Martín De Álzaga
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Martín de Álzaga (11 November 1755 – 6 July 1812) was a Spanish merchant and politician during the British invasions of the Río de la Plata.


Hero of the Reconquest

He arrived in Buenos Aires at 11 years of age, poor and speaking only
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 ...
. He became a merchant, gaining riches in the
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, and selling textiles and firearms. He became a respected member of the community and a politician and member of the
Buenos Aires Buenos Aires, controlled by the government of the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Argentina. It is located on the southwest of the Río de la Plata. Buenos Aires is classified as an Alpha− glob ...
Cabildo, by 1785 as ''Defender of the Poor''. He was one of the founding members of the ''Consulado de Comercio de Buenos Aires'' (the equivalent of today's Chamber of Commerce), in 1794. When in 1806 the first
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came to Buenos Aires, he put his fortune at the service of the Creole reconquest, organizing a group of conspirators and joining with other groups formed and funded by other prominent merchants, such as Sáenz Valiente and Juan Martín de Pueyrredón. The invading General Beresford had ordered the confiscation of all arms in civilian hands, but Álzaga who was a specialist in arms smuggling collected hundreds and installed secret gun-repair shops. He rented houses around the main square (Plaza Mayor) in secret, and from there they excavated tunnels to mine the Fort. His organizational skills were notable; he had a strong will and natural leadership, but he was never popular. The wages for the volunteers were paid for by Álzaga from his own coffers. He rented the Perdriel Ranch, in present-day San Martín, where the volunteers trained. The British spy network only heard about this place a few days before the start of the reaction, and was too late to attack Perdriel, only accelerating the fight for reconquest. When
Santiago de Liniers Santiago Antonio María de Liniers y Bremond, 1st Count of Buenos Aires, Order of Montesa, KOM, Order of Malta, OM (July 25, 1753 – August 26, 1810) was a Spanish military officer and a viceroy of the Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata. Alt ...
arrived back from
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and started the Reconquest, on 12 August, he was joined by Álzaga's secret army, and the British were rapidly defeated. Beresford's surrender came in early and the viceroyalty was saved.


Defense of Buenos Aires

Álzaga convened an open council ('' cabildo abierto''), which removed
viceroy A viceroy () is an official who reigns over a polity in the name of and as the representative of the monarch of the territory. The term derives from the Latin prefix ''vice-'', meaning "in the place of" and the Anglo-Norman ''roy'' (Old Frenc ...
Sobremonte from military command, giving it to Liniers, and forbidding Sobremonte's return to Buenos Aires. On January 1, 1807, Álzaga was re-elected Mayor and took control of the city government. The British fleet had not left the Río de la Plata, and awaited reinforcements which arrived under the command of General Whitelocke. They captured
Montevideo Montevideo (, ; ) is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Uruguay, largest city of Uruguay. According to the 2023 census, the city proper has a population of 1,302,954 (about 37.2% of the country's total population) in an area of . M ...
in June 1807, easily defeating Sobremonte's forces. Álzaga simply ordered the removal of the viceroy and ordered his arrest, replacing him temporarily with Liniers. He participated in the organization of volunteer city militias, and army of more than 6,000 men, and paid for a regiment of
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and Vizcayans out of his own funds. On 2 July 1807 the expected invasion came through, and Liniers was defeated at Miserere, on the outskirts of the city. Whitelocke did not pursue the escaping Creole army giving his troops three days of rest. Álzaga convinced the defeated Liniers on preparing the city's defenses, taking advantage of the respite; organized the defense house-by-house, illuminated the city with oil lamps to continue working through the night and made sure all houses had projectiles and other defensive arms on their roofs. The British resumed their attack on June 5, but made the tactical mistake of coming in separate columns, making it easier for the defenders to defeat them separately. At noon on the 7th, the British capitulated and retreated. Álzaga forced General Whitelocke to sign a document that included the surrender of Montevideo.


Revolution of January 1, 1809

Liniers and Álzaga became the heroes of the day, but soon they had a mutual conflict, as much as by the failed administration by the viceroy, as Liniers was French and
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had declared war on
Napoleon Bonaparte Napoleon Bonaparte (born Napoleone di Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French general and statesman who rose to prominence during the French Revolution and led Military career ...
's
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. On January 1, 1809, he organized a revolution to depose Liniers. Álzaga took his regiments to the streets (the ''"Gallegos"'', ''"Miñones de Cataluña"'' and ''"Vizcaínos"'', all Spaniards), organized a protest against the viceroy and tried to force Liniers to resign. In his place he would name a Junta, managed by Spaniards with two Creole secretaries:
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 bor ...
and Julián de Leyva. Liniers resignation was on the condition that military command passed to general Ruiz Huidobro, his second in command. This disconcerted Álzaga and gave time for colonel Cornelio Saavedra, commander of the Patricios Regiment. He in turn disbanded the mutinous Spanish forces and forced Liniers to withhold his resignation. This failed revolution was a precursor of the
May Revolution The May Revolution () was a week-long series of events that took place from 18 to 25 May 1810, in Buenos Aires, capital of the Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata. This Spanish colony included roughly the territories of present-day Argentina, ...
the following year and highlighted the conflict lines between the royalist Spanish and the Creoles and produced a schism that was the start of the May Revolution. Álzaga was sent to prison to Carmen de Patagones and a trial followed. The mutinous Spanish regiments were disbanded, which eased the way for the May Revolution. Governor Francisco Javier de Elío, in
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, formed a Junta to govern that city and rescued Álzaga from Carmen de Patagones. The Junta was disbanded when the new viceroy,
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, arrived in Buenos Aires. Álzaga took part in the subsequent revolution against Cisneros the following year, and even though he was not present in the open cabildo of May 22, 1810, it is known he participated in the negotiations to leading to the formation of the
Primera Junta The Primera Junta ("First Junta") or ''Junta Provisional Gubernativa de las Provincias del Río de la Plata'' ("Provisional Governing Junta of the Provinces of the Río de la Plata"), is the most common name given to the first government of what ...
, as he placed three members of his party:
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 bor ...
, Juan Larrea and Domingo Matheu.


Trial and death

On 1 July 1812, the government discovered a plot of Spaniards against the
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, whose members Rivadavia, Pueyrredón and Chiclana, prepared to take over on July 5, the fifth anniversary of the defense against the British. During the ensuing investigation, Secretary Rivadavia, based on dubious proof and confessions extended the accusations against Álzaga and his co-conspirators. Álzaga was arrested, tried and condemned to death along with other people. The executions started on July 4, two days after his arrest which raises the suspicion that the trial outcome was previously decided. More than 30 men were executed, including military commanders, merchants and clerics. He was executed on 6 July 1812 in Buenos Aires. The bodies were then hanged and left on the Plaza de la Victoria for three days.


Bibliography

* David Rock, ''Argentina 1516-1987 '' * Wright, Ione S., and Lisa M. Nekhom. ''Historical Dictionary of Argentina'' (1978), pp. 33–34. * Scenna, Miguel Ángel, ''Las brevas maduras''. Memorial de la Patria, Tomo I, Ed. La Bastilla, Bs. As., 1984. * Lozier Almazán, Bernardo, ''Martín de Álzaga'', Ed. Ciudad Argentina, Bs. As., 1998. * Enrique Williams Alzaga,'' Martín de Alzaga en la reconquista y en la defensa de Buenos Aires (1806-1807)''. Buenos Aires, Ed. Emecé, 1971. {{DEFAULTSORT:Alzaga, Martin De 1755 births 1812 deaths Spanish politicians People from Álava People of the Argentine War of Independence People executed by Argentina by firing squad Executed Argentine people Argentine people of Basque descent Executed Spanish people 19th-century executions by Argentina Burials at La Recoleta Cemetery 18th-century Spanish businesspeople Patrician families of Buenos Aires 18th-century merchants People from the Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata