Juan Gregorio de las Heras
Juan Gregorio de las Heras | |
---|---|
Governor of Buenos Aires Province | |
In office April 2, 1824 – February 7, 1826 | |
Preceded by | Martín Rodríguez |
Succeeded by | Manuel Dorrego |
Personal details | |
Born | |
Rank | Grand Marshal |
Unit | Army of the Andes |
Battles/wars | |
Grand Marshal Juan Gregorio de las Heras (July 11, 1780 – February 15, 1866) was an Argentine soldier who took part in the Spanish American wars of independence and was also a governor of the province of Buenos Aires.
Biography
Las Heras was born in
On November 8, he was appointed as the first commander of the newly created 11th Line Infantry Regiment. Created at the proposal of General San Martín to the Government, during the organization of the Army of the Andes and using the Chilean Auxiliaries as the foundation. This was the same infantry corps that had been sent to Chile in 1812, commanded by then Lieutenant Colonel Las Heras to assist the
In 1815, the 11th Line had the first regimental band of the Army of the Andes, thanks to the economic support of Rafael Vargas, a rancher from Mendoza. When the Army moved to Chile in 1817, the regiment crossed the mountain range using the
In 1817, Las Heras took charge of a part of the Army of the Andes, replacing Antonio González de Balcarce. Leading one column by the pass of Uspallata, he commanded in the battles of Potrerillos, Guardia, and Villa de los Andes. Together with the forces of General San Martin he took part in the Battle of Chacabuco, (12 February 1817), and immediately afterward was sent to the south, where he gained the victories of Curapalihue, Vegas de Talcahuano, and Oavihm, and was present at both of the sieges of Talcahuano under the orders of General Bernardo O'Higgins.
He also participated in the liberating expedition to
After his retirement from the Army in Peru, he went back to the Argentine Republic, where Las Heras was appointed governor of Buenos Aires by the Chamber of Representatives, succeeding General Martín Rodríguez in May, 1824. During his government the congress of the United Provinces of the Río de la Plata met on 16 December 1824, and Las Heras signed an international treaty by which Britain acknowledged the Argentine independence.
On the restoration of the confederation and the election of
Tributes and Memorials
In 1906, the 40th anniversary of his death, his remains were repatriated to Argentina. For this event a medal was issued by the Argentine