Freemen of the South
A mixture of disgruntled ranchers and Unitarian revolutionaries, the Freemen briefly took control of Dolores, Chascomús and Tandil, and expected to join forces with General Juan Lavalle, who was to lead an army from Uruguay.Rosas drew political support largely from the army and the cattle ranchers, whose interests were well served by his government's economic focus on agricultural exports.However, Rosas' conflict with France in the War of the Confederation changed the economic and social conditions in Buenos Aires Province when the French navy blockaded the Río de la Plata beginning in 1838.The large landowners made almost all of their sales directly or indirectly to the foreign market; when trade was interrupted, the commercialization of their products became very difficult and prices fell rapidly.However, the ranchers who joined the opposition (especially in the southern part of the province, Rosas's power base before his return to government in 1835) did so only after the blockade, when their export income collapsed, and they were obliged to pay large sums for previously leased land or even dispossessed entirely.In the north of the province, however, most of the estates were fully owned by their occupants, and emphyteusis only affected a few ranchers; furthermore, cattle producers in that area were able to sell their goods in the ports of the River Paraná, accessing some regional markets.By the end of the day, the call was answered by 170 armed townspeople, who were exhorted by Rico to throw off the tyranny of Governor Rosas and support the southern uprising.The army of the so-called "Libres del Sur" was encamped on the shores of Laguna de Chascomús when, in the early hours of November 11, news arrived that the forces of Granada had entered the village.Instead, Granada attacked them with all his force, disorganizing the camp; however, the revolutionaries responded quickly, and Prudencio Rosas fled the battlefield, reaching the nearby town of Ranchos, from where he wrote to his brother that the battle was lost.Some conspirators who had not participated in the uprising, including the Governor's other brother, Gervasio Rosas, gave notice to the French blockade squadron, which approached the coast and embarked the fugitives.The revolution was supported by revolutionary general Eustoquio Díaz Vélez, the most important rancher and local landowner, who added his gauchos and countrymen to the revolt.The government forces and their allies immediately assaulted Tandil, destroying the town completely; out of six hundred people who lived there, only two dozen were left by the end.
Freemen of the South MovementArgentine Civil WarsBuenos Aires ProvinceArgentinaUnitarianFederalistJuan LavalleJuan Manuel de RosasSpanishDoloresChascomúsTandilUruguayFrench blockade of the Río de la PlataHistory of ArgentinaPre-ColumbianIndigenous peoples in ArgentinaInca EmpireColonial ArgentinaGovernorate of New AndalusiaGovernorate of the Río de la PlataRoyal Audiencia of Buenos AiresViceroyalty of the Río de la PlataIndependenceMay RevolutionWar of IndependenceUnited Provinces of the Río de la PlataCongress of TucumánCivil WarsBernardino RivadaviaConfederationAnglo-French blockade of the Río de la PlataRise of Argentine Republic1853 ConstitutionBritish investment in ArgentinaConquest of the DesertGeneration of '80Radical Phase (1916–30)The Infamous DecadePeronismJuan PerónEva PerónGeneral Confederation of LabourRevolución LibertadoraArturo Frondizi1963 Argentine Navy revoltArturo Umberto IlliaArgentine RevolutionMontonerosNational Reorganization ProcessDirty WarFalklands War(Guerra de las Malvinas)Return to democracyTrial of the JuntasRaúl AlfonsínDecember 2001 riotsKirchnerismCorruptionEconomyEtymologyJewish ArgentinesMilitaryNationalityPostalRail transportScience and technologyTimelineYears in ArgentinaFederalistscattle ranchersexportsFranceWar of the Confederationblockaded the Río de la Platapublic landsemphyteusisSalado RiverMazorcaMontevideoFructuoso RiveraManuel OribeMartín García IslandManuel Vicente MazaRiver ParanáGeneral LavalleBenjamin Franklin Rawsonfiring squadEntre Ríos ProvincePascual EchagüeManuel HornosGualeguaychúLezamaJuan José CastelligauchosGeneral Archive of ArgentinaTapalquéRanchosSamborombón BayCorrientesEustoquio Díaz Vélezpartidos Sosa de Newton, LilyArgentine Civil Wars (1814–76)José Gervasio ArtigasMariano VeraEstanislao LópezFrancisco RamírezJuan Bautista BustosManuel DorregoFacundo QuirogaAlejandro HerediaJusto José de UrquizaRicardo López JordánChacho PeñalozaUnitariansCarlos María de AlvearJuan Martín de PueyrredónJosé RondeauJosé María PazJuan Esteban PederneraGregorio Aráoz de LamadridPedro FerréDomingo Faustino SarmientoCepeda (1820)San Roque (1829)Márquez Bridge (1829)