy in the process. Belzu considered returning to

19092-451: The time, the place, and his own bias limited the choice of authors. He appears to have had a sympathetic, if superficial, acquaintance with minor political thinkers of French absolutism ." In 1806, a British expeditionary force invaded Buenos Aires . A 13-year-old Rosas served in distributing ammunition to troops in a force organised by Viceroy Santiago Liniers to counter the invasion. The British were defeated in August 1806, but returned

19240-416: The two most powerful nations on Earth; his standing, and Argentina's, increased among Hispanic American nations. The Venezuelan humanist Andrés Bello , summarizing the prevailing opinion, considered Rosas among "the leading ranks of the great men of America". Although his prestige was on the rise, Rosas made no serious attempts to further liberalise his regime. Every year he presented his resignation and

19388-549: The vacant Federalist leadership and rebelled against the Unitarians. He allied with Estanislao López , caudillo and ruler of Santa Fe Province , and they defeated Lavalle at the Battle of Márquez Bridge in April 1829. When Rosas entered the city of Buenos Aires in November of that year, he was hailed both as a victorious military leader and as the head of the Federalists. Rosas was considered

19536-418: The vast majority of its populace, experienced no improvement in the conditions under which they lived. When Rosas slashed expenditures, he cut resources from education, social services, general welfare and public works. None of the lands confiscated from Indians and Unitarians were turned over to rural workers, including gauchos. Black people did not experience any improvement in their conditions either. Rosas

19684-439: The wealthy elite and the subsequent weakening of their power, he was accused of anti-clericalism. Nevertheless, Paraguay prospered under Francia in terms of economics and trade through a trade route with Buenos Aires, which was opposed by the wealthy Argentinian elites. "Sometimes counted among the dictators of the era, contemporary history has viewed Francia as an honest, populist leader who promoted sovereign economic prosperity in

19832-468: The weight of a continuous round of civil wars, rebellions and coups. The Unitarian–Federalist struggle brought perennial instability while caudillos fought for power and laid waste to the countryside. By 1826, Rosas had built a power base, consisting of relatives, friends and clients, and joined the Federalist Party. He remained a strong advocate of his native province of Buenos Aires, with little concern for political ideology. In 1820, Rosas fought alongside

19980-410: Was a slave-owner, and helped revive the slave trade . Despite doing little to promote their interests, he remained popular among blacks and gauchos. He employed blacks, patronized their festivities and attended their candombles . The gauchos admired his leadership and willingness to fraternize with them to some extent. In addition to purges, banishments and censorship, Rosas took measures against

20128-399: Was common practice at the time, Rosas was schooled at home until the age of eight, and then enrolled in what was regarded the best private school in Buenos Aires. Though befitting the son of a wealthy landowner, his education was unremarkable. According to historian John Lynch, Rosas' education "was supplemented by his own efforts in the years that followed. Rosas was not entirely unread, though

20276-570: Was elected governor for the first time in 1829, he held no power outside the province of Buenos Aires. There was no national government or national parliament. The former Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata had been succeeded by the United Provinces of the Río de la Plata , which by 1831, following the Federal Pact and officially from 22 May 1835, had increasingly been known as the Argentine Confederation , or simply, Argentina. Rosas's victory over

20424-859: Was more local but still important, including Gerónimo Treviño and Francisco Narajo in Nuevo León, Servando Canales and Juan Cortina in Tamaulipas , Florencio Antillón in Guanajuato, Ignacio Pesqueira in Sonora , Luis Terrazas in Chihuahua , and Manuel Lozada in Tepic . Following the defeat of the French in 1867, the government of Benito Juárez and his successor following his death, Sebastián Lerdo de Tejada , faced opponents who objected to their increasingly Centralist administrations. Those opponents gravitated to supporting Díaz,

20572-626: Was not destitute, but he lived modestly amid financial constraints during the remainder of his life. A very few loyal friends sent him money, but it was never enough. He sold one of his estancias before the confiscation and became a tenant farmer in Swaythling , near Southampton . He employed a housekeeper and two to four labourers, to whom he paid above-average wages. Despite constant concern over his shortage of funds, Rosas found joy in farm life, once remarking: "I now consider myself happy on this farm, living in modest circumstances as you see, earning

20720-516: Was only defeated in 1847. Terrorism was also employed on the battlefield, as the Rosistas refused to take prisoners. The defeated men had their throats cut and their heads put on display. Around 1845, Rosas managed to establish absolute dominance over the region. His subordinates dominated all of Uruguay, with the exception of Montevideo. He offered help to the separatists of Ragamuffin War in order to seize

20868-555: Was reelected governor and invested with the suma del poder público ( sum of public power ). A plebiscite was held to determine whether the citizens of Buenos Aires supported Rosas's reelection and resumption of dictatorial powers. During his governorship from 1829 to 1832, Rosas had reduced the election process to a farce. He had installed loyal associates as justices of the peace, powerful officeholders with administrative and judicial functions who were also charged with tax collection, leading militia and presiding over elections. Through

21016-422: Was ruled by Fructuoso Rivera . In Paraguay, José Gaspar Rodríguez de Francia (r. 1814–1840) was Supreme Dictator of the Republic, maintaining the landlocked country's independence from Argentina and other foreign powers. Sealed off from outside trade, Paraguay developed economic self-sufficiency under Francia. He based society on communal properties, rather than centralized authoritarianism, attempting to revert to

21164-429: Was the 10th largest landowner in the province of Buenos Aires (in which the city of the same name was located), owning 300,000 cattle and 420,000 acres (170,000 ha) of land. With his newly gained influence, military background, vast landholdings and a private army of gauchos loyal only to him, Rosas became the quintessential caudillo , as provincial warlords in the region were known. National unity crumbled under

21312-466: Was their master rather than their equal. Shaped by the colonial society in which he lived, Rosas was conservative, an advocate of hierarchy and authority, like the other great landowners in the region. Rosas acquired a working knowledge of administering ranch lands and, beginning in 1811, took charge of his family's estancias . In 1813, he married Encarnación Ezcurra , daughter of a wealthy family from Buenos Aires. Soon afterwards, he sought to establish

21460-406: Was their politics", argued Lynch. Urquiza, a one-time ally and later an enemy, reconciled with Rosas and sent him financial assistance, hoping for political support in return—although Rosas had scant political capital left. Rosas followed Argentina's developments while in exile, always hoping for an opportunity to return, but he never again insinuated himself into Argentine affairs. In exile Rosas

21608-473: Was to establish a national dictatorship. For the Nacionalismo movement, Rosas and his regime were idealized and portrayed as paragons of governmental virtue. Revisionismo served as a useful tool, as the main purpose of the revisionists within the Nacionalismo agenda was to rehabilitate Rosas's image. Despite a decades-long struggle, Revisionismo failed to be taken seriously. According to Michael Goebel,

21756-489: Was used against specific targets, rather than randomly. Terrorism was orchestrated rather than a product of popular zeal, was targeted for effect rather than indiscriminate. Anarchic demonstrations, vigilantism and disorderliness were antithetical to a regime touting a law and order agenda. Foreigners were exempted from abuses, as were people too poor or inconsequential to serve as effective examples. Victims were selected for their usefulness as tools of intimidation. Throughout

21904-670: Was “order and progress”, which was enforced by armed men controlled by the president, the Rurales . Díaz was averse to being dependent on the Mexican army, since as a general and leader of a coup d'état himself, he knew their potential for intervening in national politics. Díaz coopted or crushed regional opposition to his regime, creating a political machine to forward his vision of modern Mexico. Desirous of economic development that necessitated foreign investment, Díaz sought capital and expertise from European powers (Britain, France, and Germany) to offset

#163836