Rivadavia, Bernardino

Rivadavia, Bernardino (bārnärthē`nō rēväthä`vyä), 1780–1845, Argentine statesman and diplomat, first president of the United Provinces of La Plata (1826–27). He served (1806–7) under Jacques de Liniers against the British invaders and was a leading advocate of independence in 1810. As a member of the first triumvirate of the young republic (1811–12), he exerted a significant influence. After six years (1814–20) as a diplomat in Europe, he became a minister under Martín Rodríguez, governor of Buenos Aires, and was largely responsible for the progressive measures of that administration. He was envoy to Great Britain before becoming president of the republic. An ardent liberal, Rivadavia instituted many reforms and strove to impose centralistic government on the nation. A unitarian constitution, adopted in 1826, was rejected by Quiroga and other chieftains, who revolted. Rivadavia resigned and went into exile.

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Rivadavia, Bernardino

(born May 20, 1780, Buenos Aires, Arg.—died Sept. 2, 1845, Cádiz, Spain) First president of the Argentine republic (1826–27). Active in the 1810 movement for independence from Spain, he came to dominate the ruling revolutionary triumvirate in 1811. He disbanded the Spanish courts, abolished censorship, and ended the slave trade. Elected president of the United Provinces in 1826, he continued to advance reforms but was unable to extricate his country from a fruitless war with Brazil and was constantly embroiled with provincial caudillos. Unable to win acceptance for a centralist constitution, he resigned. His cultural initiatives, including the founding of the University of Buenos Aires, were among his greatest achievements. Most of his later years were spent in exile.