Valentín Alsina (December 16, 1802 – September 6, 1869) was an

Argentine Argentines, Argentinians or Argentineans are people from Argentina. This connection may be residential, legal, historical, or cultural. For most Argentines, several (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their ...

lawyer and politician.

Biography

Early life

Alsina was born in

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 ...

and studied law at the University of Córdoba. He occupied diverse posts in government, and had a successful civil career as an advocate and professor of law at the

University of Buenos Aires The University of Buenos Aires (, UBA) is a public university, public research university in Buenos Aires, Argentina. It is the second-oldest university in the country, and the largest university of the country by enrollment. Established in 1821 ...

Political views

Under the government of

Juan Manuel de Rosas Juan Manuel José Domingo Ortiz de Rozas y López de Osornio (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 Confedera ...

, he had to leave the country, as his liberal ideas did not please the dictator at all. From his refuge in

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 ...

, he supported the opposition against de Rosas, both financially and through publications. When Rosas was deposed by

Justo José de Urquiza Justo José de Urquiza y García (; October 18, 1801 – April 11, 1870) was an Argentine general and politician who served as president of the Argentine Confederation from 1854 to 1860. Life Justo José de Urquiza y García was bor ...

, Alsina returned to Buenos Aires, and he was elected provincial Governor in 1852. However, he resigned after a few months, shortly before a military coup took place. In 1853, Buenos Aires left the

Argentine Confederation The Argentine Confederation (Spanish: ''Confederación Argentina'') was the last predecessor state of modern Argentina; its name is still one of the official names of the country according to the Argentine Constitution, Article 35. It was the nam ...

and declared itself an independent state. Alsina, a fervent supporter of

Buenos Aires Province Buenos Aires, officially the Buenos Aires Province, is the largest and most populous Provinces of Argentina, Argentine province. It takes its name from the city of Buenos Aires, the capital of the country, which used to be part of the province an ...

independence, became Governor again in 1857. In 1859, open hostilities broke out between Buenos Aires and the Argentine Confederation, led by Urquiza. After the defeat of the Buenos Aires army at the Battle of Cepeda on October 23, 1859, Alsina had to resign his post, and shortly after Buenos Aires rejoined the Confederation. Alsina became a member of the

Argentine Senate The Honorable Senate of the Argentine Nation () is the upper house of the National Congress of Argentina. Overview The National Senate was established by the Argentine Confederation on July 29, 1854, pursuant to Articles 46 to 54 of the 185 ...

in 1862. When

Bartolomé Mitre Bartolomé Mitre (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 Argentine Civil Wars#National unification, unified Argentina. Mitre i ...

(

President of Argentina The president of Argentina, officially known as the president of the Argentine Nation, is both head of state and head of government of Argentina. Under Constitution of Argentina, the national constitution, the president is also the Head of go ...

between 1862 and 1868) offered him a position as member of the

Argentine Supreme Court The Supreme Court of Argentina (), officially known as the Supreme Court of Justice of the Argentine Nation (, CSJN), is the highest court of law of the Argentine Republic. It was inaugurated on 15 January 1863. During much of the 20th century, ...

he refused and remained serving as a Senator until his death, which occurred just a few months after he took the oath of his son Adolfo Alsina, who became

Vice President of Argentina The Vice President of Argentina (), officially known as the Vice President of the Argentine Nation (), is the second highest political position in Argentina, and first in the line of succession to the president of Argentina. The office was estab ...

in 1868.

References

*''Historical Dictionary of Argentina''. London: Scarecrow Press, 1978.

Biography

Early life

Political views

References

See also