= Uruguayan Democratization = A history of '''Uruguayan democratization'''. <> ---- == Banda Oriental == The Uruguay River basin was sparsely populated by nomadic peoples. The river itself served as the legal boundary between Spanish and Portuguese land claims. In actuality though, control over the eastern bank (''Banda Oriental'') traded hands repeatedly. Early on, the Portuguese exploited the remoteness of the region and settled Colonia del Sacramento opposite Buenos Aires on the Río de la Plata, securing a trade and smuggling route on the river. This city traded hands repeatedly, including a cession back to Portugal through the [[WorldHistory/WarpfSpanishSuccession|Treaty of Utrecht]]. On the other hand, Portuguese control over the region was waning in the 18th century, to which point the Spanish settled a fortification at [[Uruguay/Montevideo|Montevideo]] to consolidate control. Territorial conflict in this region ultimately forced the abandonment of the legal complex formed by the Treaty of Tordesillas, the Treaty of Zaragoza, and the papal bull Inter caetera. The Treaty of Madrid in 1750 set the border at the Uruguay River. The seven Jesuit missions that had been established on the eastern bank (the so-called Misiones Orientales) were ordered to relocate west. The Guaraní nation refused the relocation however, and Sepé Tiaraju led a militarized defense. The Guaraní War lasted from 1754 to 1756 and ultimately ended in victory for the joint Spanish and Portuguese forces. However, the Seven Years War broke out that same year; Charles III rose to the throne in 1759 and immediately resolved to renege on the treaty. This theater of the war is sometimes known as the Fantastic War. The Treaty of Paris in 1763 restored the territory to Spain. Portugal soon resumed conflict but the Spanish-Portuguese War ended in decisive Spanish victory. The First Treaty of San Ildefonso in 1777 confirmed Spanish control. The [[WorldHistory/SpanishEmpire#Rio_de_la_Plata|viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata]] was established in 1776 with [[Argentina/BuenosAires|Buenos Aires]] as its capital. Banda Oriental was incorporated into this viceroyalty, but it remained a substantially independent region. Furthermore, as part of the [[WorldHistory/NapoleonicWars|Napoleonic Wars]], the [[UnitedKingdom/WilliamGrenville|British]] repeatedly invaded Buenos Aires. There were also fears that the Portuguese, with their royal court relocated to [[Brazil]] from 1807, would resume regional conflict. The failure of the [[Spain/Monarchs#Supreme_Central_Junta|Junta of Seville]] and the emergence of a provisional Primera Junta in Buenos Aires were the final blows. José Gervasio Artigas led the Union of Free Peoples (''Unión de los Pueblos Libres'') and held effective power in Montevideo. They declared independence from Spain in 1815 and established a federalist government in the Federal League (''Liga Federal''). Brazil did in fact invade however, and ultimately crushed the league. Under Portuguese (and after 1822 [[Brazil|Brazilian]]) rule the region became known as Cisplatina. The Cisplatine War then broke out from [[Argentina|Argentine]] agitation, although their forces were unable to meaningfully advance. Nonetheless, the Treaty of Montevideo in 1828 established Uruguay as a state independent of both Brazil and Argentina. ---- == Republic of Uruguay == The early politics of Uruguay were dominated by the conservative Blancos and the liberal Colorados. These factions did not exist in a bubble. The Colorados were closely related to the exiled Unitarios of Argentina. Manuel Oribe, leader of the Blancos, was a known ally of Juan Manuel de Rosas. Fructuoso Rivera led the Colorados to seize power in 1838. ---- CategoryRicottone