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Following the second world war and the surge of nationalism, Latin America entered a decade of revolutions. As communism expanded due to its control of the eastern world namely China and The Soviet Union, Latin American countries also embraced this ideology, leading to various bloody conflicts that combined the yearning for a nationalistic government and one that ruled based solely on communism and autocracy. Argentina was no exception, and it was home to one of the most glamorous and world-famous socialist dictatorships. Peron’s professional life started in the army. He was a second lieutenant in the infantry and was later promoted to higher ranks. However, his military skills were not what caught the attention of the world, in fact, many state that he was not the most skillful member of the army, rather, he showed great promise in the world of leadership and academics. The Argentina he was living in suffered greatly after the first world war, entering a recession before the global depression. It was largely unindustrialized, and its economy was largely reliant on its beef exports. Global superpowers like the United States disregarded the country, given that they believed it was to turn into another Brazil and would compete against them in the global agricultural market. This resulted in a lack of foreign investment in Argentina. Nevertheless, the economic situation seemed stable throughout the 20s, but the country was about to face extreme hardship in what would be known as The Infamous Decade.
President Hipolito Yrigoyen was president from 1916 to 1922 and then from 1928 to 1930 as he succeeded the position following the death of his uncle. He was the leader of the Radical Union political party, which focused on empowering the muddle class and establish democracy through free elections. During his presidency, he maintained a neutral stance in World War One, and he nationalized the oil industry. There were various protests that plagued Argentina during his time as commander in chief, but this did not leave a huge mark in his administration, as he countered the protests with military force and disregarded the rest. He was not able to run for a presidential term after 1922 due to constitutional constraints, but as soon as he could run again, in 1928, he won with an overwhelming majority. His second term as president was highly inefficient, some believe the lack of reforms and initiatives was due to his old age. He made no appearances or speeches, and his laconic attitude eventually led to the military coup of 1930. His government was run by aids, who were not transparent in reporting the effects of the Great Depression on Argentina. Representing the far-right Argentine Patriotic League. As Yrigoyen lost control of the country, the Nationalists led by Jose Felix Uriburu started organizing themselves. They carried out their coup successfully on September 6th, 1930 and established a seemingly fascist government that prioritized banning opposing political parties, hushing the media, and getting rid of elections while also suspending the 1853 Constitution. This marked the start of the Decade Infame, the Infamous decade. The 30s in Argentina could be characterized by economic hardship facilitated by the Great Depression, the migration of people from rural areas to the outskirts of bigger cities to look for work, and overall instability both politically and economically. There were four presidents during the Infamous Decade, starting with Uriburu, succeeded by Agustin Pedro Justo Rolon, Jaime Ortiz, and Ramon Castillo. Justo was a military officer that ruled from 1932 to 1938 and was forced to leave his position after corruption and electoral fraud charges. Followed by Ortiz and Castillo, the main achievements of both these presidencies were maintaining a neutral stance in the Second World War. The decade started with a revolution and ended with one as well, but the government that was to follow brought a wave of unprecedented changes that would mark history books like a tattoo.
The 1943 coup was led by Colonel Miguel A Montes and Colonel Juan Domingo Peron. Over 10,000 troupes formed the Casa Rosada, the presidential palace, and overthrew Castillo’s government. The coup was successful, but the political situation that followed was extremely convoluted. Arturo Rawson appointed himself as president of Argentina on that very day. He was heavily involved in the United Officers’ Group’s coup given that he was a skilled military man that was known for leading his troops well. However, his presidency only lasted three days, as members of the GOU—United Officer’s Group— cabinet forced him to resign. He was succeeded by General Pedro Pablo Ramirez, and although he outlasted Rawson, it wouldn’t be for long. He ruled Argentina for the first eight months after the Revolution. Furthermore, he created a completely militaristic government, with his cabinet consisting of former generals, colonels, and admirals. In accordance to this, he took steps to oppress position groups and carried out significant arrests of communist leaders. The administration also took the liberty of dissolving congress and made started to control much more of Argentina’s growing industrial economy. Ramirez started controlling and restricting unions, a decision that would prove fatal to his administration. Juan Peron, who had initially helped Uriburu in the 1930s revolution, started speaking with union leaders. After measured and cautious negotiations, Peron was able to win back the support of unionists who had started cultivating resentments from the government. He helped form an alliance between the workers and the military based on his involvement in the negotiations regarding Jose Peter’s imprisonment due to a series of strikes in a slaughterhouse. Peter was the leader of the Butcher’s Union, and his imprisonment was seen as further silencing of workers unions by the government. The workers wanted him to be released, and Peron delivered their wishes in exchange for said alliance with the military. Peron’s leadership in this intricate game of political chess led to his appointment as Head of the Department of Labor by Ramirez. Determined to climb further within the government, Peron didn’t settle and advocated for his promotion to Secretary of Labor, a request which was met with great support. Following his appointment, he began implementing reforms including improving the pension system, installing a clinic for railway workers, and building technical schools for workers. Bonuses, labor courts, and the prohibition of employment agencies were also amongst the reforms that Peron implemented, and every new decision he made led to growing support from the middle class. Although not yet recognized, this was the start of Peronism, a political ideology based on economic independence, social justice, and political superiority. Peronism is also known as Justicialism, and it does not support capitalist or communist ideals. Nevertheless, this was only the start of what would be a long and influential political career. The seemingly stable status quo brought on by Peron’s new ideas was too good to be true, and soon enough cracks started showing up in the government. Ramirez’s administration started becoming divided. On one hand, the faction led by Ramirez was worried about the growing influence of unions and criticized Peron’s handling and incorporation of said groups. On the other hand, Peron yearned for strong relations between the government and unions, creating strong loyalty from the working class. In reality, this division was not only a political one, but it also divided the military power. Ramirez’s was extremely catholic and right winged, while Peron’s continued to support his pro-union and pro-worker ideals. Worse was yet to come as the world started realizing that Germany was inevitably going to lose the second world war. Argentina had become successful in maintaining neutrality, but as time went on, the United States continued putting pressure on the government to take a stance.
Unable to cope with the pressure imposed by the United States, Argentina broke off ties with Germany and Japan, which led to great turmoil in the Argentina military. The GOU stopped supporting Ramirez due to his decision to get involved in the war, and Ramirez was forced to train in his resignation on March 9th, 1944. Then came Edelmiro Farrell’s dictatorship, which followed immediately after Ramirez’s resignation. Farrell attempted to return to Argentina’s neutral stance before the war. From removing its Argentina Ambassador to freezing bank reserve to canceling export permits, the United States was succeeding in economically and politically isolating Argentina due to its non-compliance in the war. Nevertheless, Farrell continued his leadership, trying to maintain a balance between international relations and regional politics. He appointed Juan Peron as his Vice President, and slowly but surely the idea of pro-labor and nationalism started becoming the mantra of the administration. This would later be dubbed Peronism. Juan Peron embraced his role as Vice President and undertook the issue with the Americans. On March 27th, 1945 they gave in to the pressure, not being able to withstand the economic consequences of the United States' blockade of Argentina, and declared war on Axis powers definitively. With that issue resolved, Argentina was now forced to face a larger, more pressing matter: the further division of its political and social classes. With the new Peronist ideology, Argentina was divided into those who supported Peron, mainly workers and lower class citizens, and those who didn’t, middle and upper-class citizens. The polarization between these two groups led to large criticism of Farrell’s dictatorship, and protests started sparking up around the country. One of these clashes led to the arrest of Juan Peron, as anti-Peronists demanded his imprisonment. Farrell was forced to give in as those who were advocating for Peron’s arrest had strong numbers in the military, and keeping Peron in the presidential palace risked another coup. More heated demonstrations followed, And only four days after his arrest, he was released. His future wife, Eva Duarte, who was to become one of the most emblematic figures of Peron’s presidency, was one of the main advocates for his release. She gathered women’s and labor’s groups and led movements to demand his release. Peron was not ready to give up his role in politics and finally, he was able to become president on June 4th, 1946. His main objectives as president were creating a healthy and sustainable environment for workers, but his opposers say that his government silenced people who critiqued him and also thrived on class division. Some of Peron’s actions involved nationalizing the Central bank and isolated one purchaser of Argentinean grains and oil seeds, the Institute for the Promotion of Trade.
During the Cold War, anti-communist sentiments grew all around the world, and the United States worried that by nationalizing so many industries, Peron was slowly converting Argentina into a communist country. The relations between Argentina and the United States grew weak, but Peron persisted in modernizing the country and trying to strengthen the economy. He did so lately with the support of Eva Duarte, a pioneer feminist who cultivated the love of the public and funneled it to Peron’s administration. She was a strong advocate for social justice and equality, culminating in the Eva Peron Foundation. She made the Peronist movement the people’s, and thus consolidated the power. Not everything was flowers and rainbows, though. Starting in the 50s, students started protesting the censorship of the media and the oppression of dissidents. His government used violence and an iron fist ideology to maintain order, and even after the second world war, Argentina started protecting Nazi war criminals from political trials. Peron’s first term lasted from 1946 to 1952, and the second lasted from 1952 to 1955. He was reelected and attempted to continue his ruling pattern, but opposition to his government started growing after Evita’s death on July 26th, 1952. In 1954 Peron legalized divorce and prostitution, and stories of his relationship with underage girls started to pop up in the media, despite him trying to control it. The Catholic Church which had extreme sway power over Argentina started condemning the president, and the Sacred Consistorial Congregation declared Peron excommunicated, meaning that the church had censored and limited Peron’s role in the church. This not only affected Peron personally, but it was a huge blow to his campaign. In an attempt to bring back his catholic supporters, Peron called for a rally, but it quickly turned violent as Navy Fighter jets dropped bombs over the gathering. The situation worsened, and on September 16th, 1955 a nationalist Catholic group conducted a coup against Peron’s administration. This movement was named the Liberating Revolution, and it forced Peron to escape Argentina, leaving behind a divided country ravaged by hatred and uncertainty. A new military regime was put in place, and they attempted to destroy all traces of the Peronist legacy. Peron tried to use his friendship with Che Guevara, the Cuban Minister, to help him return to Argentina, but was only able to return after placing Hector Campora in the presidential position in 1973. Campora lasted one year as president, and then let Peron succeed him, culminating in his third and last presidential term. Following the patterns of the past, this term was largely a result of great division and unrest in the country. Peron’s health grew increasingly fragile, and some say he might have been senile before starting his third term. He died on July 1st, 1974, and his second wife Isabel Peron succeeded the presidency. The Peron’s reign over Argentina ended in 1976 when a coup supported by the United States overthrew Isabel, and a military junta called the National Reorganization took control. Isabel Peron had started what is called the dirty war, a process in which the military killed any communists, and the National Reorganization junta furthered the campaign. This war resulted in the death of 9,000 people and the disappearance of around 30,000. Peron’s legacy lives on today, as the current leaders of Argentina support his communist and totalitarian ideologies. Argentina’s economy is currently unstable and suffering greatly due to the COVID-19 Pandemic. However, it is a country of beautiful landscapes and caring people, a world of wonders for people who love both history and nature.
Written By: Carolina Mejia Rodriguez
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