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Gervasio Antonio de Posadas

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
In this Spanish name, the first or paternal surname is de Posadas and the second or maternal family name is Dávila.
Gervasio Antonio de Posadas
Supreme Director of the United Provinces of the Río de la Plata
In office
31 January 1814 – 9 January 1815
Preceded bySecond Triumvirate
Succeeded byCarlos María de Alvear
Personal details
Born(1757-06-18)18 June 1757
Buenos Aires
Died2 July 1833(1833-07-02) (aged 76)
Buenos Aires
NationalityArgentine
ProfessionLawyer

Gervasio Antonio de Posadas y Dávila (18 June 1757 – 2 July 1833) was an Argentine lawyer and statesman who served as the first Supreme Director of the United Provinces of the Río de la Plata from 31 January 1814 to 9 January 1815, after having been a member of the Second Triumvirate in 1813–1814.[1][2]

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Posadas studied at the Franciscan convent school in Buenos Aires and later trained in law under Manuel José de Lavardén. In 1789 he was appointed escribano mayor (notary general) of the bishopric, a post he held until the events of May 1810. He briefly served as procurador (solicitor) of Buenos Aires in mid-1810.[3]

Political rise and the Second Triumvirate

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On 19 August 1813 Posadas joined the Second Triumvirate, replacing Antonio Álvarez Jonte; he served until the Assembly concentrated executive power in a single person in January 1814.[2] On 31 January 1814 he took office as Supreme Director of the United Provinces.[1]

Supreme Director (1814–1815)

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Under Posadas, the revolutionary fleet commanded by Guillermo Brown won decisive actions in 1814 (notably the Battle of Buceo), which led to the capitulation of Montevideo on 23 June 1814 and the end of royalist control of the principal naval base in the estuary.[4]

Conflict with Artigas and the Federal League

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Shortly after assuming office Posadas issued a decree on 11 February 1814 declaring José Gervasio Artigas "infamous, deprived of his posts, outside the law and an enemy of the fatherland", and offering a reward of 6,000 pesos for his capture, dead or alive. The measure deepened the conflict between the central government and the Liga Federal.[5][6]

Administrative measures

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On 10 September 1814 Posadas decreed the separation of the territories of Entre Ríos and Corrientes from the Buenos Aires intendancy, establishing them as provinces of the state and fixing their boundaries (including the annexation of the Misiones pueblos to Corrientes). The full text of the decree survives.[7]

Appointments and organization

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During his one-year term Posadas appointed José de San Martín Governor-Intendant of Cuyo (10 August 1814), a post from which San Martín organized the Army of the Andes.[8] He also promoted the creation and equipping of a riverine fleet, a key factor in the 1814 campaign.[9]

International context

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In Europe Ferdinand VII of Spain was restored to the throne in 1814, returning to Madrid in May and re-establishing absolutist rule, developments that reshaped metropolitan policy toward Spanish America.[10]

Resignation

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Amid military tensions with the Ejército del Norte and intensifying internal conflict in the Littoral, Posadas resigned on 9 January 1815; he was succeeded by his nephew Carlos María de Alvear.[1]

Imprisonment and later life

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After Alvear's fall in April 1815 Posadas was imprisoned and confined in multiple locations. In his Autobiografía he recalled having occupied "22 different jails" over six years before being released around mid-1821.[11] He began drafting his memoirs in 1829; a later edition of his Memorias was published in 1920.[12] Posadas died in Buenos Aires on 2 July 1833.[1]

Legacy

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In 1879 the city of Posadas was named in his honor.[13]

Works

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  • Autobiografía (manuscript; excerpts published in Biblioteca de Mayo, Senate of Argentina, 1960).[14]
  • Memorias de Gervasio Antonio Posadas... (1920).[15]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d "Argentina: Supreme Directors: 1814–1820". Archontology.org. 8 May 2025. Retrieved 10 November 2025.
  2. ^ a b "Argentina: Executive Power, 1813–1814". Archontology.org. Retrieved 10 November 2025.
  3. ^ "Posadas, Gervasio Antonio de (1757–1833)". Encyclopedia.com. Retrieved 10 November 2025.
  4. ^ "Acciones navales – 1814". Instituto Nacional Browniano. Retrieved 10 November 2025.
  5. ^ "Decreto de Gervasio A. de Posadas (11 de febrero de 1814)". Educ.ar (Secretaría de Educación, Argentina). Retrieved 10 November 2025.
  6. ^ Asambleas Constituyentes Argentinas, Tomo VI, 2ª parte. Buenos Aires: Senado de la Nación Argentina. 1937.
  7. ^ "Decreto de creación de las provincias de Corrientes y de Entre Ríos (10 September 1814)". Wikisource. Retrieved 10 November 2025.
  8. ^ "San Martín y Cuyo, una unión indestructible". Instituto Nacional Sanmartiniano. 11 August 2024. Retrieved 10 November 2025.
  9. ^ "Times of Revolution – Gervasio Antonio de Posadas's cane". Museo Histórico Nacional (Argentina). Ministerio de Cultura. Retrieved 10 November 2025.
  10. ^ "The Absolutism Restoration Process of Ferdinand VII". Spanish Ministry of Culture. Retrieved 10 November 2025.
  11. ^ Tejerina, María Victoria (2021). ""Dispersos, emigrados y errantes…" La expulsión territorial como castigo político (Buenos Aires, 1816–1820)" (PDF). Andes (in Spanish). 32 (2). Retrieved 10 November 2025. "ocupando '22 distintas carcelarias' durante 6 años continuados desde 1815" (cita la Autobiografía de Posadas, en Biblioteca de Mayo, Senado de la Nación, 1960).
  12. ^ Posadas, Gervasio Antonio de (1920). Memorias de Gervasio Antonio Posadas, director supremo de las provincias del Río de la Plata en 1814. Madrid: Editorial-América. Retrieved 10 November 2025.
  13. ^ "Posadas". Encyclopaedia Britannica. Retrieved 10 November 2025.
  14. ^ Tejerina, María Victoria (2021). ""Dispersos, emigrados y errantes…"" (PDF). Andes. Retrieved 10 November 2025.
  15. ^ Posadas, Gervasio Antonio de (1920). Memorias de Gervasio Antonio Posadas... Retrieved 10 November 2025.
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