Manuel Dorrego (11 June 1787 – 13 December 1828) was an Argentine statesman and soldier. He was governor 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 ...

in 1820, and then again from 1827 to 1828.

Life and politics

Dorrego was born in Buenos Aires on 11 June 1787 to José Antonio do Rego, a Portuguese merchant, and to María de la Ascensión Salas. He enrolled in the '' Real Colegio de San Carlos'' in 1803, and moved to the '' Real Universidad de San Felipe'' in the

Captaincy General of Chile The Captaincy General of Chile (''Capitanía General de Chile'' ) or Governorate of Chile (known colloquially and unofficially as the Kingdom of Chile), was a territory of the Spanish Empire from 1541 to 1817 that was, for most of its existenc ...

to continue his studies. He supported the early steps of the Chilean War of Independence in 1810, which led to the removal of the Spanish colonial authorities and the establishment of the first Chilean Government Junta.Galasso, p. 257 He moved to the

United Provinces of the Río de la Plata The United Provinces of the Río de la Plata ( es, link=no, Provincias Unidas del Río de la Plata), earlier known as the United Provinces of South America ( es, link=no, Provincias Unidas de Sudamérica), was a name adopted in 1816 by the Co ...

(modern Argentina), and joined the

Army of the North The Army of the North ( es, link=no, Ejército del Norte), contemporaneously called Army of Peru, was one of the armies deployed by the United Provinces of the Río de la Plata in the Spanish American wars of independence. Its objective was fre ...

, under the command of

Manuel Belgrano Manuel José Joaquín del Corazón de Jesús Belgrano y González (3 June 1770 – 20 June 1820), usually referred to as Manuel Belgrano (), was an Argentine public servant, economist, lawyer, politician, journalist, and military leader. He ...

. He fought in the battles of Tucumán and

Salta Salta () is the capital and largest city in the Argentine province of the same name. With a population of 618,375 according to the 2010 census, it is also the 7th most-populous city in Argentina. The city serves as the cultural and economic ce ...

, being injured in both. He was sanctioned by Belgrano for promoting a duel. As a result, he did not take part in the battles of Vilcapugio and Ayohuma, two defeats of the Army of the North, and Belgrano regretted later the absence of Dorrego from them. Dorrego opposed the

Luso-Brazilian invasion The Portuguese conquest of the Banda Oriental was the armed-conflict that took place between 1816 and 1820 in the Banda Oriental, for control of what today comprises the whole of the Republic of Uruguay, the northern part of the Argentine Meso ...

of the

Banda Oriental Banda Oriental, or more fully Banda Oriental del Uruguay (Eastern Bank), was the name of the South American territories east of the Uruguay River and north of Río de la Plata that comprise the modern nation of Uruguay; the modern state of Rio Gra ...

, encouraged by

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 ...

to counter the influence of

José Gervasio Artigas José Gervasio Artigas Arnal (; June 19, 1764 – September 23, 1850) was a political leader, military general, statesman and national hero of Uruguay and the broader Río de la Plata region. He fought in the Latin American wars of in ...

. He was exiled by Pueyrredón, and stayed some time in

Baltimore Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...

(

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 territori ...

). He studied federalism in the United States, and thought that each state of a country should have some autonomy, rejecting the strong centralization into a single government sought by Pueyrredón. During this times he wrote the ''Cartas apologéticas'', criticizing the support of Pueyrredón to the Luso-Brazilian invasion. He returned to Buenos Aires in 1819, following the departure of Pueyrredón. He was appointed as interim governor, and fought against the armies of Alvear, Carrera and

Estanislao López Estanislao López (26 November 1786 – 15 June 1838) was a ''caudillo'' and governor of the , between 1818 and 1838, one of the foremost proponents of provincial federalism, and an associate of Juan Manuel de Rosas during the Argentine Civ ...

. Still, he was resisted in the city, and the stable appointment as governor was given to Martín Rodríguez instead. He was banished again, and moved to

Upper Peru Upper Peru (; ) is a name for the land that was governed by the Real Audiencia of Charcas. The name originated in Buenos Aires towards the end of the 18th century after the Audiencia of Charcas was transferred from the Viceroyalty of Peru to t ...

. He met Simón Bolívar in Quito, and supported his ideas of unifying all the continent into a giant federation. Dorrego returned to Buenos Aires a short time afterwards and worked in the legislature of Buenos Aires in the 1826 Constituent Assembly. He strongly supported a federal system of government and criticized the qualified suffrage. However, the 1826 Constitution promoted a strong centralized government and qualified suffrage. Fusilamiento de Dorrego

Dorrego opposed the government of the unitarian

Bernardino Rivadavia Bernardino de la Trinidad González Rivadavia (May 20, 1780 – September 2, 1845) was the first President of Argentina, then called the United Provinces of the Río de la Plata, from February 8, 1826 to June 27, 1827. He was educated at t ...

, who was appointed as the first president of Argentina, and voiced his criticism in the newspaper "''El Tribuno''". Resisted by all the provinces, Rivadavia resigned as president, and vice president

Vicente López y Planes Alejandro Vicente López y Planes (May 3, 1785 – October 10, 1856) was an Argentine writer and politician who acted as interim President of Argentina from July 7 to August 18, 1827. He also wrote the lyrics of the Argentine National Anthe ...

resigned as well. No longer having a national head of state, the legislature appointed Dorrego as governor of the Buenos Aires province. He took measures to support the poor, promote a federal organization of the country, and ended the Argentine–Brazilian War. The Argentine troops were discontented with Dorrego because he accepted the conditions imposed by the British diplomacy despite their military victories in the conflict. Encouraged by the Unitarian party,

Juan Lavalle Juan Galo Lavalle (17 October 1797 – 9 October 1841) was an Argentine military and political figure. Biography Lavalle was born in Buenos Aires to María Mercedes González Bordallo and Manuel José Lavalle, general accountant of rents and t ...

led a coup against Dorrego on 1 December 1828. Dorrego left the city and organized his forces in the countryside. He was defeated, and then executed by Lavalle. Lavalle closed the legislature and began a period of political violence against the Federals, but he was defeated and forced to resign by Juan Manuel de Rosas, who restored the institutions that existed before Lavalle's coup.Galasso, pp. 265–271

References

Bibliography

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Dorrego, Manuel 1787 births 1828 deaths Leaders ousted by a coup Governors of Buenos Aires Province Executed politicians Foreign ministers of Argentina Argentine military personnel killed in the Argentine Civil War People from Buenos Aires People of the Argentine War of Independence People executed by Argentina by firing squad Argentine people of Portuguese descent Extrajudicial killings Federales (Argentina) Burials at La Recoleta Cemetery

Life and politics

See also

References

Bibliography