Cornelio Saavedra
Cornelio Saavedra | |
|---|---|
 Portrait of Saavedra by B. Marcel, c. 1865 | |
| 1st President of the Primera Junta and the Junta Grande in the United Provinces of the Río de la Plata | |
| In office May 25, 1810 – August 26, 1811[1][2] | |
| Preceded by | Office established |
| Succeeded by | Domingo Matheu |
| Personal details | |
| Born | September 15, 1759 Patriot |
| Spouses |
|
| Children | 3 |
| Signature | British invasions of the Río de la Plata |
Cornelio Judas Tadeo de Saavedra y Rodríguez (September 15, 1759 – March 29, 1829) was an Argentine military officer and statesman. He was instrumental in the May Revolution, the first step of Argentina's independence from Spain, and became the first head of state of the autonomous country that would become Argentina when he was appointed president of the Primera Junta.
Saavedra was the first commanding officer of the
Saavedra was appointed president of the Primera Junta, which took government after it. The local politics were soon divided between him and the secretary Mariano Moreno. Saavedra wanted gradual changes, while Moreno promoted more radical ones. Saavedra encouraged the expansion of the Junta with deputies from the other provinces; this left Moreno in a minority, and he resigned. A later rebellion made on behalf of Saavedra forced the remaining supporters of Moreno to resign as well. He left the presidency after the defeat of the first Upper Peru campaign, and headed to lead the Army of the North. His absence was exploited by political opponents, who established the First Triumvirate and issued an arrest warrant against Saavedra. Saavedra stayed in exile until 1818, when all the charges against him were dropped.[3]
Biography
Early life
Saavedra was born at the hacienda "La Fombera", located in the town of
In 1788, he married Maria Francisca Cabrera y Saavedra, his cousin. Francisca was rich, and it is likely that it was an
British invasions
Buenos Aires was involved in the
The British launched another invasion in 1807 led by John Whitelocke. Saavedra marched to Montevideo, but was informed at Colonia del Sacramento of the capture of the city of British, who intended to use it as a staging point for their planned invasion of Buenos Aires. To frustrate further British operations, Saavedra ordered the withdrawal of all military hardware from Colonia, considered indefensible at that point, and mobilized those troops and equipment to Buenos Aires to fortify the city.[14] The renewed attack to Buenos Aires took place shortly afterwards, the British force consisting of 8,000 soldiers and 18 cannons—significantly more than the 1,565 men and 8 cannons used for the first invasion attempt. After defeating local forces at the pens of Miserere, the British entered the city of Buenos Aires on July 5.[15]
The British encountered an extremely hostile population, prepared to resist to the degree that even women, children and slaves voluntarily participated in the defense. The headquarters of the Regiment of Patricians were located at the Real Colegio de San Carlos, where Saavedra and
The victory against the British brought forth great changes in the politics of Buenos Aires. The viceroy Sobremonte was discredited by his management of the conflict, and the Cabildo increased its influence; as such, it removed the viceroy and appointed Liniers as replacement, an unprecedented action. The local criollos, who had limited chances of social promotion in the system of castas, got such a chance with the increased influence of the militias. Cornelio Saavedra, head of the biggest criollo militia, thus became a highly influential man in the politics of Buenos Aires.[17] He resented the weak support from the Spanish monarchy to the war effort, compared with the strong one received from the cabildos of other cities in the Americas. As a result, he was loyal to the new viceroy, of French ancestry, considering him to be less subject to the internal disputes of the House of Bourbon.[18]
The mutiny of Álzaga
The outbreak of the
Cornelio Saavedra, who was aware of the conspiracy, considered it a plot by
A few months later, the
The May Revolution
The chance expected by Saavedra came in May 1810, when two British ships arrived with the latest news of the Peninsular War. The previous January Seville was invaded, the Junta of Seville ceased working, and some members took refuge at Cadiz and Leon, the last undefeated Spanish provinces. The complete Spanish defeat seemed imminent. The viceroy tried to conceal the information by seizing all newspapers, but some of them were leaked into the possession of the revolutionaries. Colonel Viamonte called Saavedra and informed him of the news, requesting once again his military support.[26] Saavedra agreed that it was a good context to proceed, and gave his famous answer: "Gentlemen: now I say it is not only time, but we must not waste a single hour."[27]
Cisneros called Saavedra and Martín Rodríguez, and requested their military support in the case of a popular rebellion. They refused to give such support, and Saavedra argued that Cisneros should resign because the Junta of Seville that had appointed him did not exist anymore.[28] As a result, Cisneros gave in to the request of Juan José Castelli: to celebrate an open cabildo, an extraordinary meeting of the noteworthy peoples of the city, and discuss the situation. The next day an armed mob, led by Antonio Beruti and Domingo French, occupied the Plaza to demand the making of the open cabildo, doubting that Cisneros would actually allow it. Saavedra addressed the crowd and assured them that the Regiment of Patricians supported their claims.
The open cabildo was held on May 22. The people discussed if Cisneros should stay in power and, in the case he was removed from office, which type of government should be established. Saavedra stayed silent for the most part, awaiting his turn to speak. The most important speakers were Bishop Benito Lue y Riega, Juan José Castelli, Ruiz Huidobro, Manuel Genaro Villota, Juan José Paso and Juan Nepomuceno de Sola, among others. Saavedra was the last one to speak, and suggested that the political control should be delegated to the Cabildo until the formation of a governing Junta, in the manner and form that the Cabildo deemed appropriate. In his speech, he pointed out the phrase: "(...) "And there be no doubt that it is the people that confers the authority or command."[29] This statement was in line with the Retroversion of the sovereignty to the people, a political concept formulated by Castelli, stating that in the absence of the rightful governor the sovereignty returned to the peoples, who had then the power to give it to someone else. Castelli aligned his position with Saavedra's, becoming the common position which was eventually passed with 87 votes.[30]
However, the Cabildo appointed a Junta headed by Cisneros, who would stay in power, even if under a new office. Saavedra was appointed to this Junta, as well as Castelli and two peninsulars. They made the oath of office, but the Junta was received with strong popular unrest, as it was perceived as going contrary to the result of the open cabildo. By the night, Saavedra and Castelli resigned, convincing Cisneros to do the same.
The Cabildo rejected Cisneros' resignation, and ordered the military to control the crowd and enforce the resolution of the previous day. The commanders pointed out that if they did so, their soldiers would mutiny. As the demonstration overran some sections of the cabildo, Cisneros' resignation was finally accepted. The members of the new Junta were the result of a document with hundreds of signatures, drafted among the people in the plaza. Cornelio Saavedra was the president of this Junta. He rejected this at first, fearing that he may be suspected of promoting the revolution for personal interest,[31][32] but finally accepted at Cisneros' request. As the Junta was established on May 25, the other cities were invited to send deputies to a constituent assembly to discuss the type of government; on May 27, they were invited to send deputies to join the Junta. Both invitations were contradictory, but the consequences would take place some months later.[33]
The precise authorship of the aforementioned document is unclear, and so is the origin of the composition of the Junta. Saavedra said in his memoirs that it was "the people", without being more precise. As he protested being appointed president, he could not be part of the negotiations (Manuel Belgrano and Mariano Moreno, other members, are reported to have been appointed without their consent as well). It could not have been the Regiments of Patricians either: the Junta was not a military junta (only two of nine members were military), and the regiment would not have appointed Moreno, whose rivalry with Saavedra was known.[34] A common accepted theory considers it to be a balance between Carlotists and Alzaguists.[35]
The presidency of the Junta was the result of the high influence of the militias in general and Saavedra in particular in the local politics. From that time on, he spent most of his time at the fort of Buenos Aires, managing the government with Moreno, Belgrano and Castelli. It is likely that he left his business for this.[36]
The Primera Junta
Cornelio Saavedra was aware that the Junta would be resisted by factions still loyal to the old authorities. It was resisted locally by the
However, as time passed, Saavedra and Moreno distanced from each other. There was some initial distrust in the Junta towards Saavedra, but it was just the result of his desire for honours and privileges rather than an actual power struggle.[45] When the initial difficulties were solved, Saavedra promoted an indulgent policy, while Moreno insisted on taking radical measures. For instance, the Junta discovered on October 16 that some members of the Cabildo secretly swore loyalty to the Regency Council. Moreno proposed executing them as a deterrent, and Saavedra replied that the government should promote leniency, and rejected the use of the Regiment of Patricians to carry out such executions. Saavedra prevailed, and the plotting members of the Cabildo were exiled instead of executed.[46] Overall, Moreno was supported by "The Star" regiment, the other members of the Junta, and the activists of the May Revolution; Saavedra was supported by the merchants, the loyals to the old regime that saw him as a lesser evil, and the Regiment of Patricians, which was the largest one.[47]
To counter the power of Saavedra, Moreno sought to modify the military balance of power by reforming the promotion rules. Up until that point, the sons of officials were automatically granted the status of cadet and were promoted just by seniority; Moreno arranged that promotions were earned by military merits instead. However, in the short run this measure worked against him, as it antagonised members of the military who got promoted precisely because of such rules.[48]
Saavedra thought that the victory at the battle of Suipacha strengthened his perspective, as the Junta would have defeated its enemies.[49] He considered that Moreno's animosity was rooted in the aforementioned mutiny of Álzaga, as Moreno took part in it.[50] The victory was celebrated at the barracks of the Patricians, where the officer Anastasio Duarte, who was drunk, made a toast to Saavedra, as if he was America’s king. Moreno drafted the Honours Suppression decree when he knew about it, which suppressed the ceremonies and privileges of the president of the Junta inherited from the former office of viceroy. However, Saavedra signed it without complaint.[51] The Regiment of Patricians resented Moreno because of this,[52] but Saavedra considered that it was a disproportionated response to a trivial issue.
The arrival of the deputies called months ago generated disputes about the role they should have. Mariano Moreno supported the May 25 invitation, and wrote at the
The deputies and the Junta met on December 18, to decide what to do. Funes, who was close to Saavedra, argued that Buenos Aires had no right to appoint national authorities by itself and expect obedience from the provinces. The nine deputies voted for their incorporation, as did Larrea, Azcuénaga, Matheu and Alberti, founding members of the Junta. Saavedra declared that the incorporation was not fully legal, but that he supported it for public convenience. Only Juan José Paso voted with Moreno against the incorporation of the deputies. Left in a minority within the Junta, Moreno resigned. He was appointed to a diplomatic mission in Europe, but died in high seas, in unclear circumstances.[55] Some historians consider that Saavedra plotted to murder Moreno, others that it was a negligence of the captain, and others that it was because of Moreno's frail health.[56]
The Junta Grande
With the new members, the Junta was renamed as Junta Grande. Cornelio Saavedra, who continued being president, had a clear control of it, together with Gregorio Funes. Although Moreno was no longer part of the Junta, his former supporters still plotted against Saavedra, meeting at the "Café de Marcos". They accused Funes and Saavedra of being carlotists.[57] The regiment of Domingo French attempted to mutiny, but they were discovered and defeated. It is unknown if Moreno was involved in this attempted mutiny or not.[58]
The dispute was finally settled by the Revolution of the shoreline dwellers. The mayors Tomás Grigera and Joaquín Campana, supporters of Saavedra, led the "shoreline dwellers" (Spanish: orilleros, poor people living in the outskirts of Buenos Aires) to the Plaza, along with the Regiment of Patricians, and demanded the resignation of the morenists Hipólito Vieytes, Azcuénaga, Larrea and Rodríguez Peña, appointing the Saavedrists Juan Alagón, Atanasio Gutiérrez, Feliciano Chiclana and Campana as their replacements. It was requested as well that the government should not change its political style without voting it first. However, although the revolution was done in support of Saavedra, Saavedra denied having any involvement in it, and condemned it in his autobiography.[59]
Saavedra began to lose political power from this point. The decree of Mariano Moreno that changed the military promotions, which was never derogated, began to bear fruit, even if Moreno was not in the Junta anymore. The army became more professional, and less based on militias. Many of the new military authorities opposed Saavedra. The political crisis increased with the unfavourable military outcomes of the war: Belgrano was defeated at the Paraguay campaign, Castelli at the Upper Peru campaign, and the capture of Montevideo became increasingly difficult with the intervention of Portuguese troops supporting it. The many members of the Junta made the internal work difficult, as all measures were discussed by all members, hindering the swift reactions needed by the war. Saavedra left Buenos Aires at this point, and headed to the Upper Peru, to take command of the Army of the North. He thought that he could be of greater help as a military leader than facing the political struggles of Buenos Aires.[60]
Fall and persecution
Saavedra was warned by fellow members of the Junta, military leaders and even the Cabildo that if he left Buenos Aires, the government would be prone to fall into a political crisis. He left anyway, convinced that he would be able to reorganize the Army of the North. The warnings were justified; shortly after his departure, the Junta was turned into a legislative power, while the executive would be managed by the First Triumvirate. This arrangement lasted for a short time, then the Junta was abolished.[61] The Regiment of Patricians made a mutiny against the triumvirate, but failed.
Saavedra received the news eight days after arriving in Salta. He was informed that he was deposed as president of the Junta, and that he should hand the command of the Army of the North to Juan Martín de Pueyrredón. Trying to avoid returning to Buenos Aires, he requested to be relocated at Tucumán or Mendoza. He was allowed to stay at the later city, rejoining his wife and children. The press of Buenos Aires was very harsh about him, so the Triumvirate asked the governor to capture Saavedra and send him to Luján, near Buenos Aires. The order, however, was never carried out because the triumvirate was deposed by the Revolution of October 8, 1812, and replaced by the Second Triumvirate.[62]
The appointment of the supreme director
Saavedra settled in San Juan in 1814. He had a new son, Pedro Cornelio, and maintained a simple life growing grapes. He awaited the final decision of Posadas, but the supreme director had a political crisis at the time. The Spanish king Ferdinand VII had returned to the throne and demanded the colonies to return to their former organization, the royalists at Upper Peru were still a threat, and José Gervasio Artigas opposed Buenos Aires as well, because of its high centralism. As a result, Carlos María de Alvear became the new supreme director, who would decide the final fate of Cornelio Saavedra.[64]
Last years
Alvear ordered Saavedra to move immediately to Buenos Aires, to close the case. He arrived to the city in time, and Alvear was sympathetic to his situation. However, Alvear was forced to resign a few days later, before being able to rule the case. The
Finally, the supreme director Juan Martín de Pueyrredón appointed a commission to discuss the case of Saavedra. By this time, the Congress of Tucumán had made the Argentine Declaration of Independence a couple of years before. The commission restored Saavedra with the military rank of brigadier, and ordered the payment of all the wages he did not receive during the time he was demoted. A second commission ratified the ruling. The payment was not enough to compensate Saavedra's losses, but he considered it a token of his restored prestige. He was appointed then to help with the protection of the frontier with the natives at Luján.[66]
Angered with the passivity of Buenos Aires during the
He died on March 29, 1829. He was taken to the cemetery by his sons. There was no state funeral at the time, because Juan Lavalle made a coup against the governor Manuel Dorrego and executed him, starting a period of civil war. Lavalle was defeated by Juan Manuel de Rosas, who was appointed governor. Once he restored peace, Rosas made a state funeral for Saavedra, on January 13, 1830.[68]
Legacy
As president of the first government body created after the May Revolution, Saavedra is considered the first ruler of Argentina. However, as the Spanish juntas were not a presidential system, Saavedra was not the first President of Argentina; that office would be created a decade afterwards. The Casa Rosada, official residence of the President of Argentina, holds a bust of Saavedra at the Hall of busts.
The Regiment of Patricians is still an active unit of the Argentine Army, currently as an air assault infantry. It is also the custodian of the Buenos Aires Cabildo, the welcoming party for visiting foreign dignitaries to Argentina and the escort and honor guard battalion for the City Government of Buenos Aires. As of September 22, 2010, the regiment's headquarters building has been declared as a National Historical Monument by the Argentine government, on the occasion of the country's bicentennial year.
The historiography of Cornelio Saavedra is closely related to that of
Subsequently, revisionist authors would formulate accusations against Moreno, depicting him as a British agent and a man of mere theoretical European ideas without a strong relation with the South American context. Saavedra is depicted instead as a popular caudillo, a predecessor of José de San Martín and Juan Manuel de Rosas. This perspective did not acknowledge that the wealthy citizens were aligned with Saavedra against Moreno, that Saavedra himself was wealthy and aristocratic, and that the 1811 revolution made no requests of a social nature, save for the removal of Morenist forces from the Junta.[70]
Descendants
Among his most prominent descendants must be mentioned his son Mariano Saavedra, twice governor of the Province of Buenos Aires between 1862 and 1865, his grandson Cornelio Saavedra Rodríguez, Chilean military officer in charge of the Occupation of Araucania, and his great-grandson Carlos Saavedra Lamas, politician and diplomat, Nobel Prize for Peace in 1936.[71]
The Saavedra neighbourhood was founded in honor of his nephew Luis María Saavedra, a prominent businessman of the late nineteenth-century.[72]
A descendant of his brother Luis Gonzaga Saavedra, León Ibáñez Saavedra, fathered
References
- ^ "Biografía de Cornelio Saavedra". Archived from the original on 2016-10-02. Retrieved 2016-09-29.
- ^ "Cornelio Saavedra (1759–1829)".
- OCLC 232116446.
- ^ Luna, p. 28
- ^ Luna, p. 29
- ^ Luna, p. 42
- ^ a b Luna, p. 51
- ^ Luna, p. 53
- ^ Luna, pp. 61–63
- ^ Luna, p. 71
- ^ National..., p. 494
- ^ National..., p. 495
- ^ Luna, p. 72
- ^ National..., pp. 494–495
- ^ National..., pp. 494–495
- ^ Luna, pp. 76–77
- ^ Luna, p. 78
- ^ National..., pp. 495–496
- ^ Luna, p. 11
- ^ Luna, pp. 81–82
- ^ National..., p. 496
- ^ Luna, p. 82
- ^ Saavedra, p.59. Spanish: No es tiempo, dejen ustedes que las brevas maduren y entonces las comeremos.
- ^ Luna, p. 84
- ^ Luna, p. 85
- ^ Luna, pp. 87–89
- ^ Saavedra, p. 60
- ^ Luna, pp. 89–91
- ^ Santillán, p. 408
- ^ Santillán, p. 409
- ^ Scenna, p. 39
- ^ National..., p. 498
- ^ Luna, p. 115
- ^ Scenna, pp. 38–47
- ^ Luna, p. 39
- ^ Luna, p. 94
- ^ Galasso, p. 8
- ^ Galasso, p. 10
- ^ Galasso, p. 11
- ^ Galasso, p. 18
- ^ Galasso, pp. 20–21
- ^ Scenna, p. 75
- ^ Scenna, pp. 78–79
- ^ National..., pp. 498–499
- ^ Galasso, pp. 12–13
- ^ Galasso, pp. 68–69
- ^ Galasso, p. 69
- ^ Galasso, p. 70
- ^ Galasso, p. 83
- ^ Galasso, p. 85
- ^ Luna, pp. 113–114
- ^ Galasso, p. 90
- ^ Luna, pp. 115–117
- ^ Galasso, pp. 108–109
- ^ Luna, pp. 118–120
- ^ Scenna, pp. 96–100
- ^ Luna, p. 120
- ^ Galasso, pp. 119–121
- ^ Luna, pp. 120–123
- ^ Luna, pp. 123–125
- ^ Saavedra, pp. 128–129
- ^ Luna, pp. 129–133
- ^ Luna, pp. 134–139
- ^ Luna, pp. 139–140
- ^ Luna, pp. 140–142
- ^ Luna, pp. 142–143
- ^ Luna, pp. 144–145
- ^ a b National..., p. 502
- ^ Scenna, pp. 82–83
- ^ Galasso, pp. 126–127
- ^ "El 6 de junio de 1937 Carlos Saavedra Lamas recibía el Premio Nobel de la Paz" (in Spanish). Argentina.gob.ar. 2020-06-03. Retrieved 2023-10-14.
- ^ "Las dos fundaciones de Saavedra". periodicoelbarrio.com.ar. Retrieved 7 September 2019.
- ^ Genealogy of Matilde Ibáñez, Uruguayan First Lady
Bibliography
- ISBN 950-581-799-1.
- ISBN 950-49-0725-3.
- ISBN 978-950-04-3258-0.
- Saavedra, Cornelio (2009). ISBN 978-987-609-171-8.
- Abad de Santillán, Diego (1965). Historia Argentina (in Spanish). Buenos Aires: TEA (Tipográfica Editora Argentina).
- ISBN 978-987-1494-05-4.
External links
- La Gazeta Federal (in Spanish)
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