Gervasio Antonio de Posadas
Encyclopedia
Gervasio Antonio de Posadas y Dávila (18 June 1757 (Buenos Aires
) – 2 July 1833 (Buenos Aires)) was a member of Argentina
's Second Triumvirate
from 19 August 1813 to 31 January 1814, after which he served as Supreme Director until 9 January 1815.
Posadas' early studies were at the convent of San Francisco. Then he studied and practiced law with Manuel José de Labardén. In 1789 Posadas was appointed notary general for the bishopric, and held that post until the events of the May Revolution
. He was unaware of the impending revolution and was caught by surprise when the Buenos Aires Cabildo
(town hall) was occupied on 25 May 1810; he did not agree that it had been legitimately done. His donations to the Sociedad Patriótica made him an associate of the Saavedrist
faction, so the leaders of the riots of 5 April 1811 exiled him to Mendoza
. A month later he was appointed solicitor-procurator for the City of Buenos Aires.
The Second Triumvirate commissioned Posadas, Nicolás Rodríguez Peña
and Juan Larrea
to draft a Constitution for consideration by the Asamblea del Año XIII
, then he became part of the Triumvirate when the Assembly granted Executive Power to the Triumvirate. Then on 22 January 1814 the same Assembly decided to concentrate the Executive Power in him as a Supreme Director for the United Provinces, and so he took that office for a one-year period. During his rule, Saavedra
and Campana were exiled, Montevideo
fell to the United Provinces but serious problems arose with José Gervasio Artigas
and the Liga Federal
on the Eastern Bank of the Uruguay River
. Moreover, Ferdinand VII of Spain regained his throne in 1815.
Posadas was succeeded in office by his nephew, Carlos María de Alvear
, who was removed soon afterwards by a military coup d'état. By August 1815 the whole Alvearista faction was in disgrace and Posadas was jailed. The former Supreme Director spent the next six years in 22 different jails. He began writing his memoirs in 1829.
Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires is the capital and largest city of Argentina, and the second-largest metropolitan area in South America, after São Paulo. It is located on the western shore of the estuary of the Río de la Plata, on the southeastern coast of the South American continent...
) – 2 July 1833 (Buenos Aires)) was a member of Argentina
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
's Second Triumvirate
Second Triumvirate (Argentina)
The Second Triumvirate was the governing body of the United Provinces of the Río de la Plata that followed the First Triumvirate in 1812, shortly after the May Revolution, and lasted 2 years....
from 19 August 1813 to 31 January 1814, after which he served as Supreme Director until 9 January 1815.
Posadas' early studies were at the convent of San Francisco. Then he studied and practiced law with Manuel José de Labardén. In 1789 Posadas was appointed notary general for the bishopric, and held that post until the events of the May Revolution
May Revolution
The May Revolution was a week-long series of events that took place from May 18 to 25, 1810, in Buenos Aires, capital of the Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata, a Spanish colony that included roughly the territories of present-day Argentina, Bolivia, Paraguay and Uruguay...
. He was unaware of the impending revolution and was caught by surprise when the Buenos Aires Cabildo
Buenos Aires Cabildo
The Buenos Aires Cabildo is the public building in Buenos Aires that was used as seat of the ayuntamiento during the colonial times and the government house of the Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata...
(town hall) was occupied on 25 May 1810; he did not agree that it had been legitimately done. His donations to the Sociedad Patriótica made him an associate of the Saavedrist
Cornelio Saavedra
Cornelio Judas Tadeo de Saavedra y Rodríguez was a military officer and statesman from the Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata...
faction, so the leaders of the riots of 5 April 1811 exiled him to Mendoza
Mendoza, Argentina
Mendoza is the capital city of Mendoza Province, in Argentina. It is located in the northern-central part of the province, in a region of foothills and high plains, on the eastern side of the Andes. As of the , Mendoza's population was 110,993...
. A month later he was appointed solicitor-procurator for the City of Buenos Aires.
The Second Triumvirate commissioned Posadas, Nicolás Rodríguez Peña
Nicolás Rodríguez Peña
Nicolás Rodriguez Peña was an Argentine politician. Born in Buenos Aires in April 1775, he worked in commerce which allowed him to amass a considerable fortune. Among his several successful businesses, he had a soap factory partnership with Hipólito Vieytes, which was a center of conspirators...
and Juan Larrea
Juan Larrea (politician)
Juan Larrea was a Spanish businessman and politician in Buenos Aires during the early nineteenth century. He headed a military unit during the second British invasion of the Río de la Plata, and worked at the Buenos Aires Cabildo. He took part in the ill-fated Mutiny of Álzaga...
to draft a Constitution for consideration by the Asamblea del Año XIII
Asamblea del Año XIII
The Assembly of Year XIII was a meeting called by the Second Triumvirate governing the young republic of the United Provinces of the Río de la Plata on October 1812....
, then he became part of the Triumvirate when the Assembly granted Executive Power to the Triumvirate. Then on 22 January 1814 the same Assembly decided to concentrate the Executive Power in him as a Supreme Director for the United Provinces, and so he took that office for a one-year period. During his rule, Saavedra
Cornelio Saavedra
Cornelio Judas Tadeo de Saavedra y Rodríguez was a military officer and statesman from the Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata...
and Campana were exiled, Montevideo
Montevideo
Montevideo is the largest city, the capital, and the chief port of Uruguay. The settlement was established in 1726 by Bruno Mauricio de Zabala, as a strategic move amidst a Spanish-Portuguese dispute over the platine region, and as a counter to the Portuguese colony at Colonia del Sacramento...
fell to the United Provinces but serious problems arose with José Gervasio Artigas
José Gervasio Artigas
José Gervasio Artigas is a national hero of Uruguay, sometimes called "the father of Uruguayan nationhood".-Early life:Artigas was born in Montevideo on June 19, 1764...
and the Liga Federal
Liga Federal
The Federal League or League of Free Peoples was a confederal state based around Montevideo from 1815 to 1820...
on the Eastern Bank of the Uruguay River
Banda Oriental
The Banda Oriental del Uruguay was the South American territory east of the Uruguay River and north of the Río de la Plata, coinciding approximately with the modern nation of Uruguay, the Brazilian State of Rio Grande do Sul and some parts of Santa Catarina...
. Moreover, Ferdinand VII of Spain regained his throne in 1815.
Posadas was succeeded in office by his nephew, Carlos María de Alvear
Carlos María de Alvear
Carlos María de Alvear was an Argentine soldier and statesman, Supreme Director of the United Provinces of the Río de la Plata in 1815....
, who was removed soon afterwards by a military coup d'état. By August 1815 the whole Alvearista faction was in disgrace and Posadas was jailed. The former Supreme Director spent the next six years in 22 different jails. He began writing his memoirs in 1829.