Overview Avellaneda attained the presidency in 1874. Aged 37, he was the youngest Argentine president ever elected. He had its legitimacy contested by
Bartolomé Mitre and supported by
Domingo Faustino Sarmiento. Mitre deployed the army against Avellaneda but was defeated by
Julio Argentino Roca. Mitre was held prisoner and judged by military justice, but Avellaneda indulged him in order to promote pacification. He also included
Rufino de Elizalde and José María Gutiérrez, supporters of Mitre, as members of his cabinet. In line with people like
Alberdi or Sarmiento, who thought that European immigration was crucial to the Argentine development, he promoted the "Avellaneda law" that allowed European farmers ease to get terrains. The immigration numbers were doubled in a few years. He was the first civilian president, not belonging to any of the armed forces. As Sarmiento told him when handing over the presidential sash, "You are the first president who does not know how to use a pistol." Having won in the
Revolution of 1874 and bringing peace to the country, Avellaneda faced a serious economic crisis, centering his efforts on the control of the land with the
Conquest of the Desert and expanding the railroads, the cereal and meat exports, and the European immigration, specially to
Patagonia. During his presidency, the
economy of Argentina was seriously affected by the
European crisis putting the country on the edge of debt default. Deciding to take Argentina from its debts, he said that "[...]there are two million Argentines who would economize even to their hunger and thirst to fulfill the promises of our public commitments in the foreign markets". Finally, after unsuccessfully seeking other solutions, the president opted for a massive reduction in
public spending, dismissing 6,000 public employees and cutting salaries by 15%. In a well-known speech, he declared that Not everyone agreed with that solution. There was a faction within autonomism—prominently including
Dardo Rocha,
Miguel Cané,
Carlos Pellegrini and
Vicente Fidel López—that, during successive parliamentary debates throughout 1875, proposed some form of
protectionism to promote industrialization so that the country would cease depending on exports of primary products and imports of manufactured goods. After a period in which these proposals received some support in the press, they were eventually set aside as the crisis was gradually resolved. That solution was only partly due to government austerity: it was the rise in wool prices that reversed the trade deficit. As soon as it became clear that the country was emerging from the crisis, the president proposed an Immigration and Colonization Law—the
Avellaneda Law—which actively promoted immigration, previously a chaotic process. Under the law, immigrants were guaranteed accommodation at the port of arrival and at the point inland where they chose to settle, and were assisted in obtaining their first job. There was a new rise in the number of immigrants, who settled in agricultural colonies in Santa Fe, Entre Ríos and Córdoba—and even a few in Buenos Aires—in greater proportion than before. In 1875 the first Buenos Aires Rural Exhibition was inaugurated, organized by the
Argentine Rural Society, and it has continued to be held annually ever since. In December 1876 the first refrigerated ship arrived in the country,
Le Frigorifique, equipped with two chambers that maintained a temperature of 0 degrees Celsius. This significantly changed the outlook for Argentine exports, increased the value of cattle, and made possible the first shipment of frozen meat to Europe, followed the next year by the first grain exports. These activities would gradually grow until they became the two most important sectors of Argentine exports from the 1890s onward. As a consequence of—and also a necessary condition for—that agricultural expansion, the extension of the railway network received a major boost during Avellaneda's government, reaching 2,516 kilometres by the end of his term, equivalent to an 89% increase in six years. The president himself inaugurated the line of the trans-Andean railway to
San Miguel de Tucumán—begun during Sarmiento's presidency—and the two railways of Buenos Aires Province, the Western and the Southern, were extended. The branch line intended to reach Chile was also extended, reaching
Villa Mercedes in San Luis.
Conciliation of the parties When he assumed the presidency of Argentina, Avellaneda appointed a cabinet made up of four
provincianos and one
Porteño, Adolfo Alsina, who served as Minister of War. In 1875, a mob of
anticlericals and
Freemasons looted and burned the Church of the Salvador, belonging to the
Jesuits. It was a violent manifestation of growing anticlericalism among the upper social classes, partly provoked by the president's well-known
Catholicism. Also at the beginning of that year, gubernatorial elections were held in Buenos Aires, in which the Mitrists refused to participate. Instead, two sectors of autonomism confronted each other: one, backed by the president, put forward
Carlos Casares, an
estanciero inclined toward rapprochement with the Mitrists, who defeated the more radical sector, represented by
Dardo Rocha,
Aristóbulo del Valle and
Leandro N. Alem. However, the death of Minister Alsina in January 1878 initiated the estrangement of the two parties. The president's intervention in favor of the governor of La Rioja—midway through that year—caused Laspiur's resignation, and the other Mitrists withdrew alongside him. Seeking to broaden his support, the president turned to Sarmiento, who successively served as Minister of the Interior and Minister of Foreign Affairs, but he eventually decided to rely exclusively on his own party and on the League of Governors; this officially became the
National Autonomist Party. For his part, Mitre announced the official creation of the Nationalist Party. General Gainza and Governor Tejedor joined the Nationalist Party.
Conquest of the Desert In 1867,
Law 215 had been promulgated, ordering the national government to expand the southern frontier as far as the
Río Negro; it could not be implemented because of the
Paraguayan War. The offensive against the
indigenous peoples had to wait until 1872; when signs appeared that attacks on their
tolderías were being planned, the principal
cacique Calfucurá ordered the largest
malón in history, which—in March of that year—attacked and looted much of central
Buenos Aires Province. A rapid response by General
Ignacio Rivas, with support from
Ranquel allies, allowed a complete victory in the
Battle of San Carlos de Bolívar. From then on, aided by Calfucurá's death, the national government began a series of frontier advances, especially in western Buenos Aires. At the beginning of 1876, the caciques
Juan José Catriel and
Manuel Namuncurá—Calfucurá's son and successor—launched another major malón on the south of Buenos Aires Province. Minister Alsina then launched an aggressive campaign to occupy the west of the province: throughout 1876 he advanced with five parallel columns against the principal indigenous forward settlements, occupying them. To prevent further incursions, he ordered the construction of the so-called
Zanja de Alsina: a line of
fortines linked by a trench 3.50 metres wide and 2.60 metres deep, which served as a boundary for unconquered territories over 374 km between
Italó—in southern Córdoba—and
Nueva Roma, a short distance from
Bahía Blanca. Without realizing it, by taking the western lagoons Alsina destroyed the foundations of indigenous prosperity, since the occupied lagoons were used to keep their horses fed and to fatten the cattle driven off in malones; on the other hand, in those years the indigenous population was struck by a
smallpox epidemic that cost thousands of lives. After Alsina's death, Avellaneda appointed General Julio Argentino Roca as his replacement, which heightened the perception of danger and justified the harsh measures proposed by Roca. On the basis of that premise, he proposed a bill to occupy all indigenous territory as far as the Negro and
Neuquén rivers within two years. The law was passed on 4 October 1878, granting 1,700,000 pesos to the project, when the plan was already underway. Throughout 1878, successive offensives were launched against indigenous positions, causing hundreds of casualties among Namuncurá's forces and the capture of the feared Ranquel caciques
Pincén, Catriel, and
Epumer. Some 4,000 indigenous people—mostly women and children—were captured in these campaigns. In addition, the malones left a significant toll of kidnappings, with numerous settlers, especially women and children, taken captive by indigenous groups. The attacks resulted in the deaths of many citizens, defenders, and
Tehuelches living peacefully in Patagonia, although exact figures vary by source. As for cattle theft, it is estimated that thousands of head were stolen during these raids, with each malón taking between 40,000 and 200,000 head of cattle. On 11 October 1878, by means of Law 954, the
Governorate of Patagonia was created, with its seat at Mercedes de Patagones, now
Viedma, and Colonel
Álvaro Barros as its first governor; its jurisdiction extended as far as
Cape Horn. In April 1879 the final attack was launched: five divisions totaling 6,000 men—including 820 allied indigenous troops—advanced in a fan formation toward the Negro River; Minister Roca celebrated on 25 May on
Choele Choel Island. According to the Report presented by the Minister of War, 1,313 spear-bearing Indians were killed and 1,271 taken prisoner; five principal caciques were taken prisoner and one was killed; 10,513
de chusma Indians—women and children—were taken prisoner, and another 1,049 were reduced.
Revolution of 1880 After the failure of the Conciliation, the Nationalists promoted Tejedor's presidential candidacy, which had the backing of Buenos Aires and some provincial support. After Alsina's death—the natural candidate of the autonomists—the only sufficiently prestigious figure in that party was General Roca, who was proposed as a candidate by his brother-in-law, Córdoba governor
Miguel Juárez Celman, and in Buenos Aires by the physician
Eduardo Wilde; he soon obtained the support of most of the governors. Shortly beforehand, Avellaneda had proposed the federalization of the city of Buenos Aires as the definitive solution to the "capital question". Large numbers of Porteños bought arms and formed a volunteer military force in the Tiro Federal, while Tejedor ordered the formation of provincial militias. Avellaneda responded by prohibiting by decree the creation of provincial volunteer armed corps. After an aggressive Buenos Aires demonstration that came close to attacking the
Casa Rosada, on 17 February Tejedor met with Avellaneda, who committed himself not to occupy the capital with the Army. On 11 April the presidential elections were held, resulting in a broad victory for Roca's electors, except in Buenos Aires and Corrientes. Tejedor offered Roca that both should withdraw their respective candidacies, but Roca declined. The landing of 3,500 rifles and thousands of rounds of ammunition on the
Riachuelo caused a shootout between Buenos Aires and national forces. On 13 June, Avellaneda decreed the transfer of the federal government to the town of
Belgrano as a provisional capital, and the Senate and part of the Chamber of Deputies moved there. That same day the electoral college met and elected General Roca president. Four days later
the fighting began; after
two battles on the Riachuelo, the Buenos Aires forces managed to stop the national forces for a third time at the
Corrales, but ended up withdrawing under the threat of a new attack. Some 3,000 deaths had occurred, and Buenos Aires's situation was desperate: it had barely 4,000 men and the national forces were still advancing, so Tejedor commissioned Mitre to negotiate with the president. On 25 June an agreement was signed that included a broad amnesty, Tejedor's resignation, recognition of Roca's presidential election, and the federalization of Buenos Aires if Congress so decided. The militias were disarmed, and Tejedor resigned on the 30th.
Resolution of the capital question On 24 August, President Avellaneda sent the bill to federalize the city of Buenos Aires, which was passed on 21 September. On 12 October 1880, General Julio Argentino Roca assumed the presidency of the Nation, inaugurating the period of the
Conservative Republic. There still remained—according to the provisions of the constitutional reform of 1860—the approval of the federalization by the Buenos Aires legislature. It began debate on 12 November, with deputy, journalist, and poet
José Hernández standing out in its defense, while the principal opponent was Leandro N. Alem, both autonomists. On 25 November the law was approved by a majority. ==Bibliography==