Uruguayan Civil War

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The Uruguayan Civil War , also known as the Guerra Grande (Great War) in Latin America , was a military conflict from 1839 to 1851 over political leadership in Uruguay . The Colorados ("reds"), supported by Brazil , France and the United Kingdom , and the Blancos ("whites"), supported by Argentina , faced each other.

prehistory

In the 1830s, the political landscape of Uruguay became polarized between the urban Partido Colorado under the leadership of Fructuoso Rivera , which advocated economic liberalism, and the rural Partido Nacional under the leadership of Manuel Oribe , which tended to protectism . Because France was looking for allies against Argentina as part of the Confederate War , it helped the Colorados overthrow the Uruguayan President Manuel Oribe, who was benevolent towards Argentina, and replace him with Fructuoso Rivera. The Argentine dictator Juan Manuel de Rosas did not want to accept the removal of Oribes, which is why the supporters of Rivera planned an attack on Buenos Aires .

course

On December 6, 1842, Los Blancos defeated Rivera's forces at the Battle of Arroyo Grande. The capital, Montevideo , was besieged by Oribes' troops, but remained the seat of government of the Colorados . Oribe built a counter-government in Cerrito de la Victoria that controlled most of the rest of the country. With the support of the British and French navies, Montevideo was able to withstand the siege for nine years. When the British and French abandoned their engagement in 1850 and signed an agreement with de Rosas, Blancos' victory seemed certain. An uprising against de Rosas led by Justo José de Urquiza changed the situation suddenly. Oribe and his followers were forced to withdraw in 1851, and the Colorados gained complete control of Uruguay with Brazilian support.

consequences

The La Plata War of 1851/1852 was a direct consequence of the Uruguayan Civil War. The armies of Brazil (led by General Luís Alves de Lima e Silva ) and Uruguay, together with the rebellious troops of Urquiza, took action against the supporters of de Rosas and Oribes.

literature

In order of appearance.

  • José Salgado: Guerra grande 1845-1846 (= Historia de la Republica oriental del Uruguay , vol. 8). Talleres Graficos, Montevideo 1943 (Spanish).
  • Juan E. Pivel Devoto, Alcira Ranieri de Pivel Devoto: Rivera, Oribe y los origines de la Guerra Grande . Medina, Montevideo 1971 (Spanish).
  • Juan E. Pivel Devoto, Alcira Ranieri de Pivel Devoto: La Guerra Grande: 1839-1851 . Medina, Montevideo 1971 (Spanish).
  • Nilton Freixinho: International Relations in South America Nineteenth Century. A Case Study: The Independence and Sovereignty of Uruguay . In: Maintien de la paix de 1815 à aujourd'hui. Actes du XXIe colloque de la Commission Internationale d'Histoire Militaire . Department of National Defense, Ottawa 1995, ISBN 0-662-62062-3 , pp. 612-619 (English).
  • David Rock, Fernando López-Alves: State-Building and Political Systems in Nineteenth-Century Argentina and Uruguay . In: Past and Present , No. 167, May 2000 (English).
  • Mercedes Terra: Montevideo durante la Guerra grande. Formas de vida, convivencia y relacimientos . Byblos, Montevideo 2007, ISBN 978-9974-7968-3-6 (Spanish).

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Nilton Freixinho: International Relations in South America Nineteenth Century. A Case Study: The Independence and Sovereignty of Uruguay . In: Maintien de la paix de 1815 à aujourd'hui. Actes du XXIe colloque de la Commission Internationale d'Histoire Militaire . Department of National Defense, Ottawa 1995, pp. 612-619, here pp. 617-618 (English).