United Officers' Group
Encyclopedia
The United Officers' Group (Spanish, Grupo de Oficiales Unidos) or GOU was a secret society within the Argentine Army
which staged a coup d'état
in 1943
to overthrow President
Ramón Castillo
, thus ending the Infamous Decade
and forming a military junta
which lasted until 1945. Arturo Rawson
was made President, but was only in office for a few days before the GOU replaced him with Pedro Pablo Ramírez
.
, and wanted to prevent further acts of electoral fraud
by the Infamous Decade
. However, Perón was concerned in that the group would be aiming to make a mere coup d'état
, without planning in advance the social changes they intended to implement.
As with most secret societies, secrecy makes historian's work difficult, and the specific details about the internal work of the society are unrecorded, incomplete or contradictory. One of those details is the creation of the GOU: according to a report by Domingo Mercante
, the GOU was created by him and Perón, between the end of 1942 and May 1943, while Juan Carlos Montes claimed to be the creator with Urbano de La Vega. Both former members of the GOU did not point any specific ideology as the point in common between members, but the need to unite the officers opposed to Agustín Pedro Justo
.
The officials that joined the GOU afterwards are as follows
Presidents Arturo Rawson
, Pedro Pablo Ramírez
and Edelmiro Farrell had close ties to the GOU, but were not members themselves.
suggests that GOU members were nationalist
sympathisers of Nazi Germany
and Fascist Italy
, but Noberto Galasso argues that there is no conclusive evidence for that in documents, reports or confirmed events. Silvano Santander wrote the book Técnica de una traición with documents that would prove that Juan Domingo Perón and Eva Perón
were agents of Nazism. Uruguayan Eduardo Víctor Haedo
was accused as well, which motivated an investigation by the Uruguayan Congress: it turned out that the documents used were forged. There is also a resolution supporting Adolf Hitler, but it is considered another forgery: none of the members of the GOU acknowledged it, and it was unsigned, whereas all GOU resolutions were signed.
On a general level, the military of Argentina was influenced by the German military, but this influence was dated from decades before the rise of Nazism. This influence was also limited to the military topics, and did not include the ideas of political organization.
, using the backronym
"Government, Order, Unity":
The song is missing from most versions of the musical production, but does appear in the 1996 film
, where the above words are not included, but the GOU is still mentioned:
Argentine Army
The Argentine Army is the land armed force branch of the Armed Forces of the Argentine Republic and the senior military service of the country.- History :...
which staged a coup d'état
Coup d'état
A coup d'état state, literally: strike/blow of state)—also known as a coup, putsch, and overthrow—is the sudden, extrajudicial deposition of a government, usually by a small group of the existing state establishment—typically the military—to replace the deposed government with another body; either...
in 1943
Revolution of '43
The 1943 Argentine coup d'état was a Coup d'état on June 4, 1943 which ended the government of Ramón Castillo, who had been fraudulently elected to office, as part of the period known as the Infamous Decade...
to overthrow President
President of Argentina
The President of the Argentine Nation , usually known as the President of Argentina, is the head of state of Argentina. Under the national Constitution, the President is also the chief executive of the federal government and Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces.Through Argentine history, the...
Ramón Castillo
Ramón Castillo
Ramón S. Castillo Barrionuevo was a conservative Argentine politician who served as President of Argentina from June 27, 1942 to June 4, 1943...
, thus ending the Infamous Decade
Infamous Decade
The Infamous Decade in Argentina is the name given to the period of time that started in 1930 with the coup d'état against President Hipólito Yrigoyen by José Félix Uriburu...
and forming a military junta
Military junta
A junta or military junta is a government led by a committee of military leaders. The term derives from the Spanish language junta meaning committee, specifically a board of directors...
which lasted until 1945. Arturo Rawson
Arturo Rawson
Arturo Rawson was the President of Argentina from June 4, 1943 to June 7, 1943.-Biography:Born in Santiago del Estero, Rawson attended Argentina’s Military College, which he graduated from in 1907 and subsequently taught at for a time. Rawson rose through the ranks of the Argentine Army and was...
was made President, but was only in office for a few days before the GOU replaced him with Pedro Pablo Ramírez
Pedro Pablo Ramírez
General Pedro Pablo Ramírez was de facto President of Argentina from June 7, 1943 to February 24, 1944. He was the founder and leader of the Guardia Nacional, Argentina's Fascist militia....
.
History
The GOU started to operate somewhere in the beginning of the 1940 decade, after the time Juan Domingo Perón returned from Europe. In his book "Yo, Juan Domingo Perón", Perón described that the people that would be part of the GOU shared his ideas about the promotion of trade unions and labor rightsLabor rights
Labor rights or workers' rights are a group of legal rights and claimed human rights having to do with labor relations between workers and their employers, usually obtained under labor and employment law. In general, these rights' debates have to do with negotiating workers' pay, benefits, and safe...
, and wanted to prevent further acts of electoral fraud
Electoral fraud
Electoral fraud is illegal interference with the process of an election. Acts of fraud affect vote counts to bring about an election result, whether by increasing the vote share of the favored candidate, depressing the vote share of the rival candidates or both...
by the Infamous Decade
Infamous Decade
The Infamous Decade in Argentina is the name given to the period of time that started in 1930 with the coup d'état against President Hipólito Yrigoyen by José Félix Uriburu...
. However, Perón was concerned in that the group would be aiming to make a mere coup d'état
Coup d'état
A coup d'état state, literally: strike/blow of state)—also known as a coup, putsch, and overthrow—is the sudden, extrajudicial deposition of a government, usually by a small group of the existing state establishment—typically the military—to replace the deposed government with another body; either...
, without planning in advance the social changes they intended to implement.
As with most secret societies, secrecy makes historian's work difficult, and the specific details about the internal work of the society are unrecorded, incomplete or contradictory. One of those details is the creation of the GOU: according to a report by Domingo Mercante
Domingo Mercante
Domingo Mercante was an Argentine military officer and prominent Peronist political figure.-Life and times:...
, the GOU was created by him and Perón, between the end of 1942 and May 1943, while Juan Carlos Montes claimed to be the creator with Urbano de La Vega. Both former members of the GOU did not point any specific ideology as the point in common between members, but the need to unite the officers opposed to Agustín Pedro Justo
Agustín Pedro Justo
General Agustín Pedro Justo Rolón was President of Argentina from February 20, 1932, to February 20, 1938...
.
Members
The original members of the GOU were 19 officials, without a chief. Other members joined later. The recorded list of original members is as follows, in the original order:- Domingo Mercante
- Severo Eizaguirre
- Raúl Pízzales
- León Bengoa
- Francisco Filippi
- Juan Carlos Montes
- Julio A. Lagos
- Mario Villagrán
- Fernando González
- Eduardo Arias Duval
- Agustín De La Vega
- Arturo Saavedra
- Bernardo Guillentegui
- Héctor Ladvocat
- Bernardo Menéndez
- Urbano De La Vega Aguirre
- Enrique P. González
- Emilio Ramírez
- Juan Domingo Perón
The officials that joined the GOU afterwards are as follows
- Eduardo Jorge Avalos
- Aristóbulo Mittelbach
- Alfredo A. Baisi
- Oscar Uriondo
- Tomás Ducó
- Heraclio Ferrazano
- Alfredo Arguero Fragueyro
Arturo Rawson
Arturo Rawson was the President of Argentina from June 4, 1943 to June 7, 1943.-Biography:Born in Santiago del Estero, Rawson attended Argentina’s Military College, which he graduated from in 1907 and subsequently taught at for a time. Rawson rose through the ranks of the Argentine Army and was...
, Pedro Pablo Ramírez
Pedro Pablo Ramírez
General Pedro Pablo Ramírez was de facto President of Argentina from June 7, 1943 to February 24, 1944. He was the founder and leader of the Guardia Nacional, Argentina's Fascist militia....
and Edelmiro Farrell had close ties to the GOU, but were not members themselves.
Nature of the GOU
Little information exists about the GOU. Felipe PignaFelipe Pigna
Felipe Pigna, born in Mercedes, Buenos Aires, in 1959, is an Argentine historian and writer. He's currently among the best selling book authors from Argentina.- Biography :...
suggests that GOU members were nationalist
Nationalism
Nationalism is a political ideology that involves a strong identification of a group of individuals with a political entity defined in national terms, i.e. a nation. In the 'modernist' image of the nation, it is nationalism that creates national identity. There are various definitions for what...
sympathisers of Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
and Fascist Italy
Kingdom of Italy (1861–1946)
The Kingdom of Italy was a state forged in 1861 by the unification of Italy under the influence of the Kingdom of Sardinia, which was its legal predecessor state...
, but Noberto Galasso argues that there is no conclusive evidence for that in documents, reports or confirmed events. Silvano Santander wrote the book Técnica de una traición with documents that would prove that Juan Domingo Perón and Eva Perón
Eva Perón
María Eva Duarte de Perón was the second wife of President Juan Perón and served as the First Lady of Argentina from 1946 until her death in 1952. She is often referred to as simply Eva Perón, or by the affectionate Spanish language diminutive Evita.She was born in the village of Los Toldos in...
were agents of Nazism. Uruguayan Eduardo Víctor Haedo
Eduardo Víctor Haedo
Eduardo Víctor Haedo was a Uruguayan political figure.- Background :Haedo was a prominent member of the Uruguayan National Party...
was accused as well, which motivated an investigation by the Uruguayan Congress: it turned out that the documents used were forged. There is also a resolution supporting Adolf Hitler, but it is considered another forgery: none of the members of the GOU acknowledged it, and it was unsigned, whereas all GOU resolutions were signed.
On a general level, the military of Argentina was influenced by the German military, but this influence was dated from decades before the rise of Nazism. This influence was also limited to the military topics, and did not include the ideas of political organization.
The GOU in popular culture
The GOU is featured in the song "The Lady's Got Potential" from the album EvitaEvita (1976 album)
Evita is a concept album released in 1976 and produced by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice.Having successfully launched their previous show, Jesus Christ Superstar, on record in 1970, Lloyd Webber and Rice returned to the format for Evita...
, using the backronym
Backronym
A backronym or bacronym is a phrase constructed purposely, such that an acronym can be formed to a specific desired word. Backronyms may be invented with serious or humorous intent, or may be a type of false or folk etymology....
"Government, Order, Unity":
The G.O.U. is a three-pronged operation
Government-unopposed and allied
With Order-ruthlessly applied
And Unity-those not on our side
Are subject to the process of elimination
The song is missing from most versions of the musical production, but does appear in the 1996 film
Evita (film)
Evita is the 1996 film adaptation of Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber's musical of the same name based on the life of Eva Perón. It was directed by Alan Parker and written by Parker and Oliver Stone. It starred Madonna, Antonio Banderas, and Jonathan Pryce...
, where the above words are not included, but the GOU is still mentioned:
In June of forty-three there was a military coup
Behind it was a gang called the G.O.U.
Who did not feel the need to be elected