[CHAPTER VII]
HISTORY
The Spanish colonies as nations—The first-fruits of freedom—Uruguay beneath the heel of Portugal—The advent of a second liberator—Juan Antonio Lavalleja—The forming of the league of the "thirty-three"—Opening of the campaign—The patriot force—Rank and its distribution—The crossing of the River Plate—Commencement of operations in Uruguay—A first success—Spread of the movement—Rivera embraces the patriot cause—The march upon Montevideo—A daring siege—How the army of occupation was deceived—Timely reinforcements—Lavalleja establishes an independent government—Incident at the opening of the Senate—Argentina comes to the assistance of Uruguay—Beginning of the rivalry between Rivera and Lavalleja—Dissension in the Uruguayan army—Temporary disgrace of Rivera—His acquittal—Lavalleja declares himself dictator—Uruguay's independence acknowledged by Argentina and Brazil—The national authorities enter Montevideo.
The end of the year 1824 witnessed the extinction of the last vestige of the power of Spain in South America. With one solitary exception, each former Spanish colony had now raised itself to the status of a nation. It is true that in the majority of cases the inhabitants of these countries suffered not only the wildest of anarchy, but in addition a degree of despotism that had been unknown during the Spanish régime, for all the selfishness of the Peninsula Government. Yet since the flock of tyrants that rose up, each like a grim phoenix, from the ashes of the Spanish Dominion were conceived of the tortured countries themselves, the South Americans took such small comfort as they might from a dim reflection that in their own hands lay the possibility of the improvement in the rulers born from their own bone.
Of these States thus freed from any other despotism but of their own making Uruguay formed the sole exception. For years she had remained beneath the heel of Portugal, writhing uneasily, but unable to remove the weight of the foreign occupation. When the time came for the full independence of the rest, however, Uruguay's longing to acquire their State was no longer to be repressed, even at the cost of the expulsion of the second European power that had fixed upon the land.
The man whose name stands out as the liberator of Uruguay for the second time is Juan Antonio Lavalleja. Ceding place only to Artigas as a national hero, Lavalleja had fought in many actions against the Spaniards, and had distinguished himself not a little in the original revolutionary wars. Alternate military and civil occupations have nearly always fallen to the lot of South American public men, and Lavalleja formed no exception to the rule. At the time when the victory of Ayacucho in Peru crowned the entire campaign against the Spaniards he held the comparatively humble and prosaic post of manager of a meat-curing factory in the neighbourhood of Buenos Aires.
The rejoicings that the victory of Ayacucho aroused in the capital of Argentina stirred to the depth both Lavalleja and a company of fellow-exiles from the Banda Oriental. A meeting of these patriots was held on the spot, the result of which was an enthusiastic determination to place their own country upon the same footing as the rest. Doubtless many hundreds of similar gatherings had already been effected—and concluded by vapourings of thin air. But the spirit of these men who had thus come together was of another kind. Having sworn solemnly to free their country, action followed hotfoot on the heels of words. A couple of their number were sent at once to Uruguay to prepare the minds of a trusted few, while the rest made preparations for the expedition that was to follow.
The mission of the two deputies proved successful. They returned to Buenos Aires, the bearers of many promises of support and co-operation. Nothing now remained but to take the first irrevocable step in the campaign that was to bloom out from this very humble seed.