What today is commonly referred as the Independence of

Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...

was declared on July 9, 1816, by the

Congress A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of ...

of Tucumán. In reality, the congressmen who were assembled in Tucumán declared the independence of the

United Provinces of South America United may refer to: Places * United, Pennsylvania, an unincorporated community * United, West Virginia, an unincorporated community Arts and entertainment Films * ''United'' (2003 film), a Norwegian film * ''United'' (2011 film), a BBC Two f ...

, which is one of the official names of the Argentine Republic. The

Federal League The Federal League of Base Ball Clubs, known simply as the Federal League, was an American professional baseball league that played its first season as a minor league in 1913 and operated as a "third major league", in competition with the e ...

Provinces, at

war War is an intense armed conflict between states, governments, societies, or paramilitary groups such as mercenaries, insurgents, and militias. It is generally characterized by extreme violence, destruction, and mortality, using regular o ...

with the United Provinces, were not allowed into the Congress. At the same time, several provinces from the

Upper Peru Upper Peru (; ) is a name for the land that was governed by the Real Audiencia of Charcas. The name originated in Buenos Aires towards the end of the 18th century after the Audiencia of Charcas was transferred from the Viceroyalty of Peru to t ...

that would later become part of present-day Bolivia, were represented at the Congress.

Causes

The 1810

May Revolution The May Revolution ( es, Revolución de Mayo) was a week-long series of events that took place from May 18 to 25, 1810, in Buenos Aires, capital of the Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata. This Spanish colony included roughly the terri ...

followed the deposition of the Spanish king

Ferdinand VII , house = Bourbon-Anjou , father = Charles IV of Spain , mother = Maria Luisa of Parma , birth_date = 14 October 1784 , birth_place = El Escorial, Spain , death_date = , death_place = Madrid, Spain , burial_plac ...

by the Napoleonic French. The revolution ended the authority of the

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 French word ''roy'', meaning " ...

Cisneros and replaced it with the

Primera Junta The Primera Junta ( en, 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 ...

. When the Spanish monarchy resumed its functions in 1814, Spain was determined to recover control over its

colonies In modern parlance, a colony is a territory subject to a form of foreign rule. Though dominated by the foreign colonizers, colonies remain separate from the administration of the original country of the colonizers, the '' metropolitan state'' ...

in the

Americas The Americas, which are sometimes collectively called America, are a landmass comprising the totality of North and South America. The Americas make up most of the land in Earth's Western Hemisphere and comprise the New World. Along with th ...

. Moreover, the

royalists A royalist supports a particular monarch as head of state for a particular kingdom, or of a particular dynastic claim. In the abstract, this position is royalism. It is distinct from monarchism, which advocates a monarchical system of governm ...

from

Peru , image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg , image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg , other_symbol = Great Seal of the State , other_symbol_type = National seal , national_motto = "Firm and Happy f ...

had been victorious at the battles of Sipe-Sipe, Huaqui, Vilcapugio and Ayohuma, in

, and seriously threatened the United Provinces from the north. On April 15, 1815, a revolution ended the mandate of

Carlos María de Alvear Carlos María de Alvear (October 25, 1789 in Santo Ángel, Rio Grande do Sul – November 3, 1852 in New York), was an Argentine soldier and statesman, Supreme Director of the United Provinces of the Río de la Plata in 1815. Early life H ...

as Supreme Director and demanded that a General Congress be summoned. Delegate deputies, each representing 14,000 inhabitants, were sent from all the

United Provinces of the Río de la Plata The United Provinces of the Río de la Plata ( es, link=no, Provincias Unidas del Río de la Plata), earlier known as the United Provinces of South America ( es, link=no, Provincias Unidas de Sudamérica), was a name adopted in 1816 by the Co ...

to the sessions, which started on March 24, 1816. However, the

Provinces did not send delegates: the Argentine ''littoral'' Provinces ( Santa Fé, Entre Ríos,

Corrientes Corrientes (; Guaraní: Taragüí, literally: "Currents") is the capital city of the province of Corrientes, Argentina, located on the eastern shore of the Paraná River, about from Buenos Aires and from Posadas, on National Route 12. It ha ...

and Misiones), and the Eastern Province (modern-day

Uruguay Uruguay (; ), officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay ( es, República Oriental del Uruguay), is a country in South America. It shares borders with Argentina to its west and southwest and Brazil to its north and northeast; while bordering ...

Development

The Congress was inaugurated in the city of Tucumán, with 33 deputies. The presidency of the Congress would be rotated monthly. Because the Congress had the freedom to choose topics to debate, endless discussions ensued. The voting finally ended on July 9 with a declaration of independence. The Declaration pointed to the circumstances in Europe of the past six years— the removal of the King of Spain by the Napoleon and the subsequent refusal of Ferdinand VII to accept constitutional rule both in the Peninsula and overseas. The Document claimed that

Spanish America Spanish America refers to the Spanish territories in the Americas during the Spanish colonization of the Americas. The term "Spanish America" was specifically used during the territories' imperial era between 15th and 19th centuries. To the e ...

recovered its sovereignty from the Crown of Castile in 1808, when Ferdinand VII had been deposed, and therefore, any union between the overseas dominions of Spain and the Peninsula had been dissolved. This was a legal concept that was also invoked by the other Spanish American declarations of independence, such as Venezuela's (1811) and Mexico's (1810), which were responding to the same events. The president of the Congress at the time was

Francisco Narciso de Laprida Francisco Narciso de Laprida (October 28, 1786 in San Juan – September 22, 1829) was an Argentine lawyer and politician. He was a representative for San Juan at the Congress of Tucumán, and its president on July 9, 1816, when the Declarati ...

, delegate from San Juan Province. Subsequent discussions centered on what form of government the emerging state should adopt. The congress continued its work in

Buenos Aires Buenos Aires ( or ; ), officially the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires ( es, link=no, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires), is the capital and primate city of Argentina. The city is located on the western shore of the Río de la Plata, on South ...

in 1817, but it got stopped in 1820 after the Battle of Cepeda, which deepened the differences between the

Unitarian Party Unitarianists or Unitarians (in Spanish, ''Unitarios'') were the proponents of the concept of a unitary state (centralized government) in Buenos Aires during the civil wars that shortly followed the Declaration of Independence of Argentina in ...

, who favored a strong central government, and the

Federales ''Federales'' (singular ''Federale'' or, rarely but aligning with Spanish, ''Federal'') is a Spanglish word used in an informal context to denote security forces operating under a federal political system. The term gained widespread usage by E ...

, who favored a weak central government. The house where the declaration was adopted has been rebuilt and is now a museum and monument: the

House of Tucumán A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air condi ...

Signatories of the declaration

, Deputy for San Juan, President * Mariano Boedo, Deputy for Salta, Vice-president * José Mariano Serrano, Deputy for Charcas (present-day Bolivia), Secretary * Juan José Paso, Deputy for

, Secretary * Dr.

Antonio Sáenz Antonio Sáenz (June 6, 1780 – July 22, 1825) was an Argentine statesman, educator and cleric. He was a representative to the Congress of Tucumán of July 9, 1816, which declared the Independence of Argentina. He was the first rector of t ...

, Deputy for

* Dr. José Darragueira, Deputy for

* Friar Cayetano José Rodríguez, Deputy for

* Dr. Pedro Medrano, Deputy for

* Dr. Manuel Antonio Acevedo, Deputy for Catamarca * Dr. José Ignacio de Gorriti, Deputy for Salta * Dr. José Andrés Pacheco de Melo, Deputy for Chibchas (present-day Bolivia) * Dr. Teodoro Sánchez de Bustamante, Deputy for

Jujuy San Salvador de Jujuy (), commonly known as Jujuy and locally often referred to as San Salvador, is the capital and largest city of Jujuy Province in northwest Argentina. Also, it is the seat of the Doctor Manuel Belgrano Department. It lies near ...

* Eduardo Pérez Bulnes, Deputy for Córdoba * Tomás Godoy Cruz, Deputy for Mendoza * Dr. Pedro Miguel Aráoz, Deputy for Tucumán * Dr. Esteban Agustín Gazcón, Deputy for

Pedro Francisco de Uriarte Pedro Francisco Uriarte (June 29, 1758 – August 30, 1839) was an Argentine statesman and priest. He was a representative to the Congress of Tucumán which on 9 July 1816 declared the Independence of Argentina. Uriarte was born in Santiago ...

, Deputy for Santiago del Estero * Pedro León Gallo, Deputy for Santiago del Estero *

Pedro Ignacio Rivera Pedro Ignacio Rivera (c. 1759–1833-02-17) was a Bolivian-born statesman and lawyer. He was a representative to the Congress of Tucumán which on 9 July 1816 Argentine Declaration of Independence, declared the Independence of Argentina. River ...

, Deputy for Mizque (present-day Bolivia) * Dr.

Mariano Sánchez de Loria Mariano Sánchez de Loria (24 September 1774–2 August 1842) was a Bolivian-born statesman and lawyer. He was a representative to the Congress of Tucumán which on 9 July 1816 declared the Independence of Argentina. Sánchez de Loria was bor ...

, Deputy for Charcas (present-day Bolivia) * Dr. José Severo Malabia, Deputy for Charcas (present-day Bolivia) * Dr. Pedro Ignacio de Castro Barros, Deputy for

La Rioja La Rioja () is an autonomous community and province in Spain, in the north of the Iberian Peninsula. Its capital is Logroño. Other cities and towns in the province include Calahorra, Arnedo, Alfaro, Haro, Santo Domingo de la Calzada, an ...

* Lic. Gerónimo Salguero, Deputy for Córdoba * Dr. José Colombres, Deputy for Catamarca * Dr. José Ignacio Thames, Deputy for Tucumán * Friar

Justo de Santa María de Oro Justo de Santa María de Oro y Albarracín (3 March 1772–19 October 1836) was an Argentine statesman and bishop. He was an influential representative in the Congress of Tucumán, which on 9 July 1816, declared the Independence of Argentina. ...

, Deputy for San Juan * José Antonio Cabrera, Deputy for Córdoba * Dr. Juan Agustín Maza, Deputy for Mendoza * Tomás Manuel de Anchorena, Deputy for

Recognition of independence

* Kingdom of Hawaiʻi: 1818 *

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of ...

: 1821 *

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

United States of America The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territo ...

: 1822 *

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

: December 15, 1823 *

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...

: 1830 *

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of Denmark , establish ...

: 1841 * United Kingdoms of Sweden and Norway: 1847 *

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

: April 29, 1857

Translations

The Declaration of Independence of the

was written in

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Can ...

and then translated into

Quechua Quechua may refer to: *Quechua people, several indigenous ethnic groups in South America, especially in Peru *Quechuan languages, a Native South American language family spoken primarily in the Andes, derived from a common ancestral language **So ...

and

Aymara Aymara may refer to: Languages and people * Aymaran languages, the second most widespread Andean language ** Aymara language, the main language within that family ** Central Aymara, the other surviving branch of the Aymara(n) family, which today ...

. The version in Aymara is attributed to

Vicente Pazos Kanki Vicente is an Italian, Spanish, and Portuguese name. Like its French variant, Vincent, it is derived from the Latin name ''Vincentius'' meaning "conquering" (from Latin ''vincere'', "to conquer"). Vicente may refer to: Location *São Vicente, Cap ...

(1779-1852).Una Declaración de Independencia en aymara
(in Spanish) Acta Independencia argentina quechua.jpg, Quechua version Acta de Independencia de las Provincias Unidas en Sud América - Español - Aymara.jpg, Aymara version

References

9 de Julio de 1816: Declaración de la Independencia
* Act of Independence – Spanish

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