Foreign relations between

Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...

and

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...

, have existed nearly a century. Both states are members of the

G-20 The G20 or Group of Twenty is an intergovernmental forum comprising 19 countries and the European Union (EU). It works to address major issues related to the global economy, such as international financial stability, climate change mitigation, ...

. Argentina became an independent nation during the

Peninsular War The Peninsular War (1807–1814) was the military conflict fought in the Iberian Peninsula by Spain, Portugal, and the United Kingdom against the invading and occupying forces of the First French Empire during the Napoleonic Wars. In Spain ...

, a conflict between the

First French Empire The First French Empire, officially the French Republic, then the French Empire (; Latin: ) after 1809, also known as Napoleonic France, was the empire ruled by Napoleon Bonaparte, who established French hegemony over much of continental E ...

and the

Spanish Empire The Spanish Empire ( es, link=no, Imperio español), also known as the Hispanic Monarchy ( es, link=no, Monarquía Hispánica) or the Catholic Monarchy ( es, link=no, Monarquía Católica) was a colonial empire governed by Spain and its prede ...

. Argentina was a Spanish territory by that time, as the

Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata The Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata ( es, Virreinato del Río de la Plata or es, Virreinato de las Provincias del Río de la Plata) meaning "River of the Silver", also called " Viceroyalty of the River Plate" in some scholarly writings, i ...

, and thus at war with France, but the war never left Europe. The Viceroyalty was never attacked directly by French armies. The French attack to Spain indirectly started the Argentine War of Independence. France recognized Argentina as an independent nation by the end of 1830. France attempted the

French blockade of the Río de la Plata The French blockade of the Río de la Plata was a two-year-long naval blockade imposed by July Monarchy, France on the Argentine Confederation ruled by Juan Manuel de Rosas. It closed Buenos Aires to naval commerce. It was imposed in 1838 to sup ...

during the

War of the Confederation The War of the Confederation ( es, Guerra de la Confederación) was a military confrontation waged by Chile, along with Peruvian dissidents, and the Argentine Confederation against the Peru–Bolivian Confederation between 1836 and 1839. As ...

, attempting to remove Juan Manuel de Rosas from power. The blockade lasted for some more years after the defeat of the Peru–Bolivian Confederation by Argentina and Chile. France would attempt another blockade, this time allied with Britain, but Rosas defeated it as well.

History

19th century

Relations between

and

are rooted in this country's

independence Independence is a condition of a person, nation, country, or state in which residents and population, or some portion thereof, exercise self-government, and usually sovereignty, over its territory. The opposite of independence is the statu ...

, proclaimed on July 9, 1816 at the Congress of Tucuman, the French political ideals of the Enlightenment were inspiring movement, born 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 ...

on May 25, 1810. Later in the same century, ties between the two countries are strengthened by the influx of French to Argentina, which attracts nearly 250,000 people between 1880 and 1910, mostly

Basque Basque may refer to: * Basques, an ethnic group of Spain and France * Basque language, their language Places * Basque Country (greater region), the homeland of the Basque people with parts in both Spain and France * Basque Country (autonomous co ...

s, Béarn and aveyroneses migrants. At the same time, France is a model to Argentina for its implementation in many areas, particularly in the area of law (influence of the Civil Code),

education Education is a purposeful activity directed at achieving certain aims, such as transmitting knowledge or fostering skills and character traits. These aims may include the development of understanding, rationality, kindness, and honesty ...

college A college (Latin: ''collegium'') is an educational institution or a constituent part of one. A college may be a degree-awarding tertiary educational institution, a part of a collegiate or federal university, an institution offerin ...

science Science is a systematic endeavor that Scientific method, builds and organizes knowledge in the form of Testability, testable explanations and predictions about the universe. Science may be as old as the human species, and some of the earli ...

and

medicine Medicine is the science and practice of caring for a patient, managing the diagnosis, prognosis, prevention, treatment, palliation of their injury or disease, and promoting their health. Medicine encompasses a variety of health care pr ...

. The history of

is so intimately linked to that of

from its origins: a highly symbolic way, the liberator Jose de San Martin lived much longer in France than in Argentina, and spent many years in exile in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), ma ...

and the Paris region ( Grand Bourg) before ending his days in

Boulogne-sur-Mer Boulogne-sur-Mer (; pcd, Boulonne-su-Mér; nl, Bonen; la, Gesoriacum or ''Bononia''), often called just Boulogne (, ), is a coastal city in Northern France. It is a sub-prefecture of the department of Pas-de-Calais. Boulogne lies on the C ...

, where he died on August 17, 1850. Immigrants

Throughout these two centuries, a unique relationship will build between France and Argentina, whose amplitude can be illustrated by the diversity and intensity of the exchanges between the two countries: education, science, arts, economics and construction of large infrastructures. "Golden Years" (1880-1930), who see big names in architecture, as Paul Parter, René Sergent or Norbert Maillart, build some of the most beautiful buildings in the city, are translated with a strong influence of French taste of the time, which deeply marked the landscape of

. The aristocracy of the "breadbasket of the world" had very strong ties to France for their thinking and their way of life. Buenos Aires won this well-deserved title of "''Paris of Latin America.''"

20th century

The first wave of Frenchs who arrived in the country came mostly from the southern regions of

Aquitaine Aquitaine ( , , ; oc, Aquitània ; eu, Akitania; Poitevin-Saintongeais: ''Aguiéne''), archaic Guyenne or Guienne ( oc, Guiana), is a historical region of southwestern France and a former administrative region of the country. Since 1 Janu ...

and the

Pyrenees The Pyrenees (; es, Pirineos ; french: Pyrénées ; ca, Pirineu ; eu, Pirinioak ; oc, Pirenèus ; an, Pirineus) is a mountain range straddling the border of France and Spain. It extends nearly from its union with the Cantabrian Mountains to ...

. They embarked in

Bordeaux Bordeaux ( , ; Gascon oc, Bordèu ; eu, Bordele; it, Bordò; es, Burdeos) is a port city on the river Garonne in the Gironde department, Southwestern France. It is the capital of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, as well as the prefect ...

to America. The French Basques also constituted a numerically important group. While most French immigrants were integrated into urban life in

and major cities of the country, there were also agricultural colonization projects. The most important took place in

Pigüé Pigüé () is a town in Argentina located in the Pampas, south-west of Buenos Aires. It was founded by 165 Occitan-speaking French immigrants from Aveyron (Avairon in occitan) and one Argentine of direct Irish descent on December 4, 1884. The ur ...

(southwest of the

province of Buenos Aires Buenos Aires (), officially the Buenos Aires Province (''Provincia de Buenos Aires'' ), is the largest and most populous Argentine province. It takes its name from the city of Buenos Aires, the capital of the country, which used to be part of th ...

) and

Chaco Province Chaco (; Wichi: ''To-kós-wet''), officially the Province of Chaco ( es, provincia del Chaco ), is one of the 23 provinces in Argentina. Its capital and largest city, is Resistencia. It is located in the north-east of the country. It is borde ...

(Mayday departments and Bermejo). There were French settlers, along with

Germans , native_name_lang = de , region1 = , pop1 = 72,650,269 , region2 = , pop2 = 534,000 , region3 = , pop3 = 157,000 3,322,405 , region4 = , pop4 = ...

and Swiss, in the Esperanza colony, founded in 1865 by Aaron Castellanos. Another group of French immigrants settled in Oberá, Misiones. France helped the Argentine government carry out the

Dirty War The Dirty War ( es, Guerra sucia) is the name used by the military junta or civic-military dictatorship of Argentina ( es, dictadura cívico-militar de Argentina, links=no) for the period of state terrorism in Argentina from 1974 to 1983 as ...

, playing a significant role in Argentina's

state terrorism State terrorism refers to acts of terrorism which a state conducts against another state or against its own citizens.Martin, 2006: p. 111. Definition There is neither an academic nor an international legal consensus regarding the proper def ...

and systematic torture of political dissidents.

21st century

Bilateral exchanges reached 1.7 million

euro The euro ( symbol: €; code: EUR) is the official currency of 19 out of the member states of the European Union (EU). This group of states is known as the eurozone or, officially, the euro area, and includes about 340 million citizens . ...

s in 2013. Capital goods account for 60% of French exports in

, and products related to the automotive sector more than a third. Imports of Argentine products in

totaled 463 million euros in 2013. These are highly concentrated in the products of

agriculture Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that enabled people t ...

and food industries (more than 80% of the total, or 373 million euros in 2013). The surplus in the trade balance of

amounted to 774 million euros in 2013. France was, in 2013, the sixth supplier of

. With a stock of FDI (Foreign Direct Investment) of 2.4 million euros in 2012, France is one of the first investors in Argentina and implanted 250 French companies and groups active in the Argentine growth. This is particularly noticeable in the automotive sector (30% of the French market for both

Renault Groupe Renault ( , , , also known as the Renault Group in English; legally Renault S.A.) is a French multinational automobile manufacturer established in 1899. The company produces a range of cars and vans, and in the past has manufacture ...

and PSA), wholesale distribution (40% market share), the food industry (Danone and Bongrain) or energy (gas for Total,

Schneider Electric Schneider Electric SE is a French multinational company that specializes in digital automation and energy management. It addresses homes, buildings, data centers, infrastructure and industries, by combining energy technologies, real-time automatio ...

) equipment. Argentina the 3rd regional destination for the French exports, behind

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

and

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

, but ahead of Chile and, in total, our third trade partner.

Cultural relations

French immigrants contributed outstanding features to the Argentina culture, especially in the resumption of the production of

yerba mate Yerba mate or yerba-maté (''Ilex paraguariensis''; from Spanish ; pt, erva-mate, or ; gn, ka'a, ) is a plant species of the holly genus '' Ilex'' native to South America. It was named by the French botanist Augustin Saint-Hilaire. The lea ...

wine production Winemaking or vinification is the production of wine, starting with the selection of the fruit, its fermentation into alcohol, and the bottling of the finished liquid. The history of wine-making stretches over millennia. The science of wine and w ...

, sugar (Hileret).

Santiago de Liniers Santiago Antonio María de Liniers y Bremond, 1st Count of Buenos Aires, KOM, OM (July 25, 1753 – August 26, 1810) was a French officer in the Spanish military service, and a viceroy of the Spanish colonies of the Viceroyalty of the River ...

, one of the great heroes of Argentina's history, was French. Three Argentine presidents were of French origin:

Juan Martín de Pueyrredón Juan Martín de Pueyrredón y O'Dogan (December 18, 1777 – March 13, 1850) was an Argentine general and politician of the early 19th century. He was appointed Supreme Director of the United Provinces of the Río de la Plata after the Argentine ...

, Carlos Pellegrini and Hipolito Yrigoyen; while Alejandro Agustín Lanusse was a great-grandson of an important entrepreneur from

. Institutions of the French community, including the French Hospital (French Hospital of Buenos Aires in 2013 has been renamed as César Milstein Hospital), still active, and the socialist group ''Les Egaux'', one of the founders of the Argentine labor movement. French immigrants as Amadeo Jacques and Paul Groussac had a direct impact on education and Argentine culture. Some Argentine cities, such as

above, were originated by colonies of French immigrants, and generated an Argentine-French local culture. Carlos Gardel was a native of Languedoc and Provence, the eastern tip of Occitania, became the liberator Hipólito Bouchard who spread the design of the Argentina flag Central America and captured the realistic teaches at the

Battle of San Lorenzo The Battle of San Lorenzo was fought on 3 February 1813 in San Lorenzo, Santa Fe, San Lorenzo, Argentina, then part of the United Provinces of the Río de la Plata. The royalist troops, were composed of militiamen recruited in Montevideo und ...

Architecture

is a city of diverse architectural influences, especially from

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

and

. The Parisian flair of Buenos Aires in the San Martin Palace, located on 761 Arenales Street, inspired in the French architecture of the 18th century: File:Palacio San Martin 1.jpg, San Martin Palace of

Beaux-Arts architecture Beaux-Arts architecture ( , ) was the academic architectural style taught at the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris, particularly from the 1830s to the end of the 19th century. It drew upon the principles of French neoclassicism, but also incorp ...

. File:Buenos Aires - Bolsa de Comercio.jpg, The

Buenos Aires Stock Exchange The Buenos Aires Stock Exchange (BCBA; es, Bolsa de Comercio de Buenos Aires) is the organization responsible for the operation of Argentina's primary stock exchange located at Buenos Aires CBD. Founded in 1854, it is the successor to the ''Banco ...

File:Palacio de Correos Ciudad de Buenos Aires.JPG, The CCK, designed by French architect Norbert Maillart in 1889 File:Museo de Ciencias Naturales 6..JPG,

La Plata Museum The La Plata Museum ( es, Museo de la Plata) is a natural history museum in La Plata, Argentina. It is part of the (Natural Sciences School) of the UNLP ( National University of La Plata). The building, long, today houses 3 million fossils an ...

Neoclassical architecture Neoclassical architecture is an architectural style produced by the Neoclassical movement that began in the mid-18th century in Italy and France. It became one of the most prominent architectural styles in the Western world. The prevailing style ...

File:Bahia Blanca- club argentino.jpg, ''Club Argentino'' in

Bahia Blanca Bahia ( , , ; meaning "bay") is one of the 26 states of Brazil, located in the Northeast Region of the country. It is the fourth-largest Brazilian state by population (after São Paulo, Minas Gerais, and Rio de Janeiro) and the 5th-largest by ...

Lunfardo

Lunfardo Lunfardo (; from the Italian ''lombardo'' or inhabitant of Lombardy in the local dialect) is an argot originated and developed in the late 19th and early 20th centuries in the lower classes in Buenos Aires and from there spread to other urban are ...

is an argot of the

Spanish language Spanish ( or , Castilian) is a Romance language of the Indo-European language family that evolved from colloquial Latin spoken on the Iberian peninsula. Today, it is a global language with more than 500 million native speakers, mainly in th ...

which appeared in

at the end of the 19th century. It integrated a lot of words and expressions from languages and dialects spoken by immigrants, notably Italians, Spaniards and French. Lunfardo was heavily used in

tango Tango is a partner dance and social dance that originated in the 1880s along the Río de la Plata, the natural border between Argentina and Uruguay. The tango was born in the impoverished port areas of these countries as the result of a combina ...

lyrics. After 1912, as tango became popular in Paris, French expressions were incorporated into tango lyrics and made their way into lunfardo. It has now become an integral part of the Spanish spoken in Argentina and some of these words are still used on a daily basis.

Examples

* ''Beguén'' - Crush (from the French ''béguin'' -crush-) * ''Bulín'' - Digs (from the French ''boulin'' -hole in the wall of a dolecote where the pigeons nest-) * ''Buyón'' - Food (from the French ''bouillon'' -broth-) * ''Calotear'' - To steal (from the French ''calotter'' -to steal-) * ''Dragonear'' - To flirt (from the French ''draguer'' -to flirt-) * ''Fané'' - Worn out (from the French ''fané'' -withered-) * ''Franelear'' - To caress, to heavy pet (from the French ''faire flanelle'' -to go to a whorehouse without making use of any woman-) * ''Macro'' - Pimp (from the French ''maquereau'' -pimp-) * ''Marote'' - Head (from the French ''marotte'' -hatstand-) * ''Ragú'' - Hunger (from the French ''ragoût'' -stew-) * ''Toilette'' - Bathroom (from the French ''toilettes'' -bathroom-)

Notable people

Cultural,

scientific Science is a systematic endeavor that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe. Science may be as old as the human species, and some of the earliest archeological evidence for ...

, technical and

academic An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of secondary or tertiary higher learning (and generally also research or honorary membership). The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy, ...

cooperation between

and

are part of a long tradition of exchanges. The crisis of 2001 changed however, the possibilities of intervention and collaboration and has led to a redefinition of priorities for our action. She is oriented towards the technical,

and university cooperation, without thereby be neglected our artistic and audiovisual cooperation. It is for us to follow the evolution of the country, offering our experience, our creativity, our contributions to the great debates and promoting synergies.

Science

Enrique Hermitte Enrique () is the Spanish variant of the given name Heinrich of Germanic origin. Equivalents in other languages are Henry (English), Enric (Catalan), Enrico (Italian), Henrik (Swedish, Danish, and Norwegian), Heinrich (German), Hendrik, He ...

, Argentine engineer * Bernardo Houssay, Argentine physiologist, to French parents, Nobel Prize winner *

Luis Federico Leloir Luis Federico Leloir (September 6, 1906 – December 2, 1987) was an Argentine physician and biochemist who received the 1970 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for his discovery of the metabolic pathways in lactose. Although born in France, Leloir r ...

, Argentine doctor and biochemist, Nobel Prize winner *

Alicia Moreau de Justo Alicia Moreau de Justo (October 11, 1885 – May 12, 1986) was an Argentine physician, politician, pacifist and human rights activist. She was a leading figure in feminism and socialism in Argentina. Since the beginning of the 20th century, she ...

, Argentine physician, French parents

Literature

* Carlos Alvarado-Larroucau, writer * Augusto Belin, writer, French father *

Adolfo Bioy Casares Adolfo Bioy Casares (; 15 September 1914 – 8 March 1999) was an Argentine fiction writer, journalist, diarist, and translator. He was a friend and frequent collaborator with his fellow countryman Jorge Luis Borges. He is the author of the Fa ...

, writer *

Eugenio Cambaceres Eugenio Cambaceres (1843–1888) was an Argentine writer and politician. In the 1880s he wrote four books, with ''Sin rumbo'' (1885) being his masterpiece. His promising literary career was cut short when he died of tuberculosis. Biograph ...

, writer, French father * Andrés Chabrillón, poet, French parents * Julio Cortázar, Argentine writer, French Argentine mother * Emilio Daireaux, French-Argentine writer and journalist * Paul Groussac, writer, literary critic, historian and librarian * José Hernández, writer, French Argentine mother * Arturo Jauretche, writer of French Basque ancestry * Federico Jeanmaire, writer * Gregorio de Laferrère, playwright * Ana Emilia Lahitte, writer * Leopoldo Marechal, Argentine writer, French Uruguayan father *

Julio Meinvielle Father Julio Meinvielle (31 August 1905 – 2 August 1973) was an Argentine priest and prolific writer. A leading Roman Catholic Church thinker of his time, he was associated with the far right tendency within Argentine Catholic thinking. As a ...

, priest and writer * Ulyses Petit de Murat, poet and screenwriter * Manuel Peyrou, writer

Academia

Amédée Jacques Amédée Jacques (Paris, 4 July 1813 - Buenos Aires, 13 October 1865), often known as Amadeo, was a French- Argentine pedagogue and philosopher and one of the most prestigious educators of his time. Biography Jacques was the son of Marie Gérar ...

, French-born Argentine pedagogue and philosopher *

Ernesto Laclau Ernesto Laclau (; 6 October 1935 – 13 April 2014) was an Argentine political theorist and philosopher. He is often described as an 'inventor' of post-Marxist political theory. He is well known for his collaborations with his long-term partner ...

, political theorist

Resident diplomatic missions

* Argentina has an embassy in

. * France has an embassy in

.Embassy of France in Buenos Aires
/ref> File:Embassy of Argentina in Paris.jpg, Embassy of Argentina,

. File:Residencia Ortiz Basualdo Embajada de Francia.jpg, Embassy of France,

Bibliography

References

External links

List of Treaties ruling the relations Argentina and France (Argentine Foreign Ministry, in Spanish)

Argentine embassy in Paris (in French only)

* ttp://www.embafrancia-argentina.org/ French embassy in Buenos Aires (in French and Spanish only) {{DEFAULTSORT:Argentina-France relations

Bilateral relations of France