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| Provincias Unidas del Río de la Plata | |
|---|---|
| Native name | Provincias Unidas del Río de la Plata |
| Conventional long name | Provincias Unidas del Río de la Plata |
| Common name | Río de la Plata |
| Era | Napoleonic Wars |
| Status | Unrecognized state (contested) |
| Government type | Federal confederation (contested) |
| Event start | May Revolution |
| Date start | 25 May 1810 |
| Event end | Argentine Confederation formation |
| Date end | 1831 |
| Capital | Buenos Aires |
| Common languages | Spanish language |
| Currency | Real |
Provincias Unidas del Río de la Plata was the name adopted by the territories that emerged after the Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata's colonial government collapsed during the Peninsular War and the May Revolution. Its formation involved actors from Buenos Aires, Montevideo, Córdoba (Argentina), Salta, Mendoza, Tucumán and other provinces, and intersected with events such as the English invasions of the River Plate and the Napoleonic invasion of Spain. The polity navigated internal conflicts among leaders like Manuel Belgrano, José de San Martín, Mariano Moreno, and Cornelio Saavedra while confronting external powers including Spanish Empire, British Empire, and Portuguese Empire.
The collapse of the Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata followed the capture of Ferdinand VII of Spain during the Peninsular War and inspired local juntas across Spanish America such as the Junta of Seville and the Junta of Caracas. Political currents from the Enlightenment and the influence of figures like Cornelio Saavedra and Mariano Moreno shaped responses alongside military episodes including the British invasions of the River Plate and the defense of Montevideo. The fall of the Bourbon monarchy in Spain precipitated debates between royalist and patriot factions, with newspapers like La Gazeta de Buenos Ayres circulating ideas from the French Revolution and the American Revolution to local elites in Buenos Aires and intendancies such as Charcas and Córdoba.
Early autonomy moves included the establishment of the Primera Junta after 25 May 1810 and later the Junta Grande, while the Congress of Tucumán in 1816 formally declared independence from the Spanish Empire on 9 July 1816, with delegates from provinces including Salta, Jujuy, Catamarca, and Santiago del Estero. Leaders such as Juan Martín de Pueyrredón, Antonio González Balcarce, and Francisco Narciso de Laprida played roles in the delegation system that negotiated declarations alongside military campaigns led by José de San Martín and Manuel Belgrano. International reactions involved missions by envoys to United States, United Kingdom, and negotiations touching on the Portuguese conquest of the Banda Oriental and the status of Banda Oriental territories like Banda Oriental and Montevideo.
Governance evolved through institutions such as the Primera Junta, the Junta Grande, the First Triumvirate, the Second Triumvirate, and the Supreme Directorship under figures like Gervasio Antonio de Posadas and Carlos María de Alvear. Federalist and centralist tensions involved provincial caudillos including Juan Manuel de Rosas, Facundo Quiroga, and Estanislao López opposing porteño elites like Baltasar Hidalgo de Cisneros and Bernardino Rivadavia. The Constituent Assembly of 1813 and later the Congress of Tucumán debated constitutions, legislative powers, and provincial representation while contending with institutions such as the Cabildo and the Municipality of Buenos Aires.
Military contestation featured campaigns and battles including the Battle of Suipacha, the Battle of Tucumán, the Battle of Salta, and the Siege of Montevideo. The liberationist strategies of José de San Martín involved the Army of the Andes and the Campaign of Chile, linking operations to the Battle of Maipú and alliances with figures like Bernardo O'Higgins and Simón Bolívar in the broader Spanish American wars of independence. Diplomatic and military pressure also came from the Portuguese invasion of the Banda Oriental, the Luso-Brazilian occupation of Uruguay, and British naval interests represented by officers like William Brown who commanded the Argentine Navy in engagements such as the Battle of Martín García. Negotiations and treaties such as the Treaty of Pilar and the Quadrilateral Treaty attempted settlements among provincial leaders.
Economic life revolved around trade through Buenos Aires Port, customs revenue disputes involving porteño merchants and interior provinces like Córdoba, agrarian elites in Pampa, and cattle ranching on estancias connected to families like the Liniers family and markets in Montevideo. Fiscal policies debated by statesmen such as Martín Rodríguez and Carlos María de Alvear sought to reconcile revenue from Atlantic trade with provincial needs. Social transformations included the roles of criollos, peninsulares, mestizos, and indigenous peoples in uprisings and militias, the impact of leaders like Mariano Moreno on political clubs such as the Sociedad Patriótica, and cultural expressions in publications like La Gazeta de Buenos Ayres and artistic currents linked to José de San Martín's military iconography.
The fragmentation into rival provincial confederations culminated in constitutional and military struggles that led to the rise of figures like Juan Manuel de Rosas and the eventual organization of the Argentine Confederation and the State of Buenos Aires secession later in the 19th century. Legacy elements include legal and symbolic continuities preserved in the Flag of Argentina and national commemorations such as 25 de Mayo (holiday), military traditions from campaigns of José de San Martín, historiography by authors like Bartolomé Mitre and Domingo Faustino Sarmiento, and diplomatic precedents affecting Uruguay and Paraguay state formation including links to the Congress of Tucumán and the Treaty of Montevideo (1828). The period remains central to interpretations by scholars engaging with the History of Argentina, regional identities across the Río de la Plata Basin, and the wider processes of Spanish American wars of independence.