[Uruguayan History]

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Between 1680 and 1683, contesting Spanish ownership of the region, Portuguese colonists in Brazil established several settlements along the Río de la Plata opposite Buenos Aires, such as the Novo Colonia do Sacramento. However, the Spanish made no attempt to dislodge the Portuguese until 1723, when the latter began fortifying the heights around the Bay of Montevideo. A Spanish expedition from Buenos Aires forced the Portuguese to abandon the site, and there the Spanish founded the city of Montevideo in 1726. Spanish-Portuguese rivalry continued in the 18th century, ending in 1777 with the establishment of Spanish rule in the territory under the jurisdiction of the viceroy of Buenos Aires. In 1810 and 1811, Uruguayan revolutionaries, led by General José Gervasio Artigas, joined the patriots of Buenos Aires in revolt against Spain. The Spanish governor was driven from Montevideo in 1814, but in 1816 the Portuguese in Brazil-perceiving that the newly emancipated territory, known as the Banda Oriental (Eastern Shore) del Uruguay, was weak after its struggle with Spain-invaded the territory, ostensibly to restore order. The Portuguese conquest was completed in 1821, when the Banda Oriental was annexed to Brazil. Insurgents, the so-called Immortal 33, led by Juan Antonio Lavalleja, reasserted the independence of the country in 1825 and, aided by Argentina, fought a successful war with the Brazilians, who in 1828 recognized Uruguayan independence.

The República Oriental del Uruguay was organized in 1830, but it was soon divided into hostile factions as a result of rivalry between the leaders of the revolt against Brazil. Civil war broke out in 1836 between the adherents of President Manuel Oribe and those of the first president, Fructuoso Rivera, with the former group called Blancos and the latter Colorados because of the color of their respective white and red flags. During the conflict, the Blancos, aided by Argentine forces, besieged Montevideo, which was held by the Colorados from 1843 until 1852. The Colorados, aided by Brazil and anti-Argentine forces, defeated Oribe and the Blancos. Rivera and the Colorados thereupon took power. The two factions renewed conflict in 1855 and continued it intermittently, with the Colorados retaining control almost continuously after 1865. Between 1865 and 1870 Uruguay was allied with Brazil and Argentina in a war against Paraguay.

In the early 20th century, membership in the two rival political groups ceased to be merely a matter of traditional loyalties. The Blancos became the conservative party, attracting chiefly the rural population and the clergy, and the Colorados became known as progressive and proponents of advanced social legislation. During the presidency of the progressive José Batlle y Ordóñez, between 1911 and 1915, social legislation was enacted, and Uruguay soon became known as the most progressive nation in South America. In 1917, during World War I, Uruguay broke off relations with Germany and leased German ships, seized in the harbor of Montevideo, to the United States. In that year a new constitution, dividing the executive authority between the president and the national administrative council and providing for the separation of church and state, was promulgated. Uruguay joined the League of Nations in 1920. In 1933 President Gabriel Terra, who had taken office in 1931, demanded that the Uruguayan constitution be amended to allow the president wider powers. His demands brought threats of revolution, and he thereupon established a dictatorship. In 1934 another constitution was drawn up by a constituent assembly. During World War II (1939-1945), Uruguay severed diplomatic, financial, and economic relations with the Axis powers. In 1945 the country joined the United Nations.

Tomás Berreta, candidate of the Colorado party and former public works minister, was elected president in 1946, but he died a few months after taking office. Vice President Luis Batlle Berres completed the remainder of Berreta's term. The presidential and general assembly elections of 1950 brought Andrés Martínez Trueba of the Colorado party to power. In 1952 a Trueba-sponsored constitutional amendment, approved the year before, abolished the presidency and transferred executive power to a nine-member national council of government. In retaliation against the Uruguayan policy of granting asylum to Argentine political refugees, the Argentine dictator Juan Perón imposed travel and trade restrictions on Uruguay. The government, in protest, severed diplomatic relations with Argentina in January 1953. Meanwhile, declining wool prices and curtailed meat exports had led to increasing unemployment and inflation. To ease the economic situation, Uruguay entered into trade agreements during 1956 with the People's Republic of China and other Communist countries. The economy continued to deteriorate, however. In 1958, after 93 years of Colorado government, the Blancos were elected by an overwhelming majority. The new government initiated economic reforms; it was faced, however, with leftist agitation and consequent labor unrest, and it charged that Uruguay was being made a base of international communism.

The Blancos continued in power until 1966. In that year they and the Colorados supported a measure for a return to the presidential system, which was approved by referendum in November. In general elections held at the same time, the Colorados won, and Oscar Daniel Gestido, a retired air force general, was elected president. After Gestido died, he was succeeded by the vice president, Jorge Pacheco Areco. Pacheco's anti-inflationary policies triggered widespread unrest, and a guerrilla organization, the Tupamaros, stepped up its drive to overthrow the government and destroy capitalism. From June 1968 until March 1969, Uruguay remained under modified martial law. A fact-finding visit by Nelson Rockefeller, then governor of New York State, in June 1969 was met by violent demonstrations. Pacheco imposed a modified state of siege. In elections on November 28, 1971, the Colorado candidate, Juan María Bordaberry, and the Blanco candidate were virtually tied. In February 1972 the Electoral Court proclaimed Bordaberry president, and he began a five-year term on March 1. Meanwhile, the Tupamaros' violence had escalated, and kidnappings and killings became common. After widespread arrests in 1971, some 150 Tupamaros escaped in two separate prison breaks. In April 1972 Congress declared a state of internal war and suspended constitutional guarantees; some 35,000 police and military searched for guerrilla hideouts. The state of war was lifted on July 11, but constitutional guarantees were further suspended until 1973. Bordaberry soon came under pressure, both from the Blancos and from dissident factions of his own party. Labor reacted to the government's stringent economic and social policies with strikes throughout 1972. Inflation soared, and the currency was devalued ten times in that year.

In February 1973 Bordaberry yielded a measure of his executive authority to the armed forces, which had become more and more assertive as the action against the Tupamaros showed results. This led to a conflict with Congress. Bordaberry then dissolved the legislature, replacing it with a 25-member appointed Council of State, dominated by the military. The Communist-led National Labor Confederation (CNT) responded with a general strike, which was broken by the government, after violent confrontations, on July 11. On August 11 the autonomy of the unions was ended and the CNT was banned. In the following years the military extended its control to most of the country's institutions. In 1976 Bordaberry canceled elections scheduled for that year. Such plans contrasted with the wishes of the armed forces for a gradual return to democracy, and Bordaberry was deposed in June 1976. A new National Council of 25 civilians and 21 military officers subsequently elected Aparicio Méndez, a former minister of public health, as president for a five-year term. Among the first acts of his government was the deprivation of political rights of people active in politics between 1966 and 1973. Some banned politicians reacquired their political rights in the next few years, but many remained under ban until 1980, when the Blanco and Colorado parties were again legalized. A new constitution, submitted to a popular referendum in November 1980, was rejected. The government then canceled the scheduled elections. On September 1, 1981, General Gregorio Alvarez was installed as president for a term expiring in March 1985. Political parties sanctioned by the military held internal elections in 1982.

Presidential elections were held in November 1984, with the armed forces exercising veto power over the choice of nominees. The winner, Julio María Sanguinetti of the Colorado party, a moderate, took office on March 1, 1985. An amnesty covering all members of the military accused of human rights violations from 1973 to 1985 was granted in December 1986 and upheld by referendum in April 1989. In November 1989 Luis Alberto Lacalle of the National party was elected president. Economic stagnation and rising inflation soon prompted him to implement an austerity program and announce plans to privatize state-run companies. In protest, labor leaders called a series of general strikes. The 1994 presidential election was won by former president Julio María Sanguinetti, a candidate for the Colorado party. In legislative elections the Broad Front, a leftist party that includes communist and socialist views, made significant inroads against the more traditional Blanco and Colorado parties.