At this time, the Government of Spain sent out to Monte Video a reinforcement of 2200 men. Thus, when in January, 1814, Don Gervacio Posadas was appointed Supreme Director of the united provinces, he found himself with two wars upon his hands in the Banda Oriental. The Argentine army, aided by Artigas, had been unable to capture Monte Video, the garrison of that city was now much stronger than before, and Artigas was actively engaged in cutting off the supplies of the besieging army. Don Juan de Larrea, a Spaniard by birth, and one of the members of the Junta Gubernativa appointed on the 25th May, 1810, was the man to whom belongs the credit of overcoming these difficulties. Up to this time the Spanish fleet had held the command of the estuary of La Plata; the Government of Buenos Aires, inspired by Larrea, now fitted out some small merchant vessels as men-of-war, and, placing them under the command of an Irishman named William Brown, determined to dispute this supremacy.
The Spanish fleet was at that time divided into two squadrons, one stationed at Martin Garcia, an island which commands the entrance to the rivers Uruguay and Paranà, the other stationed at Monte Video. Brown sailed in the first place against Martin Garcia, but was beaten off by the Spanish squadron with heavy loss. He returned to Buenos Aires for the purpose of refitting and procuring reinforcements, after which he again approached the island, and, landing his crews, captured it on the 16th March, 1814. The Spanish squadron fled up the Uruguay, and placed themselves under the protection of Josè Artigas.
Brown then sailed for Monte Video, attacked the Spanish squadron there on the 14th May, and after a desperate conflict against very superior numbers, gained a complete victory, and blockaded the city.
On the 8th May General Alvear crossed the river from Buenos Aires with 3000 men, and with this reinforcement took command of the besieging army. On the 20th June Monte Video, closely invested by land and sea, surrendered. The trophies of this victory were 3500 prisoners, eight standards, 545 guns, and 8200 muskets.
Artigas, on hearing of the surrender, immediately advanced upon Monte Video, but his lieutenant, Otorguez, a caudillo of infamous repute, was twice defeated by a small force detached against him under the command of Colonel Dorrego, but Dorrego was in his turn completely defeated at Guayabo by Don Fructuoso Rivera, in consequence of which, the Government of the united provinces entered into an arrangement with Artigas. On the 24th February, 1815, Artigas took peaceable possession of Monte Video, the Argentine army returned to Buenos Aires, and the Banda Oriental became an independent state.
[V. THE ARMY OF UPPER PERU]
The auxiliary army of the north after its first successes, took the name of "the army of Upper Peru," and, under the command of Colonel Diaz Velez, penetrated victoriously to the confines of the province of Cuzco, but was on the 20th June, 1811, surprised by Goyeneche at the Desaguadero and totally routed. The remains of the army, under the command of Don Juan Martin Puyrredon, made good their retreat, in defiance of all the efforts of the Spaniards to stop them, to the city of Salta. Here Puyrredon and Diaz Velez again attempted to make head against the enemy, but their vanguard was defeated at Nazareno and they were compelled to retreat upon Tucuman. On the march they were joined by General Belgrano, who had been recalled by Government from the Banda Oriental and appointed to the command of this army, at the request of General Puyrredon, whose health was much shattered by the hardships through which he had passed.
On the 26th March, 1812, Belgrano took the command of the army of Upper Peru, which was no longer an army but a disorganised, half armed mob, with a very small supply of ammunition, consisting of barely 1500 men, one fourth of whom were sick. The retreat of Goyeneche gave him time to form an army on the basis of this remnant; again he advanced into the neighbourhood of Salta. Government, too much occupied by the war in the Banda Oriental to send him any effective reinforcement, sent him positive orders to retreat to Cordova. To these orders he paid no attention, till Goyeneche, after quelling an insurrection in Cochabamba, despatched General Tristan with an army of 3000 men to attack him.
In August Belgrano commenced his retreat from Jujui, closely pursued by the Spanish vanguard, till on the 3rd September they drove in his rearguard under Diaz Velez at Las Piedras, upon which he turned on them with his whole army and totally routed them. The success of this skirmish so greatly encouraged his men, that Belgrano, disregarding renewed orders to retreat to Cordova, determined to halt at Tucuman. The inhabitants of this city received him with acclamations, and some of the principal citizens raised a contingent of "gaucho" cavalry among the paisanos for his assistance.
On the 24th September Tristan marched past the city of Tucuman with the idea of cutting off the retreat of Belgrano and compelling him to surrender. Belgrano sallied out and attacked him; he himself at the head of his gaucho allies broke through the Spanish line and assailed them in the rear, while his infantry completely routed their centre, capturing five guns and three standards. The left wing of the Spanish army stood firm, but the next day Tristan beat a precipitate retreat, having lost 450 killed and 700 prisoners; the loss of the patriots was 80 killed and 200 wounded.