Martiniano Chilavert (October 16, 1798 – February 4, 1852) was a 19th-century

Argentinian 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, ...

military officer who took part in the country's civil wars between the Unitarians and the

Federales ''Federales'' (singular ''Federale'' or, rarely but aligning with Spanish, ''Federal'') is a Spanglish word used in an informal context to denote security forces operating under a federal political system. The term gained widespread usage by En ...

. Originally a Unitarian opponent of Federalist leader 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 ...

, Chilavert turned to the Federalists after the

Battle of Vuelta de Obligado The naval Battle of Vuelta de Obligado took place on the waters of the Paraná River on 20 November 1845, between the Argentine Confederation, under the leadership of Juan Manuel de Rosas, and a combined Anglo-French fleet. The action was part o ...

. Chilavert was motivated by Rosas' resistance to the British and French and the other Unitarian leaders' alliance with foreign powers like the

Empire of Brazil The Empire of Brazil was a 19th-century state that broadly comprised the territories which form modern Brazil and (until 1828) Uruguay. Its government was a representative parliamentary constitutional monarchy under the rule of Emperors Dom Pe ...

. The day after the Federalist defeat in 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 ...

, which brought about the fall of Rosas regime, Chilavert was taken in custody. He was set for execution by shooting on the charge of treason upon direct orders of Unitarian leader

Justo José de Urquiza Justo José de Urquiza y García (; October 18, 1801 – April 11, 1870) was an Argentine general and politician who served as president of the Argentine Confederation from 1854 to 1860. Life Justo José de Urquiza y García was b ...

. He was instead stabbed and killed with bayonets by the members of the firing squad after resisting to be shot in the back, a punishment commonly reserved for traitors.

Bibliography

* Saldías, A. ''Historia de la Confederación Argentina''. Buenos Aires: Eudeba, 1973. * Palacio, E. ''Historia de la Argentina''. Buenos Aires: Abeledo Perrot, 1986. * Uzal, Francisco Hipólito (1974). ''El Fusilado de Caseros'' ''(La gloria trágica de Martiniano Chilavert).'' Ediciones La Bastilla Buenos Aires. {{DEFAULTSORT:Chilavert, Martiniano 1798 births 1852 deaths Argentine colonels Executed Argentine people Deaths by bayonet Deaths by stabbing in Argentina