International Encyclopedia of Revolution and Protest

Extract

José Gervasio Artigas was a South American military man, politician, and freedom fighter. He was born in Montevideo, Uruguay, the son of police officer José Artigas Martín and his wife Antonia Rodríguez Arnal. His grandfather was one of Montevideo's first settlers. Artigas is considered the “father of Uruguayan independence.” Gervasio received a moderate primary education in the Franciscan Monastery of St. Bernardino. When he was 12 years old he went to the family lands in the Banda Oriental del Uruguay, “East Bank of the Uruguay River,” today Uruguay. The people living there were called orientalis by the Spaniards in the Río de la Plata. There he became close to the Gauchos and learned horse riding and weapon handling. In 1797, when he was 33 years old, he joined the corps of Blandengues, a special militia of the Viceroyalty of the River Plate. They had the primary functions of police and surveillance along the border with Brazil. The Viceroyalty limits contained the territories of present Argentina, Bolivia, Paraguay, and Uruguay. From 1806 to 1807 he participated in the Spanish resistance against the British invasion at the River Plate. He was appointed captain of the militia and later adjutant major for his efforts to liberate Montevideo and Buenos Aires. During the Battle of Montevideo (1807) Artigas was captured by the British army and was supposed to be shipped to England, ... log in or subscribe to read full text