Revolución Libertadora

Revolución Libertadora
Part of the Cold War
Presidents Eduardo Lonardi and Pedro Aramburu, the first leaders of the post-Perón era in Argentina
Date 16–23 September 1955 Location Argentina Action Military uprising against Peron's Government. For several days, there was some fighting in provinces such as Córdoba and Corrientes. Result Peronist government overthrown Military dictatorship seizes power Eduardo Lonardi becomes acting head of state
Belligerents
Argentine Government Army loyalists Air Force loyalists Peronist Party General Confederation of Labour Nationalist Liberation Alliance	Argentine Armed Forces Argentine Army Argentine Navy Argentine Air Force Argentine Federal Police Argentine Opposition Radical Civic Union Socialist Party National Democratic Party Communist Party Democrat Progressive Party Christian Democrat Party
Commanders and leaders
Juan Perón Alberto Teisaire Guillermo Patricio Kelly	Eduardo Lonardi Pedro Aramburu Isaac Rojas
Political support
Peronists	Radicals Socialists Conservatives Communists Christian democrats
Military support
Loyalists of the Argentine Armed Forces	Dissidents of the Argentine Armed Forces

Argentine Republic República Argentina (Spanish)
1955–1958
Flag Coat of arms
Motto:  "En unión y libertad" ("In Unity and Freedom")
Anthem: Himno Nacional Argentino ("Argentine National Anthem")
Capital	Buenos Aires
Common languages	Spanish, Italian dialects (minority)
Religion	Roman Catholicism
Government	Federal presidential republic under a military dictatorship
De facto President
• 1955	Eduardo Lonardi
• 1955-1958	Pedro Eugenio Aramburu
Historical era	Post-war
• Established	1955
• Repeal of the 1949 Constitution	27 de abril de 1956
• Valle Uprising and the Executions of José León Suárez.	9 June, 1956
• Disestablished	1958
Population
• Estimate	19,710,000
GDP (PPP)	estimate
• Total	$181.17 billion (1958) ; (expressed in international-$ at 2011 prices)
Currency	Argentine peso (moneda nacional)

Revolución Libertadora (Spanish pronunciation: [reβoluˈsjon liβeɾtaˈðoɾa]; Liberating Revolution) as it named itself, was the civic-military dictatorship that ruled the Republic of Argentina after overthrowing President Juan Domingo Perón, shutting down the National Congress, removing members of the Supreme Court, as well as provincial, municipal, and university authorities, and placing the entire Judiciary under commission. This occurred through a coup d'état on 16 September 1955. After two years, it organized conditional elections, which transferred power to a government led by the Radical Arturo Frondizi on 1 May 1958, who would also be overthrown in 1962.

Background

President Perón was first elected in 1946. In 1949, a constitutional amendment sponsored by Peronism introduced a number of workers' rights and the possibility of presidential reelection. The legitimacy of the new constitution is still controversial. Perón was reelected in 1951. At the time, his administration was widely supported by the labor unions, the military and the Catholic Church.

However, economic problems, some of the government's policies, and Perón's own personality cult changed this situation. The opposition criticized Perón because of his treatment of dissidents; writers, artists, politicians and other intellectuals were harassed and sometimes were forced into exile. The government's relationship with the Catholic Church also worsened. As the Church increasingly distanced itself from Perón, the government, which had first respected the Church's privileges, now took them away in a distinctly confrontational fashion. By 1954, the Catholic clergy was openly anti-Peronist, which also influenced some factions of the military. Meanwhile, a Christian Democratic Party was founded in 1954 after several other organisations had been active promoting Christian democracy in Argentina.

By 1955, Perón had lost the support of a large part of the military, who conspired with other political actors (members of the Radical Civic Union and the Socialist Party, as well as conservative groups). There was turmoil in different parts of the country. On 14 June, Catholic bishops spoke against Perón during a Corpus Christi procession which turned into an anti-government demonstration.

Military uprising

First coup attempt

See also: Bombing of Plaza de Mayo

Civilian casualties after the air attack and massacre on Plaza de Mayo, June 1955

On 16 June 1955, 30 Argentine Navy and Air Force aircraft bombed Plaza de Mayo, Buenos Aires' main square, killing over 300 civilians and wounding hundreds more. The attack remains to this day the largest aerial bombing ever executed on the Argentine mainland. The bombing targeted the adjacent Casa Rosada, the official seat of government, as a large crowd was gathered there expressing support for president Juan Perón. The strike took place during a day of official public demonstrations to condemn the burning of a national flag allegedly carried out by detractors of Perón during the recent procession of Corpus Christi.

In retaliation, extremist Peronist groups attacked and burned several churches that night, allegedly instigated by Vice-President Alberto Teisaire.

The only important political support for Perón came from the General Confederation of Labour (the main confederation of labor unions), which called the workers to defend the president. Perón addressed a workers' demonstration on 31 August.

September uprising

On 16 September, a new uprising, led by General Eduardo Lonardi, General Pedro E. Aramburu and Admiral Isaac Rojas, deposed Perón and established a provisional government. For several days, there was some fighting in places like the city of Córdoba (Lonardi's central command), the Puerto Belgrano Naval Base near Bahía Blanca, another naval base at Río Santiago, near La Plata, and a mechanized infantry regiment at Curuzú Cuatiá, Corrientes Province. The rebellion in Corrientes, which was initially defeated, was led by Pedro Eugenio Aramburu, who later became one of the main players of the future government. Two rebel destroyers, which were enforcing the blockade of the Río de la Plata, were strafed by loyalist aircraft and suffered some casualties. The port and the army garrison at Mar del Plata was subjected to naval bombardment on 19 September by the light cruiser ARA 9 de Julio and several destroyers, while scattered skirmishes and airstrikes took place elsewhere, including Buenos Aires itself.

After realizing that the country was on the brink of a civil war, Perón decided to avoid massive bloodshed and resigned as President, subsequently seeking asylum in Paraguay after taking shelter aboard the Paraguay gunboat.

On 23 September, Lonardi assumed the presidency and gave a conciliatory speech from the balcony of the Casa Rosada, saying that there would be "neither victors nor vanquished" (ni vencedores ni vencidos, replaying a phrase uttered by Urquiza when he was victorious over Rosas at the Battle of Caseros). General Lonardi promised that the interim administration would end as soon as the country was "reorganized". His conciliatory tone earned him the opposition of hard-liners, and in November an internal coup deposed Lonardi and placed General Aramburu in the presidency, giving rise to a wild "anti-Peronism".

Aftermath

After the Revolución Libertadora, Perón and his followers were accused of treason, and Eva Perón's remains were moved secretly to Italy and buried in a graveyard at Milan under a fake identity. Public references to Perón or his late wife, including songs, writings and pictures, were forbidden. Even sportsmen like Delfo Cabrera, Mary Terán de Weiss, many of the major basketball players, as well as Olympic-level athlete, Osvaldo Suárez, were unfairly punished, by being accused of having gotten their sports success only because they were Perón followers.

The Peronist Party suffered a proscription that was to last until Perón's return in 1973, even though Perón influenced the results of the 1958 and 1963 elections from his exile in Madrid.

References

Online sources

• (in Spanish) Peronismo.
• (in Spanish) Historia Argentina: Los gobiernos de Perón.
• (in Spanish) Sucesos Históricos Argentinos.
• (in Spanish) Civiles y militares de 1955 a 1983.
• (in Spanish) La Revolución Libertadora en Internet
• (in Spanish) 16 de septiembre de 1955 – Golpe autodenominado “Revolución Libertadora”

Further reading

• Potash, Robert A. (1980) The Army and Politics in Argentina, 1945–1962: Peron to Frondizi Stanford, California: Stanford University Press, ISBN 978-0804710565

• Fracchia, Antonio Luis Sapienza (2022) Revolución Libertadora Volume 1 - The 1955 Coup d'état in Argentina Helion & Company, Warwick, UK ISBN 9781804510322

• Fracchia, Antonio Luis Sapienza (2023) Revolución Libertadora Volume 2 - The 1955 Coup that Overthrew President Perón Helion & Company, Warwick, UK  ISBN 9781804512203