Justo José de Urquiza
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Justo José de Urquiza y García (; October 18, 1801 – April 11, 1870) was an
Argentine Argentines (mistakenly translated Argentineans in the past; in Spanish (masculine) or (feminine)) are people identified with the country of Argentina. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Argentines, s ...
general and politician who served as president of the Argentine Confederation from 1854 to 1860.


Life

Justo José de Urquiza y García was born in Entre Ríos, the son of José Narciso de Urquiza Álzaga, born in Castro Urdiales, Spain, and María Cándida García González, a Creole of Buenos Aires. He was governor of Entre Ríos during the government of
Juan Manuel de Rosas Juan Manuel José Domingo Ortiz de Rosas (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 the Argentine Confederation. Althoug ...
, governor of Buenos Aires with powers delegated from the other provinces. Rosas presented a resignation to his charge frequently, but only as a political gesture, counting that the other governments would reject it. However, in 1851, resentful of the economic and political dominance of
Buenos Aires Buenos Aires ( or ; ), officially the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires ( es, link=no, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires), is the capital and primate city of Argentina. The city is located on the western shore of the Río de la Plata, on South ...
, Urquiza accepted Rosas' resignation and resumed for Entre Rios the powers delegated in Buenos Aires. Along with the resuming of international commerce without passing through the port of Buenos Aires, Urquiza replaced the "''Death to the savage unitarians!''" slogan with "Death to the enemies of national organization!", requesting the making of a national constitution that Rosas had long rejected. Corrientes supported Urquiza's action, but Rosas and the other provinces condemned the "crazy, traitor, savage, unitarian" Urquiza. Supported by
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and the
Uruguay Uruguay (; ), officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay ( es, República Oriental del Uruguay), is a country in South America. It shares borders with Argentina to its west and southwest and Brazil to its north and northeast; while bordering ...
an liberals, he created the
Grand Army Grand may refer to: People with the name * Grand (surname) * Grand L. Bush (born 1955), American actor * Grand Mixer DXT, American turntablist * Grand Puba (born 1966), American rapper Places * Grand, Oklahoma * Grand, Vosges, village and ...
and forced
Manuel Oribe Manuel Ceferino Oribe y Viana (August 26, 1792 – November 12, 1857) was the 2nd Constitutional president of Uruguay and founder of Uruguay's National Party, the oldest Uruguayan political party and considered one of the two Uruguayan "tr ...
to capitulate, ending the long siege of
Montevideo Montevideo () is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Uruguay, largest city of Uruguay. According to the 2011 census, the city proper has a population of 1,319,108 (about one-third of the country's total population) in an area of . M ...
in October 1851, and finally defeating Rosas on 3 February 1852 at the
Battle of Caseros The Battle of Caseros ( es, Batalla de Caseros) was fought near the town of El Palomar, Buenos Aires Province, Argentina, on 3 February 1852, between the Army of Buenos Aires commanded by Juan Manuel de Rosas and the Grand Army (''Ejército ...
. The other provinces that supported Rosas against Urquiza's pronunciation changed sides and supported his project of creating a National Constitution. Urquiza immediately began the task of national organization. He became provisional director of the Argentine Confederation in May 1852. In 1853, a
constituent assembly A constituent assembly (also known as a constitutional convention, constitutional congress, or constitutional assembly) is a body assembled for the purpose of drafting or revising a constitution. Members of a constituent assembly may be elected b ...
adopted a constitution based primarily on the ideas of
Juan Bautista Alberdi Juan Bautista Alberdi (August 29, 1810 – June 19, 1884) was an Argentine political theorist and diplomat. Although he lived most of his life in exile in Montevideo, Uruguay and in Chile, he influenced the content of the Constitution of Arg ...
, and Urquiza was inaugurated president in March 1854. During his administration,
foreign relations A state's foreign policy or external policy (as opposed to internal or domestic policy) is its objectives and activities in relation to its interactions with other states, unions, and other political entities, whether bilaterally or through mu ...
were improved,
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was encouraged, colonization was promoted, and plans for railroad construction was initiated. His work of national organization was, however, hindered by the opposition of Buenos Aires, which seceded from the Confederation. Open war broke out in 1859. Urquiza defeated the provincial army led by
Bartolomé Mitre Bartolomé Mitre Martínez (26 June 1821 – 19 January 1906) was an Argentine statesman, soldier and author. He was President of Argentina from 1862 to 1868 and the first president of unified Argentina. Mitre is known as the most versatile ...
in October 1859, at the Battle of Cepeda, and Buenos Aires agreed to re-enter the Confederation. Constitutional amendments proposed by Buenos Aires were adopted in 1860 but the settlement was short-lived, and further difficulties culminated in civil war. Urquiza met the army of Buenos Aires, again led by Mitre, in September 1861. The battle was indecisive, but Urquiza withdrew from the field, leaving the victory with Mitre. He retired to San José Palace, his residence in Entre Ríos, where he ruled until he was assassinated at age 69 (along with his sons
Justo Justo () is a Spanish surname and male given name meaning ''just'', i.e. ''fair''. Given name Notable people with this given name include: * José Justo Corro (1794-1864), Mexican president * José Justo Milla (1794–1838), Honduran military lea ...
and Waldino) by followers of dissident and political rival
Ricardo López Jordán Ricardo Ramón López Jordán (1822–1889) was an Argentine soldier and politician, one of the last influential "''caudillos''" (Spanish for "leaders", or military or political strongmen) in the history of Argentina. He thrice rebelled against ...
. Like many other nineteenth century Argentine patriots, Urquiza was a
freemason Freemasonry or Masonry refers to fraternal organisations that trace their origins to the local guilds of stonemasons that, from the end of the 13th century, regulated the qualifications of stonemasons and their interaction with authorities ...
. His imposing Palacio San José has been interpreted as containing many masonic symbols, created "to symbolize and reflect the construction of his other work: the Argentine State".


Tributes

There are many streets, parks and squares all over Argentina that are named after Justo José de Urquiza, such as the Urquiza park in Rosario or the Urquiza park in Parana City. There is a central street in Rosario called Urquiza, and there is a commuter railway line in
Buenos Aires Buenos Aires ( or ; ), officially the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires ( es, link=no, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires), is the capital and primate city of Argentina. The city is located on the western shore of the Río de la Plata, on South ...
named after him, the
Urquiza Line The Urquiza Line is a suburban electric commuter rail line in Buenos Aires, Argentina, operated by the Buenos Aires Underground operator Metrovías. It runs from the Federico Lacroze terminus in the neighborhood of Chacarita, to General Lemos ...
. The
Colegio del Uruguay The Colegio del Uruguay (nowadays the Colegio Superior del Uruguay «Justo José de Urquiza») is an Argentine educational institution, created by then Governor of Entre Ríos Justo José de Urquiza in the 28th of July of 1849. It was the first in ...
, founded by Urquiza, was later renamed in his honor.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Urquiza, Justo Jose De 1801 births 1870 deaths People from Entre Ríos Province Argentine people of Basque descent Federales (Argentina) Argentine generals Presidents of Argentina People murdered in Argentina Assassinated Argentine politicians Deaths by firearm in Argentina Argentine Freemasons