HISTORY

Unitarians were the proponents of the concept of a unitary state, centralized

government, in Buenos Aires during the civil wars that shortly followed the Declaration
of Independence of Argentina in 1816. On the other hand, Federalist wanted
a federation of independent provinces, supporting the autonomy of the provinces and
the distribution of the external commerce taxes among the provinces. They were
primary led by the caudillos, a class of wealthy rural elite who benefited from
protectionist trade and tariff policies due to their dependence on agriculture and exports
for wealth and influence.
After the May Revolution of 1810, disagreements arose between the dominant province
of Buenos Aires, who were Unitarians, and the other provinces of Argentina, who were
Federals. The Unitarians lost their power after the Battle of Cepeda in 1820, which was
followed by several months of chaos. They were forced to sign a treaty with other
provinces but this did not solve the conflicts between the Federalists and the
Unitarians.
Under President Bernardino Rivadavia (1826–1827), the Unitarians gained control for a
short period of time. The Constitution of 1826 allowed for a balance between the ideas
of the Unitarians and the Federalists, that provided for a centralized national authority,
leaving the provinces with considerable local powers, but the constitution was rejected
by provincial caudillos, military leaders, and the conflict continued.
The caudillo was first a warrior. During wars of liberation, civil wars, and national wars,
he was the strongman who could recruit troops and protect his people. Caudillismo, a
system of political-social domination, based on the leadership of a strongman, which
arose after the wars of independence from Spain in 19th-century Latin
America. Caudillismo as a concept was first used in the former Spanish colonies of
Latin America (often called Spanish America) to describe the leaders who challenged
the authority of the governments arising from the independence process after 1810; it
also referred to the political regimes instated by such leaders. Different interpretations
of the origin of caudillismo have included such factors as the militarization of politics as
a result of the wars of independence, the absence of formal rules after the collapse of
the colonial order, the ruralization of power, the importance of monarchical tradition,
the legacy of authoritarianism and anarchism from the Spaniards, and the
characteristics of the village societies.