Oriental Band

Banda Oriental was the name of the territory located east of the Uruguay River and north of the Río de la Plata, on the Atlantic coast of South America. It covered an area that approximately corresponds to the current territory of Uruguay and the current Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Sul. It was the easternmost land of the Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata and its extension decreased as parts of its territory were incorporated into Portugal as part of the Captaincy of Río Grande de San Pedro. Originally, Banda Oriental was the name of the territory located east of the Paraná River.

It did not constitute an administrative unit, except in the short period that was associated with the de facto creation by José Artigas of the Eastern Province in 1813 and the subsequent decree of the Supreme Director of the United Provinces of the Río de la Plata on 7 March 1814, which formally created the Eastern Intendancy Government of the Río de la Plata. From the creation of the Eastern State of Uruguay and its Oath of the Constitution of July 18, 1830, its territory will be divided again. However, writers such as William Henry Hudson or Jorge Luis Borges will continue to associate and name Uruguay as Banda Oriental.

Background

Within the limits of the immense Viceroyalty of Peru, at the beginning of the XVII century, the inhabitants of Asunción, Paraguay, spoke of La Banda Oriental or Banda de los Charrúas (this last name was also applied to Entre Ríos) to mean the territories that in those latitudes gave to "La Mar del Nord" (the name given to the Atlantic Ocean then). The northern area of the Eastern Band was the territory called with the word of Guaraní origin Mbiaza, Mbiaça, Ybiazá or Ibiazá i> (the exit) which, apparently, due to a very remote parophony was "Castilianized" with the name of La Vera. To the north of these territories extended the territory of La Guayrá or La Pinería, which corresponds to the current South Brazilian state of Paraná, a territory that was also under the jurisdiction of Asunción del Paraguay.

At the end of the XVII century La Vera or Ibazá It corresponded to the coasts of Santa Catarina and the current State of Paraná, while to the south we spoke directly of the Banda Oriental (including the so-called Campaign of the Río Grande de San Pedro – in the Portuguese version, Region of Campanha do Rio Grande do Sul). In 1618 the Banda Oriental was integrated into the Governorate of the Río de la Plata. In 1750 the Government of Montevideo was created with jurisdiction over the southern departments of current Uruguay. The territories of the rest of present-day Uruguay along with part of the current Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Sul continued to form part of the Municipality of Buenos Aires. In 1777, by the Treaty of San Ildefonso, Spain delimited this region with Portugal and it was more fully integrated into the Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata.

Limits at the end of the Seven Years' War

At the end of the Seven Years' War, the boundaries with the territories occupied by the Luso-Brazilians fluctuated almost constantly. In general terms, the limit of the Eastern Band at that time was to the northwest the Piratiní River until its mouth in the Atlantic Ocean and to the north the Santa Ana blade (not as it appears in the cartography of the 20th century. XX and beginning of s. XXI, but such as the line of high peaks that are part of the divortium aquarum between the La Plata Basin and the basins directly tributary to the Atlantic Ocean). In this way, the Fort of Santa Tecla, a few kilometers northwest of the current city of Bagé (called by the Spanish, Argentinians and Uruguayans in the 19th century. XIX "Valles"), practically at the headwaters of the Negro River, was one of the precise limits of the Eastern Band. Then, to the north, with the Eastern Band already integrated into the Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata, the border line with the Portuguese possessions of Brazil continued through the aforementioned divortium aquarum whose ridge was called Sierra de los Tapes or Monte Grande (as depicted on the detailed map made by Joseph Varela y Ulloa in 1777), so that the western half of the current state of Río Grande del Sur was part of the Banda Oriental or the Province of the Eastern Misiones, with some of the fortified border towns in that region being: Batovy, Santa María, Cruz Alta and la Guardia de San Martín.

Limits during the Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata

Within the Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata the northern limits of the Eastern Band also varied, depending on the circumstances: at a certain time the Queguay Grande River - formally - the southernmost limit of the Yapeyú ranches, or the Negro River, Later - in fact - it constituted the southern limit of the militarized province of Las Misiones, although in fact the government of Montevideo - and the Banda Oriental - extended to the valley or talweg of the river. Ibicuy and its upper course, called the Santa María River. To the north of this limit were the Eastern Missions, also called Los Siete Pueblos, Las Once Estancias or El Tapé.

Populations of the Eastern Band

Before the arrival of the Spanish, there had been indigenous peoples in the Banda Oriental for several thousand years, as testified by the Indian hills found in the east.

The first Spanish populations of the Banda Oriental, which date back to the XVI century, were ephemeral:

• Fortín de San Lazaro (founded on 7 April 1527 - October 1530, by Sebastián Caboto)
• Puerto de San Salvador (founded in May 1527 - October 1530 by Sebastián Caboto)
• City of San Juan (founded by Captain Juan Romero de Pineda in 1552-1553)
• Ciudad Zaratina del San Salvador (founded by Juan Ortiz de Zárate on 30 May 1574 and abandoned in December 1577)

In 1624, the governor of Buenos Aires Francisco de Céspedes ordered the founding of the Indian reductions of San Francisco de Olivares - of Charrúas - and San Juan de Céspedes - of Chanáes - at the confluence of the Negro River with the Uruguay River. Both reductions were run by Franciscans and disappeared around 1631.

At the time of the Revolution of May 1810, the Banda Oriental had jurisdictions, subdividing into three subsectors: the Municipality of Buenos Aires, the Government of Montevideo and the Government of the Guaraní Missions, without considering the region of Rio. Grande that had passed to Portugal, to the east of the Yaguarón River, the Merín lagoon and the Chuy stream, where Río Grande is located, which had been founded on February 17 by José da Silva Paes as a military colony called Fuerte de Jesús, María, José de Río Grande and since May as a civil colony, a town that remained under Spanish occupation between May 12, 1763 and April 1, 1776 when the Portuguese recovered it, as well as for a brief time in 1767.

Sector dependent on the Government of the Guaraní Missions

To the north of the line of the Queguay and Negro rivers established by Viceroy Juan José de Vértiz y Salcedo, the territory was under the jurisdiction of the Government of the Thirty Towns of the Guaraní Missions. Already at the end of the XVII century, in the ranch of the Guaraní Jesuit missions, dependent on the Yapeyú Reduction, families settled of Guaraní Tapes Indians, in the post posts, on its border at the extreme south, on the Queguay, among them, San Juan Bautista, the most important and which still maintains its large stone walls in use, where the current one is located. Buen Retiro stay (Department of Paysandú - Uruguay). In that place, the wild cattle - also called matrero or malevo -, which were tired, injured or because they had given birth, became “shelf” or tame cattle. These large huampa cattle, selected for their dark hair, gave rise to the word “estancia” (a large area of natural countryside, with animals raised outdoors all year round, as we know it in the Río de la Plata). Other post posts known from that time, important as guarding lands and livestock, were: San Martín, San Jerónimo and San Borja. In the XVIII and XIX centuries , the populations of:

• Paysandú (former settlement, post port of the Guaraní Jesuit missions, which appears on an ancient map of 1749 (drawn by the missionary Fr.Joseph Quiroga Méndez S.J.- Museo del Colegio de Nuestra Señora del Rosario), who had a parish since 1805).
• Villa de Bethlehem (founded on 14 March 1801 by Captain Jorge Pacheco).

As the livestock of the territory of the Eastern Misiones were confused with those located south of the Negro River, a dispute arose over the jurisdiction of the lands located between the Yí and Negro rivers, resulting unfavorable to the missionaries, who with the In order to affirm their jurisdiction, they sent, at the end of 1772, Corregidor Gregorio Soto with 12 families and Father Policarpo Sandú, founding Paysandú.

In 1801 Portuguese forces occupied the seven towns of the Eastern Misiones up to the Ibicuy River and destroyed Santa Tecla and Batoví.

Government of Montevideo

The Political and Military Government of Montevideo included the sector between the Cufré stream, the Pan de Azúcar hill (Uruguay), the Cuchilla Grande (Uruguay) to the Ojosmín hill (Department of Flores) and the Río de la Plata, existing there the populations of:

• City of San Felipe and Santiago de Montevideo (Portuguese settlement between 1723 and 1724, founded on 20 December 1726 by the Spanish Bruno Mauricio de Zabala, had a colonial Cabildo chaired by the governor)
• Villa de San Juan Bautista, present Saint Lucia (founded on December 19, 1782, had a lobby)
• Villa de Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe, today Canelones (founded in 1774 on the site called Talitas and moved on 24 April 1783 to its current location, had a lobby)
• Villa San José (founded on June 1, 1783, had a lobby)
• Pando conception (founded August 5, 1780)
• San Isidro Labrador de las Piedras (founded not officially on March 8, 1744 and as a villa in 1800)
• San Fernando de la Florida Blanca, today Florida (founded April 24, 1809 as she moved from The Paintdated 1800)
• Our Lady of the Most Holy Trinity of the Porongos (founded April 14, 1804) was outside the original jurisdiction of Montevideo.

Rest of the territory

It was under direct dependence on Buenos Aires, in political aspects the government was exercised by the town councils in the towns where they existed. For the military dependency, its government was delegated to the commanders of:

• Commander of Colonia del Sacramento, founded in 1680 by the Portuguese Manuel Lobo, was taken by the Spanish in 1680, 1705, 1762 and 1777 and returned in 1683, 1716 and 1763. The square had a mayor of brotherhood and its commander depended militarily:
  • Rosario del Colla (founded January 24, 1775 as farm of El Colla or Monitoring, villa since 1810), had a mayor of brotherhood.
  • Real de San Carlos (it started as a military camp in 1680, called Campo del Bloqueo until 1762), had a mayor of brotherhood
  • The Viper, founded in 1780, today almost non-existent
  • Las Vacas (ex Jesuit stay), its population was moved by José Gervasio Artigas in 1816 to Carmelo
  • Santo Domingo Soriano (reduced as a reduction of chanáes on the island of Vizcaino on 4 June 1624), moved to its current location in 1708, had a lobby whose jurisdiction was bound by the Uruguay River, Black River, Arroyo Grande, Arroyo Maciel and San Salvador River. They depended on it politically:
    • Our Lady of Mercedes, better known as New Chapel (founded in 1788), had a mayor of brotherhood
    • Dolores de San Salvador (founded on September 22, 1801, when transferred from San Juan or The spindle, site that was populated between 1780 and 1800), had a mayor of brotherhood.
• Border Command in the City of San Fernando de Maldonado (the villa was founded in 1755, was a city since 1786. He had a lobby since September 5, 1784, and since 1792 a minister of Real Hacienda. The command was created on 11 October 1763) of which the military commander depended:
  • Our Lady of the Remedies of Rocha (founded on November 21, 1793 by Rafael Pérez del Puerto), had a mayor of brotherhood
  • Villa de Nuestra Señora de la Concepción de Minas (founded in 1783 by Rafael Pérez del Puerto)
  • Villa de San Carlos (founded by Ceballos in 1763 with Portuguese families, since 1771 ceased to depend on the political affairs of the commander of Maldonado)
  • Fortress of Saint Teresa (founded by the Portuguese in 1762, occupied by Ceballos in 1763). It was a separate command since 1763, before relying on Maldonado. His jurisdiction was between the streams Don Carlos and Cuy. The nearby village of Santa Teresa existed until its abandonment in 1811
  • Fort of San Miguel (built in 1734, abandoned and rebuilt by Portuguese in 1737, was taken by Ceballos in 1763).
• General Command of the Campaign (Cerro Largo), in the Villa de Nuestra Señora del Pilar del Cerro Largo, today Melo (founded on June 27, 1795 next to the Guard of St. Nicholas of Bari or of Cerro Largoexisting since 1791 and founded by Cipriano de Melo y Meneses). Ranked by Portugal in 1801 and recovered by Spain that same year. This command was separated from that of Maldonado at the end of 1795. The guards of: San Luis del PirayAceguá, Arredondo (now Rio Branco), San Antonio de la Barra, San José, Santa Rosa (the last 3 created in 1792 between the Priratiní and Yaguarón rivers).
  • Villa de San Gabriel de Batoví (founded by Félix de Azara on November 2, 1800 and destroyed on June 29, 1801)
  • Fort of Santa Tecla (founded in 1774, destroyed on 29 June 1801)
  • San Rafael del Tacuarembó (guardia founded in 1793 between Batoví and Santa Tecla).

Curates

The first were those of Montevideo, San Fernando de Maldonado, San Carlos, Canelones, Colonia and Santo Domingo Soriano with the help of the parish of Mercedes.

In February 1805, the curates of: Santísima Trinidad de los Porongos, San Benito de Paysandú, San Rafael del Cerro Largo, San José, Concepción de Minas, el Pintado, Carmen del Yí were created.

At other times the following were created: San Isidro de las Piedras, Vívoras and Espinillo.

Since independence

In 1811, before the Luso-Brazilian Invasion of that year led by Diogo de Souza, the Herrera-Rademaker Treaty was signed between the eastern representative of the United Provinces of the Río de la Plata, Nicolás Herrera and the lieutenant colonel of the United Kingdom of Portugal, Brazil and Algarve of English origin Juan Rademaker; In this treaty, a truce was stipulated by which the Luso-Brazilians withdrew to the north of Cuareim, with the Luso-Brazilian invaders establishing a military camp in San Diego - a little more than 24 km southeast of the current Alegrete - and a delimited District of Entre Ríos. to the north by the Ibicuy River, to the east by the Santa María River, to the west by the Uruguay River and to the south by the aforementioned Cuareim (written Quaraí by the Luso-Brazilians); The name given by the Portuguese and Brazilians to such a district suggests that - like "Provincia Cisplatina"- it was a name to set precedents on possible territories to occupy west of the Uruguay River, in the case of " District of Entre Ríos" It seems to have been a name to later claim rights over the Mesopotamian Province of Entre Ríos. On October 12, with the uprising of the Siege of Montevideo (1811), Artigas emerged as the natural leader of the Banda Oriental nation, leading the Eastern Exodus.

Meanwhile, the Luso-Brazilians divided the occupied territories into semaríaies. These sesmarias were handed over to Portuguese and Brazilian landowners or to individuals who were co-opted by the United Kingdom of Portugal, Brazil and the Algarve, a stronghold of which was established on the banks of the Iñanduy stream first with the name of Iñanduy (or in Portuguese Inhanduí) present Estancia Santa Jovita about 24.5 km E.N.E of present-day Alegrete and then on the left bank of the Ibirapuitá River Ibirapuitã River (approximately on the site of present-day Alegrete). The territory was populated mainly by people of Guaraní, Minuan and Charrúa origins, many of them favorable to José Gervasio Artigas, which is why the town ruled by the Luso-Brazilians with the name of Nossa Senhora da Conceiço dos Aparecidos (Our Lady of the Conception of the Aparecidos)) located on the left bank of the Ibirapuitá, it was burned and abandoned in 1814 by its own residents who were favorable to Artigas when the eastern chief and artiguist José Antonio Berdún showed up. That is why the site of that ancient town is today known in Portuguese as "Capela Queimada" 24 km from present-day Alegrete.

In 1813, at the request of José Gervasio Artigas, the Banda Oriental was given the name of Eastern Province, becoming one of the United Provinces of the Río de la Plata, a development that began with the Battle of Las Piedras (1811), in which the leader of the orientals defeats the Spanish colonial army. The patriots claimed the territories of the Political and Military Government of Montevideo and the areas north of the Río de la Plata and west of the Uruguay River up to the limits with the Portuguese domains, which had belonged to the Governorate of Buenos Aires and part of the Government. of the Thirty Towns of the Guaraní Missions.

On March 7, 1814, the Supreme Director of the United Provinces of the Río de la Plata, Gervasio Antonio de Posadas, created the Eastern Intendancy Government of the Río de la Plata, which in fact already existed through the work of José Gervasio Artigas. The Eastern Province was definitively consolidated on June 23, 1814 when the troops sent by the Government of Buenos Aires under the command of Carlos María de Alvear entered Montevideo, putting an end to Spanish domination in the city. Then, the Board of Directors appointed Nicolás Rodríguez Peña as governor. Artigas, leader of the Federal League, did not recognize the Buenos Aires government, and took the city, after the Battle of Guayabos, with his army commanded by Fructuoso Rivera, on January 10, 1815. This combat meant the liberation of the Province Eastern of directorial domination and began the period of maximum power of Artigas. As a consequence of this battle, Carlos María de Alvear offered Artigas the independence of the territory, but the eastern leader became angry with this proposal, due to his ideological defender of Federalism. Between the years, 1816-1819, the Banda Oriental, due to the action of the Portuguese-Brazilian invasion, was occupied in 1820. The eastern army was decimated, in the Battle of Tacuarembó, with Artigas, almost without an army and Rivera surrounded by the troops commanded by Bento Manuel Ribeiro, Don Frutos, as the eastern leader Fructuoso Rivera was known, was forced to make peace, with the "Three Trees Agreement", in the Tres Arboles area, near the coast of the Queguay River (current Buen Retiro ranch camps - Castillo Morató, Department of Paysandú). On August 25, 1825, through the action of Juan Antonio Lavalleja, Manuel Oribe, and other patriots who were members of the Thirty-Three Orientales, they carried out the Liberating Crusade, which after the Embrace of Arroyo Monzón, with the union of Fructuoso Rivera, Independence was declared, the seed of the Eastern State of Uruguay, which would become effective thirteen years later, from those events of 1815, with the Rivera Campaign to the Eastern Missions and the signing of the Preliminary Peace Convention (1828).

It should be noted that, although José Gervasio Artigas himself claimed the Eastern Missions that had been occupied by the Luso-Brazilian invasion, even with such territory, the entire original extension given to the Eastern Band, which would currently include all of Río Grande del Sur, Santa Catarina and even Guayrá or Pinería (approximately, also Paraná).