Indigenous Peoples of Argentina
A number of indigenous groups sparsely populated the area now known as Argentina before its colonization by Europeans in the early 1500s. The Diaguita populated the southeast part of the country, and the Guaraní peoples lived in the east. The Quechua peoples lived in the northern regions, and the Tehuelches (from which the Mapuche tribe originates) inhabited Patagonia. The native populations of the south primarily hunted and fished, but the peoples populating the northern regions developed an advanced material society based on agriculture.
Arrival of the Spanish
Amerigo Vespucci’s voyage to the new world in 1502 brought some of the earliest Europeans to the region via Peru, since Lima was the capital of Spain’s Viceroyalty in America. Modern-day Argentina began as a subordinate of this Viceroyalty, although the search for a new maritime route to Asia and the East Indies led to the voyage of Juan Díaz de Solís to the Rio de la Plata in 1516. Other explorers followed, and in 1536, the small settlement of Buenos Aires was created. In response to their lands being occupied by settlers, native populations battled the Europeans for control of the area, leading to an abandonment of Buenos Aires and the creation of Asunción as the new lead city of the Rio de la Plata region. However, the settlers eventually re-grouped, and in 1580, Buenos Aires was re-founded. Continued success in defending themselves against the attacks of native populations led to the settlers securing the territories that ultimately became semi-independent underneath the Viceroyalty of Peru.
The natural ports on the Rio de la Plata could not be exploited because all business and communication was to be conducted via the Viceroyalty’s capital in Lima, hampering commerce originating from the area. By 1726, Buenos Aires’ population was still only 2,200, and smuggling goods from the region became an accepted form of doing business.
A New Capital
Worries about the defense of the areas south of Peru led to the formation of the Río de la Plata Viceroyalty in 1776, constituted of modern-day Argentina, Bolivia, Paraguay and Uruguay. Buenos Aires was declared the capital of the new Viceroyalty, increasing the status of the region, and paving the way for its economic growth.
Buenos Aires became a flourishing port. The economy grew as a result of the legitimate export of precious metals and leather, making Buenos Aires an attractive place for a land grab. In 1806 and 1807, the British attempted to invade Buenos Aires. After the Spanish fled, colonist militias held off the British invaders, further boosting the confidence of the settlers.
Independence
The Viceroyalty didn’t stay together for long due to developments in Spain, internal struggles among the regions it loosely held together, and the liberal ideas brought to the region from the French Revolution and the American Revolutionary War. In 1810, following an open town meeting, Buenos Aires set up an autonomous local government (a junta) and invited the surrounding provinces to join. A formal declaration of independence was delayed given differing opinions of the many factions