Daniel Lozano

It was the last and most short-lived viceroyalty created by Spain in 1776.

It included what is now present day Argentina, Bolivia, Paraguay, and Uruguay.

It controlled an area that was previously under the administration of the Viceroyalty of Peru.

The viceroyalty was a result of King Charles III desire to decentralize rule in the Spanish empire.

It was also a result of a recognition that the area south of Brazil required greater military defenses

In 1776 the first viceroy, started by Pedro de Cevallos, arrived in Montevideo with a large force of men.

He pushed back the Portuguese government and organized a new government in Buenos Aires before being supplanted by another viceroy a few months later.

While in Buenos Aires and with the help of its governor, Cevallos reclaimed Colonia. Colonia is a city in southwest Uruguay that

faced Buenos Aires, Argentina.

In 1766, Spain acquired the French colony on the Falkland Islands, called Port St. Louis, and after assuming effective control in 1767, placed the islands under a governor subordinate to the Buenos Aires colonial administration.

The expulsion of the British settlement brought the two countries (Great Britain and Spain) to the brink of war in 1770, but a peace treaty allowed the British to return from 1771 until 1776 with neither side giving sovereignty.

Later on, Cevallos now free of other matters, started significant transformations in the area, including free commerce (established on September 6, 1777).

Also silver from the Potosi mines which previously went through Peru now went through Buenos Aires.

And an enormous demand grew for salted meat especially in Cuba and Brazil where slaves were fed cheaply.

All this brought much more wealth to Buenos Aires.

There were problems with its economy The production of Potosi declined

Potosi made up around 75% of the viceroyalty's revenue

In 1805, Spain helped France due to their 1795 alliance This year the Battle of Trafalgar was fought

and the Spanish lost their navy. The Spanish prime minister warned the

viceroyalty of an invasion and said that if anything happens that the city of Buenos Aires was on its own.

Throughout this time he was invaded by the British army twice. The first invasion was in 1806 and was led by

Col. William Carr Beresford who invaded Buenos Aires after a failed attempt by Rafael de Sobremonte who fled to Cordoba. In Dec 1806, they were thrown back by the Creoles.

The second invasion was in 1807 and was led by Gen. Sir Samuel Auchmuty who captured Montevideo. Later on in July 1807 John Whitelock led an army to attack Buenos Aires. After having halkf his troop killed, he ordered a cease fire and left.

In both occasions, the Creole population fought off the British.

With the lack of support from Spain and the confidence they gained from defeating the British they decided to become independent from the viceroyalty.

In 1810, exiled the viceroy to the Canary Islands, which ended the Viceroyalty of the Rio de la Plata and launched an independence movement.

As of 1810, Argentina had been self-governed for about a year and Paraguay declared its independence, and the viceroyalty was effectively dissolved.