José Gervasio Artigas

José Gervasio Artigas (June 19 1764 - September 23 1850) was a national hero of Uruguay and is sometimes called "the father of Uruguayan independence".

Ideals

He admired the United States of America and was said to always carry a copy of the United States Constitution with him. He wanted the United Provinces of the Río de la Plata government to be based on the same federalist ideas as the United States of America. These ideals went against what the Buenos Aires government of the time wanted (a centralised state; some even supported the idea of putting an European monarch in charge of the newly independent lands), but he managed to gain the support of some other provinces. Because of this, the Buenos Aires government supported the Portuguese invasion of the Banda Oriental.

Related Topics:
United States of America - United States Constitution - United Provinces of the Río de la Plata

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A statue of him stands in Washington, DC.

Related Topics:
Statue - Washington, DC

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