History of Argentina

The name, Argentina, comes from the Latin word for silver, argentum. The first Spanish settlers named the River Plate the Rio de la Plata (“River of Silver”). Natives of the land provided silver gifts to the survivors of the shipwrecked expedition led by Juan Diaz de Solis. Eventually a legend stretched to Spain of Sierra del Plata, a mountain rich in silver.

Before European travelers settled in Argentina, various nomadic tribes people and two primary indigenous groups occupied the land. In the northwest, close to Bolivia and the Andes, lived a group of people identified as the Diaguita, while further south and to the east were a group identified as the Guarani. These two groups together represent the beginning of permanent agricultural civilization in Argentina as both were involved in the process of fostering the cultivation of maize. In addition, the Diaguita are known for effectively thwarting the mighty Inca from increasing their territory into Argentina.

Possibly it was this victorious stand against the Incas that fueled the fire and allowed these indigenous groups of Argentina to continue on a lengthy battle against colonization and control by the country of Spain. The first Spaniard to attempt travel into Argentina, Juan Diaz de Solis, was killed in 1516, and the native peoples were also able to prevent several other efforts to found Buenos Aires. In fact, it was not until the late 16th century that Buenos Aires was firmly founded. Argentina developed bit by bit under Spanish colonial control. Buenos Aires was established in 1580, and the cattle industry was flourishing as early as 1600.

Eventually, native control of Argentina was destabilized as many of the indigenous people became weakened due to the induction of diseases from Europe. The Spanish still ignored most of the country of Argentina, even after the primary obstacle of the natives was undermined, as Spain became more concerned with the countries of Peru and in developing Lima. Within the city of Buenos Aires, Spain set up a restrictive trade policy, which prohibited Buenos Aires from trading with foreign countries. This fostered within the city a smuggler’s stomping ground.

In 1806 and 1807, invading British forces attacked the city of Buenos Aires, however, the Spanish colony was able to resist the British attacks without help from their mother country. This fueled a sense of confidence in the region’s increasing sense of independence. In 1810, the Argentinians established their own government. However, this independence was undermined when the French captured Spain’s King Ferdinand VII and Argentina was fully subjected under the power of the local viceroyalty. The locals of Buenos Aires rose up against the viceroyalty and stated their loyalty to the captive king. By 1816, the fallout between Argentina and its mother country was extremely obvious, so much so that eventually a party of separatists asserted Argentina’s independence. On July 9, 1816, independence was officially declared. One of the new patriots, Jose de San Martin, together with Simon Bolivar, loosed the chains of Spanish rule in South America.