Nicolás Remigio Aurelio Avellaneda Silva (3 October 1837 – 24 November 1885) 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 ...
politician and journalist, and
President of Argentina
The president of Argentina ( es, Presidente de Argentina), officially known as the president of the Argentine Nation ( es, Presidente de la Nación Argentina), is both head of state and head of government of Argentina. Under Constitution of Ar ...
from 1874 to 1880. Avellaneda's main projects while in office were banking and education reform, leading to Argentina's economic growth. The most important events of his government were the
Conquest of the Desert
The Conquest of the Desert ( es, Conquista del desierto) was an Argentine military campaign directed mainly by General Julio Argentino Roca in the 1870s with the intention of establishing dominance over the Patagonian Desert, inhabited primar ...
and the transformation of the
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 ...
into a
federal district
A federal district is a type of administrative division of a federation, usually under the direct control of a federal government and organized sometimes with a single municipal body. Federal districts often include capital districts, and they e ...
.
His grandson was
José Domingo Molina Gómez, who took presidency when
Juan Perón
Juan Domingo Perón (, , ; 8 October 1895 – 1 July 1974) was an Argentine Army general and politician. After serving in several government positions, including Minister of Labour and Vice President of a military dictatorship, he was elected P ...
was captured.
Biography
Born in
San Miguel de Tucumán
San Miguel de Tucumán (; usually called simply Tucumán) is the capital and largest city of Tucumán Province, located in northern Argentina from Buenos Aires. It is the fifth-largest city of Argentina after Buenos Aires, Córdoba, Rosario an ...
, his mother moved with him to
Bolivia
, image_flag = Bandera de Bolivia (Estado).svg
, flag_alt = Horizontal tricolor (red, yellow, and green from top to bottom) with the coat of arms of Bolivia in the center
, flag_alt2 = 7 × 7 square p ...
after the death of his father,
Marco Avellaneda, during a revolt against
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 ...
. He studied law at
Córdoba, without graduating. Back at Tucumán he founded ''
El Eco del Norte'', and moved to Buenos Aires in 1857, becoming director of the ''El Nacional'' and editor of ''
El Comercio de la Plata''. He finished his studies at Buenos Aires, meeting
Domingo Faustino Sarmiento
Domingo Faustino Sarmiento (; born Domingo Faustino Fidel Valentín Sarmiento y Albarracín; 15 February 1811 – 11 September 1888) was an Argentine activist, intellectual, writer, statesman and the second President of Argentina. His writing s ...
. Sarmiento helped him to become teacher of economy at the
University of Buenos Aires
The University of Buenos Aires ( es, Universidad de Buenos Aires, UBA) is a public research university in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Established in 1821, it is the premier institution of higher learning in the country and one of the most prestigi ...
. He wrote "''Estudio sobre las leyes de tierras públicas''" ( es, Study of the laws about public lands), proposing to give the lands to producers that make production from them. This system, similar to the one employed at the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
, suggested to reduce bureaucracy and pointed that this would allow stable populations and population growth.
He was a member of the house of representatives in 1859 and Minister of Government of
Adolfo Alsina
Adolfo Alsina Maza (January 4, 1829 – December 29, 1877) was an Argentine lawyer and Unitarian politician, who was one of the founders of the Autonomist Party and the National Autonomist Party.Ione S. Wright and Lisa M. Nekhom, ''Histori ...
in the Buenos Aires province in 1866. During Domingo Faustino Sarmiento's presidency, he was Minister of Justice and Education. He implemented the educational
reform
Reform ( lat, reformo) means the improvement or amendment of what is wrong, corrupt, unsatisfactory, etc. The use of the word in this way emerges in the late 18th century and is believed to originate from Christopher Wyvill#The Yorkshire Associati ...
that was defining of his government.
Avellaneda attained the presidency in 1874 but had its legitimacy contested 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 ...
and supported by
Domingo Faustino Sarmiento
Domingo Faustino Sarmiento (; born Domingo Faustino Fidel Valentín Sarmiento y Albarracín; 15 February 1811 – 11 September 1888) was an Argentine activist, intellectual, writer, statesman and the second President of Argentina. His writing s ...
. Mitre deployed the army against Avellaneda but was defeated by
Julio Argentino Roca
Alejo Julio Argentino Roca Paz (July 17, 1843 – October 19, 1914) was an army general and statesman who served as President of Argentina from 1880 to 1886 and from 1898 to 1904. Roca is the most important representative of the Generation ...
. Mitre was held prisoner and judged by military justice, but Avellaneda indulged him in order to promote pacification. He also included
Rufino de Elizalde
Dr. Rufino de Elizalde (August 1822, Buenos Aires – March 1887) was an Argentine politician who was Foreign Affairs Minister of Argentina
Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a coun ...
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.
Having won the revolution and bringing peace to the country, Avellaneda faced the serious economic crisis, centering his efforts on the control of the land with the
Conquest of the Desert
The Conquest of the Desert ( es, Conquista del desierto) was an Argentine military campaign directed mainly by General Julio Argentino Roca in the 1870s with the intention of establishing dominance over the Patagonian Desert, inhabited primar ...
and expanding the railroads, the cereal and meat exports, and the European immigration, specially to
Patagonia
Patagonia () refers to a geographical region that encompasses the southern end of South America, governed by Argentina and Chile. The region comprises the southern section of the Andes Mountains with lakes, fjords, temperate rainforests, and gl ...
. During his presidency, the
economy of Argentina
The economy of Argentina is the second-largest national economy in South America, behind Brazil. Argentina is a developing country with a highly literate population, an export-oriented agricultural sector, and a diversified industrial base.
...
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 "
..here 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". He reduced the budget and applied a weak protectionism. The crisis was eventually fixed with the growing exports of refrigerated meat to Europe, a new developing industrial method of the time.
A prolific writer, his works have been published in 12 volumes.
Aged 37, he was the youngest Argentine president ever elected.
[Mendelevich, p. 314] He had served in the
Argentine Senate
The Honorable Senate of the Argentine Nation ( es, Honorable Senado de la Nación Argentina) is the upper house of the National Congress of Argentina.
Overview
The National Senate was established by the Argentine Confederation on July 29, 185 ...
for five months in 1874 and returned to the Senate in 1883 until his death. He died on a ship returning from medical treatment in
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
.
Bibliography
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References
External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Avellaneda, Nicolas
1837 births
1885 deaths
Presidents of Argentina
National University of Córdoba alumni
19th-century Argentine lawyers
19th-century Argentine novelists
People from San Miguel de Tucumán
Members of the Argentine Senate for Tucumán
Members of the Argentine Chamber of Deputies elected in Tucumán
Burials at La Recoleta Cemetery
National Autonomist Party politicians
People who died at sea