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Category: Military

427. aramburu ◊

Recoleta Cemetery, Buenos Aires, Aramburu

Designed by architect Alejandro Bustillo, the crypt of Pedro Aramburu occupies a very important spot: the end of the cemetery’s main axis & at the feet of President Carlos Pelligrini. Intended to inspire, one of the quotes on the side of the tomb reads:

El progreso, fundamento del bienestar general, es obra de los pueblos y resultado de la riqueza justamente distribuida.

Progress, the foundation of general well-being, is the work of the people & the result of equal distribution of wealth.

Furthermore, an entire series of values is represented around the entire crypt. Included are depictions of Justice, Austerity, Liberty & Equality:

Recoleta Cemetery, Buenos Aires, Aramburu

Pedro Aramburu became the de facto President after the Revolución Libertadora & the brief, 50-day term of Eduardo Lonardi. He governed from 1955 to 1958. Democracy returned after Aramburu left office, but the political & economic situation in Argentina was a disaster in the 1960’s. Periods of military rule alternated with democratically elected leaders like a revolving door. Aramburu even ran unsuccessfully for President in 1963… fate had something else planned for him.

An organization known as the Montoneros formed in the late 1960’s as a Catholic, pro-Perón paramilitary group. Perón backed their terrorist actions… at least while he remained in Spain. In their very first public act—the Montonero debut on the political scene—they kidnapped Aramburu from his Barrio Norte apartment (Montevideo 1053, original building now demolished, a supermarket built in its place).

Disguised as fellow military personnel & claiming the need to take him to a safe haven, in reality they questioned him about the location of Eva’s remains & held him responsible for anti-Perón actions while in office. Aramburu revealed nothing about Eva & paid a heavy price. He was shot & left dead in a field in 1970, to be buried later in Recoleta Cemetery.

General Pedro Aramburu, Recoleta Cemetery

Aramburu’s corpse was stolen from Recoleta Cemetery in 1974 by the same group who murdered him & later recovered by authorities near Parque Las Heras. For the rest of the story, read “The Return of Aramburu“… truth is definitely stranger than fiction.

Recoleta Cemetery, Buenos Aires, Aramburu

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416. carlos pellegrini ◊

Buenos Aires, Recoleta Cemetery, Carlos Pellegrini

As son of highly educated Swiss immigrants, there is little surprise that Carlos Pellegrini grew up with an advantage. Schooled by family members, his talent for language & expression would serve him well in the future.

After attending law school for two years, Pellegrini put his studies on hold to fight in the War of the Triple Alliance in Paraguay, returned to finish his degree & began a life in politics. Pellegrini served in both houses of Congress before becoming Vice-President under Miguel Juárez Celman in 1886.

Buenos Aires, Recoleta Cemetery, Carlos Pellegrini

Argentina faced troubled times during Pellegrini’s lifetime. Buenos Aires began receiving millions of European immigrants. As the population soared, so did national debt. Arrival of a large workforce helped the economy expand at first, but infrastructure demands led to an economic & social crisis. While Pelligrini was in office, foreign debt doubled, salaries dropped, unemployment grew & strikes were commonplace. The fact that President Juárez Celman continued the upper class tradition of electoral fraud made matters even worse.

The violent 1890 Revolution removed Juárez Celman from power, & Pellegrini became President. Although in office for only two years, conditions improved so much that Argentines attributed him with navigating the country through the storm.

Carlos Pellegrini, Recoleta Cemetery

Further contributions by Pelligrini include founding the Jockey Club, an elite social organization for horseracing fans which became a symbol of the oligarchy’s hold on the country. As its first President, references can be found everywhere on the vault. A bronze relief at eye level depicts the Jockey Club façade on Florida Street before it was burned to the ground in 1953 by Perón supporters. No doubt this hatred prevented Pellegrini’s tomb from being declared a National Historic Monument in 1946… that would have to wait until 1964:

Buenos Aires, Recoleta Cemetery, Carlos Pellegrini, Jockey Club

Buenos Aires, Recoleta Cemetery, Carlos Pellegrini, Jockey Club

Buenos Aires, Recoleta Cemetery, Carlos Pellegrini, Jockey Club

Buenos Aires, Recoleta Cemetery, Carlos Pellegrini, Jockey Club

Pellegrini also established the Banco de la Nación, helping strengthen Argentina’s fiscal policy & consolidate national debt. The main branch on Plaza de Mayo would later be constructed by Alejandro Bustillo:

Banco de la Nación, Plaza de Mayo, Alejandro Bustillo

Although without doubt a defender of the upper class, Pellegrini began to understand the need for incorporating other groups in the political process. In part, it was this realization that drove him away from former ally President Roca… also the fact that Pellegrini fought hard in Congress to get Roca’s foreign debt consolidation loan approved which Roca later withdrew without consulting Pellegrini. Passing away in 1906 at the age of 59, today he is remembered mainly for encouraging industrial progress & electoral reform.

Buenos Aires, Recoleta Cemetery, Carlos Pellegrini

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413. homenaje a guillermo brown

Buenos Aires, Recoleta Cemetery, Guillermo Brown

Although Admiral Guillermo (William) Brown died on 03 Mar 1857, Navy officials waited until St. Patrick’s Day to perform a memorial service. Students from Irish Catholic schools were present as was the current Irish ambassador to Argentina, James McIntyre (center, with glasses, in the row of five people below).

Buenos Aires, Recoleta Cemetery, Guillermo Brown

The ceremony lasted about 15 minutes as a military band played both the Argentina & Ireland national anthems & a wreath was laid at the base of Brown’s tomb:

The last piece played by the band was “Amazing Grace” on bagpipes. In spite of the fact that none of Brown’s descendants participated in the ceremony, it is commendable that 154 years after Brown’s death, the country paid homage to one of its most important immigrants… very nice to see.

Buenos Aires, Recoleta Cemetery, Guillermo Brown

Buenos Aires, Recoleta Cemetery, Guillermo Brown

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396. familia del carril ◊

Salvador María del Carril, Recoleta Cemetery

A gigantic mausoleum commemorates the life of Salvador María del Carril, an important figure in the early days of Argentine history. Born in San Juan in 1798, Del Carril studied law & moved to Buenos Aires to participate in national politics. He firmly supported President Rivadavia & encouraged General Juan Lavalle to shoot his childhood friend, Manuel Dorrego, thinking it would prevent civil war. It didn’t.

Salvador María del Carril, Recoleta Cemetery

Del Carril lived in Uruguay during the Rosas period & met his wife, Tiburcia, there… 25 years younger than him. His political life continued to grow in spite of being in exile. Good friends with Justo José de Urquiza, Del Carril was selected as his Vice-President and godfather of the general’s first-born son. In later years, Bartolomé Mitre appointed him to the Supreme Court. Del Carril passed away in 1883, & Tiburcia had this elaborate construction built to honor his memory.

Salvador María del Carril, Recoleta Cemetery

In spite of Del Carril’s decades of participation in Argentine politics, he is also well-known for having major marital problems. Tiburcia apparently liked to spend Del Carril’s fortune… to a point where he published a letter in several major newspapers claiming that he would no longer be responsible for his wife’s debts. That obviously didn’t go over well with Tiburcia:

Salvador María del Carril, Recoleta Cemetery

Rumor has it that before she passed away in 1898 —fifteen years after her husband— Tiburcia requested that her bust look away from Del Carril for eternity. To this day, the unhappy couple have their backs to each other:

Salvador María del Carril, Recoleta Cemetery

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393. lucio v. mansilla

Lucio Victorio Mansilla, Recoleta Cemetery

Lucio Victorio Mansilla was, like Ascasubi, a man whose life could have been a novel. Mansilla embodied the Romantic character: military man, writer, traveler, bon vivant.

Mansilla was born in Buenos Aires in 1831… son of Coronel Lucio Mansilla & Agustina Rozas, sister of Juan Manuel de Rosas, who they called “the star of the Federation.” As a teenager, his parents sent him on a trip to Asia, the Middle East & Europe in order to discourage a love “that was not to his convenience.” Young Lucio traveled through India, Egypt & Turkey as well as France, Italy & England. Those travels would later become material for future works of literature.

After the fall of Rosas, Mansilla’s family moved to France for a year. Lucio married his cousin, Catalina Ortiz de Rosas y Almada, after their return. He challenged José Mármol to a duel in 1856, thinking that the writer had offended his father in the novel “Amália.” The future author was exiled for three years & later sent to fight in the war against Paraguay:

Lucio Victorio Mansilla, Recoleta Cemetery

In 1868 Mansilla supported Sarmiento in his bid for President, who later designated him as frontier commander in Río IV, Córdoba. From there, he embarked on a journey south to defend a peace treaty with the ranquel/rankülche tribe. Mansilla spent 18 days with them & wrote his experiences down to be published in the “La Tribuna” newspaper. His style was colloquial & included many stories, even those told by the campfire. They were published together as “A Visit to the Ranquel Indians,” one of the most striking works of Argentine literature.

Below is an 1868 photo of Mansilla (center, wearing a cape) in what is now Plaza Roca in Río IV… two years before leaving for ranquel territory:

Lucio V. Mansilla, Río IV

From 1876 until his 1913 death in Paris, Mansilla occupied a large number of political positions & published a number of books. But the most important experience of his life—living through & telling his time among the indigenous people of Argentina—had already passed. Mansilla rests in peace in the family vault with his mother & father, & this vault was declared a National Historic Monument in 1946:

Lucio Victorio Mansilla, Recoleta Cemetery

Update (29 Aug 2012): Interestingly, David William Foster of Arizona State University considers Mansilla’s tales of the ranqueles as “one of the great classics of nineteenth-century Argentine prose, ranking perhaps only behind Sarmiento’s Facundo.” More info can be found here.

Photo of Mansilla in Río IV courtesy of the area’s Regional Historic Museum.

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