Artigas, José Gervasio

(born June 19, 1764, probably Montevideo [Uru.]—died Sept. 23, 1850, Ibiray, near Asunción, Para.) Soldier and revolutionary leader regarded as the father of Uruguayan independence. In his youth Artigas was a gaucho in what is now Uruguay. Allied with the Buenos Aires junta, he fought for independence from Spain and won a brilliant victory at Las Piedras. His insistence on federalism against the efforts of Buenos Aires to assert control over the entire region led to civil war. He ruled over a portion of what is now Uruguay and central Argentina until a Portuguese invasion forced him into exile in 1820. Uruguay achieved independence in 1828.

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