''The Representation of the Landowners'' ( es, La Representación de los Hacendados) is an 1809 economic report written by

Mariano Moreno Mariano Moreno (; September 23, 1778March 4, 1811) was an Argentine lawyer, journalist, and politician. He played a decisive role in the Primera Junta, the first national government of Argentina, created after the May Revolution. Moreno was ...

, that described the economy of 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 ...

. It was written by Moreno on behalf of the ''hacendados'' (owners of

hacienda An ''hacienda'' ( or ; or ) is an estate (or '' finca''), similar to a Roman '' latifundium'', in Spain and the former Spanish Empire. With origins in Andalusia, ''haciendas'' were variously plantations (perhaps including animals or orchard ...

s), to request then viceroy

Baltasar Hidalgo de Cisneros Baltasar Hidalgo de Cisneros y de la Torre (6 January 1756 – 9 June 1829) was a Spanish naval officer born in Cartagena. He took part in the Battle of Cape St Vincent and the Battle of Trafalgar, and in the Spanish resistance against Napole ...

to reconsider the annulment of

free trade Free trade is a trade policy that does not restrict imports or exports. It can also be understood as the free market idea applied to international trade. In government, free trade is predominantly advocated by political parties that hold econ ...

he had decided on a short time earlier. It is considered the most complete economic overview from the times of the colony.

Context

The Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata, according to the laws of Indias, was only allowed to trade with their metropoli,

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") , ...

. But commerce with Spain was scarce: other ports took priority, Spain was at war, and Spanish ships were attacked by

pirate Piracy is an act of robbery or criminal violence by ship or boat-borne attackers upon another ship or a coastal area, typically with the goal of stealing cargo and other valuable goods. Those who conduct acts of piracy are called pirates, v ...

s. To get the products needed,

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 ...

smuggled them from the British and the Portuguese colonies, despite the laws forbidding it. This led to the creation of two main antagonist groups: hacendados that manufactured leather products and wanted free trade to be able to sell their productions, and retailers that sold the smuggled products. The later opposed

, because if it was allowed, then they would have had to sell them at lower prices. In economic terms, given the difficulties and costs of trade with Spain, Cisneros accepted the proposal of

and established on November 6, 1809, the free trade agreements with other powers. The main beneficiaries were Britain and livestock sectors, exporting hides. However, traders who profited from smuggling asked Cisneros to set aside free trade, which he agreed to do in order to keep their support. This led in turn to the British, Mac Kinnon and Captain Doyle as representatives, to demand a review of the measure, invoking the character of allies against Napoleon in Spain and Britain. Most ''hacendados'' (owners of

s) also desired the measure to be reviewed, and due to their little political strength they requested the lawyer

to petition to the viceroy in their behalf.

Description

The document was, according to modern historians, the most complete economic overview from the times of the colony. Moreno formulated strong critics to the colonial economic system, with strong influences of the economic philosophers of the time. The main idea was that free trade with Britain should be allowed. However, "free trade" should be understood as relaxing the rigid Spanish rules towards international commerce. It proposed that commerce should be allowed for certain products, but still keeping

protectionist Protectionism, sometimes referred to as trade protectionism, is the economic policy of restricting imports from other countries through methods such as tariffs on imported goods, import quotas, and a variety of other government regulations. ...

taxes over the clothes that may harm the industries as Cochabamba. Moreno employed sarcasm frequently to justify his ideas. For example, a part of the document says:

Consequences

As a result of the report, Cisneros allowed free trade but in a limited manner.

Historical perspective

The ''Representation'' is one of the axes around the historiographic disputes about Mariano Moreno. Ricardo Levene, with liberal ideas, described it with unusual praisings and thought it as a direct antecedent of the

May Revolution The May Revolution ( es, Revolución de Mayo) was a week-long series of events that took place from May 18 to 25, 1810, in Buenos Aires, capital of the Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata. This Spanish colony included roughly the terri ...

. On the contrary, revisionists authors would condemn it, as a tool to promote foreign intervention in the local economy. Both approaches would become outdated later. It is now known that Mariano Moreno did not write the ''Representation'' out of his own initiative, but as a lawyer representing a client. The authorship by Moreno is now disputed:

Paul Groussac Paul-François Groussac (February 15, 1848 – June 27, 1929) was a French-born Argentine writer, literary critic, historian, and librarian. Biography Groussac was born in Toulouse to Pierre Groussac, the scion of an old Languedocian family, an ...

noted that Mariano Moreno did not have instruction as an economist, whereas

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 ...

had more deep studies in the topic and had written an essay he intended to give to the viceroy. This, as well as an influence from the physiocratic doctrine and some grammar inflexions similar to those of Belgrano, suggest that he may be the author, or that Moreno worked over a work started by Belgrano. Belgrano wouldn't have been able to present the report himself because of having a public office in the consulate, and his past opposition to Cisneros may have risked the project from being denied for political reasons.Scenna, p. 31

Bibliography

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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Representation Of The Hacendados, The Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata Economic history of Argentina History of agriculture in Argentina Economics papers 1809 in Argentina 1809 in economics 1809 in the Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata